In down market, second-home properties luring buyers!

By John Handley, Special to the Tribune September 2, 2011

Saugatuck, Mich., has been a magnet for Chicagoans for years because of its beaches, trendy boutiques, art galleries and yacht harbor. (John Handley/ Photo for the Chicago Tribune / September 2, 2011)

Excerpts:

“Is now the time to buy the vacation home of your dreams? That cottage by the lake, in the woods or on a golf course is a lot more affordable than it was five years ago.”

” . . . some baby boomers are renovating their vacation homes for year-round living. “They used to be just summer places.”

“Sales of vacation homes fared better last year than sales of primary residences.”

“Nationally, the median price of vacation homes was $150,000 in 2010, down 11.2 percent from $169,000 in 2009, according to the survey. The main reasons for buying included the desire for a family retreat, the potential for price appreciation and low mortgage rates.”

“The typical buyer of a vacation home in 2010 was 49 years old, had a median household income of $99,500 and purchased a property that was a median distance of 375 miles from his or her primary residence.”

Read the complete article at www.chicagotribune.com.

Lake & Forest Acreage Public Sale for this Saturday, August 13th. Prepped with trails and camping//building sites, the following lake lots will be the focus of the day:

- Exposed sand frontage. $49,900, reduced from $78,000.*
- Newly installed dock. $39,900, reduced from $91,000.*
- Dock and sand blanket. $29,000, reduced from $91,000.*
- Adjacent to the national forest and Manistee National Golf Course. $19,900, reduced from $52,000.*

*The seller requests all reasonable offers be submitted.

Surrounded by 1000′s of acres of national forest, the Preserve of Shingle Mill is located between Ludington and Manistee, very close to the beaches and sand dunes of Lake Michigan. Sale includes ownership in additional 75 acres with sand frontage.

We’ll be at the property from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Look for Loon Lake Realty signs; and, please call the office phone if you get off track. Safe travels!

1-888-805-5320

We were busy working in our real estate office, only a few minutes north of Green Bay, Wisconsin, when we heard a tapping at the front door.

Tap, tap, tap. Who's there?

For more information about Sand Hill Cranes here’s a link to the Wisconsin DNR website page about Wisconsin wildlife for children: Wisconsin’s Sand Hill Cranes

Although Wisconsin’s newest state park isn’t yet open to camping, there are many reasons to stop in and see what progress has been made since Loon Lake’s first posting about the park in 2008.  *Please note that a Wisconsin State Park sticker or entry fee is required.

More photos, directions and map after the break.

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There are dozens of write ups about Mickey-Lu Bar-B-Q, a Marinette restaurant best known for its delicious charcoal-grilled hamburgers. This northeast Wisconsin roadside attraction was featured in a USA Today article about 51 Great Burger Joints from each state and the District of Columbia. Here are some photos from a recent visit, with some links below for more info about this Great Northern Eatery.

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After Loon Lake Realty helps someone find and purchase property a real estate agent evaluation is mailed to the customer asking for feedback about their property search. A recent customer, who bought two beautiful lots on the Menominee River, gave us overall high marks for his experience with one of our top agents, Kevin Olson. However, it seems we fell a little short in one particular area and we’d like to remedy that.

Question: “Customer satisfaction is a top priority to our real estate company, from your first contact with the agents, through the property buying process, and after you have owned your property. Please help us do a better job by telling us how we can improve our vacation property service!” Answer: Kevin in a clown outfit!

Kevin in a clown outfit!

Save time! Save gas! Save Money!

I’ve taken the SS Badger ferry from Manitowoc to Ludington and back on more than a few occasions to visit Loon Lake Realty’s Michigan property listings. I’ve calculated the time, fuel (Especially at today’s gas prices!) and cost comparison between driving across the UP versus taking the ferry and believe that, depending on the final destination, I’m way ahead by taking the ferry. Plus, I can sit back and relax instead of staring at miles of highway. A side benefit is that there are no cell phone towers in the middle of Lake Michigan so you get a couple of hours being “off the grid”.

Most of the people I’ve visited with on the cruise are traveling to see family, vacationing tourists, and bikers from who are avoiding the Chicago leg of a trip around Lake Michigan. Additionally, I’ve been engaged in more than a few conversations with Wisconsinites who are traveling to their lake property that they own in Michigan. Wisconsin has over fifteen thousand lakes. Why would anyone from Wisconsin travel to Michigan for a lake cottage? The answer was universally simple . . . you can buy a lake property in Michigan for a fraction of what a similar lake property in Wisconsin would cost.

Take a look around the internet for yourself, and naturally please start with Loon Lake Realty Waterfront Property.

SS Badger

Here are the links to the two Lake Michigan car ferry’s.

Manitowoc, Wisconsin and Ludington, Michigan: SS Badger

Milwaukee, Wisconsin and Muskegon, Michigan: Lake Express

Just for fun, here’s the Lake Express high speed ferry pulling five waterskiers from Marquette University on Lake Michigan, one mile off the shore of Milwaukee.

US Census Reveals Population Trends Affecting Wisconsin Vacation Property Values

Don’t wait for a mass sell-off of Baby Boomers selling their cottages and cabins so they can move to warmer climates. Northern Wisconsin remains as a #1 choice to live for an aging population.

” . . . a small percentage of retirees leave for such places as Florida and Arizona but it’s a misconception most retirees flee due to the weather.”

” . . . that many older people migrating to the state may be retiring to homes or areas they once used for vacations, because northern Wisconsin is typically a vacation area . . .”

Here’s the link to the full article in the Green Bay Press Gazette.

The Federal Government is Cutting Costs by Getting Rid of Buildings We Don’t Need

This property location map visualizes a sampling of over 7,000 of the total 12,000 buildings and structures currently designated as excess, surplus real estate. These properties range from sheds to underutilized office buildings and empty warehouses. Included in the government surplus property sale is real estate in northern Wisconsin, the Upper Peninsula of Michigan and lower Michigan.

The White House

Familiarly know as “The Mighty Mac” or “The Big Mac”, Michigan’s Mackinac Bridge opened in 1957 connecting Lower Michigan to the Upper Peninsula. For more information here’s a link to the Mackinac Bridge Website. Beyond the official website there’s additional bridge history about the Mackinac Bridge on Wikipedia including one of the best photos I’ve ever seen of the entire span across the Straits of Mackinac.

The web page that I frequently visit before I drive up to that part of the Upper Peninsula is the Bridge Cam to double check the weather. Here’s the link to the Mackinac Bridge Cam. (Hint: when you’re on the bridge cam page click the refresh button of your web browser to update the image.)

Mackinac Bridge Cam Image