Northern Door County is a haven for vacationers and retirees not only from Wisconsin and the Midwest but from all over the world!  The natural beauty of the area  — the shoreline and water views, the dramatic stone bluffs, the rolling hills, and wooded countryside — provides a tranquil setting  for people seeking refuge from their hectic, everyday worlds.  Personal safety and security is also something Door County offers to an extent practically unheard of these days. 

The good news is that today purchasing a second home or home for retirement is more affordable than ever.  Foreclosures (practically unheard of in Door County before) and competition for buyers have driven prices down to “pre-bubble” levels, and motivated sellers are willing to deal.  Second homes that were once just a dream for many are now a very real option.  Cottages and condos can now be found for under $100,000. Even shorefront home and condominium options have become affordable to buyers who never thought they could afford those high-end properties!  Some shore homes that may have sold for $600,000 eight years ago are now selling for as low as $400,000 opening up a whole new market for many buyers.

For the more practical minded buyers, it is true that no one needs a vacation home. However, we all need to live somewhere when we retire, and from a practical standpoint Door County makes lots of sense.  It is affordable, there is a lot to do here to keep you occupied in your retirement, and shopping and health care facilities are convenient.  So today’s vacation home is tomorrow’s retirement home, and you can have both at today’s bargain prices!  Think about it, and start planning your Door County future today!

A Sandhill Crane wades in Eagle Harbor along the Ephraim shoreline.

Setting the listing price for a property was never an exact science, but today it is an on-going process with more factors to take into consideration.  Ideally, when a property owner comes to a real estate agent, the agent goes through a “market value analysis” process.  That process consists of finding similar properties in the same general location that have sold recently.  By comparing the sold properties feature for feature with the seller’s property, a “current market value” is determined. 

Today in Door County, especially in our nothern Door County market,  that is not easy to do.  Northern Door County is not comprised of neighborhoods of cookie-cutter homes, clustered together, and all basically the same.  Here real estate ranges from shore properties, country homes and farms, condominiums, homes in villages, vacant lots and acreage, luxury homes, and seasonal cottages — you name it, and it is here!  So in a slow market where there is just a little of everything selling, an agent will be very lucky to find one similar property that has sold to use as a comparison!  An agent’s experience and market knowledge is critical at this point.  The agent’s knowledge of the market as a whole will enable them to recommend the right listing price to the seller. 

Once a listing price is established by the agent and seller, the process is far from over.  Because of long market times, the agent must constantly keep tract of new sales and give price change advice to the seller accordingly.  The fact is, values are dropping, and listing prices must reflect that fact.  Of course, sellers can ask whatever price they want for their property, but if they truly want to sell they must know what is happening in the real estate market and price their property accordingly. 

The selling process is far from over when the sellers accept an offer for their property.  If the buyer is obtaining financing, the property must “appraise out.”  Due to new banking regulations, that can be a huge hurdle.  Bankers are no longer allowed to have direct contact with the appraiser.  The banker contacts a “loan services” company which in turn hires an appraiser to appraise the property.  Because there are few appraisers in Door County, more often than not the appraiser will come some place else in Wisconsin and may or may not be truly familiar with this unique market.  The appraiser has a rigid appraisal format to follow and is required to find three properties that have sold in the last year to use as comparables to determine value.  All the agent and seller can do is cross their fingers and hope for the best.  If the agent has done their job and kept the listing price in line with market conditions, hopefully the appraiser will do their job and the appraised value will be in line with the agreed upon sale price. 

The fact is the average market time for homes on the market in northern Door County right now exceeds 400 days.  In this market, property values do not stay the same for that long.  The right listing price today may or may not be the same 100 days from now.  It is up to your real estate agent to constantly keep you up to date.

Real estate markets all over the country are in the news every day now — really more than we ever wanted to know.  Some are up, most are down, thousands of foreclosures and “short sales” are happening every day, and if you want to buy a home what are you waiting for?  The silver lining in this mess is that people who never thought they could afford their own home can now!  

Even though my part of Door County — the northern end of the Door Peninsula — is primarily vacation homes and condominiums, prices are down enough that many of the “locals” can buy a home, and that is exciting.  One condo developer in Sister Bay is selling very nice condos at truly affordable prices, and they are selling like hotcakes! 

For those who dreamed of a Door County vacation home, this is their opportunity as well.  Of course, you can still spend millions on a Door County property if you want to do so; but, you can also now easily buy a home or condo for $100,000 or less.  Just a few years ago I couldn’t have made that statement. 

For investors, vacant land is a great choice.  Land sales have decreased to a point that you can find fantastic buys even on the shore!  Shore properties, water view properties, village home sites, and rural acreage — all is available and at great prices.

