Consider Purchasing a Vacation Home
The National Association of Realtors estimates that there are over 7 million vacation homes in the United States, and the number is growing rapidly. That makes another of their findings logical — values of vacation home are escalating more quickly than the values of most full-time residences. If you choose wisely, a vacation home offers a solid investment opportunity for your current and future finances.
How do you plan to use a vacation home? If you plan frequent trips to the location yourself, you might want to purchase a second residence within a reasonable distance of your home base. Grab an atlas and sketch in an area that's within a three-hour drive of home. Does any destination in that area appeal to you? If not, move out a bit farther, but keep the distance within a range that won't be a burden to get to regularly.
Distance isn't as much of a factor if you don't plan frequent trips, or if you want to rent the home and use a property management company to secure rentals. Branch out and consider any area that appeals to you — maybe even the spot where you hope to eventually retire.
A Suitable Location
Start exploring the most appealing destinations on weekends or during other time off. Subscribe to local newspapers and keep a close watch on anything that affects the real-estate market. For instance, loss of industry and other types of jobs can create a downturn in the local economy.
A temporary downturn could be a great time to buy if the real-estate market becomes overloaded with houses for people who can no longer afford them. However, a long-term downturn isn't attractive if you have plans to resell the property quickly.
What's Popular at the Destination?
Browse the Internet to learn about the destinations you've chosen. Contact the local chamber of commerce or visitors' center and ask staff to mail you information about the area. Learn what type of destination it is — is it attractive to seniors, a young crowd, families, or all three? Are buyers and renters looking for single-family homes, or are condos more popular? Is it a year-round tourist destination, or is this a town where vacation homes are in most demand during a single season of the year? Preferences change over time, but knowing which properties are in demand now helps you buy something with good resale potential.
The chamber of commerce or visitor's center will pass your name and address on to member businesses. Ask them not to do that if you aren't quite ready to receive a great deal of mail about the area.
Read real-estate ads in the area, in both online and print publications. An experienced real-estate agent is your best source of information about market trends. Agents are usually happy to mail out printed materials about listed properties or send you e-mail links to information online. Find an agent you feel comfortable working with, and ask her to keep you updated on new listings that meet your criteria.
