Park City, Utah has seen its share of distressed real estate sales in the past 2 years.

A look at the sales statistics from the Park City area MLS reveals that distressed sales have made up 25% of the total sales of homes, condominiums and land in the Greater Park City area in 2010 and 2011.

The sales of bank owned properties have far outpaced the short sales (more than 2 to 1) and 2011 saw a smaller percentage of distressed sales than 2010.

The number of distressed for sale real estate listings in Park City has been steadily decreasing. People looking to buy bank owned properties in the Park City area are increasingly encountering multiple offer situations and sales prices are often higher than the listing price for bank owned Park City properties.

The sales of bank owned in relation to the number available is an indicator of how quickly they move. The number of short sales completed is an indication of how hard they can be to complete. Also of note is that half of the current short sale supply has offers awaiting bank approval. Buying distressed real estate in Park City is possible, but there can be many pitfalls and the competition can be fierce.

For more information about real estate sales in Park City, Utah contact a Park City realty professional with YouInParkCity.com at (888)968-4672.

Data and sales information from the Park City MLS deemed reliable but not guaranteed.

The Hyatt Escala Lodge

About a month ago we toured the changes at The Hyatt Escala Lodge at Canyons Resort and had a fantastic dinner in one of their mountain view 3 bedroom luxury condos. The Lodge, which was rated as one of the top 12 “Hot Hotels” in North America, continues to step it up and is delivering on the news that they announced months ago, the opening of The Escala Provisions Company, “The Restaurant” and bar. Other additions include 5,000 sq. ft. of meeting space, a staffed children’s center and 7,000 sq. ft of “flexible indoor /outdoor space”.

This gives Park City Real Estate another amenity rich, high end luxury condo option for clients who are considering a ski in/ski out Park City home. There are currently 21 Hyatt Escala Lodge Condos on the market ranging in price from $365,000 for a 1 bedroom, 1 bath condo to $2,000,000 for a 4 bedroom, 5 bath residence. In the past 12 months there have been 5 sales at the Hyatt Escala Lodge. The sold prices ranged from $299,000 for a 1 bedroom to $1,916,000 for a penthouse 3 bedroom 5 bath.

Another factor to take into account when considering purchasing Canyons Resort real estate in general are the many changes that have taken place in the last year or are on the books. The Winter Zip Line tour is in and is something I have to try. The tour is comprised of two zip lines; one is 800 feet long has an 8% grade the other is 2100 feet with a 10% grade. Just thinking about this makes me grin. Additional snowmaking, new lifts, a remake of the resort center area and the beginning of construction on the new golf course are just a few things that have happened recently. For skiers and boarders (and owners of any Park City real estate) the proposed “Skilink” which will connect Canyons Resort in Park City to Solitude Ski Resort in Little Cottonwood Canyon will have positive impacts too many to list. If and when the Ski Link goes through final approval and is built skiers and riders will be able to access Solitude from Canyons ski resort and avoid the 45 minute drive.

If you have questions about The Hyatt Escala Park City, Canyon Resort Real Estate or Park City Real Estate in general please contact the YouInParkCity.com Group Real Estate Professionals at 888-968-4672

Click for more information including all for sale listings at the Hyatt Escala Park City or contact the YouinParkCity.com group.

Click here to learn more about SkiLink.

Park City Mountain Resort to Improve Base Area

Resort Officials of Park City Mountain Resort announced to the Park City Council and Planning Committee that they are beginning to explore new development around the resort base area.

In recent years the resort has positioned itself as a ski resort operator and not a developer. They now point to new base area development as a way to ensure that they are adequately taking care of their customers as well as increasing capacity for new resort guests.

There have been many rumors in the past about possible resort hotels going in at the base of the resort where the parking lots are currently located. The recent additions of the Hyatt Escala and Waldorf Astoria at Canyons Resort as well as the St Regis and Montage Hotels at Deer Valley leave Park City Mountain Resort without a luxury offering to compete with Deer Valley and Canyons. The lower lots near the base of the First Time Lift and Super-pipe would appear to be the most logical place for a new resort hotel and base area expansion. A Four Seasons Resort Hotel was once rumored for this location; maybe it is a step closer to reality (?).

The plans are still conceptual at this point, but as the supply of new luxury condominiums in Park City dwindles another resort property will make sense. The addition would be great for the Town of Park City as well as the Park City Mountain Resort.

We are close to having one year of sales data for the Montage at Deer Valley and the sales data shows surprising strength given the overall market and world economy. Thirteen sales have been completed for Montage Deer Valley Residences. The sales represent just over 15% of the available units but were nearly 50% of all sales in Park City’s luxury real estate enclave of Empire Pass. Sales prices have ranged from $1.6M to $8M.

The latest release of residence models at Montage Deer Valley will feature a showcase residence that is a collaboration between interior designer Philip Gorrivan and One Kings Lane (a leading online site for designer décor, furnishings and accessories). The 3471 square foot home is a two story three bedroom, three bath model featuring a large great room, dining room, gourmet kitchen, and den. Three private balconies offer incomparable ski resort and valley views. The designer elements in the home have created a mountain modern feel in which each room has its own unique sense and appeal to the luxury Park City lifestyle. Our recent tour through this home was impressive.