The secret is out, there are great real estate values in Door County, and buyers are buying!

Thanksgiving is that time of year when we citizens of the United States of America are supposed to be thankful for our lives and good fortune that we are just that, citizens of the U.S.A.  Schoolchildren learn about the Pilgrims arriving at Plymouth Rock in 1620 and are told the traditional story of the Pilgrims having a feast to give thanks for their safe arrival in the new world. 

Today that story has evolved into a traditional celebration and meal of turkey and all the “fixin’s”, Thanksgiving Day parades, football games, and family gatherings.  However, I’m not sure that most of us truly take the time to seriously reflect on what we should be thankful about or the relative bounty most Americans enjoy. 

I’m sad to say that Americans have become thankless instead of thankful.  We take for granted our freedoms and standard of living.  Even the poorest of Americans would be hard pressed to compare themselves with the millions of starving people in Somalia today. 

Granted, the American economy is not the best these days, and many Americans are having a hard time making ends meet.  But this Thanksgiving I urge one and all to reflect on what we do have rather than what we don’t have.  And, I urge each and every American to act with kindness and generosity to one and all.  I urge each and every American to do whatever is in their power to ensure all people everywhere have the basic benefits of a safe home, good health, and the right and ability to make the most of their lives. 

So, I am grateful.  I am grateful for the many years I had with a loving husband.  I am grateful for my life experiences.  I am grateful for family and friends who care about me.  I am grateful for my home in Door County and the beauty and peace that provides. I am grateful for the extraordinary miracle that somehow, in all this immense universe, some tiny particles of matter came together to form ”me” — the miracle of life and consciousness that we will never be fully able to understand or appreciate. 

That’s it, my Thanksgiving blog.  Best wishes to all.

When you work in a real estate market like the one here in northern Door County — a market of mostly vacation homes and condos with typically upper-middle class buyers and property owners — drastic market changes are rare.  I have been a real estate broker here since 1979, and until now, the most extreme time this market has seen was in the 1980’s when interest rates soared.  Even that did not dramatically affect sales because back then many sales were cash sales.  Because the majority of buyers and sellers of vacation property were very financially stable, the market remained stable.

It is a different story now.  Sales are at or approaching all time lows (in realation to number of properties for sale), and property values have been set back at least ten years or more.  Low interest rates have not been sufficient to make buyers buy.  For the first time in my 32 years in the business, foreclosures are a significant factor in the northern Door County real estate market. I differentiate northern Door County (everything north of Sturgeon Bay) from the Sturgeon Bay and southern Door County market because northern Door County is the primarily recreational market while southern Door County is not. 

So, is this real estate heaven or hell?  If you have the desire and means to buy, it is definitely heaven.  If you are a seller with some motivation to sell, it is hell.  One thing that buyers need to understand; however, is that not all northern Door County sellers have the same degree of motivation to sell.  Most are still financially stable and are selling for reasons such as they are getting older, they aren’t visiting Door County as often as they used to, their children have moved to far away parts of the U. S. so don’t visit — the usual reasons.  Those sellers are the ones who will still hold out for the highest sale prices possible and are willing to wait a long time to do so.  But the truly motivated sellers, the ones selling for financial reasons — those are the opportunities for buyers.  There are some spectacular values for buyers in this market, and there are buyers out there looking for those values. 

What does it take to successfully buy that dream property at a dream price?  First of all, it takes a buyer with cash or one that is pre-qualified for a loan.  Then they must find a property that will qualify for the loan.  Lenders have tighten their qualifications for loan approval of a property considerably, and typical vacation properties sometimes to not meet the lenders criteria.  This is an entire subject unto itself — perhaps the topic of a future blog.  For now, suffice it to say that navigating your way through a real estate sale can be more difficult than it used to be.  And that is why I and my associates are here to guide you!

Today is September 11th.  In this complex world, the significance of that date has been of life-changing importance to many.  To the family and friends of those who died or were injured or personally witnessed the bombings of the World Trade Center and Pentagon and the crash of Flight 93 in Pennsylvania, it is certainly that.  Any loss of life of any magnitude has an affect on most people. 

Sometimes, however, we lack the knowledge of or an event is too far removed from our everyday lives to affect us.  So today, as America reflects on the deaths of September 11, 2001, how many of us are reflecting on other tragedies going on right this very minute around the world?  A case in point, Somalia.  A combination of war and draught has caused tens of thousands of deaths by starvation.  Estimates are that another 750,000 are at immediate risk.  That is only one example.  Sudan, Hatti, Japan, China, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Iraq, Libya — just to name a few of the places where men, women and children are dying every minute of every day of war, starvation, and disease or strugling to overcome catastrophic events.  Most of the suffering in this world today is the direct result of differences or disputes that mankind  must rise above.

