Rick Evans' Blog

Given the financial turmoil of the past year and big name resorts like Tamarack and Yellowstone Club that have gone under, one of the most common questions I get from prospective resort real estate buyers is on the strength and condition of the development.  I have made a conscious decision to focus a significant portion of my real estate effort on Dover Bay Resort because I am confident in the master plan, in the developer, and in the development's long term prosperity.

The following are aspects that make Dover Bay Resort a solid investment, setting it apart from other North Idaho developments.

A. Concept of Independent Commercial Entities

In today's market, one of the biggest sales challenges a second home development has is the love/hate relationship between real estate and the club. Many communities require homeowner's to be club members, using and paying for both the amenities and homeowner's association services.

This is what sets Dover Bay apart from the rest. The commercial aspects of the Marina Village, the Lake Club Fitness Center, Café and Market, Marina and future amenities are "stand alone" facilities. The homeowner makes the choice to have a boat slip or belong to the health club facility. This "a la carte" philosophy will continue as additional amenities are added to the resort.

B. Irreplaceable natural amenities create an irreplaceable opportunity ‐ Location, Location, Location

Market share will be especially problematic for the remote, destination‐oriented communities that are time consuming and expensive to get to and offering only a private golf club, swimming, tennis, parks and trails.  Dover Bay is also different in that it features "irreplaceable natural amenities" which creates an irreplaceable opportunity to be part of a waterfront community. One of Dover Bay's strengths is the amount of water frontage access and views it features.

Where else can you find a 285 acre community directly on the shores of a fantastic Lake? The location of having the second largest freshwater lake west of the Mississippi out your front door, a world renowned ski mountain out your back and the quaint friendly town of Sandpoint nearby is distinctive.

Dover Bay is unique in that it's nestled in a dramatic natural setting. Its location on Lake Pend Oreille, its proximity to Sandpoint and the many activities of a four season lifestyle are extremely rare. The community includes over 9 acres of parks and beaches, 9 miles of walking and biking trails which connect to the North Idaho Pathways and is only 3 miles from downtown Sandpoint which features many art galleries, restaurants and retail outlets.

Dover Bay is an easy weekend getaway for the second home buyer, 90 minute drivefrom Spokane, 45 minutes to Coeur d'Alene and 30 minutes to the Canadian border.

D. Completion of Amenities

All the essential amenities are completed. Dover Bay Development is in discussions tocreate additional amenities that will improve the community.

E. Strength of the developer and lenders

The strongest developments begin with having financially and ethically strong developers. It's that solid foundation that ensures long‐term security success for Dover Bay homeowners as well as for the Resort itself.

D. Operations

1. Waterfront Property Management, the largest marina operator on Lake Pend Oreille, manages the commercial facilities within the community.

2. Tom Curtiss, a seasoned property manager with Panhandle Management manages the neighborhood's HOAs and overall community association's maintenance.

E. Price Points

Unlike many other communities, Dover Bay has something for everyone. Homesites start at $145,000 for interior lots with a lake view and range up to $1,500,000 for estate sized lakefront home sites. We also have Parkside Bungalows starting at $198,500 or if you would prefer luxurious waterfront custom homes that have no price limitations. Dover Bay truly has something for everyone whether you're a first time home buyer, the second home getaway buyer or an investor.

In addition, Dover Bay has a "buy now, build later" option for home site purchasers. Because our buyers tend to be buying to create a long‐term family legacy, and because Dover understands the nature of this new economy, they can take their time, choose their own‐builder and create their dream home when their finances allow.

F. A Variety of Home Styles

Dover Bay Waterfront Community features 11 different unique neighborhoods which offer a limited selection of waterfront home sites, waterfront condominiums, Cabin in the Woods, Cottages in Dover Meadows and Parkside Bungalows each neighborhood unique and offers a variety of prices ranges.

F. Waterfront

Dover Bay features 23, 000 feet of waterfront with 9,000 of that on Lake Pend Oreille. All the paths (trails) lead to the waterfront.

For more information on any of Dover Bay's real estate or other matters, please contact Rick Evans at 208-304-5665 or visit http://www.SandpointResortRealty.com/resort.html. 

