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2011 real-estate winners and losersIt was a rough year for real estate, but a few came out ahead.
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Not every market is strugglingHome values have lagged across the U.S., but there are exceptions.
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The owners of that Lake Tahoe home would have to pay me $155,000 to demo that house and clean up the lot before I would consider the purchase.
That sounds great. Maube all the unemployed, minimum wage, $12 an hour workers can buy two vacation homes at such a reasonable price. Probably cost at least 40 grand to build the dumps. I see the great price of a home here for $64,900 in a real nice crabby neoborhood. Even that would take working 160 per week, assuming your lucky enough to even find a big paying $12 an hour job. People are selling their homes and moving into apartments. But never fear for the realtors. There are [lenty of immigrants from other nations who can just skip across the border and pay cash for them. They will get the same shaft we all did eventually.
please. ****es.
10 hottest vacation real-estate markets
By Scot Meyer of SwitchYard Media
If you're in the market for a vacation home, the bad news is that credit is tight.
The good news? Prices have fallen. The median sale price for vacation homes was $150,000 in 2010, the National Association of Realtors reports, down 11.2% from 2009. By contrast, the median price for a primary residence fell just 4.5% in the same period.
Where can you find the best deals? Clear Capital, which specializes in real-estate asset valuation, looked at 22 popular vacation destinations in the U.S. Using areas for which consistent sale data were available, it identified 10 markets as worth watching, based on the drop in their median price per square foot since the market peak, price stability and potential for appreciation.
Here's a look at the cities where you can get the most bang for your buck — and what's for sale there, courtesy of Realtor.com.
NOTE: Properties were on the market and listed as available at the time of publication, unless noted otherwise.
- On our blog, 'Listed': Rock 'n' roll ranches for sale
10 hottest vacation real-estate markets
Lake Havasu City, Ariz.
Lake Havasu City bills itself as "Arizona's playground" and is a popular destination for hiking, boating and fishing. It is also the current home of the old London Bridge, which a U.S. entrepreneur bought in 1968, dismantled and reconstructed in this desert city.
Much like the nursery-rhyme version of the London Bridge, vacation-home prices in Lake Havasu City have fallen down. Clear Capital says that after peaking at $182 per square foot in the summer of 2006, the median price is now at $88 per square foot, its October 2002 level. After two years of 20% declines, the median price in May was down just 5.4% percent from May 2010, suggesting prices are stabilizing.
This three-bedroom, three-bath house is now on the market in Lake Havasu City.
Price: $189,900
Size: 3 bedrooms, 3 bathrooms, 1,864 square feet
Lot: 0.23 acre
Price per square foot: $102
- Bing Cube: Check out photos of Lake Havazu City
10 hottest vacation real-estate markets
Myrtle Beach, S.C.
Like Hilton Head to the south, South Carolina's northern coastal town of Myrtle Beach is showing signs of stabilization after a period of significant price drops. Clear Capital says the median sale price in the Myrtle Beach market is $89 per square foot, down 34.5% from its 2006 peak of $136. Prices are now at the summer 2004 levels.
With the exception of the first quarter this year, when prices reflected a normal winter slowdown, the median sale price has been stable, with only a 1% decline from summer 2009 to the end of 2010.
This $150,000 home is an example of what's available.
Price: $150,000
Size: 4 bedrooms, 3 bathrooms, 2,001 square feet*
Lot: 0.16 acre*
Price per square foot: $75*
* Size data courtesy of Zillow.com
- Bing Cube: Check out photos of Myrtle Beach
10 hottest vacation real-estate markets
Palm Springs, Calif.
Hollywood stars looking for a getaway only two hours away from their studios helped put this desert city on the map. Frank Sinatra, Bob Hope, Lucille Ball and Sonny Bono once had vacation homes here.
More recently, the area has seen the same severe home-price declines as the rest of California, Clear Capital says. The median sale price is down 52.4% from its peak and is now at $130 per square foot, the same level as in fall 2002. Prices are relatively unchanged since the start of 2010, though.
This three-bedroom, two-bath home is listed for $406 per square foot.
Price: $649,999
Size: 3 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms, 1,600 square feet
Lot: 0.24 acre
Price per square foot: $406
- Bing Cube: Check out photos of Palm Springs
- On our blog, 'Listed': Rock 'n' roll ranches for sale
10 hottest vacation real-estate markets
Hilton Head, S.C.
Hilton Head calls itself a family-friendly destination, with beaches, golf courses, bike paths and nature trails, as well as stores and restaurants. This South Carolina coastal town has seen some recent volatility in home prices, Clear Capital says, but it also is showing signs of reaching a price bottom.
The median sale price is $169 per square foot, down 35.7% from a peak value of $263 per square foot in the summer of 2006. Prices are now back where they were in fall 2003. The market also appears to be stabilizing, with prices down just 1.7% in the past two years.
