When it’s all said and done, I should probably look back at this market with some appreciation. With my eyes growing dim and the sunlight barely leaking through my bedroom shades, I’ll think about the things I’ve done. Unfortunately, my life has revolved entirely too much around real estate, so I’ll likely see visions of dining rooms and piers that I’ve sold. What a miserable thing that will be. But alas, with that appreciation in my heart that will be at least one large scoop of bemusement. What a market, I’ll think. What. A. (dead).
I don’t really need to be on my deathbed to find this market curious. There’s something so odd about the way it behaves. Something so nuanced. The market loves certain things it should love, and doesn’t understand certain things that it should love. It hates things it should hate, but only when the market is soft. During hot markets it loves everything, everyone, all of the time. But back to the understanding, because that’s the real curious point today. The market doesn’t understand certain things and in that there is opportunity.
Earlier this week I closed on the large piece of vacant lakefront on Black Point. This parcel has been for sale, off and on, for a decade. The market didn’t understand it. The access easement was complicated, and rather than sort through those complications the market chose to overpay for something else that didn’t require as much thought. Then, I introduced the property to a particular buyer who was particularly and uniquely astute to the details that escaped the broader market. Because of this understanding and vision, we just bought a large piece of lakefront for less than $10k per front foot.
Does value exist in our market? Of course it does. It just often exists under the surface, behind some rocks, under an old tarp that some old man raked leaves onto and forgot was there. It also exists in the shiny things, those new bits of inventory that dazzle. How can both statements be true? Because they are. One requires a lot of effort and trust. The other requires conviction. They both result in weekends at the lake, which is the consistent measure of success. A special thank you to the buyer who trusted me to help with this complicated transaction. Last ask, $3,375,000, closed at $2,900,000.