we split the property and my
brother, my sister and I kept one side with 1.25 acres and
3 cottages and we sold the other side with 1 acre of land
and 2 cottages for just over $400,000 by then.

So.. how are the other two cottages doing in terms of condition

>and upkeep? Maybe rent them out for people who want to
>"rough" it a bit in the woods.

They are all kept in decent condition but they are all in use by
us so we don't rent them out, although with the cost of rentals
here these days it could be tempting. In season around here they
get over $4000 for a weekend for a small cottage in a crowded
resort with very few extras other than the building itself and
maybe docking if you have a boat, and boat rentals for extra$..

Now, another 18 years later, a recent estimate of value I
got last summer from a property manager in the area said
our property here is now worth roughly $1.2 million

I am dubious of others coming up with property values like

>that. Afterall, the real value of a property is measured by
>what someone is willing to pay, and not necessarily some
>imagined value.

I wouldn't trust the numbers before attempting to sell the place,
not that that's likely to happen, but a couple of inferior lots
just a couple of thousand feet away from me sold with no buildings
on them for well over $700,000 8 or 10 years ago and my main
investment guy (Assante Wealth Management) who lives within 20 or
so miles of me, so is familiar with the area, had put a value on
this lot of $900,000 about 5 years ago, and this year when we did
an assets update I used that same figure and he laughed at it and
said not anymore, it would be quite a bit higher than that after
the big increase in prices during the Covid years.

I'll likley never know though because my niece expects us to
leave the place to her when we die. We bought the place the
year she was born so she's known it forever and between me and
my brother and sister, she was the only child so she will likely
get her wish.

Actually, to clarify the current situation, my brother had health
issues and subsequent money problems a while back and he sold his
share here to my sister so she now owns 2/3 of the property and I
have a 1/3 share and she lets her daughter and family use the 3rd
cottage as if it were her own already.

It's changing the area though. In recent years people are paying
close to a $million+ for a lot and then building a 6000+ square
foot 'cottage' on it costing them another $1.5 or $2 million.
And it should be obvious that the nicest lots to build on were
the ones sold first many years ago, although the new lots to
qualify for a building permit are much larger than they used
to be. Now you have to have minimum 2 acres and 100 meters of
frontage and you can only build one cottage on it, and a 'bunky'
(no bathroom or kitchen) for some added sleeping space for your
overflow guests.

Our place is grandfathered in that there can be 3 full cottages
on it and they can be rebuilt or replaced as needed which would
add a lot to the value for the right buyer.

---
* SLMR Rob * *NEWSFLASH* Dyslexic Occultist sells soul to Santa
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