Build golf courses not houses!

[The master]

I was driving past a massive plot of land earlier on the seaside, which has recently been acquired by a building group and they are planning to build a load of houses. Does anyone ever see a nice plot of land and imagine how nice a golf course would be suited there. They don't build enough golf courses anymore!!!

 

[Adam Pettman]

Expanding population. Your area isnt exactly lacking courses is it?

 

[Jules150]

stop making so many babies. Hell if we kept our population in check we'd solve so many problems.

 

[Coagulator]

This is Bandon Dunes

 

[niblick]

This is Bandon Dunes

I played the Bandon Trails course there. What an amazing place.

 

[Rockford35]

I was driving past a massive plot of land earlier on the seaside, which has recently been acquired by a building group and they are planning to build a load of houses. Does anyone ever see a nice plot of land and imagine how nice a golf course would be suited there. They don't build enough golf courses anymore!!!

Ok, so as a land speculator, you purchase some seaside property for big bucks.

Now, you decide, should I develop lots and sell them at 200K per for big wigs, or do i drop another 10 million into developing it into a golf course that will compete with the many courses that are in the area, only to wait years to get your investment back.

It's a no brainer. You make big money on real estate development, especially something unique like seaside plots.

"Golf courses and cemetaries are the biggest waste of prime real estate" - Rodney Dangerfield in Caddyshack.

Money talks, dude.

R35

 

[Bravo]

Great post Rock....and I would add...

I think that the developer needs to assess the market and ask himself if the demand is there for another golf course vis-a-vis the demand for more housing.

Our area is saturated with public golf courses now...there's simply not enough demand to build another. I doubt we will see another in the next 2-3 years...

On the other hand, our housing market continues to stay strong. I have a friend who is a 'production builder' - meaning he builds dozens of homes at once...nicest fellow you would ever meet...very humble and does not know what a four letter word is...

I learned a lot from him. Frankly his background is banking, and while at a bank doing real estate lending, he developed a formula for mass housing development that is very successful.

When we were at the beach he told us of a phrase used by homebuilders...

"Build for the classes and eat with the masses. Build for the masses and eat with the classes."

The upshot: you can build one expensive custom home at a time and make a little $$ or you can build a lot of mass production homes for the average homebuyer and make a lot more....

His next project is interesting...he is going to buy the land on which a Private Club sits and convert it into housing...the club is struggling because there are so many better public courses here than their course...they aren't making it and are selling out of desperation.

Then, a perfectly good public course here just closed after only 10 years of operation. They couldn't make it because there was so much competition. Who is buying the land??

Another real estate developer who is going to put houses on the acerage...I think the heyday of making money on golf course development has past its peak. Yes some will still make $$ on it, but I think it has passed its prime....

 

[The master]

I know there is so much money in property development. Just sad really, though. There hasn't been a golf course built in the province for 10 years and I doubt there will be, as houses are just being built everywhere but thats life.

 

[charnockpro]

After working in the industry for over 12 years i get the feeling i am qualified to have an opinion on our UK market.

There is a project developing not far from my doorstep involving a close friend and mentor of mine, and although i know he has substantial backing in the financial form, there is a less sure footing as far as the potential general manager "Glenn" Turner world record holder etc....... to me his lack of golf history and grasp of the constantly changing face of golfers could prove to be troublesome, also the general area although filled with large commercial businesses i get the feeling the spread of wealth does not stretch to the surrounding areas and therefore i predict sadly before it's inception it could well start out struggling, i hope for my close friends sake it has the greatest of successes, this project has actually been in development for nearly 2 years already due to planning constraints and enviromental impact analysis

icLiverpool - Record-breaker Glenn tees up new Merseyside course this is a link for the many press reports about it