Yes, its true.  The luxury real estate market at Schweitzer has had solid activity since the first of the year.  Prices at Schweitzer Ski Resort have always been exceptionally low when compared with other comparable ski resorts, and I would define the luxury market at Schweitzer as above $500,000.

There has NOT been a wholesale price reduction across the board at Schweitzer, or in Sandpoint for that matter.  As I typically explain to my clients, it is difficult to put a percentage on how much market prices have dropped.  This is because you have too many sellers with independent motivations and pressures, some much more than others.  The key as a Buyer in this market is to find the place that really fits and to be ready to pounce when the price is right.  As you can tell by the following recent transactions, Buyers are getting exceptional values right now if they are willing and able to make offers.

The Bornholm Lodge is four luxury townhomes just below Schweitzer Village on Northwest Passage (before The Glades).  This is one of the nicer products on the market and it is priced very attractively right now.  Originally these 2700 sft, ski in/ ski out townhomes were offered at $1.25 million, which might have been a great value somewhere else but was clearly above the current market at Schweitzer.  As the Seller became more motivated, along with the national financial crisis, the listing prices were gradually reduced.  Finally this Winter they were put on the market at $879k.  The first buyer showed up almost immediately and closed for $856k on Dec 31.  The price on the remaining three units has now been pushed back up slightly to $890, 900k and 920k.

A client of mine is about to close on a beautiful 4bdr, 2250 square foot home in The Glades.  Located on the ski trail immediately below the Village, the Glades have been one of the most desirable locations at Schweitzer and were selling at close to $900k a couple years ago.  This unit was listed in April 08 for $999k, then changed to $899k in Sept, then to $799k on Dec 30, and finally to $699,900 on February 1.  I told my client about this price reduction before it went on the market, and he has an accepted offer expecting to close next week.  This will be perhaps the best buy at Schweitzer in years, and there may never be another Glades unit at this price.

One of The Cabins, another very popular development at Schweitzer, just closed at $650,000 on Feb 9.  It was originally priced at $849k in December, and represents another example of how Buyers are getting great deals TODAY.

70 Hemlock Lane, a brand new 2000 sft, 3/3.5 luxury townhome next to The Cabins just sold for $850,000 in February.  This true ski-in/out home sold was only on the market 12 days!

Just above Schweitzer Village, a 3+loft, 1700sft, ski in/ski out Highlands condo just sold in a private transaction (not through the MLS).  The final price was $625k, which was a cash deal.

Another brand new condo in The Summit sold on Jan 15 for $575,000.  This is also ski in/ski out, 3/3, with high end finishes throughout.

I guess the message of all this is that if you have been looking for that ski home for your family, I encourage you to call your Realtor (or me of course) to see what is out there.  A good, active Schweitzer agent will be able to help you weed through everything to show you what the truly exceptional values are.  Sure you could wait 6 months to see what happens.  But remember you are only looking for one individual property (typically).  When you find that property at an attractive price, there is certainly no guarantee that something better will come along.  There will continue to be price reductions at Schweitzer.  But there are enough buyes out there that the really good values will get sold relatively quickly.  Also keep in mind that other factors such as higher interest rates can cause the relative value to go up should you wait.

If you would like to search the MLS for Schweitzer visit http://www.sandpointresortrealty.com/propertyfinder.html.  I also have a couple of luxury ski properties that are now being offered at prices well below what you would pay to build the same quality.  Visit http://schweitzer.sandpointresortrealty.com/ to see a virtual tour of the finest ski home at Schweitzer, recently reduced $200k to $1,095,000.  Another client of mine has a beautiful ski home in a quiet neighborhood near Musical Chairs, and has just reduced the price to $899k: http://www.tourfactory.com/468822.  Or just call me for any price range: 208-304-5665.

My listing in The Spires, offered at just over 1 million.

This really is a great time to buy a home.  At least in Sandpoint Idaho, all is not gloom and doom.  In fact if the national media wasn't constantly reminding us of how bad it is supposed to be, you would think the real estate market is doing just fine. 

