Looking at lakefront porn

Oh, but it's fun to watch, and just pretend for a moment — it's you.

It's called:Real Estate Porn.

...Wednesday's invite-only Lake Tahoe Estates Tour sponsored by Chase International showcased 33 properties throughout the Basin ranging in price and stature from a $2.2- million Incline condo to a $19.5-million West Shore estate complete with guest house and private pier.

From lookey-loos to Basin Realtoratti to the serious investor, more than 250 turned out from the Basin, San Francisco, SoCal ...and even Budapest (more on that in a second), Chase officials said.

Chase reps acknowledged 33 high-end residences on the market is a record in the home tour's eight years — representing more than a half-decade of inventory in a price bracket that is usually considered to be above the fray of pesky Great Recessions.

While no Realtor is above spin control, Chase's Trinkie Watson, who represents owners in the sale of eight multi-million-dollar homes in Tahoe City and the West Shore (a grand total of $73 million of current listings), said investor interest in the ultra-homes "never really goes away."

"This (end) of the market doesn't fluctuate as much," Watson said Wednesday while standing in the grand foyer of 1970 West Lake Blvd. the 12k-square-foot, $19.5 million 'centerpiece' of the home tour. "...That said, nobody — no matter how much you have to spend — is going to turn down a bargain.

"And some of the current owners are willing to sit down and have serious ...negotiations."

Cryptic?! Perhaps. But talking to a few of the interested customers, and you see why slinging Real Estate Porn is tricky business.

It's all about ID'ing the buyer.

In a five-minute window, Wednesday afternoon, Watson greeted:

• 2 pairs of Realtor friends
• 2 homeowners of another estate on the tour — Bob Lindner Jr. and his brother Chris, owners of erstwhile crashpad to Harrah's performers, Bob's at the Beach, up from SLT to the West Shore "to look, in case we sell ours..."
• 3 spouses of local Realtors, including Homewood's Tracy Neher: "My husband told me there were a couple properties I just had to see on the tour — he was right."
• 1 neighbor "curious to see the home"
— and—
• 1 potential buyer, his wife and two daughters, who — while refusing to give his name because his "people might not look to kindly on reading that" — claimed he has homes in Budapest and Beverly Hills looking for "something for the weekends."

Hmmm...

Tricky business indeed.

Even if Watson does stand to earn a cool $8 million in commission if she can run the table shedding her properties this summer, it is a minefield of "no thanks" and "just looking" and "is there food here?! There was at the other house..." between anonymous big-baller buyers in tailored linen shirts.

"The (estate) home tour has brought in actual buyers," Watson said. "...And, we go into it knowing that some people simply want to see these homes they drive by. I think it's a good opportunity ... for everyone."

Who knows, Lady Luck just may smile on Watson this summer: Since January, seven lakefront estates have sold in the Basin — that would be more than all of 2008.

"And we're just getting into our busy season," Watson said. "There are buyers out there and deals to be had."