Geneva Lakefront Market Update

In 2016, there were two lakefronts for sale on Lackey Lane. Lackey, in case you didn’t know, is a nice little street on the south side of the lake, just to the west of Linn Pier Road and to the east of Wooddale. In 2016, it was already a great street, but in spite of that these two tear down homes suffered through some elevated market time. In fact, both homes were for sale for nearly a year before I brought in two different buyers for these two 100′ lakefront lots. The prices paid were nearly identical: One was $1.925M and one $1.91M. Both of those homes were torn down and both lots today sport beautiful new homes. Combine those two new homes with the home I sold to the west of those this summer ($4.6M), and the newer home I sold to the east this summer ($5.2M), and you have a street that can easily support all-in values between five and six million dollars.

But this post isn’t about those sales, it’s about the newest Lackey Lane sale. Just this week (not my listing or buyer side), a 100′ lot on Lackey Lane sold for $3,975,000. That’s more than double the land cost from four years ago. Does this make sense? The market says yes. This property had multiple buyers interested in it at the time it contracted last summer, and it further proves that the market understands we are running out of tear downs on 100+ foot lots. Still, it’s remarkable to report a 100% increase of lakefront land over the past forty-eight months.

Further west on Basswood, another lakefront sale. This lovely property came to market earlier this fall, and I had two buyers jump at it. I wrote two offers within 24 hours of the listing, and neither of my buyers won the bid (so not my listing or sale). The property was listed at $5.85M and closed this week for $5.95M. We know Basswood is one of our very best lakefront streets, and the market continues to remind us of this marquee status. But some context is necessary to understand just how marquee Basswood has become.

In 2018, a nice enough lakefront on the east end of Basswood with 222′ of frontage sold for $3.9M. In 2019, a Basswood lakefront with 150′ of frontage sold for $4.45M. The same year, I sold the large estate on Basswood with 214′ of frontage for $7.2M. Now consider the sale from earlier this week. That sale for $5.95M possessed 100′ of frontage. The 2018 sale was at $17,567 per lakefront foot and that house received a massive, multi-million dollar renovation. . The 2019 sales averaged $32,005 per front foot, with one of those homes being town down and the other receiving an incredible, many-million dollar renovation. The newest sale is at $59,500 per square foot and the market rumor is that the home is being torn down. That’s something, it’s not nothing.

The strength of Basswood is remarkable. The attention this street has received in the past several years is something that can no longer be ignored. And in case anyone was wondering, my Basswood listing on 117′ of level frontage (pictured above) is still available (in spite of having a recent offer).

About the Author

I'm David Curry. I write this blog to educate and entertain those who subscribe to the theory that Lake Geneva, Wisconsin is indeed the center of the real estate universe. When I started selling real estate 27 years ago I did so of a desire to one day dominate the activity in the Lake Geneva vacation home market. With over $800,000,000 in sales since January of 2010, that goal is within reach. If I can help you with your Lake Geneva real estate needs, please consider me at your service. Thanks for reading.

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