Search widens for lakes-area condo buyers

With one building completed at Pointe 7 Lakeside Condominiums in Kimberling City and a second under way, Springfield-based developer Morelock-Ross Inc. is shifting its marketing efforts to the Windy City to entice buyers to the Ozarks.

Construction on Pointe 7 began in fall 2007, with 24 units in the first building finished in December 2008. Half of those units are sold, said Kim Sullivan, broker with Morelock-Ross subsidiary Point Seven Real Estate Co. The development is located next to the Kimberling City bridge at the intersection of Highway 13 and Pointe 7 Road.

The second building, with 20 units, is slated for completion in May, and Sullivan said the development will have a total of eight buildings and 200 units when it is finished in 2016. Principal Jamie Sivils declined to disclose the estimated cost of the development, but a Stone County building permit shows an estimated cost of $2.9 million for the second condo building.

The two- and three-bedroom condos range in price from $288,000 to $441,000 and have between 1,750 and 2,015 square feet of living space with an option to buy a one-car garage for $25,000, Sullivan said. In addition to a view of Table Rock Lake, the condo development has a clubhouse, saltwater pool, power washers for boats and boat slips. There also are no nightly rentals at Pointe 7, which is in close proximity to Branson entertainment. All the condos have fireplaces, decks and granite countertops, and the living, dining and kitchen areas are arranged in an open floor plan with an additional solarium space included in the two- and three-bedroom with loft models.

Hello, Chicago

Following marketing efforts - largely print advertising in publications in St. Louis, Branson, Kansas City, the Lake of the Ozarks region, Wichita, Kan., and Little Rock, Ark. - Sullivan is now reaching out to potential buyers in Chicago.

She said that destination was chosen after the Table Rock Lake Chamber of Commerce reported several inquiries from Chicago-area residents about properties in Branson.

While Sullivan hasn't decided which Chicago-area media she will use to lure buyers, she said she believes her target client base and the niche lakeside market will continue to bring sales as the real estate market as a whole continues steadying itself amid the recession.

"The people that we're attracting ... are people with either more disposable income or they are looking to invest their funds outside of the stock market," Sullivan said. "This is just a whole different animal. There are still people out buying second homes."

The National Association of Realtors' 2008 Investment and Vacation Home Buyers Survey, released earlier this year, showed a 30.8 percent drop in vacation home sales compared to 2007, but 80 percent of the second-home buyers also indicated that they consider it a good time to invest in real estate.

Rick Griffith, owner of Joplin-based used-car dealership Car Credit Solutions Inc., is among the condo owners at Pointe 7. He and his wife Kathy have a primary home in Carthage and bought a three-bedroom condo at Pointe 7 in October.

The couple looked at patio and single-family homes and other Branson-area condos before deciding that Pointe 7 was the perfect year-round getaway for them and their adult children.

"The best thing for me is the flat-screen TV that sits above the fireplace with a good view and the lake out the front with a gorgeous view and my family all around," Rick Griffith said. "That's pretty hard to beat."

Dr. Bob Saylor, director of ethics at Springfield-based St. John's Health System, also is a Pointe 7 resident, making trips almost weekly with his wife, Marci, since buying a condo last spring.

After researching the condo market in the Branson area for several months, the Saylors decided to purchase their Pointe 7 condo for their mini-vacations because of the location, the floor plan, and the view.

"I think it's the best decision we've made in a long time," Bob Saylor said. "The view is absolutely spectacular, second to none. It's very quiet and the quality of the workmanship is very nice."

Sullivan said other residents who have made Pointe 7 a second home are from Nebraska, Iowa, Arkansas and St. Louis.

Condo market conditions

The Branson-area condo market now has a seven-month inventory, said Charlie Gerken, broker and partner with Branson-based Gerken and Associates

With that level of inventory, Gerken doesn't see a huge demand or a lot of movement right now. Gerken remains optimistic about 2010 but notes that area condo sales have fallen 20 percent since 2006.

With sales down and people still experiencing economic hardships and job loss, there are fewer buyers in the market and a glut of properties for sale, but that can spell opportunity for the right buyers.

"With more (condos) being on the market, and with foreclosures and short sales mixed in ... it's an awesome time to buy a condo in Branson," Gerken said. "The rates are still low and the prices are very competitive."

A further challenge for the condo market, Gerken noted, is that properties in the $200,000 to $700,000 range are competing with lakeside homes that have more square footage, resulting in a lower cost per square foot. Gerken said the key to competing lies in developing a niche, such as positioning condos to have a lakeside view golf course access or an easy drive to Branson entertainment.

The NAR survey suggests that the Branson-area's market size also works in its favor, as 26 percent of vacation homes were purchased in small towns, and 18 percent of the second homes purchased were condos.

"I think as long as you have a niche you're better off than just building something and hoping to get into the game, because right now you're just coming in late," Gerken said.