2009 Newsletters

: Jan 11

		December 2009
Reader Feedback We want to make this newsletter as useful as possible for you. If you have comments, critiques, suggestions or observations about the newsletter, please email them to me at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. I promise to respond quickly. Thanks. Larry The Tiger -- William Blake, 1757 - 1827 Tiger, tiger, burning bright In the forests of the night, What immortal hand or eye Could frame thy fearful symmetry? In what distant deeps or skies Burnt the fire of thine eyes? On what wings dare he aspire? What the hand dare seize the fire? And what shoulder and what art Could twist the sinews of thy heart? And when thy heart began to beat, What dread hand and what dread feet? What the hammer? What the chain? In what furnace was thy brain? What the anvil? What dread grasp Dare its deadly terrors clasp? When the stars threw down their spears, And water'd heaven with their tears, Did He smile His work to see? Did He who made the lamb make thee? Tiger, tiger, burning bright In the forests of the night, What immortal hand or eye Dare frame thy fearful symmetry?	Value Proposition: Will Survival Instinct of Private Clubs Deal Death Blow to Exclusivity? If necessity is the mother of invention, count on golf industry entrepreneurs and a few Internet-savvy Johnny-Come-Latelys to utterly reinvent the notion of golf club membership in the next few years. The process has already begun, forced by an over-supply of private clubs and the onrushing train popularly known as “social networking.” The fundamental reasons why people join private clubs won’t change drastically. They will still want a place to play with people they know, where their children can take part in junior golf programs (and tennis and swimming) or, if they are empty nesters, where they can enjoy the privacy and quiet of a clubhouse not overrun with rugrats. However, given the growing need of private clubs to supplement their revenues in the face of declining membership rolls, club GMs will increasingly look to a combination of “deals” and Internet golf sites to fill out both their tee sheets and balance sheets. They are also likely to borrow a page from public golf courses in Alabama, Myrtle Beach and elsewhere to form “golf trails” with other private clubs in their areas. Well-financed entrepreneurs, like John McConnell in North Carolina, are beginning to buy up high-quality private courses to form trails of their own that provide their members with maximum value, following a model that has helped The Cliffs Communities and its six courses attract high-level members. In McConnell’s case, though, membership, at around $25,000, is $125,000 less than at The Cliffs. And you are not required to own a home adjacent to one of the McConnell courses (some of his courses don’t even have adjoining communities). That said, even The Cliffs is embellishing its own model to try to attract the value-oriented golfer (see below). In the face of an over-supply of courses, declining memberships, higher operations costs and an economy that may be years in recovery mode, private clubs must adapt or die. The traditional club won’t quite become irrelevant -– some people will always have the money and desire to go exclusive –- but more emphasis will be put on balance sheets than ever before. And clubs will tap into new ways to market themselves and produce additional revenue. These new ways of doing business may compromise the traditional notion of private golf club membership -- the exchange of initiation fee, monthly dues and the occasional assessment for unlimited, no-hassle access to the course and, in many cases, a vote on the club’s board. In the future, strict exclusivity is likely to become just a quaint memory for many courses struggling to survive as they accept some outside play. Clubs like Pine Valley and Augusta National will not have to change, but such examples are far and few between. The rest are already investigating revised models of private club membership. Lucky for them, a number of interesting avenues already exist. Here are a few that could help shape the future of private club membership: The McConnell Group We have written at GolfCommunityReviews.com about John McConnell and his innovative approach to private club value. The former business executive sold his medical software company a few years ago and started to acquire a few choice, but previously under-managed, private and semi-private clubs in the north and central areas of North Carolina, among them the Donald Ross designed Raleigh Country Club and the Old North State Club at Uwharrie Point (Fazio), a well-regarded lake-oriented golf community about an hour from Pinehurst. Members of one of McConnell’s courses retain privileges at the others. When McConnell buys a course, he pours in lots of money to upgrade it quickly, tearing up and reseeding imperfect greens and assuring that other flaws are smoothed out. His brand is to provide a high-quality golf experience and variety of choices for his members. He is selective about the courses he adds to his portfolio, but count on him to add one at the Carolina coast in the near future. Last year, Reserve at Litchfield Beach (SC) members welcomed McConnell’s offer to purchase the private club for $1 and put in $1 million in upgrades. But renegade former members insisted on a return of their equity membership fees and filed a lawsuit to block the sale. McConnell walked away, but look for him to continue to search for a club at the beach that will add value for his members and attract future members. Boxgroove.com We will soon write more extensively about Boxgroove at GolfCommunityReviews.com, but this unique concept is growing rapidly in popularity with both golfers and private clubs alike (at least those private clubs ready to abandon the traditional notion of strict exclusivity). At Boxgroove, named for the “box grooves” on a golf club that will be outlawed this year on the PGA and, for the rest of us in the year 2024, members sign up at the current introductory rate of $49. That gives them online access to dozens of private golf clubs willing to open up available tee times to Boxgroove’s members. Private clubs that worry about opening the floodgates to outsiders can restrict their tee sheets to certain times and even to certain types of golfers (e.g. only members of other private clubs, or just golfers who live within 10 miles as a way to attract potential members). According to Boxgroove founder McRedmond Morelli, “Pine Valley and Augusta could sign up and restrict play only to members of the other club.” Morelli says the number of private clubs that have signed on is approaching 100, and more are signing up daily. Boxgroove’s membership roster has reached nearly 700 since the site launched in June. Opening up their tee sheets might be tough medicine for members at some private clubs, but given the choice between hefty assessments to keep the lawn mowers going or opening up the tee sheets to limited outside play, hosting a few interlopers may not seem so bad. Private Club Network Private Club Network claims a roster of 170 clubs in 40 states that offers their members reciprocal privileges on all the courses. As with Boxgroove, clubs that sign up for the network have total control of their tee sheets. Unlike Boxgroove, golfers cannot play any of the clubs in the network unless they are members of another network club; and they are not permitted to play a club within 100 miles of their home club. PCN player members, however, pay nothing except a modest fee to play at a member club; their home clubs pay an initiation fee to join PCN and then monthly dues that make all golfing members of the home club eligible to use the service. All arrangements for tee times go through PCN, which frees the club pro or GM from having to parry requests directly. PCN membership works best for private club members traveling far from home. ClubCorp, which invented the private golf club management business in 1957, operates in much the same way as does Private Club Network but includes some semi-private courses and urban social clubs. Although figuring out which sites are accessible to which level of ClubCorp's membership is a little bit confusing, members of such private clubs as Firestone in Akron, OH, and Mission Hills in Rancho Mirage, CA, as well as dozens of other less notables, will find enough on the list to lessen the pain of monthly dues. Cliffs Communities Residence Club We also wrote at GolfCommunityReviews about this surprising invention by the upscale Cliffs Communities. Those of us who study the golf community industry are not used to the Cliffs trying to appeal to a group that might also be considering, say, a timeshare at Disney World. The Cliffs’ always lush marketing materials are careful not to imply any attempt to appeal to the masses, but considering a modest base price of $195,000 for deeded ownership that includes lodging and golf membership at the Tom Fazio designed Keowee Springs; access to the other five Cliffs golf courses; a huge Wellness Center and spa; and concierge service, we are tempted to ask: “Who are you, and what have you done with The Cliffs?” This readjustment in The Cliffs will be a welcome turn of events for those Samuel Adams beer-budget golfers who lust for access to Dom Perignon-quality golf. Now they can. The program, designed like a destination club and offering the opportunity to exchange a couple of weeks with other international properties in The Elite Alliance, does not restrict the owner to one week in each of four seasons. According to research The Cliffs conducted, they predict each owner -- their are an average of only eight per unit -- should be able to visit almost as often as they would like for their $1,895 in annual dues. The Cliffs Residence Club also charges a housekeeping fee during owner stays. What is perhaps most surprising about the Residence Club offering is that it includes access to all Cliffs courses for the incredible price of just $50 per round, cart included (golf on the Keowee Springs course is free and just $22 for the cart). It would take nearly a lifetime of $50 rounds to add up to the customary Cllffs membership of $150,000.
	Read my Blog This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
	© 2009 Golf Community Reviews

