Buying A Cabin in 2022??

I know it’s impossible to ever time the market or to time life itself, but what are your thoughts on buying a cabin on a lake in today’s market?

To make a short story very long (I’m warning you lol) there’s a “cute-quaint-old” cabin on the water directly across the street from the land we just bought in NW Wisconsin.

I was out ice fishing on the lake this year and day-dreamed (realistically) how much fun it would be to literally own THAT cabin one day. It’s nothing fancy at all, but appears to be well taken care of. One of those cool old places built in the first half of the 20th century; a place that most people these days tear down and put up a million dollar “cottage”.

Today I got a total hair up my ass and stalked the owners down internet-style (I haven’t seen anyone there this fall/winter). I found their names on the county GIS site and a quick search popped up a land-line phone number from the cities.

I took a deep breath and hit send on my phone. To my surprise an older lady answered. I introduced myself and explained how we recently bought family land across the road, how I saw their place, and that I’d be interested in it if they were ever going to sell it.

We ended up having a great conversation and I found that they were 90 years old and her father built it when she was in her youth. She expressed that their three children (I’m assuming in their 50’s-60’s now) don’t have much interest in the place, and that YES it could very well be for sale soon!

She talked a bit more about the cabin itself, two bedrooms, one bath, and I found that it was recently re-shingled and had a new enclosed porch built. I didn’t push the details about everything else (water/sewer/electrical/foundation/hvac, etc) and was just happy to get her attention to begin with.

She said she would talk with the “kids” and call me back. A couple hours later she called back and said they will have a family meeting this spring, but everyone except one already decided they would sell it. She also asked if I was an investor or realtor (one of the kids brought it up), but I assured her of our intentions to keep it as-is for the foreseeable future to enjoy with our family. I also said her children were welcome to call me as well to discuss that too.

So now my question is, if everyone decides they would sell it, what would I expect the asking price be compared to “fair market value?” Right now it’s listed at $129,000 according to the county GIS site, and $119,000 on Zillow.

We could swing that without being buried in debt, but I’m curious what it would actually go for in 2022? Around fair market? Way more? A bit less?

There isn’t $hit to compare to in the area, so I have no idea. Obviously I’d look everything over before committing or offering anything.

But here’s the kicker…

There’s only four places across from us, and I don’t see any of the others going for sale anytime soon, let alone one we could reasonably justify buying other than this one.

I don’t want to overpay, but I don’t want to have a life long regret on it either. It would kill me forever to see it sold to someone else that tears it down and puts up a million dollar shack.

At the same time I also don’t want to get my hopes up in case the last hold out doesn’t change their mind.

What would you do? And if you made it this far I greatly appreciate your input! I wish I had a few pics to share, but next time I’m over there I’ll take a few

Great story and best of luck.

My only advice would be to not get hung up on a few dollars over a rare property. I’d make it known to them you are interested, you don’t plan to change much and will be using it as a family cabin, and that you are available whenever to talk should their family want to sell. Creating the connection as you did is great.

Family situations like this take a lot of time to sort out, but hopefully your connection helps. If/when the time comes and they indicate they’re willing to sell be sure to have your finances in order and ready. Leaving a realtor out of it means more money in their pockets. If you come up with a price that works, be willing to travel wherever is convenient for them to close (if you are financing). In 2022 people love immediacy and guaranteed things more than ever.

Best of luck and keep us posted

I say go for it Bman. We did something similar with our next door neighbors cabin…0 regrets buying more space.

I can’t keep up with you last i heard you were going guiding on Superior.

do your best to get to a price where their family would, doing the necessary leg work to determine the price. They will most likely give you a price instead of having you make an open offer. If they do have you make an open offer, use the info you gathered to make a nice offer. you won’t over pay that way and you will have something you wont regret not getting. a lake front lot, a cabin with history and land on the other side of the road…..yes please!!!

Dutchboy wrote:

I can’t keep up with you last i heard you were going guiding on Superior.

Ha

That’s still on the table, I have my 25 ton master captain’s license and a seaworthy boat, but having the opportunity to finally buy my wife’s family land did throw a small wrench in those plans for relocating.

The other day she just casually brought up if we were are ever going to make the leap.

I’d absolutely love to, and could very well still do it.

The only hesitation now is being farther from the land. It’s 52 minutes from my driveway right now. Close enough that I can run over for the day without blinking an eye. The boys absolutely love camping on the land, and it’s easy to get to.

Add a cabin on the lake across the street to the mix and yeah….lol

If/when we move to the Duluth area, it turns into a bit over two hours (minimum) to get there. Not a huge deal, but day trips or even an overnighter add to the clock.

Right now we’re in the sweet spot between home, Lake Superior and the land. I can launch at Rice’s landing on Superior in an hour and 45 minutes, be to the land in 52, be at my Dad’s cabin in an hour and 45 minutes, be to work/office/shop in 11 minutes, and be in the heart of the metro for work in 35-45 minutes.

Decisions, Decisions.

also, show them pics of your boys loving and enjoying the outdoors. that will go miles in the hearts of the sellers.

