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And -- those articles that suggest there has been an increase in interest in golf, they are comparing to numbers that are significantly lower than when golf was a big deal.
Saying there has been a slight increase after a decade of losing or downward profits....isn't exactly evidence of a big increase in interest in golf.
Yeah, as I said the 2 golf courses here in Benson closed years ago. The ONLY reason one is still open is because the city bought it up to keep it open (subsidized by the city). They did that because the concern was that without a golf course the winter snowbirders (a HUGE part of Benson's economy) would not come here. THAT would absolutely devastate the local economy.
And yet the VERY SAME source (golfcity.com) which you posted above - and claimed in 2017 that golf was growing, admitted the very next year - last year (ie 2018) - that "...The story isn't meant to fuel the debate if golf is failing or merely stagnant as most statistics imply. This is just a new normal until the game reaches a better balance of supply and demand - courses vs. players. Golf is paying for the sins of our fathers - the building boom of the 1990s and 2000s - when they built courses in real estate developments that nobody really needed. The National Golf Foundation estimates roughly 200 courses closed in 2018, similar numbers to the year before..."
"WHY did 200 courses close in each of the last 2 years"
Easy, MONEY!
Many of the courses were older, narrower and not conducive to today's young long hitters. you could walk most of them. Not today. Walking isn't even allowed in many of the new courses.
I can't talk about any area other then my own.
The several course that have closed was due to the owners getting older and ready for retirement.My closest course was owned by a gentleman 86 years old, Property values have gone UP. New housing developments are all over the place. He sold his land and a new housing development has moved in. Houses are selling ilek hotcakes.
Builders are buying up the courses the owners are ready to sell. Win-win for both parties. They can sell their course and retire comfortably.
There is no lack of courses here.
When the economy is doing great, we have a glut of everything. When the economy tanks, EVERYBODY, not just golf courses close.
When the VALUE of your property is UP beyond normal, you can sell and make more money instantly, then what you make with a course being open. over time.
Supply and demand. Right now in my area the demand is for housing.
What is the gov. doing investing in and competing with private business ?
Does gov. want to be the Oligarchs of golf ? Why not bowling alleys ?
Meanwhile country club golf courses that are for members and their guest continue to thrive.
Take the virtual tour of one that started in 1926 and thrives without gov. ownership. It should be no surprise that gov. fails in so many areas when they compete with the more responsive private businesses.
"WHY did 200 courses close in each of the last 2 years"
Easy, MONEY!
Many of the courses were older, narrower and not conducive to today's young long hitters. you could walk most of them. Not today. Walking isn't even allowed in many of the new courses.
I can't talk about any area other then my own.
The several course that have closed was due to the owners getting older and ready for retirement.My closest course was owned by a gentleman 86 years old, Property values have gone UP. New housing developments are all over the place. He sold his land and a new housing development has moved in. Houses are selling ilek hotcakes.
Builders are buying up the courses the owners are ready to sell. Win-win for both parties. They can sell their course and retire comfortably.
There is no lack of courses here.
When the economy is doing great, we have a glut of everything. When the economy tanks, EVERYBODY, not just golf courses close.
When the VALUE of your property is UP beyond normal, you can sell and make more money instantly, then what you make with a course being open. over time.
Supply and demand. Right now in my area the demand is for housing.
None of which changes the fact that golf courses are a shrinking industry. Yes, some areas still have heavy demand for golf courses, but the number of those locations is apparently going down - otherwise for each smaller course that closed, a new larger course would be built, and that just isn't happening.
Yeah -- golf industry has suffered serious decline.
It just has.
It doesn't matter if there are some courses doing well and some people like golf.
Golf insiders themselves moan about the decline of golfing as a hobby.
But it is in good company. Many of the old fashioned hobbies just don't have the same level of popularity.
It is what it is - and it is silly to try and pretend anything different.
https://golfoperatormagazine.com/decline-of-golf/
The economic meltdown of 2008 did not create the downturn in the golf industry it just happened to be the convergence point of many key factors which created the Perfect Storm. A storm that turns 10 years old this September.
"WHY did 200 courses close in each of the last 2 years"
Easy, MONEY!
Builders are buying up the courses the owners are ready to sell. Win-win for both parties. They can sell their course and retire comfortably.
Supply and demand. Right now in my area the demand is for housing.
Well, my bank account looks good so things much be good everywhere. That seems a clear enough conclusion!
NOT.
Let's get back to the subject. Real Estate and Golf are poor investments in the present and actually have been for a long time. Of all the people I know who have been in Real Estate, hardly a single one has not gone bust. The only ones that ever made even a basic living were those who didn't invest anything (Realtor) and who also had a mate that worked a different job....to get through the lean times.
How YOUR market is means nothing. The USA market generally sucks. In many BIG sales areas (coastal Florida, SC, etc.) prices have hardly made it back to those of 12 years ago (pre-Recession). Sales are generally stable to slightly down year-over-year.
