Lake Martin Voice readers have noticed this for a while now, but we have recently undergone a redesign. I did this to try and keep my blog on the positive tip of usability and reader friendliness, without indulging myself in a bunch of geeky add ons that distract.

That being said, by far the most popular element of the redesign as been the new way to search the Lake Martin MLS.

Coley Real Estate is proud to offer the area’s only (so far as I know) Map Based MLS search. Just click on the Search the MLS tab above to see what I mean.

When you do that, you will be taken to a search portal.  You may have to adjust the up/down and right/left scroll bars on your screen to remove my smiling face and see the map.  You will see that the map shows you the total number of active listings and asks you if you want to plot them (at this writing there were 1,335).

If you don’t want to see them all, narrow your results by # of bedrooms, or price, or waterfront, on the left.  Now is when it gets interesting, so let’s use the map to restrict the results:

1.  Zoom in to your desired level. You can move the map around by clicking in it and dragging around to get in the perfect location.

2. Select a map drawing tool from the bottom, I like the “irregular polygon” tool.  See this pic to find the tool:

3. Click around the area that you want to, with this tool you can make as many clicks as you want.  The circle tool is different, and so is the rectangle tool.  When you are done defining your area, double click to set it in stone.  Then it looks like:

4. View the results. If it doesn’t do this automatically, click “Update” so that the number count is refreshed.  You can view individual listings by zooming in and clicking on each green square, or you can view them all in a list by selecting the “List” tab on the upper right corner.

5. Enjoy! If you have any interest in any of the listings, contact me - you call or email me at my info at the top of the page.  If you have trouble browsing around - email me, I will try to help.

FAQ about the Lake Martin Voice MLS Map Search:

1.   Are you cool or something? How do you have this info and no one else does? I would like to pretend that I am cool, but in reality I am not.  This is the same info that is presented by the Lake Martin Area Association of Realtors, and by many other realtors’ sites, for that matter.  The big difference is that here, for the first time, it is presented and organized by each listing’s geocode so that you can see it on a map.  The #1 complaint I heard from consumers was that our MLS is hard to search.  This is an attempt to help that problem. A huge thanks to Flex MLS for putting out a great software system for us to use.

2.  Where is my (my neighbor’s) waterfront home on the map? I know for a fact it’s for sale, I can see the sign from my window, but it’s not on your map.  What’s up? Keep in mind that this data is a direct feed from the MLS.  If the listing agent has not gone into the system to correctly tell FlexMLS where the listing is, it may be wrong.  Much like if the listing agent enters the wrong number of bedrooms, it will be wrong until each listing agent fixes it.  Nothing I can do about that (unless it’s my listing).  The system is imperfect as it is fed data by imperfect people.

3.  So what should I do if my home is for sale and it’s wrong on your map? Well, a.) it’s not my map, it’s info taken from the MLS.  So that means it’s wrong on the MLS.  I would say you should b.) call your listing agent and ask him / her to correct it.

4. I want to know of any homes that come up for sale in a certain area, yet I am too busy to check the MLS every day.  Is there some way I can set up a search to automatically notify me of that? Yes, just email me and let me know of the exact borders of your desired area (e.g. Kowaliga Bridge to Chimney Rock on the south) and I will plug it into a search.  It will email you when there is a change in that area.  It’s totally free of charge and of guilt.  I only hope that you will call me to help you when the time comes.

5. Are these all your listings? Nope, I wish.  This data is pulling from the entire Lake Martin Multiple Listings Service.  My listings are included, but so are everyone else’s.  But, I CAN help you with all of these.  If you are interested in anything you see, contact me, I can help you research or buy something, and it doesn’t cost you a dime more.

6. Where is a summary of your listings? Two places - you can click here for a map version and here for a list of my listings.

7.  Would you like to know how to improve this? Yes I would! Please let me know how I can make it better!

Many Lake Martin Voice readers may be interested in the results of the auction of the home at 1355 Sturdivant Rd Jacksons Gap, AL 36861. It is a waterfront home.  According to the auctioneer’s website, the home has 3 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms, and was built in 1982.

The waterfront home was auctioned off, along with a bunch of other homes (not necessarily in the Lake Martin area), on 9-08-08 in Birmingham.  I didn’t go, but intrepid reporter on the scene, slownez, of Lake Martin forum fame, did.