		December 2009
Reader Feedback We want to make this newsletter as useful as possible for you. If you have comments, critiques, suggestions or observations about the newsletter, please email them to me at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. I promise to respond quickly. Thanks. Larry The Tiger -- William Blake, 1757 - 1827 Tiger, tiger, burning bright In the forests of the night, What immortal hand or eye Could frame thy fearful symmetry? In what distant deeps or skies Burnt the fire of thine eyes? On what wings dare he aspire? What the hand dare seize the fire? And what shoulder and what art Could twist the sinews of thy heart? And when thy heart began to beat, What dread hand and what dread feet? What the hammer? What the chain? In what furnace was thy brain? What the anvil? What dread grasp Dare its deadly terrors clasp? When the stars threw down their spears, And water'd heaven with their tears, Did He smile His work to see? Did He who made the lamb make thee? Tiger, tiger, burning bright In the forests of the night, What immortal hand or eye Dare frame thy fearful symmetry?	Value Proposition: Will Survival Instinct of Private Clubs Deal Death Blow to Exclusivity? If necessity is the mother of invention, count on golf industry entrepreneurs and a few Internet-savvy Johnny-Come-Latelys to utterly reinvent the notion of golf club membership in the next few years. The process has already begun, forced by an over-supply of private clubs and the onrushing train popularly known as “social networking.” The fundamental reasons why people join private clubs won’t change drastically. They will still want a place to play with people they know, where their children can take part in junior golf programs (and tennis and swimming) or, if they are empty nesters, where they can enjoy the privacy and quiet of a clubhouse not overrun with rugrats. However, given the growing need of private clubs to supplement their revenues in the face of declining membership rolls, club GMs will increasingly look to a combination of “deals” and Internet golf sites to fill out both their tee sheets and balance sheets. They are also likely to borrow a page from public golf courses in Alabama, Myrtle Beach and elsewhere to form “golf trails” with other private clubs in their areas. Well-financed entrepreneurs, like John McConnell in North Carolina, are beginning to buy up high-quality private courses to form trails of their own that provide their members with maximum value, following a model that has helped The Cliffs Communities and its six courses attract high-level members. In McConnell’s case, though, membership, at around $25,000, is $125,000 less than at The Cliffs. And you are not required to own a home adjacent to one of the McConnell courses (some of his courses don’t even have adjoining communities). That said, even The Cliffs is embellishing its own model to try to attract the value-oriented golfer (see below). In the face of an over-supply of courses, declining memberships, higher operations costs and an economy that may be years in recovery mode, private clubs must adapt or die. The traditional club won’t quite become irrelevant -– some people will always have the money and desire to go exclusive –- but more emphasis will be put on balance sheets than ever before. And clubs will tap into new ways to market themselves and produce additional revenue. These new ways of doing business may compromise the traditional notion of private golf club membership -- the exchange of initiation fee, monthly dues and the occasional assessment for unlimited, no-hassle access to the course and, in many cases, a vote on the club’s board. In the future, strict exclusivity is likely to become just a quaint memory for many courses struggling to survive as they accept some outside play. Clubs like Pine Valley and Augusta National will not have to change, but such examples are far and few between. The rest are already investigating revised models of private club membership. Lucky for them, a number of interesting avenues already exist. Here are a few that could help shape the future of private club membership: The McConnell Group We have written at GolfCommunityReviews.com about John McConnell and his innovative approach to private club value. The former business executive sold his medical software company a few years ago and started to acquire a few choice, but previously under-managed, private and semi-private clubs in the north and central areas of North Carolina, among them the Donald Ross designed Raleigh Country Club and the Old North State Club at Uwharrie Point (Fazio), a well-regarded lake-oriented golf community about an hour from Pinehurst. Members of one of McConnell’s courses retain privileges at the others. When McConnell buys a course, he pours in lots of money to upgrade it quickly, tearing up and reseeding imperfect greens and assuring that other flaws are smoothed out. His brand is to provide a high-quality golf experience and variety of choices for his members. He is selective about the courses he adds to his portfolio, but count on him to add one at the Carolina coast in the near future. Last year, Reserve at Litchfield Beach (SC) members welcomed McConnell’s offer to purchase the private club for $1 and put in $1 million in upgrades. But renegade former members insisted on a return of their equity membership fees and filed a lawsuit to block the sale. McConnell walked away, but look for him to continue to search for a club at the beach that will add value for his members and attract future members. Boxgroove.com We will soon write more extensively about Boxgroove at GolfCommunityReviews.com, but this unique concept is growing rapidly in popularity with both golfers and private clubs alike (at least those private clubs ready to abandon the traditional notion of strict exclusivity). At Boxgroove, named for the “box grooves” on a golf club that will be outlawed this year on the PGA and, for the rest of us in the year 2024, members sign up at the current introductory rate of $49. That gives them online access to dozens of private golf clubs willing to open up available tee times to Boxgroove’s members. Private clubs that worry about opening the floodgates to outsiders can restrict their tee sheets to certain times and even to certain types of golfers (e.g. only members of other private clubs, or just golfers who live within 10 miles as a way to attract potential members). According to Boxgroove founder McRedmond Morelli, “Pine Valley and Augusta could sign up and restrict play only to members of the other club.” Morelli says the number of private clubs that have signed on is approaching 100, and more are signing up daily. Boxgroove’s membership roster has reached nearly 700 since the site launched in June. Opening up their tee sheets might be tough medicine for members at some private clubs, but given the choice between hefty assessments to keep the lawn mowers going or opening up the tee sheets to limited outside play, hosting a few interlopers may not seem so bad. Private Club Network Private Club Network claims a roster of 170 clubs in 40 states that offers their members reciprocal privileges on all the courses. As with Boxgroove, clubs that sign up for the network have total control of their tee sheets. Unlike Boxgroove, golfers cannot play any of the clubs in the network unless they are members of another network club; and they are not permitted to play a club within 100 miles of their home club. PCN player members, however, pay nothing except a modest fee to play at a member club; their home clubs pay an initiation fee to join PCN and then monthly dues that make all golfing members of the home club eligible to use the service. All arrangements for tee times go through PCN, which frees the club pro or GM from having to parry requests directly. PCN membership works best for private club members traveling far from home. ClubCorp, which invented the private golf club management business in 1957, operates in much the same way as does Private Club Network but includes some semi-private courses and urban social clubs. Although figuring out which sites are accessible to which level of ClubCorp's membership is a little bit confusing, members of such private clubs as Firestone in Akron, OH, and Mission Hills in Rancho Mirage, CA, as well as dozens of other less notables, will find enough on the list to lessen the pain of monthly dues. Cliffs Communities Residence Club We also wrote at GolfCommunityReviews about this surprising invention by the upscale Cliffs Communities. Those of us who study the golf community industry are not used to the Cliffs trying to appeal to a group that might also be considering, say, a timeshare at Disney World. The Cliffs’ always lush marketing materials are careful not to imply any attempt to appeal to the masses, but considering a modest base price of $195,000 for deeded ownership that includes lodging and golf membership at the Tom Fazio designed Keowee Springs; access to the other five Cliffs golf courses; a huge Wellness Center and spa; and concierge service, we are tempted to ask: “Who are you, and what have you done with The Cliffs?” This readjustment in The Cliffs will be a welcome turn of events for those Samuel Adams beer-budget golfers who lust for access to Dom Perignon-quality golf. Now they can. The program, designed like a destination club and offering the opportunity to exchange a couple of weeks with other international properties in The Elite Alliance, does not restrict the owner to one week in each of four seasons. According to research The Cliffs conducted, they predict each owner -- their are an average of only eight per unit -- should be able to visit almost as often as they would like for their $1,895 in annual dues. The Cliffs Residence Club also charges a housekeeping fee during owner stays. What is perhaps most surprising about the Residence Club offering is that it includes access to all Cliffs courses for the incredible price of just $50 per round, cart included (golf on the Keowee Springs course is free and just $22 for the cart). It would take nearly a lifetime of $50 rounds to add up to the customary Cllffs membership of $150,000.
	Read my Blog This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
	© 2009 Golf Community Reviews

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: Jan 11

		November 2009
Reader Feedback We want to make this newsletter as useful as possible for you. If you have comments, critiques, suggestions or observations about the newsletter, please email them to me at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. I promise to respond quickly. Private, public golf club choices aplenty Excellent private and public golf clubs abound across the land, and with the economy reducing membership rolls, some private clubs have drastically cut initiation fees, and even eliminated them in some cases. Green fees at the semi-privates are lower as well, especially with a range of tee-time consolidators slugging it out on the Internet. If you have the patience to shop around, you can do quite well. Here are some of our favorite private and public courses that share the same geography: Private University of Texas Golf Club at Steiner Ranch (top) and public Avery Ranch, both near Austin, TX. Private Wachesaw Plantation (top) and Caledonia Golf and Fish Club, just south of Myrtle Beach, SC. Private Balsam Mountain Preserve (top) and Laurel Ridge, both near Waynesville, NC. Private Daniel Island Fazio Course (top) and Charleston National, near Charleston, SC. For somewhat larger views of the above images, please visit our website: http://www.golfcommunityreviews.com/ gallery-images/ private-public-partnerships.html	Private matters: If the club fits, take your best shot Private golf club membership is a wonderful luxury and inspires pride of ownership in its members. Exclusivity means no riffraff tearing up your course. You don’t have to scramble for tee times either; just walk right up and your friendly pro or starter will set you up with a game with people you probably know. A private club can be one big happy Cheers Bar, where you want to go because everybody knows your name. But sharing facilities with only a select few comes at a price. Private clubs don’t have the kind of financial wiggle room that semi-private clubs have. Private clubs that suffer a loss of members, and therefore revenue, have to make it up with either expensive membership marketing drives or by passing the hat to existing members. The alternative, of course, is to cut back on services and course maintenance which then results in more members departing (or at least making uncomfortable noises). Dues...and some don'ts Public facilities don’t charge initiation fees or assessments, but many offer membership plans with dues only or an annual rate you pay at the beginning of the year. In exchange, you receive many of the benefits of a private club -– except, of course, the privacy. If you choose to pay as you go, you will find few daily fee clubs that will raise green fees during a season. On the contrary, if traffic to the course is light, the daily fee club will likely run special short-term discount programs to firm up the financials. If you don’t mind sharing your golf course with an ever-changing group of golfers, then you might want to consider the "semi-private club" route. Definitions are a little muddy as regards "semi-private" compared with "public." Essentially, a semi-private is one that has members but also permits public play. Joining fees, where they are charged, will be as much as 2/3 less than at a private club with a comparable golf course, and dues are proportionately less as well since club costs are subsidized by the outside play. Of course, membership in a semi-private course involves much more work than at the privates, where you can just show up and be assured of play within a few minutes. Members of semi-privates must call anywhere from a week to two weeks in advance so as not to be crowded out by public players. And if you don’t test out the course a few times before you join, you may find yourself a member in bad standing, stuck routinely behind slow golfers, resulting in five-hour rounds. Smart high-end semi-private courses use rangers to speed up play. And a few, like The Thistle Club north of Myrtle Beach, space out tee times 12 minutes apart. Protecting your turf Course conditions at the semi-private clubs are more fragile as well. The interlopers have nothing invested in a course that is not their regular golf location, and many of them do not replace divots or fix ball marks. I’ve played private clubs where this lax attitude about turf maintenance was an issue as well, but at least the members who care about turf matters can police those who don’t. That is much tougher at a semi-private where the majority of play is by outsiders. Ultimately, the choice of private vs. semi-private comes down to finances, fellowship and frequency. If money is no object, the choice is clear. Ditto if building lasting relationships is as important as the quality of the golf course. But if you play, say, once every two weeks and can organize yourself to call for a tee time in advance, the semi-private course may be the right play. And the cost difference between private club membership and semi-private could easily fund an annual trip to Pebble Beach or Scotland. Going Once, Going Twice Until the last couple of years, it seemed that foreclosures and auctions were largely the province of small, inexpensive homes whose owners had been sniped by Countrywide Financial and other aggressive and unscrupulous sellers of sub-prime mortgages. But low-income people do not have the market cornered on bad financial decisions. Open the Wall Street Journal or big city newspapers on any given day, and you will see the “foreclosure” or “auction” stamp on ads for homes formerly owned by the formerly rich. In the Friday November 13 Wall Street Journal, for example, I noted upcoming auctions for town homes at The Peninsula on Lake Oconee in Georgia (close to the wonderful Cuscowilla and Reynolds Plantation golf communities), and for a single-family home in The Cliffs at Mountain Park, where Gary Player is designing one of eight Cliffs golf courses (Tiger Woods is designing the other to-be-completed layout). Many more options are available at such auction house websites as AlbertBurney.com, JPKing.com and SheldonGood.com. Best bargains in worst markets Residential auctions are hot, up nearly 50% from 2003 to 2008, according to the National Auctioneers Association. And much of the action is in states that traditionally attract retirees and year-round golfers, such as Florida, Arizona and Nevada. As previous targets for speculative builders and investors, those states have suffered most in the housing downturn. In more stable times, the comparatively rare auctions attracted almost exclusively investors who scoured listings for “distressed” properties they could buy at up to 25% or more off their market values, make a couple percentage points worth of cosmetic changes, and then resell at or just a bit below market price. But today, people who intend to live in the house they are bidding on stand cheek by jowl with the professional bidders. It can be an intimidating experience for the novice, but the lure of a bargain can neutralize the jitters. Phone it in…at your risk In many cases, you don’t even have to be present to bid. More and more auction houses are conducting online bidding, especially when a property is remotely located. But because rare are the buyers who would commit a few hundred thousand dollars via long-distance bidding, even if they have a real estate agent locally to kick the tires in their behalf, the online auctions are forced to put up undeniable bargains and “absolute” sales. The absolute sale is one in which whatever the final bid, the house sells for that price. Some banks or individuals who put a property up for bid place a “reserve” price on them; a final bid below the reserve price is not typically accepted and the house reverts to the bank or stays with the owner. Some Johnny-come-lately auction houses think that just the word “auction” connotes bargains, and that putting up for auction homes from high-profile communities is enough to move them. The South Carolina-based UpstateBuyers.com, which I wrote about at GolfCommunityReviews.com earlier this year, tried that approach last summer with resale homes from the Cliffs Communities. But the owners’ reserve prices were just a few thousand dollars less than their previously listed prices, which turned potential buyers away. Upstate did not receive a single bid during its first two auctions last summer, and today the firm’s website has gone inactive. Raise your hand only if you did your homework Here are a few tips if you are considering buying a home at auction: Attend a few auctions first. The pace of the bidding may surprise you; homes for sale are typically gaveled within a few minutes. If you want it, you need to be quick. Do exhaustive research on the house you want and its community (if it is located in one). Do not buy anything sight (or site) unseen. That's pretty obvious advice, but you would be surprised... Tour the house or property well before the auction, preferably with an agent who knows the area. Run away if you don’t like the auction house's or real estate agent's responses to your questions. Make sure that the title to the house is clear; the bank may be selling the house with some liens against it. A contractor, for example, could have a “mechanic’s liens” on the house for which the next owner would be responsible. A reputable local real estate agent can check town or county records for any liens, which must be on file in order to be recognized legally. Have a not-to-exceed price in mind that is well below market value, and stick to your number. Novice bidders can get caught up in the excitement of the action and wind up paying more than they intended. If others want to bid aggressively against each other, stay out of it, at least until one of them drops out. If you have personal experience with a real estate auction, I’d love to hear from you. Please contact me at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. If you are interested in a home up for auction and want the name of a reputable local real estate agent in the area, contact me as well and I will put you in touch with one of the dozens of high-quality agents I know. Or I will interview a few to find the best one for you.
	Read my Blog This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

