Condos good or bad? Matter of opinion I guess. Some people complain that they might lead to overcrowding the lake. Maybe so, but I really don’t think that you will have too many more over the next 10 years at least. You have to have a pretty good stretch of waterfront to do a condo project, and there just aren’t that many left. Lake Martin has well over 700 miles of shoreline, and when you consider that there are only about 7 or 8 open spots with 1,000 feet or more, that just isn’t that many. The rest of the open land is owned by Alabama Power or Russell Lands, who historically have not developed condos (but they may in the future, who knows).

The fact is that some peope like the low maintenance aspect of condos. Also with Lake Martin becoming a national draw, the farther away people live, the less they want the upkeep of a home, and like amenities like a pool, etc.

Investment wise, according to some non-scientific research, I found that condos have experienced similar gains in value to other types of waterfront property like lots and homes.

That being said, some people just want a home over a condo for the privacy factor. I can see both sides of the coin.

Yes there are many new developments like Stoneview Summit and many others. As I said above, right now is a great time to be a buyer in the condo market. Give me a call and I would be glad to explain the differences and pros / cons to each condo development.

Thanks,

John

1. Great question. I have not come up with a perfect formula to yield a rule of thumb for price per waterfront foot. Because intangible factors such as view and privacy count for so much dollar value on the lake, it is (I think) a fruitless excercise. I can point to many examples of where a 300 foot lot in a swamp in the back of a cove sold for half of the price of a 150 lot on a point with deep water. I wrote a post on this subject back in February entitled “5 Mistakes Buyers Make on Lake Martin.” Look on the right column of this page and under Archives click on February. Scroll down to read.

2. Currently Russell Lands does not publish its sales data in the MLS or anywhere else. If it did, we certainly would have a more complete picture of the market. So when they open a new development, like the Ridge, and sell lots to builders or civilians, we can’t see that price. Of course, when the civilian or builder turns around and sells through the mls, then realtors can access that info. You are correct that it also distorts the statistic “time on the market,” but only if you are looking at the market as a whole. Since it is not in the mls, it is not “on the market” of the mls. I can’t really speculate as to why they choose not to publish their sales data. I guess they figure that they are a private company and the sales data is their private business. But you’re right - if they at least gave other realtors that information, we would have a much more complete picture of the Lake Martin real estate market.

Excellent questions, Ron.

Does anyone else have any thoughts on his questions? I would be interested in the responses.

Thanks.