Here is slow’s report, I thought that it makes for an interesting read of how these multi home auctions go:

“AL State House & Land Foreclosure Auction. Birmingham, AL 9/8/2008.

Registration started at 5pm at the Sheraton downtown. There were about 100 people there right at 5pm to sign in. Some had pre-registered and they had lines to register as well as to identify yourself as someone who would be bidding on multiple purchases. They checked to make sure you had a cashiers check for $5k and a valid ID and then given a bidders card to hold up at the auction. We went to grab a bite to eat and came back a few minutes after 6pm to find ~500 people already seated for the auction and they were scrambling to bring in more chairs.

The bidding started at 6:30pm with a practice session for those that had never attended. There 90 properties to be sold and the Lake Martin house was #88. I took them 3 hours to reach #88. Most all of the properties had a listed starting bid of $1,000. The house value was listed at what ever the last person paid for it, note this is a lot different from what the house is actually appraised for or worth. The $1k houses took off at $5k bidding and went up. Most of those sold in the $30k to $100k price range. The auctioneer had several helpers in the aisles that you could call over to ask what the current price was and what the next bid price was, the auctioneer was hard to understand at times as he was going so fast. Once you won a bid and the property was declared sold, you were escorted to table to finish the paper work and provide or apply for financing.

You were supposed to be pre-qualified for the auction, however they had both Chase and Countrywide on hand. A lot of properties came back up for bid a 2nd time because the winning bidder failed to qualify for a loan and had no proof of cash reserves to pay for the house. This slowed the whole process down as they re-bid these properties before moving to new ones.

The lake martin house was listed for a starting bid of $159k and a value of $416k. Bidding started at $165k and quickly hit $225k among several bidders. Then it was down to two bidders who drove the price up to the winning bid of $285k in about 20 seconds. Add on the 5% for the auction company and the selling price was ~$300k.

—Slownez”

Thanks Mr. EZ!!

Readers - was anyone else at the auction, and do you have more to add? If so please leave a comment below.  Or maybe you weren’t there, but have an opinion on the price or process.  Leave a comment below!

Or, do you have more Lake Martin newsworthy events?  Contact John Coley by phone or email at the top of this page.  We are always on the hunt for great story ideas.

Related Posts:

Guess What? Nothing Happened At Lake Martin Auctions

To continue the post I did yesterday on Lake Martin’s  Deadening Alpine Trail, I wanted to include these photos of the Cherokee Ridge Trail.

The Cherokee Ridge Trail is also maintained by the (duh) Cherokee Ridge Alpine Trail Association.  Its trailhead is on the Scenic Overlook, on Overlook Drive off of Highway 50, just east of Martin Dam.  It’s kind of near Ghost Hollow and Whiskey Ridge if you know where they are.

The Scenic Overlook offers stupendous views of Lake Martin, looking west, all the way to Kowaliga Bridge, with a little bit of a vision to the south (Martin Dam) and the northeast towards Chimney Rock. If you ever want to get a sense of the VASTness of Lake Martin, head here.  Take a picnic, there are lots of little tables and lots of paved parking.  From there you can drive down to Martin Dam (if the road is open) and check out the Dam close up.

The Cherokee Ridge Trail is actually a system of trails. There are 3 that can be accessed here, The Cherokee Ridge Alpine Loop, The Chimney Rock, and the Kowaliga Bay Trails.  Depending on how you hike it, you can take a 1 mile up to 7 mile hike.

The trailhead is similar to the one on Deadening Alpine Trail in that you have a little sign in box and can borrow a staff if desired. Be sure to sign in so that they have an accurate count of visitors.

As on all trails, please be careful and proceed at your own risk. This particular trail gives spectacular views, especially in the winter and fall when the leaves are changing colors or have no leaves so you can really see the water.

Related Post:

Deadening Alpine Trail

Yesterday I was showing homes for sale in a Lake Martin neighborhood called The Harbor.  It is a development that is about eight or nine years old.  It is located off of Overlook Drive, just east of the Martin Dam, off of Highway 50.

I was through around 6 PM, and the sun was starting to set.  The air was cool, not very humid, basically it was perfect weather.

