The Second Home Muse

TreeHouses Are In...the Trees

A friend of mine just let me in on one of the coolest vacation home ideas ...a treehouse resort. "Out and About", located in Oregon, satisfies all my childhood wishes of really living up in a tree. Just as good as staying in the resort, is the fact that they also run workshops on how to build a treehouse of your own.

What is so neat about the treehouses is that they allow you to create your vacation dream without interfering with nature and the trees that have taken so long to grow. At the resort, some of the treehouses are actually 35 feet high, nestled in a redwood. They even have wonderful catwalks to get to the houses and back to the level ground.

As for the merits of building a treehouse as your vacation home, to quote my friend Meera, "It's just really awesome." My question is... does the house get higher as the tree grows taller? In any case, check it out.

Golf Communities are Green

Have you thought about where you want to retire? If it's to a golf community, here's some good news. A recent article from Inman News reports on the really positive environmental impact that a golf course makes. Gone are the days when we look at that swatch of green and think, what a waste of water and money. It's actually the opposite. For one thing, most golf courses turn out to be a great way to absorb water in particularly difficult flood zones. They keep erosion at bay and they actually protect the watershed from runoff. For example, in Bodega Bay, where run-off into the bay is a serious matter, the local golf community uses recycled water for watering their greens, and then, ups the watering during rain to be sure that run-off is kept on the green and out of the harbor.

Another boon, according to researcher from Colorado State, is  that "turfgrasses also absorb significant amounts of carbon dioxide," which, as we know, is one of the main culprits in our climate crisis.

Of course, the decision on where to retire has many other factors, but the Inman article makes the point that you can at least think of the green benefits of the greens, if that's your choice in life.

Second Home "Must-Haves"

At last, after a drought in exciting second home news, an article that is so fascinating, I highly recommend reading it. The International Trib reprinted a New York Times article, spelling out major changes in what people are looking for in a second home. As befits the baby boomer generation, it's all about nature. It seems that things like golf and tennis are often already present in first homes. So more and more second home resorts are supplying the outdoor experience. This may include naturalist-led hikes, organic gardens, mountain biking and bird identification, to name just a few. The article mentions resorts in places like Jackson, Wyoming; Big Sky, Montana; and Burnsville, North Carolina that are catering to the tastes of baby boomers with quality outdoor experiences.

I love it. We'll have to refine our 'what do you want in a second home' checklist to include things like identifying salamanders, nocturnal wildlife walks, and fully-staffed nature centers. Go, baby boomers!

What Kind of Vacation Home Do You Need?

In today's second home market, the buyer actually has quite a few choices besides just a second home. These include timeshares, condo-hotels, residence clubs, fractionals and destination clubs just to name a few. The ARDA, a professional association devoted to the vacation market, offers these suggestions on how to make your choice, according to an article released on BusinessWire.com:

1. How much time will we be using the vacation home?
2. Is the destination choice difficult to purchase in or seem over-valued due to location popularity?
3. Are we looking at this second home as an investment and/or family legacy, or perhaps primarily as an annual 'go to' vacation spot?
4. How much time and money are we willing to invest in home maintenance or decor?
5. Is it important to be in the same vacation home every time we visit the area, or do we prefer variety?
6. What level of luxury are we seeking, and are we realistically able to achieve it in a second home?
7. Is it important for the vacation home to be deeded?
8. What is our annual vacation budget?

Taking time to evaluate your needs is a smart way to make the right investment, at the right time.  Thanks to ARDA for this helpful list.

Condo Hotels or Bust

In the best of all real estate times, a condo hotel might have made good sense. However, here we are in 2006, with a cooling market. One real estate advisor expressed some strong opinions recently about avoiding buying into a condo-hotels, especially in Florida. He points out that there are about 28,000 condo-hotels in Florida, with 32,000 condo-hotel rooms currently under development. The majority are in Miami, Fort Lauderdale, Boca Raton and Palm Beach.  The main point is that the idea, while it might have been viable, turns into a losing proposition when the market is way over saturated. Owning a place in a condo-hotel and hoping to always cover costs via your rentals puts you directly into competition with proper hotels. And if there's a choice, and the price is equal, it's hard to imagine luring people away from the hotels.

Personally, I think that his point is well taken, and I'd go one step further. I'd opt for a simple condo ownership, where the price isn't over-inflated because of the 'hotel' attribution. Then you are in the apples to apples market, competing with other condos, and have far more chance of getting a reasonable way to own a second home, and make some rental money too. 

