Lakefront living. I actually hate that term, but when you think of the attributes of such a living, what comes to mind? Lake views, boat slips, piers, fun and sun and clean water, etc. I agree that sounds like fun. Lakefront houses on Geneva start at around $1.4MM, so that’s a lifestyle that’s unattainable for most. The lakefront condo however, with prices starting at around $375k, now that’s downright affordable, and you still get the fun, the sun, and the clean water. Lakefront condominiums have always been the best way to get onto the lake for the most economical price, but lately, lakefront condo’s have been falling out of favor with buyers. Lakefront condominiums used to make up a large portion of my business, in fact, I have more transaction sides involving lakefront condo’s since 1999 than any other agent around. Oh, and try to remember that for the sake of that stat and the ones to follow, I’m not taking into account single family homes with condominium ownership structures (South Shore Club, Somerset, etc)
Take a guess how many lakefront condominiums on Geneva have sold year to date. Now that you’ve guessed, here’s the answer to your question- zero. A big fat goose egg. Before you jump all over the lakefront condo and it’s apparent lack of desirability in the marketplace, consider the YTD figures for the previous 3 years. 2008 YTD Sales- 2. 2007 YTD Sales- 2. 2006 YTD Sales- 3. Numbers that aren’t exactly impressive to be sure. But when you consider the low levels of available product and overall inventory on the lakefront, the numbers make a little more sense. Right now, we have 16 lakefront condo’s for sale on Geneva priced from the upper $300’s for a one bedroom, to over $1.5MM for a 4 bedroom. Even at 16 units, that’s very low inventory, and some of that inventory is in Geneva Towers, a building that I don’t really consider to be lakefront even though I add it into these statistics just to be sweet and inclusive. Oh, and the Abbey Villas? Not lakefront, and don’t try convincing me that they are. Current lakefront inventory includes offerings at Fontana Shores, Fontana Club, Somerset, Eastbank, Bay Colony, Geneva Towers, and Vista Del Lago. The unit that I had for sale at Bayshore is off the market currently, pending a decision by the owner.
So volume for the first 5 1/2 months of the year is usually pretty low, as we now know, but what about the rest of the year? Let’s look at the yearly tallies for lakefront sales during the same years we looked at above. 2008 total- 5 sales. 2007 total- 7 sales. 2006 total- 9 sales. It’s easy to see that the vast majority of lakefront condo sales occur over the last half of the year, so there’s still hope for our 2009. One of the problems with the market is obviously pricing, though lakefront condominiums have largely been stagnant in terms of appreciation over the past 6 years. One exception to the rule was the Fontana Club, which saw prices nearly double from 2001 to 2006, but prices in that association have softened over the past 24 months along with the rest of the market.
Some of the better deals on the lakefront exist at the Fontana Club, and at Fontana Shores. I have a three bedroom unit at Fontana Shores that just needs a little love, and we’ve already reduced the price $100k on that unit down to $549k. The views are surreal, and if you’re not afraid of handling a little remodel, you might find yourself the proud new owner of a spacious condo right smack in the heart of Fontana’s lakefront. We’ll see what happens over the course of 2009, but as of right now, I’m thinking we’ll be lucky to sell a total of 4 lakefront condominiums for the remainder of 2009. If you’d like to check out this lakefront condo market, I’d be happy to show you around, and only I can give you the dirt on each association to help you make the best decision possible.