When I was younger, I stood at the Congress Club with my dad and a client. I wanted to think the client was mine, but as with most clients back then, the client was his. We walked the grounds of the club, and the buyer didn’t have as much interest as I thought they should. The white house, with green roof, was in need of some updating, sure, but a little paint would have gone a long way. I didn’t know much, but I did know that the Congress Club fit my eye. This cottage was the first cottage off the water on the South end of the Congress Club, and what it lacked in sheer size and quality it more than made up for in delicious proximity to the water. Had I not been a goofy young Realtor that day, and instead had been the buyer, I know what I would have done. I would have slept in that lakeside porch- a porch that rests not 35 feet from where water meets stony shore. The buyer passed on the property, as many would be Congress Club buyers have over the years, and the home ultimately sold for $550k during the winter of 1998.
There were Congress Club sales since then, including the same home that resold twice more during recent years, this time trading for around $1.5MM each time. The buyer who was too smart to purchase the home for $550k a mere 13 years ago was not able to be reached for comment. Most recently, February brought us yet another Congress Club sale, this one selling for $1.25MM. I didn’t like that sale, and I didn’t shy away from explaining why I didn’t like that sale at that price. But today isn’t only about the Congress Club, it’s about all the clubs. And one park. It’s time to take a broad look at the leasehold interest developments on Geneva, the venerable group that includes The Congress Club, The Harvard Club, and Belvidere Park.
Just think of these classic Lake Geneva developments as co-ops and you’ll understand the ownership better. When you purchase a home in one of these clubs, there is no deed. As such, there is no financing allowed, so all transactions must be in cash, or at least the ultimate presentation of cash (finance other property to pull equity to accommodate this purchase). There are other rules, some more strict than others, like the Harvard Club and their banishment of dogs during the summer months. There are limitations: Belvidere Park doesn’t have enough boat moorings to allow every home to have a slip or buoy. There are tight fits: One might be able to effectively pass sugar from one home to another, provided that both grantor and grantee have long arms and the sugar is in a sealed bag, or otherwise secure vessel that would prevent that sugar from spilling. There are conditions of these ownerships, but the lifestyle rewards are immeasurable. And buying a cottage for $550k, then selling it for $1.5MM roughly nine years later also sounds like a pretty nice reward.
2010 was a banner year for the Lake Geneva co-op. I had a sale in the Harvard Club, and then I had another sale in Belvidere Park. And at least one Congress Club property was privately sold as well, creating the rare Lake Geneva Slam. The historical significance of a year wherein all three associations had at least one transaction is exciting to me, and there’s reason to believe there may be more such years on the horizon. When I sold the Belvidere Park cottage last fall for $519k, it was the first public sale in over 20 years there. The Harvard Club sale was the first public sale in nearly 10, and it had been 10 years since the last public Congress Club sale as well. These are rare offerings, but the ownership is cyclical just like it is in the broader market. I’d expect to see a slow trickle of offerings in the Congress Club, Harvard Club, and Belvidere Park over the next several years, as sellers realize that open market prices typically far exceed prices that might be paid by the neighbor’s brother’s son’s accountant. The good news for buyers is that there will ultimately be more offerings in these associations. The bad news is that there are buyers waiting to gobble up these offerings with dream crushing efficiency.
If you’re looking to gain access to one of these fine associations, it’s obvious who you need to contact. In case you’re scratching your head and fixing your face into a puzzled display… it’s me. I’m the one who can help you. (I’m David Curry, in case you haven’t figured out who Admin is.) Let’s face it, with public sales bridged in time not by months or years, but by decades, agents don’t have much time or opportunity to get up to speed on the inner happenings of these associations. As I worked to maneuver through the two club sales of 2010, I learned and absorbed a procedure that is quite uncommon in the broader market. There will be a Congress Club offering this spring. Unlike the previous two springs, this property will sell this time around. If you want in, I’m asking you to contact me for details. If you’re looking for a similar property in one of the other clubs, be it Harvard or Belvidere Park, we should really talk.