There is definitely NOT a wholesale tumbling of prices in our market, but on the same hand the savvy buyers are getting tremendous values.  The key is that certain sellers are in a position that they either have to or really want to sell.  Identifying who is serious about selling is an important component right now.  There is certainly a great deal of uncertainty in the economy today, and those people who are able and willing to buy should and are being rewarded. 


I recently had a cash buyer that bought waterfront property at an almost 50% discount from the listing price.  This was because the seller was motivated at the time, the buyer was ready to pay cash, and the seller needed the cash in order to move forward with other endeavors.  I have a couple of buyers at Schweitzer that have pending deals where they have finally been able to buy their dream ski home at an affordable price.  I've got sellers that are motivated and ready to make deals.

Having said this, I am still hearing many people talk about waiting a year or even two for the market to drop further.  People have been asking me 'what percentage the market is down'. Trying to determine if market prices are going up or down is very tough to do unless taken on a national scale.  In a smaller market like Sandpoint, or specifically at Schweitzer Mountain Ski Resort, the average sale price is easily 'schewed' by one or two very low or high sales.  And different homes are bought and sold each year, so you are not comparing apples to apples.  For example last winter from Nov 1 thru Feb 1 the average sale price at Schweitzer Mountain was $388,000.  This winter the average price for the winter has been $478,000.  Does this mean the market has gone up?  Not necessarily; it simply means some higher priced real estate has closed to distort the average.  The buyers in the mid to high end of the market seem to be benefiting the most from decreased values, from my recent experience.

Our area of North Idaho is a resort destination with great skiing, a phenomenal lake, beautiful mountains, and a great lakeside town.  Sandpoint is a place where people want to visit and to live, and there will always be a demand as long as the natural amenities are here.  Real estate transactions are indeed taking place, and the people with the means to buy now are going to be very happy.  One caveat- they will be happy if they aren't caught up in trying to perfectly time the market in order to flip in a year or two.

Even if someone is able to buy for 10% less in a year, mortgage rates are unlikely to get any lower.  The net cost is just as likely to be greater when factoring in financing.  For those thinking they can negotiate a better deal next year, that may or may not be the case.  The only way to know when the bottom has hit is when we are looking back at it.

There are definitely fewer buyers in the market today, however those that are here tend to be much more serious and able to purchase.  My sellers that I represent are more flexible than they have ever been.  For resort property in particular (which is what I typically represent), sales are taking place when the owner is motivated and realistic.  There is no reason to think that these properties will still be on the market a year from now, if recent activity is any indication. 

As I've noted in a previous post, our office at Tomlinson Sandpoint Sothebys set an all time record in closings for the month of Dec-Jan.  We have many smart buyers that have been intelligent with their investments that are looking at the prime waterfront, resort and ski property.  If you'd like to see what is available or get my recommendations on the best pure values in a particular area, please call me at 208-304-5665 or search property at : http://www.sandpointresortrealty.com/propertyfinder.html 

My personal philosophy for buying real estate has always been to invest in lifestyle, in locations that my family and I will enjoy.  What is the monetary value in having that resort home that you have worked so hard for.  Maybe you could wait a year or two to buy that same property for 5% less.  I think its important to remember that you are also foregoing the personal benefits of enjoying that lake cabin or ski home while waiting on the market to drop.

http://www.SandpointResortRealty.com 

I am recovering from participating in the '24 Hour for Hank' Ski Race at Schweitzer Mountain Resort, which took place Friday morning into Saturday.  The turnout, the generous sponsors, the comraderie, and the community support for this first ever event served as yet another reminder of how good we have it here in Sandpoint, Idaho. 

This 24 hour Ski Race was held to raise money for the Cystinosis Foundation.  A local toddler here in Sandpoint, Hank Sturgis, has a terrible disease called Cystinosis which affects only 2000 people nationally.  Every single dollar that was spent for registration, sponsorship, raffle tickets, or the final night auction went directly to this Foundation at the request of Hank's parents.  I have not heard the final dollar amount raised, but it sure appears to have been hugely successul!