		November 2009
Reader Feedback We want to make this newsletter as useful as possible for you. If you have comments, critiques, suggestions or observations about the newsletter, please email them to me at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. I promise to respond quickly. Private, public golf club choices aplenty Excellent private and public golf clubs abound across the land, and with the economy reducing membership rolls, some private clubs have drastically cut initiation fees, and even eliminated them in some cases. Green fees at the semi-privates are lower as well, especially with a range of tee-time consolidators slugging it out on the Internet. If you have the patience to shop around, you can do quite well. Here are some of our favorite private and public courses that share the same geography: Private University of Texas Golf Club at Steiner Ranch (top) and public Avery Ranch, both near Austin, TX. Private Wachesaw Plantation (top) and Caledonia Golf and Fish Club, just south of Myrtle Beach, SC. Private Balsam Mountain Preserve (top) and Laurel Ridge, both near Waynesville, NC. Private Daniel Island Fazio Course (top) and Charleston National, near Charleston, SC. For somewhat larger views of the above images, please visit our website: http://www.golfcommunityreviews.com/ gallery-images/ private-public-partnerships.html	Private matters: If the club fits, take your best shot Private golf club membership is a wonderful luxury and inspires pride of ownership in its members. Exclusivity means no riffraff tearing up your course. You don’t have to scramble for tee times either; just walk right up and your friendly pro or starter will set you up with a game with people you probably know. A private club can be one big happy Cheers Bar, where you want to go because everybody knows your name. But sharing facilities with only a select few comes at a price. Private clubs don’t have the kind of financial wiggle room that semi-private clubs have. Private clubs that suffer a loss of members, and therefore revenue, have to make it up with either expensive membership marketing drives or by passing the hat to existing members. The alternative, of course, is to cut back on services and course maintenance which then results in more members departing (or at least making uncomfortable noises). Dues...and some don'ts Public facilities don’t charge initiation fees or assessments, but many offer membership plans with dues only or an annual rate you pay at the beginning of the year. In exchange, you receive many of the benefits of a private club -– except, of course, the privacy. If you choose to pay as you go, you will find few daily fee clubs that will raise green fees during a season. On the contrary, if traffic to the course is light, the daily fee club will likely run special short-term discount programs to firm up the financials. If you don’t mind sharing your golf course with an ever-changing group of golfers, then you might want to consider the "semi-private club" route. Definitions are a little muddy as regards "semi-private" compared with "public." Essentially, a semi-private is one that has members but also permits public play. Joining fees, where they are charged, will be as much as 2/3 less than at a private club with a comparable golf course, and dues are proportionately less as well since club costs are subsidized by the outside play. Of course, membership in a semi-private course involves much more work than at the privates, where you can just show up and be assured of play within a few minutes. Members of semi-privates must call anywhere from a week to two weeks in advance so as not to be crowded out by public players. And if you don’t test out the course a few times before you join, you may find yourself a member in bad standing, stuck routinely behind slow golfers, resulting in five-hour rounds. Smart high-end semi-private courses use rangers to speed up play. And a few, like The Thistle Club north of Myrtle Beach, space out tee times 12 minutes apart. Protecting your turf Course conditions at the semi-private clubs are more fragile as well. The interlopers have nothing invested in a course that is not their regular golf location, and many of them do not replace divots or fix ball marks. I’ve played private clubs where this lax attitude about turf maintenance was an issue as well, but at least the members who care about turf matters can police those who don’t. That is much tougher at a semi-private where the majority of play is by outsiders. Ultimately, the choice of private vs. semi-private comes down to finances, fellowship and frequency. If money is no object, the choice is clear. Ditto if building lasting relationships is as important as the quality of the golf course. But if you play, say, once every two weeks and can organize yourself to call for a tee time in advance, the semi-private course may be the right play. And the cost difference between private club membership and semi-private could easily fund an annual trip to Pebble Beach or Scotland. Going Once, Going Twice Until the last couple of years, it seemed that foreclosures and auctions were largely the province of small, inexpensive homes whose owners had been sniped by Countrywide Financial and other aggressive and unscrupulous sellers of sub-prime mortgages. But low-income people do not have the market cornered on bad financial decisions. Open the Wall Street Journal or big city newspapers on any given day, and you will see the “foreclosure” or “auction” stamp on ads for homes formerly owned by the formerly rich. In the Friday November 13 Wall Street Journal, for example, I noted upcoming auctions for town homes at The Peninsula on Lake Oconee in Georgia (close to the wonderful Cuscowilla and Reynolds Plantation golf communities), and for a single-family home in The Cliffs at Mountain Park, where Gary Player is designing one of eight Cliffs golf courses (Tiger Woods is designing the other to-be-completed layout). Many more options are available at such auction house websites as AlbertBurney.com, JPKing.com and SheldonGood.com. Best bargains in worst markets Residential auctions are hot, up nearly 50% from 2003 to 2008, according to the National Auctioneers Association. And much of the action is in states that traditionally attract retirees and year-round golfers, such as Florida, Arizona and Nevada. As previous targets for speculative builders and investors, those states have suffered most in the housing downturn. In more stable times, the comparatively rare auctions attracted almost exclusively investors who scoured listings for “distressed” properties they could buy at up to 25% or more off their market values, make a couple percentage points worth of cosmetic changes, and then resell at or just a bit below market price. But today, people who intend to live in the house they are bidding on stand cheek by jowl with the professional bidders. It can be an intimidating experience for the novice, but the lure of a bargain can neutralize the jitters. Phone it in…at your risk In many cases, you don’t even have to be present to bid. More and more auction houses are conducting online bidding, especially when a property is remotely located. But because rare are the buyers who would commit a few hundred thousand dollars via long-distance bidding, even if they have a real estate agent locally to kick the tires in their behalf, the online auctions are forced to put up undeniable bargains and “absolute” sales. The absolute sale is one in which whatever the final bid, the house sells for that price. Some banks or individuals who put a property up for bid place a “reserve” price on them; a final bid below the reserve price is not typically accepted and the house reverts to the bank or stays with the owner. Some Johnny-come-lately auction houses think that just the word “auction” connotes bargains, and that putting up for auction homes from high-profile communities is enough to move them. The South Carolina-based UpstateBuyers.com, which I wrote about at GolfCommunityReviews.com earlier this year, tried that approach last summer with resale homes from the Cliffs Communities. But the owners’ reserve prices were just a few thousand dollars less than their previously listed prices, which turned potential buyers away. Upstate did not receive a single bid during its first two auctions last summer, and today the firm’s website has gone inactive. Raise your hand only if you did your homework Here are a few tips if you are considering buying a home at auction: Attend a few auctions first. The pace of the bidding may surprise you; homes for sale are typically gaveled within a few minutes. If you want it, you need to be quick. Do exhaustive research on the house you want and its community (if it is located in one). Do not buy anything sight (or site) unseen. That's pretty obvious advice, but you would be surprised... Tour the house or property well before the auction, preferably with an agent who knows the area. Run away if you don’t like the auction house's or real estate agent's responses to your questions. Make sure that the title to the house is clear; the bank may be selling the house with some liens against it. A contractor, for example, could have a “mechanic’s liens” on the house for which the next owner would be responsible. A reputable local real estate agent can check town or county records for any liens, which must be on file in order to be recognized legally. Have a not-to-exceed price in mind that is well below market value, and stick to your number. Novice bidders can get caught up in the excitement of the action and wind up paying more than they intended. If others want to bid aggressively against each other, stay out of it, at least until one of them drops out. If you have personal experience with a real estate auction, I’d love to hear from you. Please contact me at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. If you are interested in a home up for auction and want the name of a reputable local real estate agent in the area, contact me as well and I will put you in touch with one of the dozens of high-quality agents I know. Or I will interview a few to find the best one for you.
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: Jan 11

: Jan 11

: Nov 15

Excellent private and public golf clubs abound across the land, and with the economy reducing membership rolls, some private clubs have drastically cut initiation fees, and even eliminated them in some cases. Green fees at the semi-privates are lower as well, especially with a range of tee time consolidators slugging it out on the Internet. If you have the patience to shop around, you can do quite well.

Read more: Private public partnerships

: Oct 17

		October 2009
Reader Feedback We want to make this newsletter as useful as possible for you. If you have comments, critiques, suggestions or observations about the newsletter, please email them to me at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. I promise to respond quickly. Autumnal golf If you visit my web site, you know I have been taking advantage of the season and stopping by dozens of golf clubs in New England. The leaves are beautiful, and the golf is not too shabby either. I hope these photos capture a sense of the beauty of this part of the country at this time of the year. At Owl's Nest in Camption, NH, you get the golf course, the mountains and roomy condos starting in the $300s. Homes at the sleek Vermont National Golf Club in South Burlington, VT, have great views of the course and the Green Mountains. Golfers and homeowners alike have choice views of the water-surrounded finishing hole at Ballymeade Country Club in East Falmouth, MA. Two-season athletes will enjoy both the slopes and the slope rating at Stratton Mountain, whose 27 holes of Geoffrey Cornish golf are both fun and challenging. Unless I am taking a nap with the window open!	One golf home or two? In this market, anything’s possible I have spent the last three weeks making quick visits to golf clubs throughout New England. I’ve played only three rounds, one on Cape Cod at a club called Ballymeade, then at Stratton Mountain, in the mountains of central Vermont, and finally at Owl’s Nest, part of a golf community just off I-93 in central New Hampshire. I have put more than 2,000 miles on my car in those two weeks, but the driving has been made a lot easier by some glorious colors on the mountains. I have spent time in the western Carolina mountains, which are beautiful, but they have nothing on the Green Mountains and White Mountains of New England. I am expanding my geography to include northeastern U.S. golf communities and independent courses. The more conversations I have with Baby Boomers, the more I learn that they are seeking alternatives to Florida and other parts of the south, where the heat is pretty much unbearable in summer. I was matched for my round at Stratton Mountain with a gentleman from Austin who said he and his wife were in Vermont to enjoy the fall colors of the changing leaves. He added that it was just too hot to play in Austin in the summer and early fall. Developers and marketing managers I have talked with in these past few weeks say they are targeting Floridians especially. You might have read that, in 2008, Florida had its first net loss of residents in the last five decades. Some, it seems, are moving well north. When the housing and stock markets stabilize, which they will do eventually, some golfing couples might choose to retire to two homes –- one north, one south –- where they can play golf year-round. Falling home prices have made this possible for many, and the serious golfer with a bit of a vagabond soul (and a little extra money to spend) will appreciate playing a flattish course in the winter and a roller coaster course in the mountains in summer. Those who plan to spend, say, $800,000 on a single home, could live in two nice places north and south for that amount, although the extra set of taxes will add a bit to the bottom line expenses. And, of course, neither $400,000 home will be as lavish or large as the $800,000 choice. I don’t expect the number of golf rounds played will catch up with the oversupply of courses around the country for some time; those who don’t absolutely need to join private clubs will find a great array of semi-privates, and at ever more-competitive rates. Generally speaking, the many semi-private clubs I stopped at in New England don’t charge much more than $60 a round, cart included. Very few charge an initiation fee or more than a few thousand dollars in annual fees. Even with the current housing market, I was surprised at the reasonable prices I saw in Vermont real estate listings, although property taxes are high in the state (as I always preach, look at the total cost of living, including the relative cost of real estate, not just taxes). Some large Victorian homes were priced in the $300s and did not appear to have structural or cosmetic issues. Other homes in small towns, and not far from the local golf clubs, were priced similarly. Of course, these small towns do not have the abundance of services you find near bigger burgs. But that, after all, is the point of living in a place like Vermont, at least part-time. Small towns lead to big relationships with your neighbors, the owner of the general store, and the couple who tap the local maple trees for the best syrup you will ever taste. And far from the traffic jams of places with overbuilt developed communities, a place in postcard New England helps recharge the batteries. Some of the golf communities, many of which are also skiing communities, feature home prices much more reasonable than for comparables in the southern U.S. At Owl’s Nest, for example, where I spent two nights and played one of the best public courses in New England, large condominium town homes with views of the mountains and golf course begin in the $300s. Single family homes are available from the $400s. The golf course, designed by Mark Mungeam, who came out of the Geoffrey Cornish shop, is beautiful and challenging and, most of all, fun for all types of players. Popular ski areas are just 20 minutes away. Some golfers are skiers too, and in Vermont and New Hampshire especially, you are never more than a few miles from splendid skiing (Florida dwellers will recognize the traffic patterns leading to New England ski resorts on winter weekends). Although the mountains of the Carolinas and the far western regions of Virginia have their own ski resorts, they will not appeal to the halfway serious skier the way Killington, Stratton, Stowe, Mount Snow and other New England peaks will. Developers north and south are negotiating seriously on price just to move their inventories. That is opening up the possibility of dual-home ownership for those with an interest in two climates, maybe a little skiing with their golf, or just some variety. If two homes appeal to you, one should be in a single-family home, where you can spread out a bit and not feel you are in resort accommodations all year round. At The Landings in Savannah, GA, for example, an attractive patio home is currently listed at just $299,900 for nearly 2,500 square feet and 3 BRs and 2 BAs. Joining fees for the six private and excellent Landings golf courses have been lowered to $30,000, but "semi-private" options are also available nearby, including at The Wilmington Club, a classic Donald Ross design that has been tinkered with over time, but not in a way that hides many of the master’s intentions. In many other places throughout the hot south, you will find prices have cooled on decently sized homes, in communities that you would be happy to call your primary or second home. Sunk treasure: Scholarly paper gives hint at how to negotiate to buy someone else’s house I had the good fortune to meet Andy Litteral late this summer. Andy is a professor of statistics at the University of Richmond and a reader of our web site, GolfCommunityReviews.com. He invited me to stop by his office while my daughter was visiting the admissions office and taking a tour of the beautiful campus. During our discussion about our future prospects as retired gentlemen in golf communities, I suggested to Andy that many people who otherwise would have relocated to their dream retirement location are holding out for unnaturally high prices for their primary homes. This, I argued as I always do, is causing them to miss out on a better life and, in many cases, a lower cost of living if they are considering a move from the high-priced north to the lower-priced south. As a scholar, Andy takes a much more rational approach to such issues, and he grabbed from his desk a scholarly paper that considers the issue of irrational expectations on the part of a home seller, and how a potential buyer can use such behavior to his or her advantage. Without getting into too much detail, the paper, which is now a dozen years old and was authored by professors from four different universities, investigates “the impact that sunk costs have on negotiators’ expectations, strategies, and negotiated outcomes.” In other words, it asked, does what a seller paid for his property affect the positions of both buyers and sellers in the negotiation process? The conclusion of the research, which studied nearly 300 subjects, was that buyers base their first and highest offers on the sellers’ purchase price; that the sellers’ lowest acceptable offer is based on what they paid for the property; and that the previous purchase price affects the final outcome of negotiations. In short, “the consideration of one’s own sunk costs may be irrational from an economic perspective” –- score one for my team! – but “the consideration of one’s opponent’s sunk costs may be strategically rational” if it predicts the opponent’s (i.e. the seller’s) actions. In short, knowing your opponent’s likely next move, as in chess, can help guide your own moves. As much as anything, the study implies the need for any buyer to be represented by a “buyer’s” real estate agent, who will do the research for you and determine how much the seller of the home you are interested in has sunk into the property. For sellers in many such situations, assume that your opponent has such information and negotiate accordingly. In the end, rational behavior on both sides of the negotiation will result in a sweeter deal for all.
	© 2009 Golf Community Reviews