As I was leaving, I decided to stop by the trailhead of the Deadening Alpine Trail.  It is a 3.6 mile loop trail and part of the Cherokee Ridge trail system of Lake Martin.  This system is maintained by the Cherokee Ridge Trail Association.  The trail runs over land owned by Alabama Power.  The trailhead itself is accessed by going into the neighborhood of The Harbor, then taking a left on Long Branch.  The drive to the parking lot is accessed off of Long Branch Drive:

There is a little parking lot just for this trail:

Here is the trailhead, they even have little bamboo staves with “Deadening Trail” written on them for you to borrow:

Anyway the trail is beautiful, a real gem for Lake Martin, a great activity if you have never done it.  I am embarrassed to say I have never tried it before yesterday, as many times as I have driven by it.  The next time my family is with me, I think we will do the whole thing.  I encourage everyone to become a member.

Have you ever hiked any of these trails? Any tips for the rest of us? If so please comment below.

Related Posts:

Cherokee Ridge Trail

Russell Lands is building Russell Crossroads - that will be, as they put it,  “a ‘town center’ in the heart of the Russell Lands family of developments on  44,000 acre Lake Martin.”

It is being built on Highway 63, just north of Windermere Road.  The town center will serve as resource for the neighborhoods of The Ridge, Windermere, Windover, Trillium, Willow Point, and for that matter, anywhere else on Lake Martin.  Judging from their plans, and the players that they have committed, my candid take is that this will be very good for the Lake Martin community.  There will be a high end grocery called Catherine’s Market, which will also have a deli.  The first phase will also include The Springhouse Restaurant - “fine dining in a casual atmosphere.”  Future plans call for a Hot and Hot Restaurant.

If I understand their overall plan correctly, in the future all of their area developments mentioned above (except Trillium) will be connected by a trail system so that one could jog, bike, or ride a golf cart to Russell Crossroads, and also go back and forth in between each neighborhood.

I snapped some photos a couple of weeks ago.  They are already out of date.  I drove by a couple of days ago and saw that they had the roofs on Catherine’s Market and the Springhouse Restaurant.  But I will post these here anyway.

The Real Estate Sales office and Discovery Center:

Sales Office

Here is the future Catherine’s Market:

Catherine’s Market

And here is one of the future Springhouse Restaurant:

Springhouse Restaurant

Lake Martin waterfront sales surged in July.The Lake Martin MLS* shows 15 closed sales in July, up from 7 in June, and 36% greater than July 2007 sales of 11.

Is this the rally point Lake Martin sellers have been praying for? Will this surge carry into August and the fall? Only time will tell.

Buyers of Lake Martin real estate don’t need to worry, there are plenty of properties still for sale.  Even though the number of waterfront homes sold rose, so did the “active listings” aka homes that are “For Sale” rose also.  The active listings in July 2008 was 527 as compared to 510 in June 2008.

So as you see, we are still in a buyer’s market, at about 35 Months’ Inventory on the market (527 divided by 15 sold).  That’s a lot. In order to get back to the sellers’ market pace, we would need to be selling a lot more than this. 

Another interesting factoid is to look and see at what prices these 15 properties sold.  It looks like the majority was under $599,999, with a fairly large bulk at the $200,000 to $399,999 range.

Are you thinking about buying on Lake Martin, and waiting for the right time? Contact me at the phone number at the top of this page, or email me.  I can help you run the numbers, and cut through all of the noise to help you find what’s right for you.

What do you think, Reader?  Will this increase be sustained, or is it a flash in the pan? Please comment below in the “Leave a Reply” section.  If you can’t see that, then click “Continue” and scroll to the bottom.

(*)Disclaimers: All of the above info was taken from the Lake Martin Area Association of Realtors Multiple Listing Service. Accuracy is not guaranteed but deemed reliable. The above does not include sales by FSBOs or developers that sell privately and not through the MLS. But, I do think that the above represents a very large majority of all sales on Lake Martin.

Related Posts:

Lake Martin Market Statistics Category

The numbers confirm what we all felt in our guts - according to the Lake Martin Multiple Listing Service - in the second quarter of 2008, sales were down compared to 2007.  Also, just as importantly, the number of active listings was up, therefore keeping a lot of pressure on sellers.

