North Carolina's standard residential purchase contract handles special assessments in one short sentence: "Buyer shall take title subject to all Special Assessments that may be approved following Settlement." On Figure Eight Island, that sentence matters because of the way New Hanover County pays for keeping Mason Inlet in place.
The county does the dredging first. Years later, commissioners add up what it cost and approve a special assessment on the owners who benefit. Under the contract's default terms, what decides who pays is whether that approval comes before or after Settlement. The date the sand reached the beach has nothing to do with it. Since the last vote in November 2023, the county has finished one full dredging cycle and has just opened bids on a second.
A Bill Assembled After the Fact
This setup dates to the late 1990s. In June 1999, county commissioners adopted a preliminary assessment resolution for relocating Mason Inlet, which at the time threatened the Shell Island resort. According to the commissioners' agenda that WECT summarized in 2023, the 1999 resolution "included monitoring and maintenance to keep the inlet healthy, and comply with US Corps of Engineers permit that authorized the project." The county began the relocation in 2002 and moved the inlet about 3,000 feet north of where it had been.
The maintenance is billed on a look-back schedule. Port City Daily reported that the county assesses Mason Inlet maintenance costs about every five years, and that the Mason Inlet Preservation Group, roughly 1,000 property owners on Figure Eight and the North End of Wrightsville Beach, covers operating and maintenance costs.
The most recent cycle shows the pattern. Commissioners approved the special assessment on Nov. 20, 2023, and it covered costs from Aug. 1, 2018 through Aug. 31, 2023. Here is how that cycle played out, as WECT reported it:
- Late October 2023: County staff mailed preliminary assessment letters to owners on Figure Eight Island, North Wrightsville Beach, Shell Island, Wrightsville Dunes, Cordgrass Bay and Duneridge.
- Nov. 20, 2023: Commissioners approved a total of $4,069,039. County Chief Financial Officer Eric Credle's presentation put Figure Eight owners' share at $2,281,521 and North End Wrightsville Beach owners' share at $1,787,518.
- By Dec. 11, 2023: Bills were to go out to property owners.
- Through June 30, 2024: Owners could pay with no interest, or choose five annual payments at 7% interest.
Figure Eight carried about 56% of that five-year total. The reports give community-level shares only. The public sources reviewed for this post do not lay out the formula the county uses to divide the cost among individual parcels.
Two Dredging Cycles Since the Last Vote
The 2023 assessment period closed on Aug. 31, 2023. All dredging since then has happened after that cutoff.
| 2023–24 cycle | 2026–27 cycle | |
|---|---|---|
| Contractor | Ahtna Marine & Construction Company | Cottrell Contracting Corporation, apparent low bidder |
| Contract or bid amount | About $6.45 million | $4,480,080 base bid, preliminary |
| Engineering firm | Gahagan and Bryant Associates, $300,000 | Gahagan & Bryant Associates of NC |
| Sand destination | Figure Eight's beach | Southern beachfront of Figure Eight |
| Status | Reported complete in April 2024 | Bids opened Sept. 23, 2026, under review |
WECT reported on April 4, 2024 that the 2023–24 dredging and beach renourishment was finished, with more than 500,000 cubic yards placed on Figure Eight's beach.
The county published the 2026–27 invitation to bid on Aug. 21, 2026. The base work is hydraulic dredging of about 376,000 cubic yards of shoaled material from Mason Inlet, Mason Creek and the Atlantic Intracoastal Waterway, placed on the southern beachfront of Figure Eight Island. Another 75,300 cubic yards seaward of the COLREGS line was listed as an optional bid item. Bids went to Bryan Hall, the county's Coastal Protection Coordinator. The bid documents say the county plans to award the contract by Nov. 15, 2026, once the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers authorizes the work, and bidders had to show they could finish before March 31, 2027.
Three bids were opened. According to the preliminary bid abstract, Cottrell came in at $4,480,080, Southwind Construction at $5,171,157.29 and Gator Dredging at $6,423,000 for the base bid, or $7,423,000 with the optional work included. The abstract says the results are preliminary and under review. The StarNews reported on Sept. 30, 2026 that the county was reviewing bids and that dredging was expected to start in the coming months.
