[PThomas]

maybe I am naive and/or way out of touch with the real estate market, but i was shocked to read yesterday in the local Chicagoland Golf paper  that some developer paid $47 MILLION (last year or the year before, i believe) for the 105 acre Timber Trail golf course in suburban Chicago

[John Moore II]

I would say that sounds a bit overpriced, but not terribly. Without seeing the land, its possible to get around 750 homesites from there at 1/8 acre, and thats not terribly small in subdivisions now. And I am sure they could get a good price for the lots and make the money back prior to even building a house. Or they could be sold as Townhomes and even more money made. The number itself does seem extreme, but when you break it down, its not that out of sight high.
--A course in Raleigh, NC (Cheviot Hills) sold two years ago for (I was told) $30 million, again, seems high, but understandable when you break it down.

[Lou_Duran]

At $10/s.f. it looks like a prime candidate for the NLE list.  Playing armchair RE developer, my guess is that it will be multi-use project with a heavy commercial orientation on the freeway frontage, and high-density residential/apartments as buffers to the SFR areas around the golf course.  I doubt that the developer would have closed without the zoning, so it should be relatively easy to find out what's being planned for the site.

Picking up on the earlier juxtaposition thread, I did see (not played) my first $77 million municipal golf course facility this weekend.  Nice!  I asked a pair of gentlemen picking up a snack between nines what they thought of the course and they were highly complimentary.  One remarked that the city, Carlsbad, would never make any money (current unrestricted weekend green fee = $110, cart with GPS included, "unwalkable"; Carlsbad resident = $80), and that it (the city) should be ashamed of itself for spending that kind of money given the mess of the school system there (35 kids per kindergarten class according to this guy).  Values and priorities, I suppose.      

[Jeff_Brauer]

The funny thing about those high land prices is that it may restart the golf construction boom.

Basically, in the 1990's smart golf money stopped buying existing courses when prices got high. It was cheaper to buy existing land and build from scratch.  At those prices, it sounds like it might happen again.

For golf courses that are going to remain golf courses, its hard to get paid more than a $1-4 Million and make them cash flow.

[Bob Jenkins]

Paul,

Shaugnessy Country Club, which has hosted the 1966 and 2005 Canadian Opens, will lose its present site, which is on First Nations land out on the west edge of Vancouver, when its current lease expires, I think in 15 years. They have bought land in suburban Richmond, which is the site of an executive length course, and some adjoining farm land, for a reported price of $65 million. The land is dead flat and is located on the Fraser River delta. It is also under a flight path for our airport. That price is indicative of the crazy cost of housing around here. Vancouver real estate is now easily in the top 10 most expensive in the world. There was also a report lately that Kelowna, BC, in the Okanagan Valley 4 hours east of here, is now the 12th most expensive city in the world for real estate.  

Shaugnessy has a very wealthy membership but I have my doubts that the members would want to travel out to Richmond. It is going to have to be one heck of a golf course and clubhouse to keep tyhe members happy.

With costs like that , I am surprised if anyone else will be able to afford to build new courses around here.

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