If you recall, in 2007 by June we really had a pretty good idea that we were in for a miserable drought.  I would have thought that meant June 07 waterfront sales would be a lot lower than 2008 (drought tempered).  But I was wrong.  The year to date numbers get even uglier.  If you read my post about the first quarter sales results, you may remember that we had sold 17 waterfront properties through March 31, 2008 versus 43 through March 31, 2007.

If you add the first and second quarters together, I guess someone revised a few sales because the year to date totals at June 30 are 93 for 2007 and 57 for 2008.  Here is a graph to show it:

This graph shows the waterfront sales, through the entire Lake Martin MLS, through June 30 of each year.  Each month is cumulative.  E.g. through May 08, 50 had sold on the entire lake.  7 were sold in June, so at June 30 the Year To Date Total is 57.  Again, I am just trying to show the cumulative effect.

Maybe we have more water in 2008, but Lake Martin also has another thing that is equally potent: more listings for sale.  See the below graph.  Note that in 2007, the total number of waterfront listings for sale peaked at around 450.  Through June 30 we are way past that, at over 500:

I hate  to keep beating this drum, but it always comes back to supply and demand.  We have 10% more for sale this summer than we did in 2007.  This is why sellers must be absolutely focused on their pricing, staging, and marketing.  If we continue to have more overpriced and undermotivated sellers on Lake Martin, look for the “days on market” stat to climb even higher.

(*)Disclaimers: All of the above info was taken from the Lake Martin Area Association of Realtors Multiple Listing Service. Accuracy is not guaranteed but deemed reliable. The above does not include sales by FSBOs or developers that sell privately and not through the MLS. But, I do think that the above represents a very large majority of all sales on Lake Martin.
Related Posts:

Lake Martin Is High, But So Is Real Estate Inventory
Lake Martin Waterfront Sales: April 2008

For all you high overheaders out there, with your glitz and glamour shots, here is why it is so cool that my office shares a wall with a c-store:

Bada bing!! This has been my view out of my office window for the past hour today. Nothing fires me up to sell some Lake Martin real estate more than a stare down from some sort of Norse God of Ice. He graces the side of the “Cheaha Ice Company” truck that occasionally delivers ice to Nail’s Convenience Store here in lovely downtown Kowaliga, Lake Martin. See a zoomed out pic:

The cool thing is I am pretty sure he is only on one side of the truck. The other side is blank. Another cool thing is that his abs are totally discrete, not a parte of the maine of his belly. I also like how his head is disproportionately large compared to his femur. And why the sweatband? I would guess that he doesn’t perspire much. Maybe he is trying to match the blue in his boots and make them really “pop.”

It just goes to show you how much the Lake Martin real estate industry has changed. Over the last 4 years, I can count on one hand how many times I have met clients at my office. Mostly I meet them at their homes or on the way to homes they want to see. It’s much more convenient for them, which is the whole point of a service industry, right?

One more bonus pic, a scary close up (brrrrrrrrrrr):

A Lake Martin Voice reader submitted these questions to me about the Lake Martin real estate market in general. They were so good that I thought we all would benefit from my attempts to answer. Do you disagree? Then reply below and let me hear about it. The RIQ (reader in question) purchased a Lake Martin waterfront home in 2006. Here are my OPINIONS, for what they are worth, I am neither an appraiser nor soothsayer:

1. We arent looking to sell, but gosh, in this environment, is seems like we just bought at the wrong time. What do you think?

I think that 2006 was the peak of the bull market in Lake Martin waterfront property.

2. Will Lake Martin property values ever come back?

I don’t think they have gone anywhere to warrant a “come back.” In other words, I don’t see evidence that prices have dropped, only evidence that they have ended a scorching run of yearly gains. So if by “come back” you mean will prices someday start going up again? Of course. It’s all about supply and demand. In my estimations property values in the period of 2000 - 2006 climbed 30% PER YEAR. No product, not even oil, or bottled water, can sustain that. Since then I think we have had 0% gain for 2 years. Yet, if you average that gain over 8 (2000 - 2008) instead of 6 (2000 - 2006) you still average 22.5% gain per year. I realize you bought in 06, but still you need to know that over the long term (40 years), history has shown us that Lake Martin averages 12 - 15 % per year gain.

