A Lofty Life

I saw this article byBarbara Ballinger in the Realtor Magazine Online today...find it interesting history about the Loft Space. My favorite way to exist, for sure...

-What to Look for in a Loft. If clients say they want a loft-style home, find out what features are most appealing to them. Would they consider a new development with an open floor plan and big windows, or do they have their heart set on a traditional warehouse conversion?Here are some features that architects, developers, and real estate professionals say buyers should look for in a loft:
Authentic 19th-century materials. “I like the idea of using hardwood for floors, brick or plaster for walls, and real tin for ceilings rather than ersatz materials,” says Smith-Miller. But he adds that modern living requires certain accommodations that didn’t come with original lofts, such as ample storage and energy-efficient windows.
High ceilings, few walls. Ken Wolfson, owner of Wolfson Lofts, a development company in Las Vegas, says well-executed lofts have high ceilings and few walls “if any.”
Good location and floor plan. Broker Payman Emanian of Premier Realty in Pasadena, Calif., who has seen lofts take off in his city’s downtown and in Los Angeles, says the positive characteristics of other home styles are the key for a good loft, too, such as good location, good construction, and a “wide-open” floor plan.
Quiet. Because high ceilings, hard floors, and big windows in downtown lofts can make interior spaces noisy, Diessner says buyers should look for surfaces that absorb sounds. Smith-Miller says wood ceilings, unfinished brick, and natural stucco all fit that category. One material that doesn’t soften the sound is painted stucco, she explains. Putting rugs down on the floor or tapestries on walls also will help.

Condo Hotels

Trendspotting Broker I saw this today on www.wsjonline.com when a reader asked about the viability of purchasing this type of product in Branson, Missouri.
"Condotels", also known as "condo hotels," are typically condominiums in resort or downtown communities. A condotel looks and feels to visitors like a hotel or resort, but in these resorts, individuals have the opportunity to purchase individual units. Unlike a timeshare, where buyers pay for limited use of a resort, buyers of a condotel own their residence outright and can stay in it, rent it out, or sell it according to their own wishes. In these communities, in-house management companies rent out the units on behalf of their owners in exchange for a percentage of the rental income. Condotel owners and their renters often have use of the resort's amenities, such as concierge, fitness and spa services. Whether an owner can use the amenities while a renting guest is staying in the unit depends on the rules of the particular condotel development. These condos make up a relatively new investment category and account for less than 10% of all vacation homes and investment properties in the U.S., according to the National Association of Realtors.
Owning a condotel differs from buying and managing a condo in several respects, says Joel Greene, president of Condo Hotel Center in Miami, a real-estate agency that specializes in the sale of condo hotels throughout the country.
Unlike typical condos built by multifamily housing developers, condotels are often developed by hotel and resort companies -- such as Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide, Hilton Hotels Corp., The Ritz-Carlton Hotel Company, LLC, and Four Seasons Hotels and Resorts. The price you pay for a unit may be substantially higher than that for a "regular" condo.
For the extra cost, you have access to the services of an in-house management company, which will market and rent your unit out for long or short periods of time (even nightly). The management company's rental program will charge you a portion of your rental income (typically 50%), and will handle the maintenance of your unit, groundskeeping and the clean-up after your renters leave. It will also oversee guest amenities such as pools, tennis courts and golf courses. If you bought a "regular" condo and hired an outside management firm to market and lease your unit to renters, there may be less flexibility when it comes to placing your unit in and out of the rental program, and the firm may not market your unit nationally in the way that a large hotel company might, Mr. Greene says.
When looking to invest in a condotel, research the local real-estate market (e.g., are prices on the rise, or has the real-estate market peaked?). Study regional tourist activity and hotel occupancy, since a condotel unit, especially if it is run by a hotel operator, may be marketed like a hotel room. The location of your unit has the potential of figuring prominently into how profitable an investment it is. Jerry Yeiter, past president of The National Real Estate Investors Association and president of Yeiter & Co., an accounting firm in Houston, says some investors have had success with condotels in Florida and Arizona because these destinations offer desirable tourist activities and because these buyers purchased at a time when area real-estate prices were appreciating. Ask yourself whether Branson can attract tourists. I checked with the Branson Lakes Area Chamber of Commerce and Convention and Visitors Bureau, and was told by Jennifer McCullough, public relations director, that Branson, which is in the Ozark Mountains, draws more than seven million tourists a year. Factoring in visitors who stay in rented vacation condos, the combined hotel and condo occupancy rate in Branson is 62% to 63%, according to the town's chamber of commerce and convention and visitors bureau.
If you buy before a condotel project is fully built, you may be able to purchase your unit at a lower cost, as developers tend to offer the lowest prices pre-construction. You may have to wait until the project is completed, though, before you can rent out your unit. Estimate how much you can fetch per night and how often you need to rent the unit out to bring in enough to cover your mortgage and other expenses. "It's all about the numbers," Mr. Yeiter says. "You'd have to look at the rules and make sure the property would be suitable for an investor." Some management companies, for example, stipulate how often you must make your place available and even how it should be decorated.

