✌Move aside, golf. Pickleball is Real Estate's Hottest Amenity

Launch Letter is a weekly newsletter that breaks down real estate trends and stories. Subscribers include brokers, developers, industry executives, and investors. If you are not already a subscriber, sign up and join the others who receive it directly in their inbox each week — it’s free.

Here’s what you will find in today’s email:

• Trend: A look at the fastest growing sport in America

• Quote : Architectural Digest’s must-have amenity

• Chart: A look at the top activities in America

• Start-ups: 2 new companies are leading the way for pickleball

• Developments: Move aside, golf. There’s a new luxury amenity.

⚡ Trend

The pickleball craze has been sweeping the country.

A cross between ping pong, tennis, and badminton, pickleball is now the fastest growing sport in America.

Here’s why:

• Anyone can play.

• You don’t have to be particularly athletic.

• It’s easy to learn.

• It can be a great workout.

• Can be played on nearly any small hard surface.

Even though you could play this game with your grandma, the game does still require skill to and there is a professional league that is growing by leaps and bounds.

Celebrities like Kevin Durant, Heidi Klum, and Michael Phelps are even buying professional teams.

More than 4.8 million people in the U.S. played pickleball in 2021, a 39% increase from 2019.

The Takeaway: 

This game is on a meteoric rise that isn’t slowing.

Numbers are only trending up. There is a lot of money being invested into the sport and into communities to keep up with the demand.

🎤 Quote

"A decade ago, golf was a key amenity driving residential sales, especially when it came to vacation homes, but, recently, buyers are more attracted to pickleball"

- Architectural Digest

📊 Chart

The Takeaway: 

While the participation numbers for 2021 came in at 4.8M players, a new 2023 APP Pickleball Participation Report has stated that 14% of Americans over 18 played pickleball from August 2021 - August 2022. That’s roughly 36.5M people!

These numbers beat out all other major sports and put it just behind biking and running.

Even though grandma can play, the sport is popular with people of all ages. Half of all pickleball players are under age 35. The popularity and accessibility for people of all ages means this trend could be around for a while.

💼 Start-ups

Capitalizing on the hot trend, there are a couple emerging brands in the pickleball space.

1. Chicken N Pickle is an “eatertainment” concept, combining drinks and dining with pickleball and other activities, like cornhole and ping pong.

The brand currently has 7 locations and 3 in the pipeline. Each location is currently seeing 700,000 annual visitors. Imagine each customer paying $12.99 for a pulled pork sandwich and booking a court for $20 - this company is likely putting up some attractive 8-digit numbers!

1. Ace Pickleball Club is a new franchise concept to be launched this March. 

The concept was created by veterans from franchises like Sky Zone, the indoor trampoline franchise, and Mathnasium Education Centers.

Ace Pickleball Club is opening its first venue, a 36k SF space with 14 courts. The courts will have technology for live streaming and replays.

Their model is similar to that of a gym, with monthly memberships, as opposed to the casual dining and pickleball concepts that currently exist.

The Takeaway: 

A key element of pickleball is its versatility. It could be set up as a bar game, like at Chicken N Pickles. It can operate as a standalone sports venue, like Ace Pickleball Club. It can also serve as a great amenity for a club or community, like tennis or basketball courts.

In the eatertainment space, we’re already seeing other players, like Camp Pickle and Smash Park. It remains to be seen how many of these concepts will survive long term. Right now, with high demand for pickleball, we should see more roll-outs across the country.

For Ace Pickleball Club, they’ll need to offer a true value-add product to attract monthly playing members. By utilizing technology, and creating competitive leagues and tournaments, they may be able to fill a void in the market.

🔨 Developments

We are starting to see pickleball developments in luxury condos like Cirpriani Residences and large scale residential club developments like Discovery Land Co.

Brokers are also getting in on the trend.

Pickleball Realty Network is a facebook networking group for finding pickleball communities and homes to buy, rent, or invest.

When choosing a new home or vacation destination, many are looking to find pickleball courts as an amenity.

What’s the ROI on pickleball?

The National Multifamily Housing Council’s 2022 Renter Preferences survey showed that 22% of respondents would like to see a pickleball court at their apartment facility and would pay $37.38 more per month if their rental property had access to one.

The Takeaway: 

Pickleball courts are popping up all over the country. We are seeing them in senior living, condos, single family, short term rentals, etc. If you build or invest in homes and communities with amenities, pickleball should be on your list.

USA pickleball gives further guidance on building courts here.

For business networking, pickleball may become the new golf. Instead of spending 5 hours on the golf course, pickleball could become the new networking activity of choice.

Do yourself a favor, get in on the action, grab a paddle, and go find a game.

Launch Letter is a weekly newsletter that breaks down real estate trends and stories. Subscribers include brokers, developers, industry executives, and investors. If you are not already a subscriber, sign up and join the others who receive it directly in their inbox each week — it’s free.