We learned of this race fairly last minute and were able to put together a four-man team with two of my fellow Sothebys agents, Kyler Wolf and Bobbi G., along with my brother Randy Evans (who was added literally the night before).  We showed up at Schweitzer Friday morning expecting to have a good time, get some fun turns in, and party it up a bit.  My impression is that as a team we would be taking turns skiing, probably getting in 40 laps or so a piece.

Then we learned that we would all ski as much as possible, and add all our laps in for our team score.  So I wasn't going to be sitting out 75% of the time after all! 

All 125 racers lined up in the Village at 10a Friday and raced to Chair 4 for 7 1/2 hours of Quicksilver.  As we got further and further into this, Randy and I realized that a heck of a lot of people were actually trying hard to win this crazy race. 

Being fairly (OK, extremely) competitive, my bro and I started pushing ourselves more and more as the race went by.  We took a nice 30 minute lunch break during the first portion of the race.  Then by the time the race course switched to Basin Express chair at 5:30pm it was on!  We would ski the next 7 1/2 hours in a full tuck down the Nastar course from Basin Express, doing 61 laps until this lift closed at 1:15am.  I think we went fairly crazy by the end of this, doing the same exact run in 75 mile an hour winds, frozen to the core, even with 7 layers of clothing. 

The race course then switched to Schweitzer's 'bunny hill', Musical Chairs, from 1:15a until 730a.  Until the sun came up I had truly planned to stop and take a nap on the sleeping bag sitting in our designated room in the Lakeview Lodge.  Then I would get off the chair and decide to do just one more, fall half asleep on the way up, then do it all over again.  We would hold a tight tuck all the way down, race onto the double chair (which was sped up at twice its normal speed), fight to stay awake on the chair, think about quitting, then do it all over again.  I was so delirious that I once skied past the chair, wiped out, and 'yard saled' getting onto Musical Chairs!

Somehow all four of us were still out skiing as the sun started creeping up over Lake Pend Oreille to the east.  In my sleep-deprived stupor, I was so struck by the beauty that tears came to my eyes.  We would all keep up our craziness through the Musical Chairs session, then to the final 3 hours back on Chair 4 and Quicksilver.

10am finally came (the last 2 hours seemed like 2 days) and all the racers stopped at the base of Quicksilver and skied back triumphantly to the Village, hooting and hollering all the way. 

(Incidentally, I then had about 3 hours to recover enough to show property to a client at Schweitzer).  Fortunately these folks were great and we had fun laughing about the event and the bags under my eyes.

There was a fantastic awards banquet thrown that evening, where my brother and I brought our families.  To our great surprise, we learned then that our team took 2nd place overall!  Randy got the best of all of us with 153 runs and 139,272 vertical feet!  I had one extra bathroom break (no water at all next time) and came in with 151 runs and 137,792 vertical feet.  Kyler got in 109 runs (and a bit of sleep at the same time ;} , and Bobby cruised in with 131 laps.  All together something like 7 million vertical feet were skied at the race in honor of Hank Sturgis and the Cystinosis Foundation.

I should also point out that the food, organization, and everything about this event were handled beautifully.  Schweitzer Mountain really came through as well and was extremely generous in their support of this great event.  All the lifties, food vendors, patrol, etc were tons of fun and a great contribution.  I believe this will take place again next year and be twice as big.  I also think that this crazy idea of skiing for 24 straight hours just might take off here in Sandpoint Idaho and Schweitzer Mountain!

Time for me to get some sleep!  (Sorry no pictures on this post- we were too busy skiing.  But I hope to get some from the mountain and will post them on my site next time).

Check back at http://www.sandpointresortrealty.com/schweitzer.html.  For more photos and posts about Schweitzer Ski Resort visit http://www.sandpointresortrealty.com/blog.html or my Flickr photo album at  http://www.flickr.com/photos/29620933@N02/sets/72157607163359611/ 

For more information on the Cystinosis Foundation, visit http://www.24HoursforHank.org. 

What is happening in the Schweitzer Mountain real estate market?  Is it the right time to sell?  This is a question that I have received from a number of my clients lately as they try to determine what course to take.  We have Sellers at the high end of the market that are struggling with their listing prices, grappling with the fact that the high end of the market at Schweitzer has just not moved.

