McGuire is McBack
Elizabeth McGuire
And betting on 80|50 renaissance
Mammoth just has a way of sucking one back into the vortex.
A year after leaving Mammoth for a new life in Calistoga, Elizabeth McGuire (formerly Carruth) resurfaced in town this January as a sales associate for Playground, which has a listing agreement to sell 80|50 Mammoth.
How McGuire became McGuire was set in motion in the fall of 2007 when she and husband Scott met over soy yogurt at Sierra Sundance health food store here in Mammoth.
Scott, a former Mammoth Mountain ski patroller, was living in Mammoth at the time and started working for the North Face in spring 2008.
She left for Calistoga in January 2009 and ultimately got a job with Robert Sinskey Vineyards.
The couple moved to Napa together in April and married in July.
While she was working at the winery, McGuire also started doing some work for Kathy Richardson, who had been rehired by Playground as the Sales Director for their Napa project.
So how does this relate to Mammoth? Well, as they say, personal relationships are everything in business.
After 80|50’s ownership reverted back to its commercial lender, iStar Financial, iStar hired Forte International, an Aspen and Vancouver-based company renowned for its sales and marketing expertise for high-end real estate projects.
One of Forte’s principals is Steve Laver, who just happens to be the former President of Playground.
Laver hired Richardson. Richardson asked McGuire to move back to Mammoth. McGuire leapt at the opportunity.
Sheet: How long are you staying this time?
McGuire: Hopefully forever. It’s nice to be home.
Nice to be home, sure, but also difficult on a new marriage as husband Scott is still working in Oakland for North Face.
Nevertheless, McGuire is excited about the opportunity. Mostly because she’s selling the same great product (80|50 is arguably the nicest property in Mammoth) at about half the original asking price.
80|50 is still a fractional ownership property which sells in 1/8th shares.
The price of a share in a one-bedroom unit currently starts at $125,000.
The price of a three-bedroom unit starts at $299,000.
Annual HOA (homeowner’s association) fees range between $7,000-$12,000/year.
A 1/8th share guarantees four weeks of use per year (two weeks in the summer and two in the winter) plus unlimited further use based upon availability.
The selling points
1. The average second homeowner spends 18 days per year in their second home. Why own a second home (and all the aggravations associated with that second home) that mostly sits unused? Pay for what you actually use. And get pampered concierge service, ski storage, a short walk to the Village gondola and all those little extras that maximize your vacation time.
As McGuire says, 80|50 is considered a “usage” property as opposed to an investment property. And it appeals to a demographic one might not expect. The majority of owners live in the 310 and 949 area codes. A majority are between 35-45 years old with children of post-kindergarten age.
2. Because the property isn’t sold out, there are currently great extra usage opportunities for owners.
3. 80|50 is part of a Destination Club, so there are 10 different properties all over the world you can trade time to use.