		October 2009
Reader Feedback We want to make this newsletter as useful as possible for you. If you have comments, critiques, suggestions or observations about the newsletter, please email them to me at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. I promise to respond quickly. Autumnal golf If you visit my web site, you know I have been taking advantage of the season and stopping by dozens of golf clubs in New England. The leaves are beautiful, and the golf is not too shabby either. I hope these photos capture a sense of the beauty of this part of the country at this time of the year. At Owl's Nest in Camption, NH, you get the golf course, the mountains and roomy condos starting in the $300s. Homes at the sleek Vermont National Golf Club in South Burlington, VT, have great views of the course and the Green Mountains. Golfers and homeowners alike have choice views of the water-surrounded finishing hole at Ballymeade Country Club in East Falmouth, MA. Two-season athletes will enjoy both the slopes and the slope rating at Stratton Mountain, whose 27 holes of Geoffrey Cornish golf are both fun and challenging. Unless I am taking a nap with the window open!	One golf home or two? In this market, anything’s possible I have spent the last three weeks making quick visits to golf clubs throughout New England. I’ve played only three rounds, one on Cape Cod at a club called Ballymeade, then at Stratton Mountain, in the mountains of central Vermont, and finally at Owl’s Nest, part of a golf community just off I-93 in central New Hampshire. I have put more than 2,000 miles on my car in those two weeks, but the driving has been made a lot easier by some glorious colors on the mountains. I have spent time in the western Carolina mountains, which are beautiful, but they have nothing on the Green Mountains and White Mountains of New England. I am expanding my geography to include northeastern U.S. golf communities and independent courses. The more conversations I have with Baby Boomers, the more I learn that they are seeking alternatives to Florida and other parts of the south, where the heat is pretty much unbearable in summer. I was matched for my round at Stratton Mountain with a gentleman from Austin who said he and his wife were in Vermont to enjoy the fall colors of the changing leaves. He added that it was just too hot to play in Austin in the summer and early fall. Developers and marketing managers I have talked with in these past few weeks say they are targeting Floridians especially. You might have read that, in 2008, Florida had its first net loss of residents in the last five decades. Some, it seems, are moving well north. When the housing and stock markets stabilize, which they will do eventually, some golfing couples might choose to retire to two homes –- one north, one south –- where they can play golf year-round. Falling home prices have made this possible for many, and the serious golfer with a bit of a vagabond soul (and a little extra money to spend) will appreciate playing a flattish course in the winter and a roller coaster course in the mountains in summer. Those who plan to spend, say, $800,000 on a single home, could live in two nice places north and south for that amount, although the extra set of taxes will add a bit to the bottom line expenses. And, of course, neither $400,000 home will be as lavish or large as the $800,000 choice. I don’t expect the number of golf rounds played will catch up with the oversupply of courses around the country for some time; those who don’t absolutely need to join private clubs will find a great array of semi-privates, and at ever more-competitive rates. Generally speaking, the many semi-private clubs I stopped at in New England don’t charge much more than $60 a round, cart included. Very few charge an initiation fee or more than a few thousand dollars in annual fees. Even with the current housing market, I was surprised at the reasonable prices I saw in Vermont real estate listings, although property taxes are high in the state (as I always preach, look at the total cost of living, including the relative cost of real estate, not just taxes). Some large Victorian homes were priced in the $300s and did not appear to have structural or cosmetic issues. Other homes in small towns, and not far from the local golf clubs, were priced similarly. Of course, these small towns do not have the abundance of services you find near bigger burgs. But that, after all, is the point of living in a place like Vermont, at least part-time. Small towns lead to big relationships with your neighbors, the owner of the general store, and the couple who tap the local maple trees for the best syrup you will ever taste. And far from the traffic jams of places with overbuilt developed communities, a place in postcard New England helps recharge the batteries. Some of the golf communities, many of which are also skiing communities, feature home prices much more reasonable than for comparables in the southern U.S. At Owl’s Nest, for example, where I spent two nights and played one of the best public courses in New England, large condominium town homes with views of the mountains and golf course begin in the $300s. Single family homes are available from the $400s. The golf course, designed by Mark Mungeam, who came out of the Geoffrey Cornish shop, is beautiful and challenging and, most of all, fun for all types of players. Popular ski areas are just 20 minutes away. Some golfers are skiers too, and in Vermont and New Hampshire especially, you are never more than a few miles from splendid skiing (Florida dwellers will recognize the traffic patterns leading to New England ski resorts on winter weekends). Although the mountains of the Carolinas and the far western regions of Virginia have their own ski resorts, they will not appeal to the halfway serious skier the way Killington, Stratton, Stowe, Mount Snow and other New England peaks will. Developers north and south are negotiating seriously on price just to move their inventories. That is opening up the possibility of dual-home ownership for those with an interest in two climates, maybe a little skiing with their golf, or just some variety. If two homes appeal to you, one should be in a single-family home, where you can spread out a bit and not feel you are in resort accommodations all year round. At The Landings in Savannah, GA, for example, an attractive patio home is currently listed at just $299,900 for nearly 2,500 square feet and 3 BRs and 2 BAs. Joining fees for the six private and excellent Landings golf courses have been lowered to $30,000, but "semi-private" options are also available nearby, including at The Wilmington Club, a classic Donald Ross design that has been tinkered with over time, but not in a way that hides many of the master’s intentions. In many other places throughout the hot south, you will find prices have cooled on decently sized homes, in communities that you would be happy to call your primary or second home. Sunk treasure: Scholarly paper gives hint at how to negotiate to buy someone else’s house I had the good fortune to meet Andy Litteral late this summer. Andy is a professor of statistics at the University of Richmond and a reader of our web site, GolfCommunityReviews.com. He invited me to stop by his office while my daughter was visiting the admissions office and taking a tour of the beautiful campus. During our discussion about our future prospects as retired gentlemen in golf communities, I suggested to Andy that many people who otherwise would have relocated to their dream retirement location are holding out for unnaturally high prices for their primary homes. This, I argued as I always do, is causing them to miss out on a better life and, in many cases, a lower cost of living if they are considering a move from the high-priced north to the lower-priced south. As a scholar, Andy takes a much more rational approach to such issues, and he grabbed from his desk a scholarly paper that considers the issue of irrational expectations on the part of a home seller, and how a potential buyer can use such behavior to his or her advantage. Without getting into too much detail, the paper, which is now a dozen years old and was authored by professors from four different universities, investigates “the impact that sunk costs have on negotiators’ expectations, strategies, and negotiated outcomes.” In other words, it asked, does what a seller paid for his property affect the positions of both buyers and sellers in the negotiation process? The conclusion of the research, which studied nearly 300 subjects, was that buyers base their first and highest offers on the sellers’ purchase price; that the sellers’ lowest acceptable offer is based on what they paid for the property; and that the previous purchase price affects the final outcome of negotiations. In short, “the consideration of one’s own sunk costs may be irrational from an economic perspective” –- score one for my team! – but “the consideration of one’s opponent’s sunk costs may be strategically rational” if it predicts the opponent’s (i.e. the seller’s) actions. In short, knowing your opponent’s likely next move, as in chess, can help guide your own moves. As much as anything, the study implies the need for any buyer to be represented by a “buyer’s” real estate agent, who will do the research for you and determine how much the seller of the home you are interested in has sunk into the property. For sellers in many such situations, assume that your opponent has such information and negotiate accordingly. In the end, rational behavior on both sides of the negotiation will result in a sweeter deal for all.
	© 2009 Golf Community Reviews