Asking price = $629
You could probably buy it for $579 or so.
Note that it was first listed for $749...then price change and price change again.....
The brand new price, 19 years ago, was $425K. Inflation alone, with NO increase, means the house would be $630,000. They won't get that for it. What they are not telling you is that yearly fees have gone up by about 400%. That's right.....10's of thousands per year for each home. In that zip:
Median Sale Price for 29928 = $389,000 38% below listing price
38% BELOW listing price. That's in addition to the vastly higher taxes and yearly fees...which largely relate to GOLF.
It's even worse than it looks.
Hey, feel free to put your investments in Real Estate and Golf like Trump does. You will end up in the same place - bankrupt and with low ROI.
Trump is old old school. Baby boomers cannot afford this kind of stuff. I have friends that play golf but they live in regular houses in Florida...and they play at public or other courses. One friend joined a private course for next to nothing....right on a beach island in Florida. It turns out that the memberships are discounted by 50% or more...BECAUSE THERE IS NO DEMAND. This is in one of the wealthiest and most popular parts of Gulf Coast Florida (Anna Maria Island).
All the Golfers I know play cheap...and I'm upper-middle class in the Northeast and Gulf Florida. It's hard to imagine where these big money Golf players are.
Golf is actually a dying pastime anyway. Millennials and other people with young families don’t have the time to play golf. They are busy with their families and/or have demanding jobs and don’t want to spend that much of their weekend on a sport that doesn’t afford much exercise (especially, if like Trump, they ride their golf cart up onto the green). It’s also an expensive hobby.
Golf is actually a dying pastime anyway. Millennials and other people with young families don’t have the time to play golf. They are busy with their families and/or have demanding jobs and don’t want to spend that much of their weekend on a sport that doesn’t afford much exercise (especially, if like Trump, they ride their golf cart up onto the green). It’s also an expensive hobby.
A lot of people in my area including myself are playing disc golf (AKA frisbee golf) these days. Courses are owned by local park services and playing is usually free. Getting started only requires one disc (frisbee) which can be bought for less than ten dollars. Courses require much less land than ball golf courses, and are usually set in wooded areas so require little or no maintenance. So just another nail in the coffin of ball golf.
A lot of people in my area including myself are playing disc golf (AKA frisbee golf) these days. Courses are owned by local park services and playing is usually free. Getting started only requires one disc (frisbee) which can be bought for less than ten dollars. Courses require much less land than ball golf courses, and are usually set in wooded areas so require little or no maintenance. So just another nail in the coffin of ball golf.
Well, my bank account looks good so things much be good everywhere. That seems a clear enough conclusion!
NOT.
Let's get back to the subject. Real Estate and Golf are poor investments in the present and actually have been for a long time. Of all the people I know who have been in Real Estate, hardly a single one has not gone bust. The only ones that ever made even a basic living were those who didn't invest anything (Realtor) and who also had a mate that worked a different job....to get through the lean times.
How YOUR market is means nothing. The USA market generally sucks. In many BIG sales areas (coastal Florida, SC, etc.) prices have hardly made it back to those of 12 years ago (pre-Recession). Sales are generally stable to slightly down year-over-year.
Asking price = $629
You could probably buy it for $579 or so.
Note that it was first listed for $749...then price change and price change again.....
The brand new price, 19 years ago, was $425K. Inflation alone, with NO increase, means the house would be $630,000. They won't get that for it. What they are not telling you is that yearly fees have gone up by about 400%. That's right.....10's of thousands per year for each home. In that zip:
Median Sale Price for 29928 = $389,000 38% below listing price
38% BELOW listing price. That's in addition to the vastly higher taxes and yearly fees...which largely relate to GOLF.
It's even worse than it looks.
Hey, feel free to put your investments in Real Estate and Golf like Trump does. You will end up in the same place - bankrupt and with low ROI.
Trump is old old school. Baby boomers cannot afford this kind of stuff. I have friends that play golf but they live in regular houses in Florida...and they play at public or other courses. One friend joined a private course for next to nothing....right on a beach island in Florida. It turns out that the memberships are discounted by 50% or more...BECAUSE THERE IS NO DEMAND. This is in one of the wealthiest and most popular parts of Gulf Coast Florida (Anna Maria Island).
All the Golfers I know play cheap...and I'm upper-middle class in the Northeast and Gulf Florida. It's hard to imagine where these big money Golf players are.
" Real Estate and Golf are poor investments in the present and actually have been for a long time."
NOT since 2017.
" Of all the people I know who have been in Real Estate, hardly a single one has not gone bust"
Been involved in the Real Estate industry for over 38 years and i KNOW you are full of it!
"Home-price appreciation will slow down,” Yun said. “The days of easy price gains are coming to an end, but prices will continue to rise.”
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