So it is my hope that on this day of mourning in America we Americans will increase our awareness of world events and tragedies.  It is my hope that we will realize that we are, as a whole, the human race, all together on this small planet spinning through the universe.  Color, religion, nationality, and political beliefs aside, we are all on the same ride; and if we do not come to grips with that simple fact and act accordingly, our future as the human race is questionable.

If you are fortunate enough to be able to buy Door County vacation property now, you are indeed lucky! There are choices and opportunities like never before, but the ones I get the most excited about are the ones with the potential for improvement.  It seems like everyone today is watching HGTV’s shows about buying homes like “Homefinders” and remodeling and decorating shows like “Income Property” and “Color Splash”.  I admit that I’m addicted to them and inspired by them. 

Watching these programs has made me look at the homes I show to potential buyers here in Door County in a whole new light.  Now when I walk in I immediately start visualizing what possibilities the home offers, and I try to convey that to the buyers.  For instance, right now I have these two summer cottages for sale on almost 4 acres in Ephraim. With work — mostly painting and decorating — they could be a fabulous family vacation compound or the owner could rent one or both weekly in the summer. You just have to visualize the potential!  Both cottage are offered at $179,000 on 2 acres or $219,000 on all 3.8 acres.

GREAT RENTAL POTENTIAL!

Another property with obvious potential is the one in the photos below.  This older, year-around home has a real “cottage” feel and is on a beautifully wooded 3.3-acre corner property with a bonus of a separate, 2-room studio connected by a covered walkway to a 2-car garage.  The studio has been used as an entertainment-game room and has a pool table included in the sale!  From here you can walk to the sand beach of Lake Michigan, a park and playground, tennis courts, softball field, and to several restaurants.  Take the remodeling and redecorating to whatever extent you desire, but it’s clean and fully ready for use today!  It is offered at $184,900.

Buying a property such as these and fixing them up would really make them your own and would provide years of fond memories for you, your family, and friends!

AERIAL VIEW -Pine trees in SE corner -rest hardwood trees

Walk to the beach!

If you have not already discovered Wisconsin Public Radio’s Ideas Network, by all means check it out!  The programs are varied and they manage to cover a huge range of topics from political commentary to  gardening topics to medical and pharmacy advice to the latest news— you name it.  Of course there is also pure entertainment from shows such as Prairie Home Companion, Car Talk (very funny!), and, my personal favorite, This American Life. 

In these days of stress — and believe me, being a real estate broker these days is stressful! — listening to WPR is a welcome diversion while also providing perspective to whatever problems I may be having and keeping me up to date on world events and news.  My car radio is always tuned to Wisconsin Public Radio!

I know, this has nothing to do with real estate except that WPR helps me cope with my work!r

What and where is Door County, Wisconsin, and why would you want to come here yet alone buy real estate here?  I remind myself what I thought I would find Wisconsin to be like when I first came here 32 years ago.  I expected it to be all farms with black and white cows in fields as far as the eye could see.  I soon discovered that yes, there are farms; but there is much, much more, especially here in Door County.

First of all, Door County is a peninsula of land jutting out into Lake Michigan about 200 miles north of Milwaukee and about 250 miles north of Chicago.  The peninsula is a rock formation made by glaciers during the ice age bordered on the west by Green Bay and on the east by Lake Michigan.  With so many miles of shoreline and natural harbors, it is perfectly suited for boating and all water-related activities.  Over the years Door County, especially the “northern” portion, has evolved into a popular vacation destination, and, in more recent years, a home for retirees. 

I won’t attempt to relate all of Door County’s attractions and beneficial features in this blog. For those specifics just Google “Door County Wisconsin,” and you’ll find a multitude of web sites to explore.  What I do want to talk about is why you would want to come here and why you should consider this as a location for your retirement years.

Door County is just that, a county, that consists of one small town, Sturgeon Bay (population about 7,000),  and several small villages on harbors along the coastline.  Egg Harbor, Fish Creek, Ephraim, Sister Bay, Ellison Bay, and Gills Rock are on the west Green Bay coast, and Baileys Harbor and Jacksonport are on the Lake Michigan coast.  It is these village that make up “northern” Door County — my area of real estate expertise. 

