August 16, 1996

YURTS -- A CAMPING AND VACATION PROPERTY ALTERNATIVE

By TOM KELLY
The Real Estate Advisor

We had some friends return from a terrific vacation on the Oregon Coast with wonderful tales of cozy times with "just the family" but only so-so weather.

I knew their plans included intricate packing for a spe- cific campgrounds and I was eager to learn more about how they endured a rainy weekend sandwiched between warm, sunny days.

"We didn't have any problem with the rain," the dad said. "We stayed in a yurt."

A yurt is a wooden and fabric structure which could perhaps be described as a more cylindrical teepee with a clear, plexiglass skylight as its dome. It is Mongolian in origin and designed to withstand high winds and efficiently retain heat in the winter. It has a framed, lockable wooden door, window screens and flaps, a waterproof canvas roof and a reflective blanket of insulation.

I had seen a few yurts on rural property -- mostly in the Winthrop area of this state -- but I had never wished I had stayed in one until last year. While accompanying a middle-school bicycle trip down the Oregon Coast last summer, the group was hit with several nights of torrential downpours. The kids had tents and few waterproof covers. The dry, warm yurts just across the campground had been reserved weeks in advance.

And, yurts are not found only in state parks. Yurts have been used for recreational dwellings on rural property -- where conventional construction can be impossible -- to child-care centers and personal growth retreats. Their basic design is open and round, conducive to interaction yet many owners have created separate spaces for kitchen and bedrooms.

While Genghis Khan and his followers dragged their old-world yurts all around the Central Asian countryside, the yurts of today generally stay put. Kits vary from 700 pounds (including the shipping crate) for the 12-foot diameter version to 2,200 pounds for the 30-foot size. They are sold in the Northwest by Pacific Yurts of Cottage Grove, Ore. (1-800-944-0240-0240) and range in price from $2,575-$7,490 for basic packages. The company has been in business since 1978, has about 20 employees and has doubled its production in the past three years.

There is no typical customer and the wants and needs of each buyer definitely vary. Custom options like french doors, skylights and insulation are extra. For example, the insulation kit runs an additional $750-$1985.

Pacific Yurts, which sells about 200 yurts a year, provided all of the yurts for the Oregon Parks and Recreation Department. A number of parks installed plywood flooring while others have upgraded flooring as well as ramps that make yurts accessible to persons in wheelchairs. The park system has 50 campgrounds but yurts where installed only in parks that are open year-round.

The yurt program started in the parks a year ago and the response has been overwhelming. All yurts are booked during the sunny season, but there is light at the end of the tunnel -- more yurts are on the way. The OPRD recently announced that 50 more yurts will be added to 12 of its campgrounds, most of which are tucked along the coast.

According to the OPRD, the additional yurts were purchased through a state parks trust. The loan is for eight years, interest-free and will be repaid through campground fees. Yurts rent for $25 per night for five people with up to three additional people allowed at $5 each per night.

Each of the campground yurts contains a bunk bed (single up and double below), a futon couch which opens to sleep two people, table, heater, lamp, fire extinguisher, smoke detector, broom, dustpan and electrical outlet. Campers must bring bedding. A bar-b-que and picnic table are just outside the yurt.

Most of the campground yurts are grouped into yurt villages so that park managers can easier check and clean the units. The grouping also aided in conserving utilities and facilities.

And the response has been extraordinary. Popularity has boomed and the off-season occupancy is expected to skyrocket because of the comfort brought by insulation and waterproofing.

Previous columns:

• FHA LOAN DESIGNED FOR FIX-IT-UPPERS, 08-09-1996
• FOR 99% OF US DREAM HOMES ARE JUST THAT, 07-26-1996
• MORE HUD HELP FOR LOW INCOME BUYERS, 07-19-1996
• WHEN SHOULD YOU TAKE THAT CAPITAL GAINS EXCLUSION?, 07-12-1996
• DEVICE LETS A HOUSE SPEAK FOR ITSELF, 07-04-1996
• THE LAZY DAYS OF SUMMER REAL ESTATE, 06-28-1996
• THERE'S STILL TIME TO APPEAL YOUR PROPERTY TAXES, 06-21-1996
• ONE MAN'S SEARCH FOR VACATION PROPERTY, 06-14-1996