There are a total of 70 condo and house listings (non-land) at Schweitzer right now.  Having just seen about 50 of these on an MLS tour,  I was struck by the fact that I showed many of the same properties in early summer, or even last winter (often the price was about the same as before).  My belief is that many of these sellers are indeed willing to negotiate substantially, yet they have a hard time believing that a lower price will drive more people to look at their property.  They do not want to leave all their cards on the table, only to negotiate further still.  This has proven to be true with many of the 35 sales that have closed at Schweitzer in the past year.  (Incidentally the average over the years is around 42 sales per year, not counting land).

As stated above, 35 sales have closed at Schweitzer in the past year, and there are 70 listings now.  This means that we have a 2 year absorption rate on the mountain (much more for land but that will be a different blog post).  Of the 70 listings, 14 are under $200,000 and 6 have sold in this price range (slightly more than 2 year absorption).  20 listings are in the $300s (11 have sold in this range in the last year).  The price range that has always tended to sell the best at Schweitzer ($400-600) has continued to do so, relative to the number of listings in that range.  There are currently 14 listings priced between $400 and $600, and this price range has also seen 12 sales this year. 

The bottom line is that Realtors and buyers are looking for ‘great deals' in this market.  I don't believe it makes much sense to list a property that is priced the same or more than comparable inventory at Schweitzer.  In analyzing the deals that have closed recently, they have most always been priced below the competition.  Nothing will sell until it gets showings, and agents are showing their clients property that is priced the best.  There are definitely still people out there that want to own a ski home at Schweitzer, but they aren't buying unless they feel they are getting a great value.  Otherwise the attitude is to just ‘wait for the market to bottom out'.

The most glaring discrepancy is the 12 listings over $800,000 - there has only been 1 sale at this level in the past year.  This was back in Jan 08 when a Peaks townhouse sold for $825,000.  There have been several sales in the $800s range, however sellers continue to scratch their heads as to why nothing sells above this price range.  The primary reason, in my opinion, is that there simply hasn't been the product on the market that justifies the increase in price.  When Schweitzer's owners finally develop Trappers Creek (the slopeside community over the village) prices are sure to top $1 million for finished homes.  The Bornholm Lodge (a fourplex just below the village on NW Passage) was listed over a year ago at $1.2 mil per unit.  This incidentally is now priced correctly at $899 per unit, but was way overpriced at 1.2.  The quality of construction is definitely high end, however it is still a fouplex rather than detached homes, the location is below the village, and the construction doesn't quite meet the criteria of the million dollar buyer.

One of the communities offering a consistent high level standard is The Spires PUD, where I have just listed the nicest home at Schweitzer.  This is 39 Tall Timber Road, a 3400 square foot log home located at 5200 feet with direct ski access off the South Bowl and ski out from Crystal Springs trail system.  At $1.295 million this is the only home on the mountain that should match up the expectations of the $1 million plus buyer.  Whether we find the buyer is another question, however this is an entirely different level of home than what had previously been offered in this price range.

My advice for home sellers at Schweitzer is to take a good hard luck at your financial and personal situation.  If you really do not need to sell right now, I would recommend waiting.  More sales happen in the late Spring and Summer at Schweitzer than in the winter.  The market WILL come back.  Schweitzer's ownership is continuing to invest in on-mountain improvements, and they are indeed going to be developing their real estate at some point in time.  This will all help overall values and make it easier for you to sell.  

If however you really Do need to sell your property, do not count on it selling until it is priced appropriately.  Take your personal feelings out of the pricing equation.  Also remember that buyers are typically not concerned with how much construction cost or personal cost you have in a property - it is essentially irrelevant in terms of what someone will pay. 

If you are in the under $200k price range and competing against 10 comparable properties, you should know that there is an average of less than 2 per quarter selling.  Do you want to be at the top of this list and be one of those 2?  If so you have to be priced better than the others.  Price is driving the buyers right now, more so than incentives, location, and any improvements you have made.  Its tough to hear but this is the market talking, not me.

For a detailed evaluation of your property based on market data, please fill out your information at http://www.sandpointresortrealty.com/market.html or contact me at 208-304-5665 or Rick@SandpointResortRealty.com.