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: Oct 17

: Sep 17

		July 2009
Golf Buffets: A listing of private southeastern U.S. golf communities the editor has visited and can recommend. Each features 36 holes or more of designer golf. Want more info?This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. Landfall Wilmington, NC 45 holes by J. Nicklaus & P. Dye St. James Plantation Southport, NC 81 holes by Nicklaus Design, T. Cate, P. B. Dye, H. Irwin The Landings at Skidaway Island 108 holes by A. Hills, A. Palmer, T. Fazio, W. Byrd Daniel Island Charleston, SC 36 holes by T. Fazio and R. Jones Dataw Island St. Helena, SC 36 holes by T. Fazio and A. Hills Colleton River Club Bluffton, SC 36 holes by J. Nicklaus & P. Dye Berkeley Hall 36 holes by T. Fazio Belfair 36 holes by T. Fazio Woodside Plantation Aiken, SC 63 holes by R. Jones, R. Cupp and Nicklaus Design (Note: Reserve Course requires 2nd membership) River Landing Wallace, NC 36 holes by C. Johnston The Cliffs Communities Locations in the Carolinas mountains 108 holes by T. Jackson, B. Wright, J. Nicklaus, T. Fazio. Courses by G. Player and T. Woods coming. Reader Feedback We want to make this newsletter as useful as possible for you. If you have comments, critiques, suggestions or observations about the newsletter, please email them to me at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. I promise to respond quickly.	Perfect climate not so hot…or so cold either It was Mark Twain who reportedly wrote, “Everyone talks about the weather, but no one does anything about it.” Spoken like a true resident of Hartford, CT, where the author lived for a good part of his adult life. Hartford features one of the most unpredictable climates in the nation. I know; I live there, and I have the snow shovels, broken umbrellas, T-shirts and shorts to prove it (all items occasionally called upon the same day). As Twain also famously wrote, “If you don’t like the weather in New England, just wait a few minutes.” Millions of baby boomer golfers cannot wait to flee the cold weather in places like Toronto, Bangor, Minneapolis, Pittsburgh and Hartford and head for a more predictable and golf friendly environment. Only the most dedicated among us will don the necessary two sweaters, two gloves, thermal undies and hand warmers to get in a few holes on a typical January day north of the Mason/Dixon Line. Outfitted thusly, however, we both look and swing like the Michelin man, not exactly what we worked so hard for the last 40 years. Finally, a definition for the perfect climate for golf and other activities But the question is begged: Which southern cities in the U.S. have the “best” climates? For the purposes of this discussion, consider “best” those climates in which the sun shines the most, the warm average temperature varies the least, and the chances are greatest that your four-hour round of golf will not be interrupted by rain (or, heaven forefend, some other form of precipitation). Those who protest that they really, really like four seasons should read no further. I did not take a single meteorology class in college, although I have learned enough over the years to understand that if you stick an umbrella in your golf bag before you head for the course, it guarantees no rain (the inverse, of course, is true as well). For an objective view of what constitutes “best” climate, I turn to Jan Null, a meteorologist with the Golden Gate Weather Services in California. He devised a Camelot Climate Index, a reference to the 1960 musical that features a song about perfect weather (see the lyrics at Mr. Null’s web site, http://ggweather.com/camelot.htm ). The meteorologist ran data on more than 150 cities and towns in the U.S. and determined –- no surprise here –- that San Diego ranked first, followed by a few other cities in California. Aside from a couple of towns in Florida in the Top 10 (Key West at #8 and Appalachicola at #10, great oysters by the way), the highest ranking southeastern town was Cape Hatteras at #14, followed by Atlanta at #25, Norfolk at #27, Charleston at #29 and Charlotte at #30. Wilmington just missed the top 30 at #31. In a nutshell, Null assessed a range of climate characteristics to come up with his overall Camelot Index; they include “maximum temperatures, minimum temperatures, mean number of days with minimum temperatures less than 32º F, mean number of days with maximum temperatures greater than 90º F, mean annual rainfall, mean number of days with precipitation, mean annual snowfall, average percent of sunshine, and average relative humidity. The average monthly maximum temperature and corresponding afternoon relative humidity were combined to derive a monthly temperature humidity index (THI), which is a measure of ‘discomfort.’” For the full list of 158 cities, check out the Camelot Climate Index site at http://ggweather.com/camelot.htm. By the way, Mr. Twain, Hartford finished a weak 125^th; Juneau, the capital of Alaska and the opposite of Camelot, finished dead last. Don't push the remote button too hard (Part of a series on traps to avoid when looking for a golf community home) A nicely designed home in a well managed golf community should retain its value over time (assuming no more catastrophic news for the economy). But if the community is many miles from such local services as healthcare and shopping, with no scheduled date for those services, your chance for significant appreciation over time may be just as remote as the community. Unless decades of work, traffic and nosy neighbors have turned you into a recluse, you can have your cake and eat it too by identifying a golf community that feels secluded but is actually within a few miles of a thriving city. The communities around the east coast cities of Wilmington, Charleston and Savannah come to mind, as do some that circle Asheville and Greenville (SC). Many Florida communities near bustling cities are also sequestered well behind their gated entrances; but just outside the gate lurks the kind of traffic many of us have spent decades swearing at. Private clubs outside the gates are cheaper than those inside In any of these cities, you will find excellent private clubs adjacent to neighborhoods but developed separately. In general, you will save money by purchasing a home in one of these un-gated neighborhoods and then buying your club membership at your leisure. (Note: Some planned communities force you to decide on membership within weeks of buying your home, and the rules for refunds or transfers in equity clubs can require a lawyer to decipher.) Four years of research has led me to the conclusion that these separate private clubs generally charge initiation fees 15% to 20% lower than comparable clubs in nearby gated communities. If you don’t need the full roster of amenities and the gate in a community, a home outside the gates is a viable and cost-effective alternative. Giving away $65,000 golf memberships If the preceding decades have left you so bruised and battered that you absolutely insist on leaving civilization behind, just as long as you have a good golf course to play, try Bald Head Island (a ferry ride from Southport, NC) or Daufuskie Island (ferry from Hilton Head). On Daufuskie, at the wonderful Haig Point community, they are giving away $65,000 golf memberships (literally) with the purchase of a home, and deeply discounting some very nice homes. The catch is that it is expensive to run that ferry; the combination of club and homeowner dues at the island’s beautiful Haig Point community are well in excess of $15,000 per year. Also, the local Daufuskie Island Resort, with its two golf courses, recently closed, creating an unfortunate drag on a niche market. These realities are driving prices ever lower, for some low enough that the bargains may make the high carrying charges pretty much a wash. For the worldly, though, and those for whom protecting their investment is a priority, the safest bet is a home within 15 or 20 minutes of such services as hospitals, shopping and entertainment. “What is outside the gates,” says southeastern real estate expert Marian Schaffer of Schaffer Realty Group, “is just as important as what is inside the gates.” The anomaly of Asheville: Cheap steaks, expensive Lipitor I have been searching through cost of living data to determine how much cheaper it is to live in the south than the north. Readers of our blog site at GolfCommunityReviews know that I believe many people with equity in their primary homes and a plan to move south should accept a market price and move sooner rather than later. They will instantly give themselves a cost of living increase because it is cheaper to live in the south, and in many cases dramatically so. They will also get ahead of a market rebound that demographers and real estate experts expect will favor faster appreciation in the south than the north. Eat, drink and be merry...but watch your cholesterol drug expenses Take, for example, someone who owns a home in the Boston/Quincy, MA, metro area. According to the web site BankRate.com’s cost of living calculator, a Bostonian couple moving to Asheville, NC, will give themselves a 21% annual raise. Virtually every major expense, from housing to utility costs to doctors’ visits to a T-bone steak, is dramatically cheaper in Asheville. The one outstanding exception is drugs. The cholesterol-fighting drug Lipitor and painkiller Ibuprofen stand out as significantly more expensive in Asheville. Moves from every northern city I compared with Asheville -– Chicago, Hartford, New York, even Burlington, VT -– yielded the same result; more expense for Lipitor and painkillers in Asheville. However, the glass of wine, which is only slightly more expensive in Asheville than in Boston, is half full: The cost of steak in Asheville won’t mitigate the reliance on Lipitor, but the money you save if you move there will probably reduce the need for headache medicine.

	© 2009 Golf Community Reviews

		July 2009
Golf Buffets: A listing of private southeastern U.S. golf communities the editor has visited and can recommend. Each features 36 holes or more of designer golf. Want more info?This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. Landfall Wilmington, NC 45 holes by J. Nicklaus & P. Dye St. James Plantation Southport, NC 81 holes by Nicklaus Design, T. Cate, P. B. Dye, H. Irwin The Landings at Skidaway Island 108 holes by A. Hills, A. Palmer, T. Fazio, W. Byrd Daniel Island Charleston, SC 36 holes by T. Fazio and R. Jones Dataw Island St. Helena, SC 36 holes by T. Fazio and A. Hills Colleton River Club Bluffton, SC 36 holes by J. Nicklaus & P. Dye Berkeley Hall 36 holes by T. Fazio Belfair 36 holes by T. Fazio Woodside Plantation Aiken, SC 63 holes by R. Jones, R. Cupp and Nicklaus Design (Note: Reserve Course requires 2nd membership) River Landing Wallace, NC 36 holes by C. Johnston The Cliffs Communities Locations in the Carolinas mountains 108 holes by T. Jackson, B. Wright, J. Nicklaus, T. Fazio. Courses by G. Player and T. Woods coming. Reader Feedback We want to make this newsletter as useful as possible for you. If you have comments, critiques, suggestions or observations about the newsletter, please email them to me at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. I promise to respond quickly.	Perfect climate not so hot…or so cold either It was Mark Twain who reportedly wrote, “Everyone talks about the weather, but no one does anything about it.” Spoken like a true resident of Hartford, CT, where the author lived for a good part of his adult life. Hartford features one of the most unpredictable climates in the nation. I know; I live there, and I have the snow shovels, broken umbrellas, T-shirts and shorts to prove it (all items occasionally called upon the same day). As Twain also famously wrote, “If you don’t like the weather in New England, just wait a few minutes.” Millions of baby boomer golfers cannot wait to flee the cold weather in places like Toronto, Bangor, Minneapolis, Pittsburgh and Hartford and head for a more predictable and golf friendly environment. Only the most dedicated among us will don the necessary two sweaters, two gloves, thermal undies and hand warmers to get in a few holes on a typical January day north of the Mason/Dixon Line. Outfitted thusly, however, we both look and swing like the Michelin man, not exactly what we worked so hard for the last 40 years. Finally, a definition for the perfect climate for golf and other activities But the question is begged: Which southern cities in the U.S. have the “best” climates? For the purposes of this discussion, consider “best” those climates in which the sun shines the most, the warm average temperature varies the least, and the chances are greatest that your four-hour round of golf will not be interrupted by rain (or, heaven forefend, some other form of precipitation). Those who protest that they really, really like four seasons should read no further. I did not take a single meteorology class in college, although I have learned enough over the years to understand that if you stick an umbrella in your golf bag before you head for the course, it guarantees no rain (the inverse, of course, is true as well). For an objective view of what constitutes “best” climate, I turn to Jan Null, a meteorologist with the Golden Gate Weather Services in California. He devised a Camelot Climate Index, a reference to the 1960 musical that features a song about perfect weather (see the lyrics at Mr. Null’s web site, http://ggweather.com/camelot.htm ). The meteorologist ran data on more than 150 cities and towns in the U.S. and determined –- no surprise here –- that San Diego ranked first, followed by a few other cities in California. Aside from a couple of towns in Florida in the Top 10 (Key West at #8 and Appalachicola at #10, great oysters by the way), the highest ranking southeastern town was Cape Hatteras at #14, followed by Atlanta at #25, Norfolk at #27, Charleston at #29 and Charlotte at #30. Wilmington just missed the top 30 at #31. In a nutshell, Null assessed a range of climate characteristics to come up with his overall Camelot Index; they include “maximum temperatures, minimum temperatures, mean number of days with minimum temperatures less than 32º F, mean number of days with maximum temperatures greater than 90º F, mean annual rainfall, mean number of days with precipitation, mean annual snowfall, average percent of sunshine, and average relative humidity. The average monthly maximum temperature and corresponding afternoon relative humidity were combined to derive a monthly temperature humidity index (THI), which is a measure of ‘discomfort.’” For the full list of 158 cities, check out the Camelot Climate Index site at http://ggweather.com/camelot.htm. By the way, Mr. Twain, Hartford finished a weak 125^th; Juneau, the capital of Alaska and the opposite of Camelot, finished dead last. Don't push the remote button too hard (Part of a series on traps to avoid when looking for a golf community home) A nicely designed home in a well managed golf community should retain its value over time (assuming no more catastrophic news for the economy). But if the community is many miles from such local services as healthcare and shopping, with no scheduled date for those services, your chance for significant appreciation over time may be just as remote as the community. Unless decades of work, traffic and nosy neighbors have turned you into a recluse, you can have your cake and eat it too by identifying a golf community that feels secluded but is actually within a few miles of a thriving city. The communities around the east coast cities of Wilmington, Charleston and Savannah come to mind, as do some that circle Asheville and Greenville (SC). Many Florida communities near bustling cities are also sequestered well behind their gated entrances; but just outside the gate lurks the kind of traffic many of us have spent decades swearing at. Private clubs outside the gates are cheaper than those inside In any of these cities, you will find excellent private clubs adjacent to neighborhoods but developed separately. In general, you will save money by purchasing a home in one of these un-gated neighborhoods and then buying your club membership at your leisure. (Note: Some planned communities force you to decide on membership within weeks of buying your home, and the rules for refunds or transfers in equity clubs can require a lawyer to decipher.) Four years of research has led me to the conclusion that these separate private clubs generally charge initiation fees 15% to 20% lower than comparable clubs in nearby gated communities. If you don’t need the full roster of amenities and the gate in a community, a home outside the gates is a viable and cost-effective alternative. Giving away $65,000 golf memberships If the preceding decades have left you so bruised and battered that you absolutely insist on leaving civilization behind, just as long as you have a good golf course to play, try Bald Head Island (a ferry ride from Southport, NC) or Daufuskie Island (ferry from Hilton Head). On Daufuskie, at the wonderful Haig Point community, they are giving away $65,000 golf memberships (literally) with the purchase of a home, and deeply discounting some very nice homes. The catch is that it is expensive to run that ferry; the combination of club and homeowner dues at the island’s beautiful Haig Point community are well in excess of $15,000 per year. Also, the local Daufuskie Island Resort, with its two golf courses, recently closed, creating an unfortunate drag on a niche market. These realities are driving prices ever lower, for some low enough that the bargains may make the high carrying charges pretty much a wash. For the worldly, though, and those for whom protecting their investment is a priority, the safest bet is a home within 15 or 20 minutes of such services as hospitals, shopping and entertainment. “What is outside the gates,” says southeastern real estate expert Marian Schaffer of Schaffer Realty Group, “is just as important as what is inside the gates.” The anomaly of Asheville: Cheap steaks, expensive Lipitor I have been searching through cost of living data to determine how much cheaper it is to live in the south than the north. Readers of our blog site at GolfCommunityReviews know that I believe many people with equity in their primary homes and a plan to move south should accept a market price and move sooner rather than later. They will instantly give themselves a cost of living increase because it is cheaper to live in the south, and in many cases dramatically so. They will also get ahead of a market rebound that demographers and real estate experts expect will favor faster appreciation in the south than the north. Eat, drink and be merry...but watch your cholesterol drug expenses Take, for example, someone who owns a home in the Boston/Quincy, MA, metro area. According to the web site BankRate.com’s cost of living calculator, a Bostonian couple moving to Asheville, NC, will give themselves a 21% annual raise. Virtually every major expense, from housing to utility costs to doctors’ visits to a T-bone steak, is dramatically cheaper in Asheville. The one outstanding exception is drugs. The cholesterol-fighting drug Lipitor and painkiller Ibuprofen stand out as significantly more expensive in Asheville. Moves from every northern city I compared with Asheville -– Chicago, Hartford, New York, even Burlington, VT -– yielded the same result; more expense for Lipitor and painkillers in Asheville. However, the glass of wine, which is only slightly more expensive in Asheville than in Boston, is half full: The cost of steak in Asheville won’t mitigate the reliance on Lipitor, but the money you save if you move there will probably reduce the need for headache medicine.