With the numbers you posted sounds like a tear down to me. Try to get a deal done with them so a realtor doesn’t get involved. Once its listed they may see that they could ask more for it. There’s a lot of people where money isn’t a problem and they would pay alot just to get it. If down the line you can’t justify putting more money into it to fix up you have the choice of tearing it down or sell as is. Don’t believe you would lose money on it.

Go for it!!!!!!
I wish I had purchased lakefront property years ago. Made the decision to get serious mid last year and now have ~6 acres of heaven in the UP.

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The only problem I see is dealing money with the parents will be easy it’s when the kids get involved they will want more then Zillow or local assessment. Property is going for double to triple current assessment. Maybe you’ll get lucky on this one.

supercat wrote:

The only problem I see is dealing money with the parents will be easy it’s when the kids get involved they will want more then Zillow or local assessment. Property is going for double to triple current assessment. Maybe you’ll get lucky on this one.

This. Lake property inventory is low and demand is high. Prices are crazy now, just like everything else. I think you’re going about it the best way you can. Expect to pay too much, but hope for the best. Good luck!

B-Man –
Do it

My wife and I starting looking for a lake home to retire to about 4 years ago, casually, and started more seriously looking the past year and a half. Worst timing possible, should have bought 4 years ago. Prices have skyrocketed in the past 2 years. Zillow estimates are kind of worthless, and considerably low. Pretty much any lake property for sale is overprices, and ends up selling for 10-20% over asking, and usually within a couple of weeks of listing. So if you can keep it away from a realtor, you will be way better off, or the price will go up.

We are actually debating now to put our purchase on hold for some time to see if prices level off, or even maybe decrease. We don’t have to hurry.

There is a reason it all seems to fit together.

There was another thread on IDO recently about milestones and regrets, when reading them it seemed like most regrets centered on things that people did not do, put off to long, etc etc. The regrets that people had on things they did do that went sideways they focused more on lessons learned and wisdom gained not so much the decision.

At the end of the day it boils down to doing something and knowing how it turns out good or bad is way better than not doing something and wondering what would have happened.

Thanks for all the input so far guys. I will give her a call today and mention that I would be happy to do it without a realtor if they would like (that was my plan, but I didn’t bring it up to them yet).

supercat wrote:

The only problem I see is dealing money with the parents will be easy it’s when the kids get involved they will want more then Zillow or local assessment. Property is going for double to triple current assessment. Maybe you’ll get lucky on this one.

This is exactly what I would be scared of. Like I said, there is zero comps right now, so I have no idea what they expect to get out of it yet.

I did research sold homes and lots on the lake for the last few years, and they seemed to be pretty reasonable (lots for like $50,000 and nicer/”newer” cabins for $150-$300k+). By newer I mean just not as ancient as this place lol The lake also has a few $750,000+ shacks on it too.

The only thing I have going is the entire area is still a bit of an eye sore after the straight-line winds/tornado a couple years ago.

Unfortunately there’s no way I would pay two or three times the assessed price. For that much money I could build a brand new killer cabin/retirement home on our land and just use the super quiet public access across the street (the main public access is on the opposite side of the lake).

Prepare for a roller coaster of emotions. You will likely be Moms first choice. But the kids not showing emotional attachment. Will be all about the Benjamins. My guess at least one of them will contact a relator fearing a dollar may be left on the table. That could lead to a bidding war. As far as timing. Now couldn’t be worse. Recreational land is at its highest ever. Add water and double it. With all that said. If it’s were you want, and what you want. And within your ability, letting it go could lead to regrets. Hard to guess the future of land values. The house we rent in Florida on a canal was $2600 a month and Zillow valued at $130k 2 years ago. In April the owners are selling it. Zillow estimate is $407k. Realistically I think that’s about $50k high given the neighborhood and condition. The house we’ve found for next year is nicer with one less bedroom is over $5k a month. Thru 65 years. I always found ways to make more money. As you get older, you find you can’t get back years. Especially with your children. Things I’ve seen in the last year have my wife and I more living in the moment, within reason. I don’t think interest rates will affect prices when they go up. As a lot of todays problems, are a generation with no fear or for that matter understanding of how debt works. Banks will just add 5 or 10 years to a loan. AND LOWER THE PAYMENTS!! I just spoke with a retailer that confirmed one of my fears. That the last years inflation has been covered by credit. He said more than he has ever seen. People going through 4 credit cards in their wallets trying to find one with $10 left. To buy something they really don’t need. At the current rate I think something are going to crash like our generation has never seen. But, that’s what made the last generation so frugal and wise.

I would sit down with the wife and go through finances and come up with a $$ figure that you absolutely do not want to exceed. With the lack of comps in the area it makes it tough as you said. Who knows..the kids could come back and say they want $250k for it right out of the gate. It is tough dealing with multiple kids in a situation like that. It always seems that you will have that one that is the hang up or doesn’t agree with the rest. Hopefully your situation is not like that.

Once you and the wife come up with a number I would request an appraisal (if they are open to that) and you offer to foot the bill for a couple hundred bucks. At least that way you will know if it is feasible or a pipe dream.

Good luck! Exciting stuff for sure.