The calendar matters for a sale. If the five-year rhythm holds, both cycles fall after the last assessment period ended. The county has not published when the next period closes or which costs it will include. As of October 2026, no one can quote the next bill, and no bill has been approved.
Where Form 2-T Draws the Line
Most residential sales in the state use the NC REALTORS® and North Carolina Bar Association Offer to Purchase and Contract, Standard Form 2-T. The NC REALTORS® forms list shows a July 2026 revision. The marked-up copy of the form that NC REALTORS® posts is stamped with the July 2025 revision, and it defines a Special Assessment broadly enough to cover a county charge like this one:
"A charge against the Property by a governmental authority in addition to ad valorem taxes and recurring governmental service fees levied with such taxes, or by an owners' association in addition to any regular assessment (dues), either of which may be a lien against the Property."
The form then splits responsibility at one moment in time. The seller pays in full at Settlement every Special Assessment "approved prior to Settlement, whether payable in a lump sum or future installments, provided that the amount thereof can be reasonably determined or estimated." The buyer takes title subject to anything approved after Settlement.
On Figure Eight, that split meets the county's look-back billing. Take a house that changes hands in the middle of an assessment period. The seller owned it while the Ahtna sand went onto the beach and while the 2026–27 dredge works this winter. If commissioners approve the next Mason Inlet assessment after Settlement, the default contract language puts that bill on the buyer. If Settlement comes a few weeks after the vote, the outcome flips, and the seller pays the full amount at Settlement, installment portion included, provided the amount can be reasonably determined or estimated. The same dredging and the same dollars land on a different party depending on which side of the vote Settlement falls. These are the form's default terms, and the parties can negotiate different ones in their contract.
What the Disclosure Paperwork Covers
North Carolina's Residential Property and Owners' Association Disclosure Statement, form REC 4.22, revised July 2026, has a question that touches this directly. Question G1 asks whether the property is subject to "proposed assessments," along with liens, judgments and "notices from any governmental agency that could affect title to the property." A separate question, H1, deals with owners' association dues and association special assessments. The Mason Inlet charge comes from the county, not the Figure Eight homeowners association. It belongs with the governmental questions, and association paperwork may never mention it.
Brokers have their own duty, apart from the seller's answers. The North Carolina Real Estate Commission says brokers must make reasonable efforts to discover and disclose material facts, meaning facts that could affect a reasonable person's decision to buy or sell, no matter whom they represent. The Commission's instructions for REC 4.22 say brokers must disclose material facts they know or reasonably should know, whatever the owner checked on the form. A recurring county assessment with a documented five-year history and an active bid is the kind of thing that framework is built to bring to light, even before any new dollar amount exists.
Questions Worth Putting in Writing
A Figure Eight sale with Settlement set between assessment votes raises questions that public records can partly answer. The closing attorney and the county can help with the rest:
- Has New Hanover County announced when the current Mason Inlet assessment period ends, or scheduled a hearing on a new assessment?
- Have preliminary assessment letters gone out? In 2023, they were mailed about a month before the commissioners voted.
- Did the seller choose installments on the 2023 assessment, and are any of those five annual payments still outstanding?
- Did commissioners award the 2026–27 contract, at what amount, and has the work started?
- Does the purchase contract use Form 2-T's default language on Special Assessments, or did the parties agree to something different?
Quick Answers
Is the Mason Inlet charge the same as Figure Eight HOA dues? No. It is a county special assessment approved by New Hanover County commissioners, and the 2023 assessment also covered owners on the North End of Wrightsville Beach.
Has Cottrell Contracting been hired for the 2026–27 work? As of mid-October 2026, Cottrell is the apparent low bidder. The county calls the results preliminary and under review, with an award planned by Nov. 15, 2026, pending Corps authorization.
How much did Figure Eight owners pay last time? Their combined share of the assessment approved in November 2023 was $2,281,521, covering costs from August 2018 through August 2023.
If you plan to sell on Figure Eight Island before the next Mason Inlet vote, or you're writing an offer there now, The Waller Team can go over the assessment timeline with you and how it affects your numbers at settlement. Request a Free Home Valuation to start the conversation.
This article is general information, not legal, tax or financial advice. Consult a qualified professional about your situation.
