All Aboard the Backyard Local

Bill and Becky Galeota knew that the lake home in tiny Goodview, Va., was perfect for them. But they had one concern: It sat atop a steep hill, some 200 feet above their piece of Smith Mountain Lake shoreline.

This would make getting to the lakeshore an adventure. The Galeotas have four young grandchildren, too, and no one looked forward to lugging them up and down the steep hill.

So after buying their lake home a year and a half ago, they installed a private residential incline elevator, which looks a bit like a tram that runs on tame roller-coaster tracks. The tram can transport the couple to the lake in about five minutes. It's perfect, too, for bringing their grandchildren to the shoreline.

"I think the price was perfect on this house because of its location, so far up from the lake," Bill Galeota said. "The tram was our way of getting this house for a great price and still having easy access to the lakeshore."

Similar incline elevators run down the sloping hills of lake homes across the country. They cost about $50,000, an amount that manufacturers and dealers say owners recoup when they sell their homes. Real estate agents aren't quite as sure about the added value, but they say they the trams don't hurt. And sellers are counting on retiring baby boomers to boost their business in coming years.

The Galeotas weren't focused on resale value when they bought their lake house but feel comfortable that the tram will make their home easier to sell when it's time. They also recognize that they paid less for their home because of its location atop a steep hill.

Smith Mountain Lake, southeast of Roanoke, is home to at least four such tram systems, said Betsy Bowman, a real estate agent in nearby Moneta. That works for some, but other buyers just won't go for a lot with a big drop to the waterfront, tram or not, she said. In addition, the slumping real estate market means less competition for lots with moderate or gentle slopes. An incline elevator also won't stop young children from straying and rolling down a steep hill, Bowman said.

"It's better to have one than to not have one," she said. "But you are still dealing with a steep lot."

Lake Shore Tram, based in Rowan, Iowa, has installed incline elevators at several lakes south and west of the Washington region. Steve Cox, vice president of sales, said he sees steady demand in communities near metropolitan centers, as people retire or buy vacation homes.

"People don't want to move long distances from home, but they do want to be near the water. Problem is, when you get to a lot of these lake communities, the prime properties, the lots that are flat are already pretty well developed. There isn't much flat land left for people to choose from," Cox said.

Pete Cox, for one, is convinced that the business will be good, particularly when the real estate market picks up again. When the baby boomers begin retiring to lake houses, they're not going to want to walk carefully down hundreds of steps to access their lakefront property, he said.

That's why Cox (no relation to Steve Cox), owner of Lakeside Services and Property Management in Hurt, Va., entered the incline-elevator business in April. He has not sold a tram yet, he said, but he is working on a dozen quotes for homeowners in Virginia and nearby states.