Seems like the lady you spoke to was appreciative of your honesty and your genuine interest. Sounds like the kids may have influence but no ownership and money is likely not something she’s very concerned about at 90. While I’m sure she’d like to have something to leave her family (Financially, if they don’t want to keep the cabin in the family), perhaps she’d be more reasonable on the asking price knowing your story vs selling it to joe schmo via relator. I guess it depends on how much influence the family has. But I think you’re doing it exactly right and giving yourself the best odds given the situation. GOOD LUCK!

Keep us posted on how it goes.

The kids will want top dollar. 100% guarantee it. Got a 2 hour rant from a neighbor along our beach when I was up at our cabin over christmas about a similar situation.

How exciting! Awesome! Good luck, dude!

If you want it and can afford it and they’re willing to sell, it sounds like a great opportunity.

As far as what it is worth, Zillow and the GIS or County tax value are worthless, you need to find comps. Even if there aren’t any on that lake, there should be plenty nearby. I wouldn’t anticipate a significant discount from market value, at best you can get the realtor fees off the market price. Once you figure out the ballpark market price, go thru your finances and factor in how much owning THAT property is worth to you. Particularly if you don’t buy it and someone does that tears down and puts up a McMansion you have to look at every time you pull into your property. Let them set the price and negotiate from there.

I turkey hunt in Burnett county and specifically target lake areas with year around residents (they like to feed the birds). As of last spring there seemed to be a lot of lakefront properties for sale. I also recently looked at what Zillow valued my place for. It seemed to be about what the market is paying. As others have mentioned, make a budget and stick to it, especially if you have cash on hand. If we hit the type of inflation I suspect is headed our way, interest rates will rise and prices will drop.This is the time when cash is king.

phishingruven wrote:

also, show them pics of your boys loving and enjoying the outdoors. that will go miles in the hearts of the sellers.

Somehow we need to get the story of finding the lost wallet and the pretty officer to the sellers. Be hard to find better caretakers of something their family started.

I agree if you can make the $$ work, I wouldn’t think twice about it.

tornadochaser wrote:

The kids will want top dollar. 100% guarantee it. Got a 2 hour rant from a neighbor along our beach when I was up at our cabin over christmas about a similar situation.

And so they should, heck the old lady deserves top dollar too.

In this market, I don’t think there is such a thing as overpaying. You (or someone else) will pay what they want and can afford.

Unless I missed it already mentioned, What is the actual property like? how much lakeshore is it? (this has the greatest impact on the value) What is the septic, well situation? Cabins can be repaired/torn down, etc but the lot is the lot, you can’t change it much anymore with all of the new environment/shoreline rules in place.

When we made the offer on our lake property many years ago before the rush (it was held in the same family for generations) we wrote a personal letter to the sellers on how this was going to be our family happy place and we would honor the previous owners by always maintaining the property and loving it as much as they did. They ended up taking our lower offer over other higher ones, they mentioned the letter at closing… This cabin has been a lifesaver for our family, especially the past few years of covid crazyiness…

I think how you handled it so far is exactly the right way. Having said that, be prepared for sticker shock.

My MIL purchased a family cabin 3 years ago for X price, 3 bed, 2 bath, 3 car garage, basement. Our neighbor this year decided to sell his property and without listing it he’s getting his asking price from multiple potential buyers. His place is smaller, no basement, 2 bed 1 bath, 1 small garage/shed and he’s 150k over what we paid for ours. This immediately prompted my BIL to suggest we sell our cabin for twice what we paid. I look at cabins daily and places I wouldn’t have paid 200 for 3 years ago are now being listed in the 400-500 range.

There’s always a chance that this goes exactly as you hope and plan, but with more than one person making decisions, I’m guessing they are going to amp up the price real quick.

JoeMX1825 wrote:

Unless I missed it already mentioned, What is the actual property like? how much lakeshore is it? (this has the greatest impact on the value) What is the septic, well situation? Cabins can be repaired/torn down, etc but the lot is the lot, you can’t change it much anymore with all of the new environment/shoreline rules in place.

Good point! New development requirements prohibit new construction within 75′ of the shore line and I believe 10(maybe even more) of a property line. If this is a small lot, it in essence, undevelopable for one of those gazillion dollar monstrosities. Thereby limiting its value to developers. I also believe there is a prohibition on expanding horizontally by more than 50% of the original footprint, limiting all expansions to going up(adding another floor). The state won’t let you raze and old structure only to build a bigger one on lakeshore properties any more.

Using the buy low, sell high theory, lake property in MN/WI is currently at a historical HIGH. Some think artificially high and that values have to decrease, some think it will continue to increase in value, a guess either way.

I agree with what other say – it is a finite resource, if you can afford it, buy it when it is available and don’t look back. If looking at it as an investment that you will want to sell in the near future, completely different criteria.

phishingruven wrote:

also, show them pics of your boys loving and enjoying the outdoors. that will go miles in the hearts of the sellers.

Agreed. Maybe have them write a letter. My sister had her daughters write letters to the owner of their current house and sent it with the offer, even though their bid was lower than others the letters went a long way.