Park City Newsletter for May 2012

Real Estate Market Updates, Upcoming Events, Mortgage Market Report, Featured Top Pick and Best Buy.

You'll hear this phrase often; "We came for the winters, but stayed for the Summers!" That is true for just about every resident of Park City. Summer here is truly amazing. If you have not spent much time here in Summer yet, you have got to give it a try, especially if you live somewhere hot, this is a great escape from the heat.

We are so excited to be back into Summer. Most of the snow has melted away, aside from a few random patches still remaining. The mountains are getting very green, the trails are in great condition, and the temperature is in its ideal range of upper 60's and 70's. The above photo of our dog, Brinkley, was taken only a couple days ago. You can see how beautiful the mountains are looking.

If you are coming out to Park City soon, please give us a call, we'd love to meet up.

- Heather & Sean

REAL ESTATE MARKET UPDATE

Our real estate market is moving along well. Normally for this time of year we are quite slow. This year the Summer selling season seems to have started early, with May being an active month. We are still seeing many of the same trends that we experienced this last winter. The inventory has been declining, we still see numerous multiple offers, and the crazy, stand-out, too-go-too-be-true deals are becoming few and far between. Thats not to say you cannot get a great buy, as all of our market areas have come down in pricing dramatically from where we peaked in 2007. There is just less reason to seek out the short sales and bank owned homes because all of the market has bottomed out to a more level playing field. The best we can recommend is to focus on the area you like best, and buy a good location with a good floorplan because those two features never change.



As you can see in the above chart, December and January were a bit slow, but February and March really picked up for pending sales activity. In fact March of 2012 was the busiest we have had in years, and even slightly busier than March of 2007.



For foreclosures in Summit County, we are not quite done yet, but the amount has been decreasing. Notice of defaults has declined dramatically since its peak back in Q3 2009, and the Trustee's Deeds (foreclosures) have been declining as well. There is still some talk about the bank's "shadow inventory" but at the National Association of Realtors conference last week in Washington D.C., a few banks including Bank of America, Wells Fargo and JP Morgan reported there was no longer any shadow inventory, and that most of the distressed properties have already been "flushed through" over these last 5 years.

2012 1ST QUARTER STATISTICS

If you want the detailed numbers and statistics we have a great article on our Real Estate News Blog from the Park City Board of Realtors Statistics Committee which covers the 2012 1st Quarter Statistics. Its a great summary on the start of 2012. January was much slower than what was expected, but the latter half of the Winter season had picked up, and has continued through Spring. It will be interesting when we get the 2nd Quarter numbers, which will be at about mid July.

>>> Here is a link to the 2012 1st Quarter Statistics article on our Real Estate Blog:


What will you be saying ten years from now, looking back at today's real estate market?

"Could've! Would've! Should've!"

SUMMER ACTIVITIES AT THE RESORTS

Park City, Deer Valley and Canyons have been getting ready for the Summer season and each resort offers many great outdoor, fun activities for the entire family. Both Canyons and Park City Mountain Resort are scheduled to open today, Friday. Deer Valley will open on June 15, the Friday before Father's Day.

CANYONS RESORT
Canyons will open its resort village, which includes Canyon Mountain Sports rental shop and the 18-hole putting course, on Friday. It will then open the rest of its activities on June 14. Those attractions include disc golf, the Zip Tour, which will take guests from the Lookout Cabin area across the ravine to the Red Pine Lodge, and Canyons Mountain Bike Park that features four flow trails and trails for hiking. In addition, the annual Farmers' Market will be open every Wednesday, beginning June 6, in the cabriolet parking lot.
>>> Click here to visit the Canyons website

PARK CITY MOUNTAIN RESORT
Park City Mountain Resort opens on Friday, offering hiking, biking and zip lining. The Pay Day lift will be in operation and serving hiking and mountain biking opportunities as well as the Alpine Slide and the ZipRider. All of the base-area activities will be open, which is everything but the Town Lift, which will open June 8. Experience the Alpine Coaster, an 18-hole putt-putt course, the adventure zone and the Little Miners Park. They will also have the Legacy Launcher where people can strap themselves in a harness and do flips and jumps from a trampoline apparatus.
>>> Click here to visit the Park City Mountain Resort website

