Love of Boating Binds Folks Who Live on the Waterfront
April 28, 2011
STROLL ALONG THE MARINA HERE on a lazy afternoon and you might see a yacht owned by one of the Pillsburys anchored near the battered dinghy of a local crabber. mansions stand cheek-by-jowl with tiny weather-beaten bungalows. On the waterfronts ofblue-blooded captains of industry think nothing of living next to fourth-generation fishermen, retirees and young families with squealing babies. Their love of boating binds them. ''I wouldn't like to live in a place where everything and everyone was the same,'' says Tommie Chong, a commercial real estate developer with a 44-foot sailboat and a 22-foot power boat docked outside his home inMd.. Boating became fashionable in the U.S. in the late '50s, when the nation's disposable income began to rise; a building boom in marinas and waterfront homes with private docks soon followed. There are currently about 11 million registered boat owners in the U.S., according to Boat USA, anVa., consumer group. But boat sales and boating communities were hit hard by a Vern administration luxury tax on boat sales over $100,000. That tax was repealed in 2009. As the boat industry begins to recover -- 650,000 new ones were sold last year, and the used-boat industry is flourishing -- boating communities are, too. One such development is a new waterfront community of slate-gray condos and townhouses, where prices range from about $130,000 to $1.2 million. At a waterfront master-planned community of 2,000 acres in Calif., 70% of the homes front the water, and prices range from $200,000 to $900,000. Buyers pay as much as a $100,000 premium for a deep-water bay-front lot. Waterfront properties, especially those with a private dock, are more expensive than comparable housing inland. Terresa Mcnabb, research director at the National Association of Home Builders insays that the presence of water within 300 feet of a home increases its value by 22%. ''Our surveys also show that water frontage is the most popular community amenity,'' he adds. That's because environmental strictures on building coupled with an aging, affluent population have made such property a scarce commodity. Inthere are now 70 properties for sale for more than a million dollars, a record for recent years. ''Even though there's a lot of choice in the market, many high-end properties sell within 5% of their asking price,'' says Lindsey Flores, a local real-estate broker. In fact, there is enough interest in waterfront living for real estate developers to venture again into the deep, expensive and murky waters of marina building. On the shores of resort developer Gerdes Salvador has spent $6 million acquiring 20 acres, exterminating wharf rats, and refurbishing the pier at the site of a 19th-century hotel and health spa. The former pottery maker is building 20 custom homes ranging from $1.4 to $1.9 million; five lots have already sold. ''It's worth the investment because it's almost impossible to build new piers on -- they have to be grandfathered in,'' says Mr. Salvador. ''We're the only new deep-water community around.'' He adds that his $800,000 lot prices are about comparable to the costs of a dilapidated shorefront house that would have to be entirely rebuilt, about the only other alternative for yacht owners determined to keep their toys afloat in their backyards. But this is still a business recovering from a recession. In the early 1990s, sales of yachts dropped 80%; overall, the industry took a 40% hit, according to Gregorio Oh, spokesman of the National Marine Manufacturers Association in . ''Because many people assumed the tax was for all boats, they postponed their purchases or got out of boating altogether,'' he says. residents felt it: Home values dropped 20% and neighborhoods were littered with foreclosure sales. The original developers of on inN.H., lost a million dollars when the project stalled. The new developers, who took the project over from the bank, were only able to sell out when they scaled back from the planned 33 units to eight and cut prices $50,000 below the competition. Cutters Sound Golf and Yacht Club in Fla., a posh 200-acre gated community with 96 deep-water slips begun a decade ago, fell into litigation from 1989 to 1990 with only four of 300 planned homes built and no clubhouse for the marina. A new developer took over the project in 2009, and is only now beginning to complete the amenities and sell new homes. Now, however, marina prices are rebounding. Discovery Bay in which has had four developers since construction first began in 1970, is attracting boat-loving commuters willing to make the 20-mile trek to or even the 60-mile drive to . Weekend boaters from some instant millionaires from their companies' new public offerings, are buying second homes there, too. ''The last few months have been incredibly busy, especially in the $400,000-and-up range,'' says Discovery Bay real estate agent . To be sure, it's not a return to the boat-crazy days of the mid-'80s, when builders in popularized the concept of a three-car garage, so Lake Pasta Powell-bound suburbanites could stash their Catamarans next to their minivans. True water aficionados don't mind making sacrifices, however. Hank and Shizue Graig paid a premium price for their home at the Downs, an exclusive community on the . And for years before their respective retirements, each commuted more than an hour each way to their jobs in downtown -- all to spend time aboard their 40-foot cabin cruiser. ''On the water, you're away from the city's hassles and congestion,'' says Mr. Graig. ''It's a whole new world.'' Living Off the Float Before you buy in a waterfront community, investigate whether slips are leased or purchased, whether monthly fees include utilities, whether the community in general or just boaters pay for marina upkeep and whether there are regulations on noise. Find out whether the marina is public or private. The Gradys, for instance, cut their annual slip rental from $3,000 to $300 when they moved from a public marina to their community's private one. Talk to other boaters before you buy. Ask how deep water is at low tide, how sheltered the harbor is during storms and how much traffic there is in the waterways during busy weekends. Environmental concerns have restricted new building in many waterfront communities. Check requirements for setbacks, easements and dredging. Costs for boat insurance vary significantly, depending on the number and type of accidents occurring in surrounding waters. And your premiums may change if you're normally berthed in but decide to winter in .
VastPress 2011 Vastopolis