	© 2009 Golf Community Reviews

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: Sep 16

		August 2009
Reader Feedback We want to make this newsletter as useful as possible for you. If you have comments, critiques, suggestions or observations about the newsletter, please email them to me at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. I promise to respond quickly. Homes of the Month August 2009 Each month, I will post a few homes that are currently on the market in golf communities I have visited and recommend. I have excellent contacts in each community and can help arrange visits for interested parties. There is never a charge for my services. For more information about any of these homes or any other golf communities in the southern U.S., contact me at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. and I will get back to you promptly. Glenmore Keswick, VA (15 minutes from Charlottesville) 5 BR, 3 BA + two half BA, 4,587 sq. ft Basement billiard room, office/studio above detached garage...$879,000 The Landings at Skidaway Island Savannah, GA 3 BRs, 4 ½ BAs, 4.665 sq. ft. Bonus rm. incl. wet bar and full BA Six private golf courses on property...$699,000 Cobblestone Park Blythewood, SC 3 BR, 2 ½ BA, 2,513 sq. ft. Charleston style brick home, downstairs master, granite kitchen counters...$385,000 (See accompanying article) Champion Hills Hendersonville, NC 4 BRs, 4 BAs, two half BAs, 7,740 sq. ft. 3 acres, estate home with view of classic Fazio golf course $1.24 million (for sale by bank; assessed at $2.1M)	Living with the relatives when searching for a golf course home You don’t have to be an Einstein to understand the theory of relativity as it applies to costing out your future home in a golf community. Everything is relative, and no one cost factor alone matters too much. At discussion boards like City-Data.com, the most frequently asked question from those contemplating an interstate move seems to be, “How much can I expect to pay in taxes?” Or what are the homeowner association dues in a community in, say, Savannah compared with one in, say, Asheville? Other folks obsess about taxes on property like cars and boats. In isolation, worries like these are irrelevant. The real question should be about total cost of living, not the components, and which particular area or community best matches your lifestyle. Marketing disinformation Marketing, of course, exacerbates the misconceptions. Communities in Florida and Tennessee, for example, ignore any references to overall cost of living and, instead, market the lack of a state income tax. That certainly may be attractive to a retiree with a pension and stock dividends in the millions, but Joe Bag of Donuts from Kankakee (and most of the rest of us) should not care less about the state tax rate if his pension and Social Security payments are modest. Property and sales taxes together can take a bigger bite than a 6% state income tax. The theory of relativity extends to the communities themselves. Sometimes their prices are too good to be true, and of course there is a reason. Wonderful communities like Haig Point on Daufuskie Island near Hilton Head tout free golf membership and incredibly low-priced properties for the amenities they offer. In Haig Point’s case, it’s a splendid Rees Jones 29-hole golf course (that’s not a typo, it really does have 29 holes) and a relaxing overall ambience that can breathe new life into the most stressed-out body. Although pure island living (no cars allowed on Daufuskie) is not for everyone, those who want to get away from air and noise pollution will find no better place. Free can be expensive So what’s the catch when you receive a gratis $65,000 golf membership at Haig Point and can buy an attractive 3,000 square foot house for under $500,000? Well, that ferry that brings you back and forth from Hilton Head is expensive to maintain, and the yin of no initiation fee is compensated by the yang of an ultra-high dues structure, a total of about $20,000 per year for the club and homeowners’ fees. And should you want to build on that bargain basement lot you bought, count on up to $500 per square foot in construction costs because everything –- materials and labor -– must be shipped in. Haig Point is a great place, but cheap overall it is not. Such faux bargains are touted elsewhere, and at even lower prices. In the Myrtle Beach area, for example, some golf communities are so desperate to move their inventory of lots and $200,000 homes that they have offered free golf membership and a waiver of dues for a couple of years. Move there, however, and you find that you are sharing your public golf course with so many others that you have to arrange your life around arranging tee times. At that point, that bargain turns costly in terms of lifestyle. We are currently in a strong buyer’s market. The greatest risk to a buyer in this market is not overspending; it is hard to do that with the inventory of homes available and the odor of desperation hanging over many sellers. The greatest risk is to chase the biggest savings at the expense of ultimate happiness. Chaos theory: Golf communities with tumultuous pasts can be bargains You can count on a few unassailable truths in real estate. Most basic of all is that when demand is high and supply low, then prices are high. That, of course, was the case prior to 2006. But when demand is low and supply high, then prices are low, which of course is the market we face now. The other truth about real estate, as with any “investment,” is that your upside potential for appreciation is directly related to the risk you are willing to take. That is why some bonds, for example, can pay such impressive dividends. But they don’t call them “junk” for nothing. Investing in real estate –- as a homeowner or a speculator –- carries similar risks and rewards. Discounts up to 50% or more In the current golf community market, you can purchase a home or property at a nice discount to its value of just two years ago. In a fully mature community, for example, where the clubhouse, pool, tennis courts and fitness center, as well as the golf course, are fully operational, I’d estimate prices are generally 20% to 30% of where they were a couple of years ago. But in some communities that were teetering on the brink before some bank stepped in with rescue financing, or its residents pitched in to assess themselves a little more in order to avoid losing a lot when the developer defaulted, the discounts are substantial, as much as 50% or more compared with original pricing (this would seem to cover virtually all of Las Vegas and Phoenix, for example). In such situations, however, the originally promised amenities have not been built, and they may not be for some years. That is a risk any purchaser takes, and developers know it. In some communities, therefore, even in some nice ones, the developers have priced their remaining properties so low that their existing residents are up in arms. And well they should be since a property just like the one for which they paid $300,000 three years ago is now on the market for $100,000. Once a Ginn, now maybe a bargain That is the case at Cobblestone Park, a former Ginn Resorts property near Columbia, SC, one of a number of properties Ginn had to shed in the wake of its huge loan default to Credit Suisse. The clubhouse there is half built, the golf club has gone from private to public, a potential new owner is still considering his prospects, and the residents are angry over their significant loss of value. But from my recent visit, Cobblestone Park appears to have “good bones” and I saw no outward signs of the community’s troubles. With an organized plan and additional investments, new ownership could help turn a $75,000 investment in a lot there today into a much more valuable piece of dirt a year or two from now. If you are considering buying property or a home in a community with a troubled past and anything but a rock-solid future, proceed with extreme caution. Visit, ask a lot of questions inside and outside the community, and believe about half of what you hear, if that. Unless you have a great tolerance for risk, the advice here is to buy your home or property in an established community where every amenity is in place and where the developer has turned the property over to the owners (except, perhaps, the golf club). The higher price you pay will carry a built-in premium for the security of your investment. Market status, from the horses’ mouths Comments on market conditions from realtors I know and trust. “I have just done contracts on two homes and have gotten one set of signatures on a third. This could be a good month.” — Jerry Biffle, Plantation Properties, Southport, NC “Definitely a buyer's market here with home prices about 20% to 25% below the market high of several years ago. It now appears that the pricing has bottomed out, and I expect that after Labor Day, new listings will start to inch up in asking price. — Mike Burch, The Landings at Skidaway Island, Savannah, GA “…we have had a very, very busy summer. Our listings have doubled in the last 6-9 months, and we have been very busy working with out of town buyers… we have seen a real up tick in people getting back into the vacation home market.” — Carol Clay, Keller Williams, Brevard, NC If you would like to talk with any of these or other well qualified real estate agents I know personally, please contact me at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. and I will be pleased to put you in touch with them.

