Developers have expressed concerned that golf courses are losing favor with homeowners in high-end communities, but a new study shows they still boost home values. Researchers at Florida Atlantic University evaluated more than 10,000 home sales in the state’s Palm Beach, Broward, and Miami-Dade counties in 2015. They found that property values for homes adjacent to a golf course increased an average of 8 percent to 12 percent.
“Preliminary results from statistical pricing models suggest that properties receive a pricing boost,” says Ken Johnson, an associate dean of graduate programs and professor at FAU’s College of Business. “Thus, there is strong evidence to conclude that golf courses remain a positive draw to potential property owners.”
Yet the study comes at a time when more than 800 golf courses have closed in the U.S. in the last decade. Some developers and municipalities are seeking to convert underperforming and financially constrained golf courses into other housing developments. “The strong statistical evidence supporting a pricing boost for being adjacent to a golf course should help property owners, developers, and city officials make quicker and more financially fair decisions,” says Ksenija Bogosavljevic, who is working with Johnson on FAU’s study.
With golf-course closures, homeowners who live near one that is still in operation may find even more of a premium boost to their home’s value, researchers note.
Source: “Home Buyers Like Links a Lot,” BUILDER (Jan. 25, 2017)
