Rick and Dr. Cindy Heldrich developed a thorough knowledge of Ashley Harbor a decade ago by way of a weekly ritual. The couple lived in a neighboring subdivision but always were intrigued with the gated community.

"Every Sunday, we would go to an open house. We've looked at every house in here," she said, with a grin.

The Heldrichs eventually settled on a 4,000-square-foot brick home in the West Ashley neighborhood. "We've lived here 10 years," said Heldrich, a pediatrician.

"For me, it's real close to my office," she said. "We live on the lake," making it possible to walk out the back yard for a swim or go for a sail in a Hobie Cat.

The Heldrichs are not the only people enamored with the 150-home neighborhood partly ringed by a wall off Ashley Hall Plantation Road. The community, which dates to the early 1980s, provides such amenities as tennis courts and the 30-foot-deep interior pond, originally a borrow pit for nearby Interstate 526. Some lots are on deep water along Bulls Creek. Many homes are sizable, from 3,000 to 6,000 square feet. Lots have large front yards and smaller rear plots with big oak trees dotting the properties.

If hefty home prices are any indication, Ashley Harbor is being discovered. Three homes are on the market, priced at $1.25 million to $2.2 million, according to Realtor.com.

People don't just like Ashley Harbor when they're driving around but when they buy, too. "We have a lot of people who move up in the neighborhood," said Carl Pierce, a lawyer and president of the community's homeowners association.

"There are beautiful views," he said of the exclusive neighborhood, carved from the original Ashley Hall Plantation.

The neighborhood allows lake docks, but motor boats are prohibited. "It's deep and full of fish," Pierce said.The neighborhood champions against visual clutter to the point that real estate signs are banned from yards.

It hasn't always been easy to find a place to live in Ashley Harbor. "I looked for over two years," Pierce said.

The family, which also includes wife Angie, stepson Trey and children Caleb and Hannah, built a five-bedroom, six-bath Colonial home based on a Southern Living design with a two-car garage and winding stairway.

"This is the first time I've lived in a gated community. It's nice," Angie Pierce said.

The family moved from Folly Beach, which was enjoyable but a fair distance even from the closest grocery store. Ashley Harbor, in turn, is a few blocks from S.C. Highway 61. "It's so convenient," she said.

The secluded subdivision is also a short drive on I-526 to Charleston International Airport and is minutes from Bon Secours St. Francis Hospital. "It's full of physicians, cardiologists and surgeons," Pierce said.

The neighborhood has its share of families -- "very kid-friendly," he said.

Landowner W.C. Kennerty started developing Ashley Harbor more than 20 years ago. He still lives on a more than 4-acre spread on the northeast side of the neighborhood.

"It's great people, a real nice kind of feeling," Pierce said.

To reach Ashley Harbor from downtown Charleston, travel across the Ashley River Bridge and bear right onto St. Andrews Boulevard (Highway 61). Continue on Highway 61 to Ashley Hall Plantation Road. Turn right on Ashley Hall Plantation. The neighborhood is on the left at Port Side Way.

An alternate route is to take Interstate 26 to the Cosgrove Avenue exit over the North Bridge. Continue on Sam Rittenberg Boulevard to Ashley River Road (Highway 61) and turn right.