I think this is a good explanation, and will watch for more trends toward this type of product in resort/high volume tourism areas. Outta Here-TSB.

Baby Boom Housing Trends:"65+ in the United States", a study commissioned by the National Institute on Aging (NIA,) of The National Institutes of Health is now a living document. The study, designed to get an overview of the health and socioeconomic status of aging Americans, found the following trends:
The U.S. population age 65 and over is expected to double in size within the next 25 years. By 2030, almost 1-out-of-5 Americans, some 72 million people, will be 65 years or older. The age group 85 and older is now the fastest growing segment of the U.S. population.
The health of older Americans is improving. Still, many are disabled and suffer from chronic conditions. The proportion with a disability fell significantly from 26.2 percent in 1982 to 19.7 percent in 1999. But 14 million people age 65 and older reported some level of disability in Census 2000, mostly linked to a high prevalence of chronic conditions such as heart disease or arthritis.
The financial circumstances of older people have improved dramatically, although there are wide variations in income and wealth. The proportion of people aged 65 and older in poverty decreased from 35 percent in 1959 to 10 percent in 2003, mostly attributed to the support of Social Security. In 2000, the poorest fifth of senior households had a net worth of $3,500 ($44,346 including home equity) and the wealthiest had $328,432 ($449,800 including home equity).
Florida (17.6 percent), Pennsylvania (15.6 percent) and West Virginia (15.3 percent) are the "oldest" states, with the highest percentages of people age 65 and older. Charlotte County, Fla., (34.7 percent) has the highest concentration of older residents and McIntosh County, N.D., (34.2 percent) ranks second.
Higher levels of education, which are linked to better health, higher income, more wealth and a higher standard of living in retirement, will continue to increase among people 65 and older. The proportion of Americans with at least a bachelor’s degree grew five-fold from 1950 to 2003, from 3.4 percent to 17.4 percent; and by 2030, more than one-fourth of the older population is expected to have an undergraduate degree. The percentage completing high school quadrupled from 1950 to 2003, from 17 percent to 71.5 percent.
As the United States as a whole grows more diverse, so does the population age 65 and older. In 2003, older Americans were 83 percent non-Hispanic white, 8 percent black, 6 percent Hispanic and 3 percent Asian. By 2030, an estimated 72 percent of older Americans will be non-Hispanic white, 11 percent Hispanic, 10 percent black and 5 percent Asian.
Changes in the American family have significant implications for future aging. Divorce, for example, is on the rise, and some researchers suggest that fewer children and more stepchildren may change the availability of family support in the future for people at older ages. In 1960, only 1.6 percent of older men and 1.5 percent of women age 65 and older were divorced; but by 2003, 7 percent of older men and 8.6 percent of older women were divorced and had not remarried. The trend may be continuing. In 2003, among people in their early 60s, 12.2 percent of men and 15.9 percent of women were divorced.
The 65+ report is a project of the NIA’s Behavioral and Social Research Program, which supports the collection and analyses of data in several national and international studies on health, retirement, and aging. The program’s director, Richard M. Suzman, Ph.D., suggests that, with five years to go before the baby boom turns 65, "Many people have an image of aging that may be 20 years out of date. The very current portrait presented here shows how much has changed and where trends may be headed in the future."
While the report didn't go into housing, the results should impact community and housing design beyond the Universal Design features available today that eliminate or moderate difficulties in such ordinary tasks as turning off light switches and grabbing a bar to get up out of the bath. With a higher divorce rate, and lower remarriage rate for older females, resulting in an estimated 3 men for every single 10 females according to the Census, new types of housing could emerge that provide a variation on community or communal living for older single, divorced or widowed females.
Boomers are already notable in housing for their wealth and ability to buy second homes, which is driving the vacation home marketplace to new heights every year, but for their primary homes, what will they do -- remain near work centers, and if so, in what kinds of housing?
Will they age in place in their ranch-style ramblers or sell everything and move to a high-rise in the sky? How about a little waterfront in Southern Maryland listed with The McNelis Group, LLC?