Union Jack Over Orlando

Local biz journal says British Homes Group has been making a mint selling second homes in Orlando, FL to Brits. Between 2002 and 2004, the firm's two divisions -- British Home Loans Inc. and British Home Sales Inc. -- each grew by more than 400 percent. Since opening, British Homes Group has generated 560 mortgages for British buyers totaling $104 million and has sold 63 homes on its own. "We've just been innundated" said the group's founder, Virginia Cowie.

Pittsfield Pick

Think there's nothing affordable left? How about this $169,000 house in Pittsfield, the Berkshire County seat (See 5/23). 

Self-Evident Quote of the Week

Real estate consultant John Ansbach of Coppell, TX says boomers are reinventing the second half of life, which includes deciding where to live next. Thus the second-home craze. "This generation likes to indulge itself," explained the vice president of Recon Intelligence Services. "At the moment, boomers are looking for cool places to relax." Hey, who isn't?

Wake Up & Collect Those Tax Dollars

"How can Berkshire County (Massachusetts) lose population and jobs for a decade, and still see a 56 percent gain in per-capita income? Could it be that even as the middle class departs, a commuter-telecommuter class has moved in, along with owners of second homes, bringing New York money into the local economy?" asks a Berkshire Eagle editorial. The papers worries about a" destructive two-tier economy." I say, How about putting higher property taxes to better use at the lcoal community college for job training?

Go With The Flow

The development of Snowmass's Base Village, a multimillion-dollar development near Aspen, CO by Intrawest, is the 900-pound gorilla of the mountain resort industry. But gorilla thirst apparently bothers U.S. Army surveyors who have raised issues of water supply and stream depletion. On the other hand, a smart water lawyer in Denver once told me: "Water usually runs downhill, except when it flows uphill toward money."

Place Your Condo Bets in Vegas

Latest report on the Vegas condo grabfest: Nearly 17,000 units in 122 buildings have been announced and that may only scrape the surface of the market, according to Steve Bottfeld, owner of Marketing Solutions. He expects to see up to 3,000 closings this year ... and they won't be one or two-stories. "You're going to see more high-rise and more midrise than you can shake a stick at."

What Areas Are Cold?

That's easier to answer than "what's hot?" if you go by the latest National Association of Realtors first-quarter report. The lower-cost markets with drops in prices have either "local economic weakness, mainly in jobs, or a large supply of homes available in the local market; typically, these are temporary in nature," says NAR. Examples: Beaumont/Port Arthur, TX and Waterloo, IA.

Real Estate Is A Hard Asset

"As a commodities trader in the morning and a landlord in the afternoon, I am aware of the bull market going on in hard assets. When you look at gold, silver, copper, oil, and real estate, you see that real estate has gone up proportionately to the others. Are you expecting gold or oil to bust when interest rates rise? If not, you should at least discuss this new shift." -- Glenn Kafka
Edison, N.J.in letter to Business Week.

Double Digit Growth in Western States

Alaska is Numero Uno for first quarter 2005, says NAR today. Resale pace rose 21.4 percent compared with the first quarter of 2004. #2: Wyoming, up 17.5 percent #3 Oregon up 17.3 percent Hawaii, up 14.7 percent.

Latest Top 10 Weekend Home Spots

From EscapeHomes.com, the winners this month are:

Oak Island, NC (near Wilmington),
Plymouth, MA,
Mendocino, CA,
St. Simons Island, GA,
Whidbey Island, WA,
Dillon, CO,
East Troy, WI (30 miles from Milwaukee),
Cooperstown, NY (central NYS),
Kerrville, TX (62 miles from San Antonio)
McCall, ID (2 hours north of Boise)

Curb Your Impulses

"Unlike your "I Heart the Poconos" T-shirt, a second home shouldn't be an impulse buy." says Bankrate.com Instead, use a vacation trip to decide if a certain corner of paradise is really for you.

Lining Up To Buy Mammoth?

One of the west's great mountain resorts, Mammoth, in southern California, has been for sale for a few months. And according to Intrawest execs, there's mammoth interest in buying the place. Intrawest has got the right of first refusal. The company is mum on what it's going to do but in today's iIntrawest conference call,it was revealed that no fewer than 75 entities had requested more info on the offering. Watch this space for more on who walks down the aisle with this California girl.

Gangbusters!

"Gangbusters!" That's the word a top Intrawest corporate officer used in describing the Canada-based resort giant's real estate operations. In a conference call today to discuss fiscal third quarter results, CEO Joe Hussian and his lieutenants acknowledged their ski operations were hurt by a terrible snow season in the Pacific Northwest, but said they expect real estate developments in such places as Whistler (British Columbia) and Mountain Creek (New Jersey) to continue to soar.

Secret NYC B & Bs

Too bad the NY Times blew the cover on not-quite-kosher "B&Bs" in yesterday's real estate pages. They're really just apartments that owners or long-time renters lease out on the sly to out-of-towners. It's usually against a building's rules, but no one every gives up a New York apartment, and those who hang on to little ones are always looking for creative ways to pay the (escalating) tab.

Nuts -- But Not Peanuts

"'Things are going nuts" says an agent in the Northeast Kingdom of Vermont, a once-remote area. A New Hampshire buyer paid $88,000 for a camp and one acre in Burke which was valued at $13,700. Condominiums on Burke Mountain are selling like hot cakes -- and a NE Kingdom hot cake is $220,000.

Reverse Twist

That's in effect what some older homeowners are doing. A report says they are taking out reverse mortgages and using the monthly payments they get to buy all kinds of things -- including a vacation getaway.

Picky, Picky

Second-home searchers are choosier than those hunting for a primary home, says a Red Hook, New York broker. "There's a lot more unwillingness to compromise.... The buyers want more character" along with a picturesque setting and a short commute, says Michael Mondello of Prudential Serls Prime Properties. His firm sells homes worth as much as $3.4-million -- they had better have more than just floor space.