The latest lakefront closing, 805 Peninsula Lane, just became the 10th Big Bear lakefront sale of 2013. Although we had 14 sales by this time last year, this was the fifth closing of a Big Bear lakefront property in just the past 40 days. Looks like things are heating up heading into summer!
805 Peninsula is a 4 bedroom, 6 bathroom lakefront built in 2007. Located amongst the boulders of Peninsula Lane, this home is accessed by an unimproved dirt road. (There is rumor that this road may be paved this summer.) Listed at $1,350,000 and selling at $1,310,000, this home spent 878 days on market before selling at 97% of list price. At 4350 square feet, this home sold at $301 per square foot.
This home has all the upgraded finishes one would expect in a lakefront home built in 2007. Stainless steel appliances, granite counters, hardwood floors as well as high-end fixtures and features are found throughout the house.
Being a new lakefront home of such quality, if you are familiar with Big Bear lakefront real estate sales, you might be wondering why this home took so long to sell and why it sold for well under the 2013 average price per square foot of $415. My opinion is that the location limited this home's value. The unpaved street was unsettling to many buyers. As well, the home really does not have the expansive lake views so many buyers are looking for. Sitting on the south side of Peninsula Lane, one side faces Highway 18, the busy, main route into Big Bear, while the other side's view of the lake is blocked by the property to the north.
The fact that this home has been listed since January of 2011 at the same list price of $1,350,000 and after 878 days has finally sold is a strong testament to a recovering Big Bear lakefront real estate market. A home that wasn't deemed a good enough value to sell for the past few years finally found a suitor. That suggests that lakefront home values have improved to the point where they have caught up with what were often considered over-priced listings.