	© 2009 Golf Community Reviews

		August 2009
Reader Feedback We want to make this newsletter as useful as possible for you. If you have comments, critiques, suggestions or observations about the newsletter, please email them to me at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. I promise to respond quickly. Homes of the Month August 2009 Each month, I will post a few homes that are currently on the market in golf communities I have visited and recommend. I have excellent contacts in each community and can help arrange visits for interested parties. There is never a charge for my services. For more information about any of these homes or any other golf communities in the southern U.S., contact me at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. and I will get back to you promptly. Glenmore Keswick, VA (15 minutes from Charlottesville) 5 BR, 3 BA + two half BA, 4,587 sq. ft Basement billiard room, office/studio above detached garage...$879,000 The Landings at Skidaway Island Savannah, GA 3 BRs, 4 ½ BAs, 4.665 sq. ft. Bonus rm. incl. wet bar and full BA Six private golf courses on property...$699,000 Cobblestone Park Blythewood, SC 3 BR, 2 ½ BA, 2,513 sq. ft. Charleston style brick home, downstairs master, granite kitchen counters...$385,000 (See accompanying article) Champion Hills Hendersonville, NC 4 BRs, 4 BAs, two half BAs, 7,740 sq. ft. 3 acres, estate home with view of classic Fazio golf course $1.24 million (for sale by bank; assessed at $2.1M)	Living with the relatives when searching for a golf course home You don’t have to be an Einstein to understand the theory of relativity as it applies to costing out your future home in a golf community. Everything is relative, and no one cost factor alone matters too much. At discussion boards like City-Data.com, the most frequently asked question from those contemplating an interstate move seems to be, “How much can I expect to pay in taxes?” Or what are the homeowner association dues in a community in, say, Savannah compared with one in, say, Asheville? Other folks obsess about taxes on property like cars and boats. In isolation, worries like these are irrelevant. The real question should be about total cost of living, not the components, and which particular area or community best matches your lifestyle. Marketing disinformation Marketing, of course, exacerbates the misconceptions. Communities in Florida and Tennessee, for example, ignore any references to overall cost of living and, instead, market the lack of a state income tax. That certainly may be attractive to a retiree with a pension and stock dividends in the millions, but Joe Bag of Donuts from Kankakee (and most of the rest of us) should not care less about the state tax rate if his pension and Social Security payments are modest. Property and sales taxes together can take a bigger bite than a 6% state income tax. The theory of relativity extends to the communities themselves. Sometimes their prices are too good to be true, and of course there is a reason. Wonderful communities like Haig Point on Daufuskie Island near Hilton Head tout free golf membership and incredibly low-priced properties for the amenities they offer. In Haig Point’s case, it’s a splendid Rees Jones 29-hole golf course (that’s not a typo, it really does have 29 holes) and a relaxing overall ambience that can breathe new life into the most stressed-out body. Although pure island living (no cars allowed on Daufuskie) is not for everyone, those who want to get away from air and noise pollution will find no better place. Free can be expensive So what’s the catch when you receive a gratis $65,000 golf membership at Haig Point and can buy an attractive 3,000 square foot house for under $500,000? Well, that ferry that brings you back and forth from Hilton Head is expensive to maintain, and the yin of no initiation fee is compensated by the yang of an ultra-high dues structure, a total of about $20,000 per year for the club and homeowners’ fees. And should you want to build on that bargain basement lot you bought, count on up to $500 per square foot in construction costs because everything –- materials and labor -– must be shipped in. Haig Point is a great place, but cheap overall it is not. Such faux bargains are touted elsewhere, and at even lower prices. In the Myrtle Beach area, for example, some golf communities are so desperate to move their inventory of lots and $200,000 homes that they have offered free golf membership and a waiver of dues for a couple of years. Move there, however, and you find that you are sharing your public golf course with so many others that you have to arrange your life around arranging tee times. At that point, that bargain turns costly in terms of lifestyle. We are currently in a strong buyer’s market. The greatest risk to a buyer in this market is not overspending; it is hard to do that with the inventory of homes available and the odor of desperation hanging over many sellers. The greatest risk is to chase the biggest savings at the expense of ultimate happiness. Chaos theory: Golf communities with tumultuous pasts can be bargains You can count on a few unassailable truths in real estate. Most basic of all is that when demand is high and supply low, then prices are high. That, of course, was the case prior to 2006. But when demand is low and supply high, then prices are low, which of course is the market we face now. The other truth about real estate, as with any “investment,” is that your upside potential for appreciation is directly related to the risk you are willing to take. That is why some bonds, for example, can pay such impressive dividends. But they don’t call them “junk” for nothing. Investing in real estate –- as a homeowner or a speculator –- carries similar risks and rewards. Discounts up to 50% or more In the current golf community market, you can purchase a home or property at a nice discount to its value of just two years ago. In a fully mature community, for example, where the clubhouse, pool, tennis courts and fitness center, as well as the golf course, are fully operational, I’d estimate prices are generally 20% to 30% of where they were a couple of years ago. But in some communities that were teetering on the brink before some bank stepped in with rescue financing, or its residents pitched in to assess themselves a little more in order to avoid losing a lot when the developer defaulted, the discounts are substantial, as much as 50% or more compared with original pricing (this would seem to cover virtually all of Las Vegas and Phoenix, for example). In such situations, however, the originally promised amenities have not been built, and they may not be for some years. That is a risk any purchaser takes, and developers know it. In some communities, therefore, even in some nice ones, the developers have priced their remaining properties so low that their existing residents are up in arms. And well they should be since a property just like the one for which they paid $300,000 three years ago is now on the market for $100,000. Once a Ginn, now maybe a bargain That is the case at Cobblestone Park, a former Ginn Resorts property near Columbia, SC, one of a number of properties Ginn had to shed in the wake of its huge loan default to Credit Suisse. The clubhouse there is half built, the golf club has gone from private to public, a potential new owner is still considering his prospects, and the residents are angry over their significant loss of value. But from my recent visit, Cobblestone Park appears to have “good bones” and I saw no outward signs of the community’s troubles. With an organized plan and additional investments, new ownership could help turn a $75,000 investment in a lot there today into a much more valuable piece of dirt a year or two from now. If you are considering buying property or a home in a community with a troubled past and anything but a rock-solid future, proceed with extreme caution. Visit, ask a lot of questions inside and outside the community, and believe about half of what you hear, if that. Unless you have a great tolerance for risk, the advice here is to buy your home or property in an established community where every amenity is in place and where the developer has turned the property over to the owners (except, perhaps, the golf club). The higher price you pay will carry a built-in premium for the security of your investment. Market status, from the horses’ mouths Comments on market conditions from realtors I know and trust. “I have just done contracts on two homes and have gotten one set of signatures on a third. This could be a good month.” — Jerry Biffle, Plantation Properties, Southport, NC “Definitely a buyer's market here with home prices about 20% to 25% below the market high of several years ago. It now appears that the pricing has bottomed out, and I expect that after Labor Day, new listings will start to inch up in asking price. — Mike Burch, The Landings at Skidaway Island, Savannah, GA “…we have had a very, very busy summer. Our listings have doubled in the last 6-9 months, and we have been very busy working with out of town buyers… we have seen a real up tick in people getting back into the vacation home market.” — Carol Clay, Keller Williams, Brevard, NC If you would like to talk with any of these or other well qualified real estate agents I know personally, please contact me at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. and I will be pleased to put you in touch with them.

	© 2009 Golf Community Reviews

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: Sep 16

: Sep 16

: Sep 15

		June 2009
Reader Feedback We want to make this newsletter as useful as possible for you. If you have comments, critiques, suggestions or observations about the newsletter, please email them to me at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. I promise to respond quickly.	Home On The Course, premiere issue Editor's Message Welcome to the premiere issue of Home On The Course. Whether you are looking for a retirement or vacation home or are one of the hundreds of real estate professionals I have met, I trust you will find something of value in each monthly issue. For those who have been planning to move to a golf community in a warm place, the glass could very well be half-full in terms of prices. Since the irrational exuberance that preceded 2005, prices have dropped by 25% and more in some high-quality communities. And sales in some of the communities are starting to pick up, so the bargains may not last too long. Do not expect hype or promotion in this or future issues of Home On The Course. If communities or golf courses I visit deserve praise, I’ll certainly give them their due. If criticism is in order, count on that as well. If you see something of interest here or at GolfCommunityReviews.com and want more information, please contact me. And if you agree that this is a good time to begin the process of looking for a home on the course, I will do the research for you, identify qualified professionals who can assist you and I will work my heart out to help you find your perfect vacation or retirement home. I will never charge you a fee or obligate you in any way, and any information you share will be treated in the strictest confidence. Contact me at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or by phone at (860) 675-1491. Enjoy this first issue of Home On The Course. Larry Gavrich, founder and editor
Low Country Highlights Hilton Head Island may have the notoriety for great golf communities in the Low Country of South Carolina, but off the island you will find a range of fine alternatives and terrific golf courses. Below is a small sample (see accompanying article). Most of the homes along the Greg Norman course in Oldfield, near Beaufort, include separated garage areas, and many of those have offices or living quarters above them. The best homes at Dataw Island have views of the marsh, the water and one of the two excellent golf courses -- one by Tom Fazio, one by Arthur Hills. The 19th hole (clubhouse) at Colleton River in Bluffton has the best view of the Pete Dye layout and the river beyond. Another well-regarded 18, by Jack Nicklaus, is just next door. One of the par 3s at Berkeley Hall in Bluffton is unmistakably Tom Fazio, whose name is on more courses in the area than any other architect (and on both of them at Berkeley Hall). Belfair, also in Bluffton and also sporting two Fazio courses, features bunkering with indigenous sawgrass plantings and a casually upscale atmosphere. The Callawassie Island Club's 27 holes by Tom Fazio have been reworked in recent years to restore them to their original glory. A combination of palmetto trees and pines frame some of the well bunkered greens. Anyone critical of Arnold Palmer's sometimes overwrought designs, as I have been, might change his mind once around the Old Tabby Links on Spring Island. The course is in impeccable condition, as you might expect in a community of million dollar homes (and up). If you would like to see a larger version of any of the photos above, email me at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it., and I will be happy to email the photo back to you.	High on Low Country Communities I spent an interesting week in March among the tidal marshes and alligators of the Low Country north of Savannah. I started the week in Bluffton, just off Hilton Head Island, and gradually moved north to the Beaufort area. I preferred Beaufort for its less developed ambience and considerably fewer automobiles. The volume of traffic entering and emerging from Hilton Head was stunning, even at 2 in the afternoon. I played golf at Berkeley Hall and Belfair which, with the nearby Colleton River Plantation, are upscale in look and prices, with homes starting in the high six figures. Belfair and Berkeley can boast of two Tom Fazio layouts each; I only had time to play one of each, and I preferred Belfair. I regret I did not have the chance to play the Nicklaus or Dye courses at Colleton River; next time. Just off Hilton Head, Moss Creek Plantation, which is approaching its 40th birthday, has 36 holes of nice golf and more reasonably priced homes, albeit many in need of a little cosmetic touch here and there. Oldfield and Dataw Within a half hour of Beaufort, a charming seacoast town, I visited four communities that each had something to recommend. Oldfield, whose Greg Norman golf course only lightly brushes up against the marsh, will suit especially couples who split their time between the links and the horse barn. The white fencing throughout added a sophisticated touch to the vistas from the challenging course. Dataw Island’s Arthur Hills and Tom Fazio 18s provide an almost limitless variety of golf challenges to its residents, an active and friendly bunch. (I played the wonderful Hills course with one of them.) The long, live-oak-lined drive into the community is a warm and welcoming hint of things to come, and a state beach just six miles away is the easiest to get to from any golf community in the area. Because Dataw is at some remove from Beaufort, but still only 25 minutes, its properties were priced more reasonably than "the competition." Callawassie and Spring Island Callawassie Island, which is a little closer to the main road than Spring Island, gives an impression of casual living, although its clubhouse buzzed with activity most of the day of my visit. The community’s 27 holes of Fazio golf –- 18 of which were recently restored to their original design and the nine others slated for the same treatment this summer –- are as classic as any the designer has produced. (I am an unabashed Fazio fan). Like Dataw, Callawassie’s real estate prices are mid-six-figure values, and if you look carefully -– and don’t mind committing to a bit of a touch up -- you could land a genuine bargain. Callawassie shares a security gate with Spring Island, but all comparisons end there. Indeed, Spring Island is unlike other communities in the Low Country in its emphasis on privacy, sophisticated amenities and the best Arnold Palmer designed course I have played to date, Old Tabby Links. Extra touches here and there, such as the preserved plantation house ruins, a small nature museum and full-time naturalist, as well as golf course workers who hand pick offending blades of grass from some of the greens, all add up to a unique venue. You pay a price for this kind of sophistication and quality; most homes start above the $1 million mark. If you are interested in more information about Low Country living, please email me at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or phone me at (860) 675-1491. Avoiding the Traps when Shopping for a Golf Community Home Shopping for a home in a golf community is not unlike playing the game we golfers love –- the key to any chance at a successful round is to avoid the hazards along the way. On some of the toughest courses, those hazards are hidden from sight; so too are the hazards that can turn an expensive real estate purchase into an expensive mistake. In this and future newsletters, we will discuss some of these “traps” and how savvy buyers can arm themselves with the equipment to avoid them. In this premiere issue of Home On The Course, we start with tips on avoiding bunker mentality. Lots of choice: Developers don’t always show you all properties available Developers with an inventory of unsold properties are desperate to move them. If you wander into their sales offices and ask what’s available, they may not tell you about lower priced resale listings, even though they can sell them to you. Their commission rate is lower on the re-sales and their developers are all over them to push the more expensive lots. In one North Carolina coastal community with a reputation for hiding re-sales, quarter-acre developer lots are listed at $225,000; on the same block, a resale lot of the same size is listed for $180,000. Always check with a local real estate agent or the area’s MLS (multiple listing service) before negotiating with the developer’s agents. Free golf membership is too good to be true Many golf communities offer free golf club membership with the purchase of a lot or home. One club I have visited offers a $65,000 membership that includes play on its beautiful 27-hole marshland golf course, complimentary with the purchase of virtually any home in the community. That’s a great deal…if you don’t mind paying $15,000 in annual dues, about twice what the average private club assesses. Of course, at the other end of the spectrum, free golf and reasonable dues are often signals that the golf course is a cow pasture. If the golf course in your future community is important to you, make sure you play it before committing. Connecticut Golf Guide Free for Asking I placed my first big print ad recently in the 2009 Connecticut Golf Guide. The guide was distributed with the Hartford Courant to 100,000 subscribers. For any golfers who live in New England or plan to pass through Connecticut in the coming months, the guide is an excellent resource. I have a supply of extra copies and would be happy to share them with all who send me a note, with their mailing address. As always, I promise never to share your personal information with anyone. Contact me at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. Final Thought (courtesy of Rob Kyff, the eminence behind the nationally syndicated “Word Watch” column) “Golf Shot -- The ball lies on the fairway, in the bunker or in the rough. The golfer hits it onto the green, near the hole. I guarantee you that the sports commentator will never say, ‘That’s a great shot,’ but instead, ‘That’s a great golf shot.’ As opposed to a slap shot or a rifle shot or a pool shot? (Interestingly, the term [golf shot] is rarely used for a drive or putt.)”