While there is nothing better than fresh powder, which we have plenty of at Schweitzer Mountain (Sandpoint, Idaho), I have to say that the last week of beautiful sunshine has been tremendous. 

We started the season with a near record month of December, and I had a period of 8 days in a row where I literally skied fresh lines each day.  Then over the past 7 ish days we have had some of the sunniest, warmest, and clearest days you can imagine.  Earlier in the week the temperatures at the top of the mountain were in the upper 50s, so we had the unusual experience of skiing spring corn (with out coats) in January!  I think Monday was probably the best day, where many of the weekend skiers went home and us locals just partied all over the mountain.  The little bar at the top of Great Escape was packed with people hanging out in tee shirts, soaking in the rays. 

I really do live for stormy powder days, which are aplenty here.  I've gotten so used to them that as soon as the fresh tracks were gone I have to admit I was a bit disappointed.  It took me a day to remember that skiing is all about taking what the mountain and mother nature give you.  I enjoyed skiing for awhile before I ever knew about skiing powder (learning to ski in New England).  Once I decided to embrace the warmth I had an incredible week on the hill.  We spent alot of time hanging with family and friends, showing property (easier with good weather) and visiting friends around the Schweitzer Village.

We've had our little 6 month old boy, Trace, hanging around the Village with us on several of these days, as my wife and I trade off on the hill and watching our son.  Today I put the Baby Bjorn on and hiked out with Trace to Picnic Point.  What a great day it was for it, and I felt blessed to live in such an amazing place and to be able to look forward to raising my boy in this environment.

For information on the best runs at Schweitzer, email me at Rick@SandpointResortRealty.com or visit www.SchweitzerMountainProperty.com. 

A couple of years ago my wife and I decided we were tired of the pretentiousness of Santa Barbara, CA where we had lived for 5 years.  We were ready to start having kids and it just seemed like there were better places with more grounded, 'real' people that weren't out to impress their neighbors.  Being avid skiers, we had been making the 6 hour drive to Mammoth all the time.  Yet we were tired of the drive and the crowds. 

So we decided we would cast a wide net in looking for our new home.  We were ready to live in a ski town, but we didn't want just any ski town.  We wanted a place with four seasons of fun, with great people, a cool town, not too small but not too big.  We also wanted to find a place where the real estate values were still reasonable, leaving a good upside in terms of long term appreciation.  As a Real Estate Broker, it was important for me professionally to be part of a community that the whole world had not yet discovered.  Most importantly we wanted a healthy environment to raise our kids.

Since we have been here, we have found that the reasons above were very common in terms of why other people have left Colorado, California, or Utah to relocate here.  We have met so many people that are here for the very same reasons, many of whom grew up here and lived around the country before deciding there was truly no place that quite stacked up to Sandpoint.

For anyone considering a move to the Sandpoint area, the key to really thriving here is to embrace the four seasons of activity along with the individualism that is encouraged and supported in this community.  We have found that there is no particular mold that you have to fit into in order to have alot of friends.  I'll go skiing or mountain biking with a group of people that might include a bartender, a logger, a hippy, and a wealthy investor, and you wouldn't necessarily know the difference by talking to any of them.

So much of what we love here has turned out to be these intangibles.  Of course Schweitzer is an amazing mountain, uncrowded, great snow, huge terrain.  Lake Pend Oreille is as nice of a lake as any I have ever seen, also uncrowded.  The town of Sandpoint has constant festivals that any major city would be proud to host: Festival at Sandpoint, Winter Carnival, Lost in the 50s, etc. 

Since we moved here my brother and his family have also relocated.  We had a son born in Bonner Hospital last summer.  My parents are looking at buying a second home to spend half their time outside of South Carolina.  In short we have become locals and we love it.  This isn't the kind of place where you have to prove yourself before you are accepted.  Its about the most welcoming and embracing community I've ever had the pleasure to be a part of.

If I can answer any questions personally or professionally, please let me know.  You can find more of my blog posts at http://www.sandpointresortrealty.com/blog.html, or feel free to contact me at 208-304-5665 or Rick@SandpointResortRealty.com.