[nmnita]

Originally Posted by debbie at bouontiful

That must of been my mother Now, I spent last weekend in BV and was shocked that a paper boy delivers at 3 in the morning. Of course no one steals the paper. Here your lucky if the mailbox or paperbox is still out there from day to day.... Well, Nita I also was quite impressed with BV. We went to the Kayak show last Saturday and have decided in ordering two of them. A nice big fast one for my nutty husband and a simply one for me. He can do his loops around Lake Avalon and I'll sit in one spot and just enjoy the lake knowing that I do not have to feed cows, horses and whatever else lives on this ranch.

Debbie, I hope your parents are enjoying living here, I truthfully can't think of many places I would rather live. I like the entire concept without to many rules and regulations. Of course we have some, but not like some planned communities.

Nita

[Dreamy46]

Originally Posted by nmnita

oh my no, I am not a Real Estate agent, but I was, for 15 years, many years ago and certainly not in AR.

As for declining prices, I really don't think any of us can predict the future. If one is planning on buying and selling in a few years, that might be scary, if one is thinking of buying and selling in 20 years I don't think today's market is relavent as it will come back. Yes, we may see a future decline for a few years, who knows. both HSV and BV were over developed. Many people love the idea of the gated community offered in HSV but some do not like all the controls put on home owners and do not like the isolation from things like hospitals one has to live with in HSV. Others who consider HSV versus BV, do like HSV better. Both communities were developed by the same company. i think another consideration for some is location. For us, BV worked better, we considered both, for others HSV is a better fit, both areas offer a wonderful life style for the right person.

Nita

Hey Nita, what's this one do for that "if you've got 20 years" theory?

I've been looking at lot sales in HSV. Quite an assortment of players. Seems like the smart folks buy them in foreclosure or at tax sales and flip them to dummies for exorbitant amounts.

[Dreamy46]

Then there's Hot Springs Village lot sale transactions that I'm not quite sure how you would explain the dollar amounts?

[nmnita]

Originally Posted by Dreamy46

Hey Nita, what's this one do for that "if you've got 20 years" theory?

I've been looking at lot sales in HSV. Quite an assortment of players. Seems like the smart folks buy them in foreclosure or at tax sales and flip them to dummies for exorbitant amounts.

just threw that in. I really don't think it will take anywhere near 20 years for the market to come back...

NIta

[fmwalk]

Originally Posted by Dreamy46

Then there's Hot Springs Village lot sale transactions that I'm not quite sure how you would explain the dollar amounts?

I'm no expert on HSV but researched living there and learned some HSV lots are known as unbuildable membership lots and are purchased for golf priviledges only.

[Dreamy46]

Originally Posted by fmwalk

I'm no expert on HSV but researched living there and learned some HSV lots are known as unbuildable membership lots and are purchased for golf priviledges only.

According to the frequent poster Jeff Atkins, who is also a member of the Board of Directors of Hot Springs Village, he had this to say about the lots:

"Every lot out here is "buildable", but some are very hard and if there is no view or other reason to build on that lot, its not worth the effort."

http://www.city-data.com/forum/2074331-post4.html

Now as to the phrase "membership lots," that seems to be an interesting animal also. From what I can tell, the way that thing works at least in some cases is, you buy a lot on the cheap, I'm taking sometimes for literally as low as $300 in back taxes, and then you lease out the membership rights to it for that amount or more annually to people willing to pay it. They've turned it into a business.

Website where Atkins sells memberships:

www.hsvmemberships.com

Website where Atkins sells lots:

Hot Springs Village, Arkansas

"Burian called the Property Owners' Association, which suggested he contact board member Jeff Atkins, who is active buying and selling Village lots."

Villagers warned about lot sellers asking for up-front advertising fees | www.hsvvoice.com | Hot Springs Village

Tax sites to look up prices paid on lots and houses:

actDataScout, your source for Arkansas Assessor's Office real property records

Saline County - ARCountyData.com

[Dreamy46]

I noticed the NRPI (National Recreational Properties Inc.) name as the owner of a number of lots so far in the village tax records, but until reading this article I had no idea how many lots they were holding. And apparently not paying the assessment for.

"National Recreational Properties, Inc., which is behind several months in assessment fees for most of its 3,700 Hot Springs Village lots, no longer has an interest in the bulk of the Bella Vista Village, Ark., lots it used to own."

"There are 34,152 total lots in the Village."

NRPI has pulled out of Bella Vista; still controls 3,700 lots in Hot Springs Village | www.hsvvoice.com | Hot Springs Village

Gotta love a company using Erik Estrada as their lot sales pitchman.

[Dreamy46]

I guess this article answers the question I asked about which Arkansas communities saw huge price rises during the bubble years:

"Arkansas generally avoided the boom-and-bust phenomenon seen in states like California, Florida and Nevada. But the state's nationally marketed retirement properties, particularly in Hot Springs Village and Bella Vista, saw unusually heady rises followed by silent yet spectacular falls."

"During the heyday, National Recreational Properties Inc. of Irvine, Calif., welcomed pro- spective buyers from across the country, regularly flipping home lots at huge markups. Smaller firms from Florida, Tennessee and Arkansas joined in the profittaking."

NWAnews.com :: Northwest Arkansas' News Source

It appears that values, especially lots having been dropping horrifically ever since.

[nmnita]

Originally Posted by Dreamy46

I guess this article answers the question I asked about which Arkansas communities saw huge price rises during the bubble years:

"Arkansas generally avoided the boom-and-bust phenomenon seen in states like California, Florida and Nevada. But the state's nationally marketed retirement properties, particularly in Hot Springs Village and Bella Vista, saw unusually heady rises followed by silent yet spectacular falls."

"During the heyday, National Recreational Properties Inc. of Irvine, Calif., welcomed pro- spective buyers from across the country, regularly flipping home lots at huge markups. Smaller firms from Florida, Tennessee and Arkansas joined in the profittaking."

NWAnews.com :: Northwest Arkansas' News Source

It appears that values, especially lots having been dropping horrifically ever since.

yes, they did make great headway for many years. I will add one thing though, no prices (I don't know about lots) have not been dropping over the years, only the past year or so. Again, I can only speak for NWA, not only BV but other areas. I don't know about HSV even though they were developed by the same company.

Nita

[Dreamy46]

Originally Posted by nmnita

yes, they did make great headway for many years. I will add one thing though, no prices (I don't know about lots) have not been dropping over the years, only the past year or so. Again, I can only speak for NWA, not only BV but other areas. I don't know about HSV even though they were developed by the same company.

Nita

It's a shame that the complete article I posted above isn't available without having a subscription to the paper. The full article details an out of state guy that bought one of NRPI's lots in Hot Springs Village for $40,000 in 2006 and goes on to describe how similar lots are now selling for $3,000. The article states the buyer was charged triple what NRPI paid for the lot.

It also talks about a couple who recently went to the court house and bought the lot next door, described as a prime lot near Lake Balboa, in foreclosure for $3,000. They talked about how they had been trying to buy it for years from the owner, who originally paid $20,000 for it in 1984.

When the cost of land goes down, the cost of houses on that land goes down with it.

And it sounds as if you really need to do due diligence before purchasing a lot or home in one of these communities.