Yurts: A Vacation Home Solution

So you bought that great piece of land in the woods, or overlooking the ocean, and now, you are just waiting for your ship to come in, so you can build a vacation home. Right? Well, perhaps not exactly that scenario, but it is true that getting land is much easier than building the house to go on it. So here's one thing to do while you're waiting... Get a Yurt, and enjoy the vacations starting right now.

It's getting easier and easier to get a really well-done, pre-fab yurt that will feel great. There are several companies in the market, including Rainier Yurts ($5K and up), Oregon Yurtworks, and Redsky Shelters. According to a recent Inman News article, yurts are not ideal for year-round living, since temperature control is not easily...no insulation, for one thing. However, I do have friends who have gone camping in Oregon, for example, where there are yurts for rent, and other friends who have put yurts up on property near Bodega Bay. And both feel that as a short-term vacation spot, they can't be beat.

If you already own a yurt, share your experiences with the rest of us. Perhaps there's more to learn about this old art of outdoor living.

Condo or Cottage?

The fun thing about a big report like the NAR second home survey is that it generates as many different views as there are statistics. I enjoyed reading one today from Milwaukee, which talks about buying condos versus cottages. The NAR report mentions that currently, condos are catching up with single homes as the preference for second homes: 32% compared to 35%.  However, the Milwaukee article points out that it depends on who you are talking about. In the Midwest, people are still opting for summer cottages, (42%)  compared to only 20% into condos.

Of course, you can argue that it's because there are probably more cottages than condos in the Midwest in the first place. But they also make the point that younger couples who buy second homes are trying to recreate their childhood memories of summer cottages, whereas baby boomers are looking for a much easier lifestyle, which the condo (no lawn, no maintenance) offers. The recent EscapeHomes survey of users shows that single family homes lead condos by 43% to 26%. My bet...we'll see the percentage of condos grow significantly in the future. Good place for investors to go today.

Check out some Midwestern towns here.

The Odd Couple: Real Estate and Wine

Always on the look-out for a new market, one destination club has come up with an interesting deal. Join their destination club and upon your arrival at your spot, enjoy your favorite wines. Members in Private Escapes Destination Clubs get preferred pricing for personal sommelier service while in residence, along with personalized wine recommendations.

Of course, for starters, we hope you would know the word "oenophile" if you are enticed by this new service. Of course I know but then, I'm living in the midst of the wine country. And even if you don't know the word, well, it's just another reason to read this blog, isn't it? You expand your vocabulary, while getting the best news in vacation real estate. Anyway, check out Private Escapes Destination Clubs. You might find it just to your taste.

Condotels

So you like room service, concierge attention and chocolates on your pillow? And your spouse won't provide that for you when you visit your vacation condo? Well, how about getting a condotel. It's that mixed breed...you own it like a condo, and when you don't use it, it gets rented out like a hotel room. And when you are there, you enjoy hotel amenities. Sound's good.

Alas, like many 'mixed breeds' it comes with both good and bad traits. Good, of course, is the service. And some appreciation in value. But it still has the expense of the condo, and not always that much in rental income. It often is not cash-flow positive. And they don't come cheap. According to an Inman news article, prices go $1,200 to $1,450 per square foot compared to $850 to $1,050 for nearby traditional condos. Best advice is to buy one because you plan to use it, and then, see what happens with the investment over time. I guess there's no such thing as a free lunch, or even a free chocolate on your pillow.

Buying into a Destination Club

Destination clubs are one of the newer business models in the vacation travel scene. Without years of public exposure, it's hard to know how to evaluate this option. Our friends at Helium Report offer a great service: they created a first class Decision Guide to Destination Clubs. You might think, 'why do I need that? I can just look up the clubs I'm interested in.' But wait...if you are about to invest anywhere from $150K to over $400K to join a club, wouldn't you want some objective advice? That's what the report gives. And personally I'm glad to have it.

A Destination Club isn't for everyone. It is definitely aimed at affluent families who travel multiple times in a year, to multiple destinations. Since it offers luxury homes in a variety of places, it is way different than buying your second home somewhere, which limits you to one spot. Nor is a destination club a timeshare or fractional. For the most part, you don't actually own anything. But you can get alot for your money, from concierge service in luxury homes, to a refundable membership fee. Check it out yourself. Click here to get one of the decision guides, and let us know what you think about this new way to enjoy life.