	© 2009 Golf Community Reviews

		June 2009
Reader Feedback We want to make this newsletter as useful as possible for you. If you have comments, critiques, suggestions or observations about the newsletter, please email them to me at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. I promise to respond quickly.	Home On The Course, premiere issue Editor's Message Welcome to the premiere issue of Home On The Course. Whether you are looking for a retirement or vacation home or are one of the hundreds of real estate professionals I have met, I trust you will find something of value in each monthly issue. For those who have been planning to move to a golf community in a warm place, the glass could very well be half-full in terms of prices. Since the irrational exuberance that preceded 2005, prices have dropped by 25% and more in some high-quality communities. And sales in some of the communities are starting to pick up, so the bargains may not last too long. Do not expect hype or promotion in this or future issues of Home On The Course. If communities or golf courses I visit deserve praise, I’ll certainly give them their due. If criticism is in order, count on that as well. If you see something of interest here or at GolfCommunityReviews.com and want more information, please contact me. And if you agree that this is a good time to begin the process of looking for a home on the course, I will do the research for you, identify qualified professionals who can assist you and I will work my heart out to help you find your perfect vacation or retirement home. I will never charge you a fee or obligate you in any way, and any information you share will be treated in the strictest confidence. Contact me at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or by phone at (860) 675-1491. Enjoy this first issue of Home On The Course. Larry Gavrich, founder and editor
Low Country Highlights Hilton Head Island may have the notoriety for great golf communities in the Low Country of South Carolina, but off the island you will find a range of fine alternatives and terrific golf courses. Below is a small sample (see accompanying article). Most of the homes along the Greg Norman course in Oldfield, near Beaufort, include separated garage areas, and many of those have offices or living quarters above them. The best homes at Dataw Island have views of the marsh, the water and one of the two excellent golf courses -- one by Tom Fazio, one by Arthur Hills. The 19th hole (clubhouse) at Colleton River in Bluffton has the best view of the Pete Dye layout and the river beyond. Another well-regarded 18, by Jack Nicklaus, is just next door. One of the par 3s at Berkeley Hall in Bluffton is unmistakably Tom Fazio, whose name is on more courses in the area than any other architect (and on both of them at Berkeley Hall). Belfair, also in Bluffton and also sporting two Fazio courses, features bunkering with indigenous sawgrass plantings and a casually upscale atmosphere. The Callawassie Island Club's 27 holes by Tom Fazio have been reworked in recent years to restore them to their original glory. A combination of palmetto trees and pines frame some of the well bunkered greens. Anyone critical of Arnold Palmer's sometimes overwrought designs, as I have been, might change his mind once around the Old Tabby Links on Spring Island. The course is in impeccable condition, as you might expect in a community of million dollar homes (and up). If you would like to see a larger version of any of the photos above, email me at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it., and I will be happy to email the photo back to you.	High on Low Country Communities I spent an interesting week in March among the tidal marshes and alligators of the Low Country north of Savannah. I started the week in Bluffton, just off Hilton Head Island, and gradually moved north to the Beaufort area. I preferred Beaufort for its less developed ambience and considerably fewer automobiles. The volume of traffic entering and emerging from Hilton Head was stunning, even at 2 in the afternoon. I played golf at Berkeley Hall and Belfair which, with the nearby Colleton River Plantation, are upscale in look and prices, with homes starting in the high six figures. Belfair and Berkeley can boast of two Tom Fazio layouts each; I only had time to play one of each, and I preferred Belfair. I regret I did not have the chance to play the Nicklaus or Dye courses at Colleton River; next time. Just off Hilton Head, Moss Creek Plantation, which is approaching its 40th birthday, has 36 holes of nice golf and more reasonably priced homes, albeit many in need of a little cosmetic touch here and there. Oldfield and Dataw Within a half hour of Beaufort, a charming seacoast town, I visited four communities that each had something to recommend. Oldfield, whose Greg Norman golf course only lightly brushes up against the marsh, will suit especially couples who split their time between the links and the horse barn. The white fencing throughout added a sophisticated touch to the vistas from the challenging course. Dataw Island’s Arthur Hills and Tom Fazio 18s provide an almost limitless variety of golf challenges to its residents, an active and friendly bunch. (I played the wonderful Hills course with one of them.) The long, live-oak-lined drive into the community is a warm and welcoming hint of things to come, and a state beach just six miles away is the easiest to get to from any golf community in the area. Because Dataw is at some remove from Beaufort, but still only 25 minutes, its properties were priced more reasonably than "the competition." Callawassie and Spring Island Callawassie Island, which is a little closer to the main road than Spring Island, gives an impression of casual living, although its clubhouse buzzed with activity most of the day of my visit. The community’s 27 holes of Fazio golf –- 18 of which were recently restored to their original design and the nine others slated for the same treatment this summer –- are as classic as any the designer has produced. (I am an unabashed Fazio fan). Like Dataw, Callawassie’s real estate prices are mid-six-figure values, and if you look carefully -– and don’t mind committing to a bit of a touch up -- you could land a genuine bargain. Callawassie shares a security gate with Spring Island, but all comparisons end there. Indeed, Spring Island is unlike other communities in the Low Country in its emphasis on privacy, sophisticated amenities and the best Arnold Palmer designed course I have played to date, Old Tabby Links. Extra touches here and there, such as the preserved plantation house ruins, a small nature museum and full-time naturalist, as well as golf course workers who hand pick offending blades of grass from some of the greens, all add up to a unique venue. You pay a price for this kind of sophistication and quality; most homes start above the $1 million mark. If you are interested in more information about Low Country living, please email me at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or phone me at (860) 675-1491. Avoiding the Traps when Shopping for a Golf Community Home Shopping for a home in a golf community is not unlike playing the game we golfers love –- the key to any chance at a successful round is to avoid the hazards along the way. On some of the toughest courses, those hazards are hidden from sight; so too are the hazards that can turn an expensive real estate purchase into an expensive mistake. In this and future newsletters, we will discuss some of these “traps” and how savvy buyers can arm themselves with the equipment to avoid them. In this premiere issue of Home On The Course, we start with tips on avoiding bunker mentality. Lots of choice: Developers don’t always show you all properties available Developers with an inventory of unsold properties are desperate to move them. If you wander into their sales offices and ask what’s available, they may not tell you about lower priced resale listings, even though they can sell them to you. Their commission rate is lower on the re-sales and their developers are all over them to push the more expensive lots. In one North Carolina coastal community with a reputation for hiding re-sales, quarter-acre developer lots are listed at $225,000; on the same block, a resale lot of the same size is listed for $180,000. Always check with a local real estate agent or the area’s MLS (multiple listing service) before negotiating with the developer’s agents. Free golf membership is too good to be true Many golf communities offer free golf club membership with the purchase of a lot or home. One club I have visited offers a $65,000 membership that includes play on its beautiful 27-hole marshland golf course, complimentary with the purchase of virtually any home in the community. That’s a great deal…if you don’t mind paying $15,000 in annual dues, about twice what the average private club assesses. Of course, at the other end of the spectrum, free golf and reasonable dues are often signals that the golf course is a cow pasture. If the golf course in your future community is important to you, make sure you play it before committing. Connecticut Golf Guide Free for Asking I placed my first big print ad recently in the 2009 Connecticut Golf Guide. The guide was distributed with the Hartford Courant to 100,000 subscribers. For any golfers who live in New England or plan to pass through Connecticut in the coming months, the guide is an excellent resource. I have a supply of extra copies and would be happy to share them with all who send me a note, with their mailing address. As always, I promise never to share your personal information with anyone. Contact me at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. Final Thought (courtesy of Rob Kyff, the eminence behind the nationally syndicated “Word Watch” column) “Golf Shot -- The ball lies on the fairway, in the bunker or in the rough. The golfer hits it onto the green, near the hole. I guarantee you that the sports commentator will never say, ‘That’s a great shot,’ but instead, ‘That’s a great golf shot.’ As opposed to a slap shot or a rifle shot or a pool shot? (Interestingly, the term [golf shot] is rarely used for a drive or putt.)”

	© 2009 Golf Community Reviews

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2009 Newsletters

December 2009

Value Proposition: Will Survival Instinct of Private Clubs Deal Death Blow to Exclusivity?

Value Proposition: Will Survival Instinct of Private Clubs Deal Death Blow to Exclusivity?

November 2009

Private matters: If the club fits, take your best shot

Dues...and some don'ts

Protecting your turf

Going Once, Going Twice

Best bargains in worst markets

Phone it in…at your risk

Raise your hand only if you did your homework

Private matters: If the club fits, take your best shot

Dues...and some don'ts

Protecting your turf

Going Once, Going Twice

Best bargains in worst markets

Phone it in…at your risk

Raise your hand only if you did your homework

December 2009

November 2009

Private public partnerships

October 2009

One golf home or two? In this market, anything’s possible

Sunk treasure: Scholarly paper gives hint at how to negotiate to buy someone else’s house

One golf home or two? In this market, anything’s possible

Sunk treasure: Scholarly paper gives hint at how to negotiate to buy someone else’s house

October 2009

July 2009

Perfect climate not so hot…or so cold either

Don't push the remote button too hard

The anomaly of Asheville: Cheap steaks, expensive Lipitor

Perfect climate not so hot…or so cold either

Don't push the remote button too hard

The anomaly of Asheville: Cheap steaks, expensive Lipitor

August 2009

Living with the relatives when searching for a golf course home

Chaos theory: Golf communities with tumultuous pasts can be bargains

Market status, from the horses’ mouths

Living with the relatives when searching for a golf course home

Chaos theory: Golf communities with tumultuous pasts can be bargains

Market status, from the horses’ mouths

August 2009

July 2009

June 2009

Home On The Course, premiere issue

Editor's Message

High on Low Country Communities

Avoiding the Traps when Shopping for a Golf Community Home

Lots of choice: Developers don’t always show you all properties available

Free golf membership is too good to be true

Connecticut Golf Guide Free for Asking

Final Thought