John Ferry
06/01/2005
Fred Demarest knows a thing or two about making smart investments. The owner of an online brokerage company, Demarest moved to Nevada from California 10 years ago to take advantage of the state’s more lenient tax code. Three years ago, he had a house by the water built for him and his partner in Lake Las Vegas, where he now lives. Demarest also owns two lots in Coeur D’Alene, Idaho, where he plans to build a summer home.
“Being a stockbroker, I think
everything is a short-term trend, but this has beguiled me because [the vacation
home properties] are just going up year after year,” Demarest says. He estimates
that his Lake Las Vegas property has doubled in value since he purchased it. “I
think we’re fairly safe.”Demarest classifies himself as a relatively risk-averse property investor. He waited to buy at Lake Las Vegas until an international hotel, the Hyatt Regency, agreed to open there, at which point he felt sure he was making a safe, long-term investment. “I personally don’t want to buy first,” he explains. “I would rather see how it takes off, and I don’t care if I have to pay up a bit. I bought in the second year at the Blackrock Country Club up in Coeur D’Alene, and I paid more than I would have in the first year.”
Demarest also believes he reduced the risk of his investment by buying so close to Las Vegas, one of the most economically vibrant cities in the country. “I just think if you’re near Las Vegas, you’ve got a much better chance of success,” he says. “I now think Las Vegas is pretty much bulletproof as far as there being any major downward revision of prices.”
Back to Main Article: The
Private Resort Home Market: An Investment Outlook