Stuck in the Rough Golf Course Communities Face Challenges Ken Harer, JD, RS, CCAL
Golf courses have a particularly strong influence on the value of homes located on or near them (at least in the past). Many communities were developed placing homes to take advantage of views and providing amenities like clubhouses, restaurants, bars, and swimming pools to the owners of the homes. Even if they did not golf, buyers purchased for the wide open spaces and other amenities.
But the real estate bust and “great recession” hit golf course communities particularly hard. Club dues or owner assessments to maintain facilities have continued to increase, generating unhappy owners. Resale values have plummeted, in part because of the high dues. Golf as a pastime has declined in popularity since a peak in 2003, reducing the number of golfers by about fifteen percent. The reduction in the number of non- owner members means that more of the cost must be borne by owners.
24 Community Associations Journal | June 2016
One of the unexpected occurrences within these communities is the natural aging of owners and their declining ability to use the amenities offered. In one community where the HOA owns a golf course, and is a 55 and older community, “active seniors” bought into the community to use the course, restaurant and clubhouse. Now the community is over 40 years old. Many owners are now in their 70s and 80s and are unable to use the facilities, which can result in resenting the cost of maintaining the facilities they once cherished.
This combination of circumstances has made golf course communities less attractive to buyers, and has driven prices for some golf community homes well below comparable homes in other communities. This of course spawns unhappiness, and in some cases litigation.
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32