DEER VALLEY RESORT
When Deer Valley Resort opens on June 15, all the summer-only lifts will be running. This will be Deer Valley's 20th year of operating lifts for hiking, mountain biking and scenic rides. They will operate three lifts this summer - the Silver Lake Express that runs from the Snow Park area up and over to the Silver Lake mid-mountain area, the Sterling Express that runs from Silver Lake to the top of Bald Mountain and they're going to run the Ruby Express that starts at the Empire Lodge and ends at the top of Flagstaff. Deer Valley resort boasts a 60-mile network of single-track and hiking trails that interconnects all the mountains. Once a month they offer a complimentary historic guided hike that starts at the Silver Lake Village. It's a two-hour hike that goes to the different remnants of the silver mines. In addition, the resort, which is also a state-licensed childcare center, offers a summer adventure camp, with activities like art projects, hiking, swimming and other field trips for children up to 12 years old.
>>> Click here to visit the Deer Valley Resort website

FEATURED "TOP PICK" - 3117 Daybreaker in Jeremy Ranch

  

Highly Desired Back Nine Location- Incredible Views & Floorplan!

This incredible mountain contemporary home located in the highly desired Back Nine subdivision offers an exceptional flowing open floor plan, tons of natural light, vaulted ceilings & stunning ski area, mountain and golf course views---this home is sure NOT to disappoint. Perfect for the family that wants to entertain. Very well maintained with nice finishes throughout. Additional features include: Flat driveway, main floor master suite, main floor office, oversized 3-car garage, tons of storage, 2 fireplaces, lower level family room, walk out lower level, and the list goes on. Offered at $949,000

>>> View All homes for sale in Jeremy Ranch

MORTGAGE MARKET UPDATE

Historic Lows for Fixed Mortgage Rates!

30-year fixed-rate mortgage (FRM) rates averaged 3.78 percent for the week ending May 24, 2012, down from last week when it averaged 3.79 percent. Last year at this time, the 30-year FRM averaged 4.60 percent. For those interested in making a home purchase, home affordability is at a record high placing the purchase of your dream home within reach.

Need Financing? Have questions about mortgages?
Contact Lisa Lundquist, and be sure to let them know we recommended them!

Lisa Lundquist
435-659-1390

FEATURED "BEST BUY" - 905 Woodside in Old Town

Charming Old Town Cottage in Highly Desired Location!

This Charming Old Town cottage has been recently updated and is only steps from Historic Main Street and the ski slopes of Park City Mountain Resort. This is one of the closest homes to both skiing and main street that is currently listed. The home offers hardwood flooring, solid surface countertops, updated appliances, vaulted ceiling areas, and among many other features, a wood burning stove with floor to ceiling rock backing. The floor plan is open and bright and offers comfortable spaces, including an easily accessible sleeping loft for the occasional guest. The property offers great outdoor areas with a covered front porch, a nice rear patio for the BBQ, and a large back yard with hot tub and gardens. There is an approved set of plans to add a garage and additional living space. The addition will expand the home to approximately 1800 square feet, including the garage, and a total of approximately 1500 square feet of livable space. Offered at $550,000

>>> View all homes for sale in Old Town:

RECENT CLIENT TESTIMONIAL

"Heather Peterson has been a great agent to work with. During the search process, she gave us thoughtful advice on the different areas and developments in and around Park City and provided us with very detailed information on available properties. She also worked around our schedule to show us all the properties we wanted to visit personally. When the time came to put an offer and negotiate with the seller, Heather's advice was key to understand the value of the property and the leverage points we had. Finally, Heather supported us tremendously well during the closing phase. She protected our interests and shielded us when faced with unexpected demands from the seller, and was great at following up on all items through closing. Above all, Heather is a very smart, conscientious, and caring agent. My wife and I loved working with her, and will certainly do so again if the opportunity arises."

- Miguel and Mong Penella

Watch for our next Newsletter coming in late June!

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Please have a look around and contact us with any questions you might have about the Park City real estate market or our services. As LOCAL Park City Realtors, we are highly experienced in this ski town market, and are always available to assist you in any way, just give us a call at 435.640.2573