Winsor said that a big part of his decision to buy at Wintergreen was that he thought it was a "very, very good investment" -- not in terms of renting the condo out, but rather in terms of price appreciation. Winsor doesn't plan to rent his condo when he's not there.
Although the resort management happily acts as a property manager for owners and rents their units for them, broker Lynn said most second-home buyers he deals with aren't interested in renting, preferring to keep their units for their own use. Hanlon from the Rocky Mountain Resort Alliance said many second-home owners rent their properties out when they're not there.
Hans Wachtmeister takes to the slopes near condominiums at Wintergreen Resort, less than a three-hour drive from the Capital Beltway.
(Photos Stephanie Gross For The Washington Post)
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At Wintergreen, though, "they don't need to rent them," Lynn said. "They're an extension of their own home. Once you figure out the cost of servicing guests, it isn't incredibly lucrative considering the hassle. And a hassle is the antithesis of what people are coming here for."
There are generally three types of second homes -- pure vacation homes, most of which are in ocean, waterfront or ski areas, investment rental properties, and homes that are part vacation and part investment, used by the owner perhaps one or two weeks a year and rented the rest of the time.
The report from the realty association that is due out next month will show that second-home buying for investment purposes has overtaken second-home buying for recreational purposes, although the actual number of vacation homes owned by Americans has also risen. More people are purchasing second homes as investments than for any other reason.
But don't tell Joseph Novello that.
Novello recently bought his second condo at Wintergreen, a three-bedroom unit right on the ski slopes with a view of the Rockfish Valley and the Blue Ridge Parkway beyond. He sold the two-bedroom condo he had owned for two years to buy the new one because he wanted a bigger place to accommodate visiting friends and family.
"The prices have shot up dramatically over the past two years," said Novello, a psychiatrist in the District. "It turns out it was a terrific investment. But that's not why I bought it. I didn't think it would go up."
He said, "I bought it because I spent several weekends up there over the course of a couple years. The place grew on me. I decided I really liked it. And I wanted to make it like home."