Sturgeon Bay, the county seat, has the medical facilities and larger “ordinary” stores for shopping that one would find in any small town as well as great boating facilities and wonderful boutique shops lining the vibrant downtown streets.  The quaint, scenic, northern villages and rural areas are filled with wonderful shops, restaurants,  three state parks (Peninsula, Newport, and Whitefish Bay State Parks), beaches, marinas, art galleries and schools, and organized activities year-around. 

Real estate in Door County runs the gamut from tiny, summer cabins to large luxury homes and condominiums. There are homes on the shore, homes on high bluffs overlooking the water, homes nestled in charming villages, and homes in the beautiful countryside.  Condominiums are popular with vacation owners as well as retirees for maintenance-free living.  Both homes and condominiums are available in price ranges from $150,000 to $1,500,000, and there is truly something for everyone in every location!  You can see that by browsing through the properties we have listed for sale on this web site. You can also look through the Door County Board of Realtors MLS by using the link on this web site. 

People come to Door County to vacation because it is within driving distance of all of Wisconsin as well as many other midwestern states.  They come here because of the relatively mild summer weather.  They come here because there is so much to do for people of all ages and interests. 

People are retiring to Door County because it has everything one wants and needs for retirement plus a level of safety not so easily found in more traditional retirement destinations today.  One can also purchase a home or condo for retirement at a price that doesn’t have to deplete one’s entire life savings!  Of course, if you are so inclined you can also retire in that million-dollar shore home! 

So, Door County is simply a wonderful mix of people who have lived here all their lives and people from all over the world who combine their varied backgrounds, interests, and life experience to make this a great place to live and a great place to make new friends!

In northern Door County — that part of the peninsula north of Sturgeon Bay — foreclosures were practically nonexistent until this recession.  This principally upscale recreational market seemed to be immune.  Even in past recessions, foreclosures were never a significant factor.  The number of sales may have declined, but values remained relatively stable.

This recession was different.  Suddenly more and more often the “owner of record” in the MLS was a bank.  Even more unusual were the new developments, primarily condominiums, under foreclosure.  So, what difference did bank ownership make to the market as a whole?

When the banks took over the properties, they put them on the market at asking prices significantly lower than “market value.”  They needed to get the properties sold, but basically only needed to obtain the amount of the mortgage they were holding.  In the case of some of the condominiums, new units were re-priced tens of thousands of dollars lower than what the developers had been asking.  Even in a recession, buyers know a good investment when they see it; and in 2010 those drastically reduced properties sold. 

At first blush, that sounds like a good thing.  The foreclosed properties are sold, off the market, and no longer competition for other properties.  However those sales ultimately contributed to a decline in overall property values.  Other sellers (those who really needed to sell) dropped their asking prices to compete with foreclosures, so sale prices overall became lower and lower than in the years immediately preceeding the recession.

Which led to the situation we now face —

Because of the recession, the number of properties sold dropped dramatically — 2009 turning out to be the worst year in decades in numbers of real estate sales.  The total number of real estate sales in northern Door County in 2009 was only 291 compared to 678 in 2005.   The problem was and is now, those few sales are the “comparables” and the only ones available for appraisers appraising properties for banks for financing.  Many of those comparable sales are sales of foreclosures.

Now the market is improving, and sellers who did not necessarily reduce their asking prices are accepting offers contingent upon the buyers obtaining financing.  In northern Door County, properties vary in every conceivable way — size, location, age, style, shore, inland, water-view, homes, condos, vacant land.  For loan appraisals the appraisers have to find at least three properties that are truly “comparable” to the property being appraised that have sold within the last six months (sometimes stretched to 12 months).  That is not easy!  The appraisers must use whatever sales are there, and here is where those foreclosed property sales come into play.  Remember, in most cases those properties sold for significantly reduced prices.  So, in many cases, the appraised value of the properties being sold is not high enough to qualify for the loans the buyers are asking for.  We have willing buyers and sellers, but not willing lenders. In addition, stricter lending standards are making obtaining loans more difficult.  All of this combined is keeping property values down.  Whether values will decline further is impossible to predict. 

For property owners, there is a bright spot on the far horizon. Most of the sellers of Door County properties do not have to sell.  Their reasons for selling are not economic. There are still cash sales in Door County, and those sales are not necessarily at sale prices much lower than in pre-recession years.  Other buyers have large down-payments, so the appraised values are not as critical for the granting of the loans.  As more such sales take place, they will become the “comparables” for the appraisers to use.  However, this will be a slow process.  For now, this market is still in the shadow of the recession. 

A positive aspect of all this is that Door County real estate did not depreciate in value nearly as much as in many other parts of the United States, and the vast majority of properties are still worth more than the owners paid for their properties.  Overall, Door County remains an excellent real estate investment.