If you're interested in this market, this home is listed for $415,000 and is part of a community with a pool.
Price: $415,000
Size: 3 bedrooms, 2.5 bathrooms, 2,307 square feet
Lot: 0.1 acre
Price per square foot: $180
- Bing Cube: Check out photos of Hilton Head
10 hottest vacation real-estate markets
South Lake Tahoe, Calif.
This California city's attractions include nearby legal gambling in Nevada and the clear waters of North America's largest alpine lake. Home prices here also are at October 2002 levels, Clear Capital says, having fallen 49.6% from their peak at $365 per square foot. Now averaging $184 per square foot, prices appear to be stabilizing, however. The median sale price is now 3% below last year's, which is the smallest decline of the past four years.
This South Lake Tahoe home listed on Realtor.com is on the market for $155,000 — near the U.S. median price for a vacation property.
Price: $155,000
Size: 2 bedrooms, 1 bathroom, 512 square feet
Lot: 0.11 acre
Price per square foot: $303
- Bing Cube: Check out photos of Lake Tahoe
10 hottest vacation real-estate markets
Napa, Calif.
California's Napa Valley is famous as wine country, but now it is sellers of vacation homes here who may be whining. Prices have dropped 49.8% from their summer 2006 peak of $426 per square foot. Clear Capital says that today's sale prices average $214 per square foot, levels last seen in mid-2001.
Now might be a good time to buy, Clear Capital's data suggest. While prices continue their downward slide, the pace of the descent is slowing. Prices fell 8.9% percent in the past two years, compared with the 40.5% decline between spring 2007 and spring 2009.
This Napa home is listed for $153 per square foot.
Price: $272,500
Size: 4 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms, 1,776 square feet
Lot: 0.23 acre
Price per square foot: $153
- Bing Cube: Check out photos of Napa
- On our blog, 'Listed': Prediction: 3 times more investors than owner-occupants
10 hottest vacation real-estate markets
Truckee, Calif.
This mountain ski-resort town has followed much of the path of the rest of the state, Clear Capital says. Prices are down 43.5% since the market peaked in late 2005 at $391 per square foot. The median sale price is now $221 per square foot, the level last seen in summer 2002.
Prices continue to fall, Clear Capital says — 15% in the past year and 21.5 % since the start of 2009.
This home, priced at $225 per square foot, is near the average level for Truckee.
Price: $459,000
Size: 3 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms, 2,044 square feet
Lot: 0.89 acre
Price per square foot: $225
- Bing Cube: Check out photos of Truckee
- On our blog, 'Listed': Rock 'n' roll ranches for sale
10 hottest vacation real-estate markets
Key West, Fla.
Florida's housing market has been among the hardest hit, and the resort town of Key West is no exception. The median sale price has fallen 63.8% from its peak of $664 per square foot, Clear Capital reports, and now is $240 per square foot. Prices are now at levels last seen in spring 2002
Since 2009, however, the median sale price has increased 2.1%.
This Key West home is listed for $339 per square foot.
Price: $359,000
Size: 3 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms, 1,060 square feet
Lot: 0.06 acre
Price per square foot: $339
- Bing Cube: Check out photos of Key West
10 hottest vacation real-estate markets
Carmel-by-the-Sea, Calif.
Often known just as Carmel, this city is known for its beautiful coastal views, rich artistic history and the fact that movie star Clint Eastwood was once its mayor.
Clear Capital notes that unlike some other vacation markets in California, Carmel has seen consistent declines in vacation-property prices since they peaked in 2006, when the median sale price was $685 per square foot. The media price is now $360 per square foot, a decline of 47.4%, which brings prices back to their fall 2002 levels. Despite the significant declines, prices have fallen 7.2% in the past year and are down 16.7% in the past two years.
This 1,725-square-foot home is an example of what's available.
Price: $710,000
Size: 3 bedrooms, 3 bathrooms, 1,725 square feet
Lot: 0.16 acre
Price per square foot: $412
- Bing Cube: Check out photos of Carmel-by-the-Sea
10 hottest vacation real-estate markets
Honolulu
In general, Hawaii has weathered housing crash better than most other states. Clear Capital says peak-to-trough prices fell 21.3%, about half the national decline. The median sale price in Honolulu is down 8.83% from its 2008 peak, now at $454 per square foot, versus $498 per square foot in summer 2008.
Although it may not be a market geared to people seeking deep discounts, it will appeal to those who want to see stability or even growth in their property value. Clear Capital says average prices are essentially unchanged from two years ago and have increased 4.6% in the past year.
This home is on the market for $767,000, or $574 per square foot.
Price: $767,000
Size: 4 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms, 1,336 square feet
Lot: 0.17 acre
Price per square foot: $574
- Bing Cube: Check out photos of Honolulu
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