3. Do you think our decision on this house will prove to be an œok decision for long term financial objectives?

Don’t mean to sound like a smart Alec, but let me know of another investment that has averaged 12 - 15% per year for the last 40 years. I will start selling it instead of Lake Martin real estate. I am too conservative (and cash poor) of an investor to hop in and out of real estate on the short term. But for the long term, it’s hard to beat. Remember, unlike Tampa or Atlanta or whatever, Lake Martin is not growing geographically. Waterfront footage is fixed. Furthermore, practically every inch of undeveloped (450+ miles) shoreline is owned by either Russell Lands or Alabama Power. It’s not like you have 100 different landowners or developers that potentially flood the market. I believe that Russell Lands is committed to measured growth. The last thing they want to do is flood the market with supply (which is why I think they have pulled back in the last 18 months). Alabama Power isn’t even in the real estate business. About every 5 years they release 15 new lots to lease. On the grand scheme of things, that is not a material amount of supply injection.

4. Do you think we could move our Lake Martin house if we had to?

Absolutely. Even though market wide, the Lake Martin market is still lukewarm, I have been blessed to have sold more real estate so far in 08 than all of 07. That’s not bragging because 07 was pretty pitiful. But an interesting point is that about half of the Lake Martin homes that I transacted this year had already been for sale before, some since 06. So did I sprinkle magic dust on their roofs? Did I go to the back yard and bury 6 statues instead of merely 1 statue of St. Whomever, patron saint of the desperate? No. I concentrated on the holy trinity of real estate: pricing, staging, and marketing. In a buyer’s market, things are still selling, it just takes a longer time. In 2005, it might take 20 days. in 2008, it might take 100. But it will sell. Sure, there is a lot of stuff on the market that is sitting for over 200 days. But, I am highly confident your home can be sold if properly priced, staged, and marketed. Will you make money? Who knows. I don’t know what you paid for it nor what you owe on it. But rest assured, if your goal is simply to “move” it, absolutely it can be done.

Does anyone else have an opinion? Help us all out and comment below. If you can’t see the “Leave a Reply” box below, click the “Continue” button then scroll to the bottom.

Recently two auctions were held at waterfront property on Lake Martin. A quick check with each of the auction companies revealed that neither homes sold for the reserved prices. Both remain unsold at post time.

Here’s the lowdown:

1. 284 Lakeview Drive - The “Waterfall House” at Willow Point - This auction was held on July 20, 2008. I wrote this post before the auction to spread the word. I haven’t talked to anyone that attended, but I spoke to a representative at Albert Burney Auction Company. He said that neither the lot nor the home met the reserved price that day and therefore did not sell at auction. He did say that both properties were available for sale in case anyone was still interested. If you (or someone you know and love) are, let me know.

2. 211 Farm Loop Road - Wind Creek Farms- This auction was held on July 26, 2008, by Deanco Auction Company. It had a published reserve price or minimum bid of $300,000. Apparently that amount was not met because a representative of the company confirmed that it also failed to sell at auction date. Again, if you’re still interested, let me know. I went through this home about a year ago (when owned by a previous family) and have tons of pictures.

View Larger Map

These recent strikeouts remind me of last summer’s Lake Martin auctions. You may remember when another auction company had a big deal where they tried to auction 3 different waterfront homes on the same day. None sold. Contrast that with 2007’s auction at Harbor Pointe condos, where they sold about 20 units in one day.
So why are waterfront home auctions not catching on at Lake Martin? Is it:

A. The buyers are reluctant to pay the typical 10% auction commission on top of their bid price?

B. It is too much of a hassle to view the homes at the times appointed by the auctioneers?

C. Sellers are placing too high of reserve prices?

D. Local Realtors are digging defensive trenches around Lake Martin?

E. Buyers are unrepresented (by agents) and therefore uninformed of value?

F. Or a combination?

What do you think, dear reader? If anyone out there has some input, or would at least like to vote on my suggestions, please leave a comment below where it says “Leave A Reply.” If you can’t see that, hit the Continue button and then you should be able to see it.

I am really curious as to what others might think. As a “professional” (I know, eyes rolling) I might be missing something here, so let me hear some other opinions.

Related Posts:

Register Now For Auction At Willow Point
Results of Harbor Pointe Condo Auction