The home will enjoy access to all of the Montage Deer Valley spa and resort services and amenities; not the least of which is its slope-side Deer Valley location.

For more information about this special Montage Deer Valley home or a private tour focused on luxury Park City and Deer Valley real estate contact YouInParkCity.com at (888)968-4672.

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How Low Can My Offer Be on an REO Property?

Bank owned real estate in Park City, UT is a very small portion of our inventory. In fact, of the 1048 homes and condominiums listed across the Park City Multiple Listing Service in the greater Park City area, only 16 are currently listed as being bank owned. There are 46 homes and condominiums listed as Short Sales, but those are different from bank REO properties.

To date this year 137 sales of bank owned condominiums and single family homes are shown across the Park City MLS. This number makes up over 15% of Park City sales (yet active bank REO listings make up less than 2%). As you look at the number of sales and active listings, it is easy to see that the turn-over of bank REO property in Park City is very fast.

The fast sale of bank owned real estate is by design. Property on a bank’s asset sheet is not a good thing and thus the banks price property to move quickly. That is not to say that they will give property away. Remember that banks are publicly held and at the end of the day banks are accountable to their shareholders; giving away assets is not viewed positively by the owners. As a rule of thumb, the bank REO properties are offered at a price considered to be 20-30% below market value. Due to this pricing strategy it is not uncommon to see multiple offers bid the price up above the asking price.

A recent article in HousingWire.com shows that Freddie Mae sold over 80,000 properties in the first 3 quarters of 2011 and that the sales prices averaged 94% of the asking price.

So when it comes time to make an offer on a bank owned property in Park City, UT, keep these things in mind and also keep in mind that the strength of your offer is measured by the speed at which you can close the transaction (think no contingencies) as well as the offer price. There are many players in the REO market searching for a deal in Park City; the relatively low number of REO offerings makes this market very competitive.

If you would like a list of current distressed properties in the Park City, UT area contact the YouInParkCity.com Group of real estate professionals at (888)968-4672.

With 45 days left before the end of the year, we probably won’t see significant changes in Park City real estate sales totals.

Current for sale inventory in Park City’s Lower Deer Valley area includes 28 single family homes and 54 condominiums. This number will likely rise slightly as we move closer to the ski season.

To date there have been 7 single family home sales this year and 2 other homes have accepted sales contracts. So the inventory levels indicate a 3-4 year supply of single family homes in the Lower Deer Valley area. The inventory varies greatly with offerings ranging from $775k to just over $3M. Lower Deer Valley has some homes that are beginning to show their age; this fact can be seen in the variations of asking price with the least expensive homes in the low $200’s/square foot and the highest end well into the mid $500’s/sq.ft. Single Family homes sales for Lower Deer Valley are likely to lag 2010 numbers by nearly 30%.

Condominium sales in the Lower Deer Valley area of Park City show a strong increase versus 2010, but there are factors that have skewed this number dramatically. To date 49 condominiums have sold in Lower Deer Valley and another 6 have pending sales contracts. With 53 active for sale condominium listings, the current inventory represents just over a one-year supply. Lower Deer Valley condominium sales totaled 32 for 2010, so this year’s numbers at first blush are very strong. The twist is that 22 of the sales were bank (or corporate) REO properties. The sales of the bank owned condominiums had an average sales price in the low $300’s per square foot. By contrast, the average sales price for non-bank owned properties was over $375 per square foot.

Many of the homes and condominiums in the Lower Deer Valley area were built from the early 1980’s through the mid 1990’s and many of the properties are “showing their age”. The new construction in the past few years in the Empire Canyon area of Deer Valley has impacted sales greatly as buyers tend toward more “turnkey” products. The Lower Deer Valley area offers great access to all Park City has to offer and there are definitely gems to be found in the for sale listings. For information regarding specific realty listings in Lower Deer Valley, contact YouInParkCity.com at (888)968-4672.

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The Western Mountain Resort Alliance is composed of 13 destination ski resort area Boards of REALTORS®. The alliance was founded on the idea that while the resorts vary geographically, they share many of the same real estate and development issues due to their vacation resort status. The alliance publishes quarterly sales statistics for the various destination ski areas.

While we here in Park City, UT believe that our resort community offers some of the best recreational opportunities and easiest access of any Western North American Ski Resort, a look at what can be purchased in other resort towns can be very informative.

VS.

Having spent 10 years in Vail, CO, I am jaded to believe that it is the resort with most in common to Park City. In terms of total available inventory if we exclude vacant land, the two areas are almost identical although the single family homes versus condominiums is reversed with Park City having nearly double the number of single family homes on the market as Vail. The number of units sold in the two towns shows Park City’s sales being up 18% in unit volume for the first three quarters of 2011 while Vail’s sales were relatively flat. Available inventory is down in both Park City and Vail versus 2010. The average sales price in Park City saw a 10% decline while Vail registered a 25% decline versus the same period last year.

Another interesting comparison stat between Park City and Vail is the median sales prices. Park City area single family home sales saw a median price (half above and half below) of nearly $550K while Vail shows $400K. Conversely, condominium sales median pricing shows Vail at $480K and Park City at $325. Average sales prices for both single family homes and condominiums are considerably higher in Vail than in Park City.

Maybe Park City and Vail don’t have as much in common as I thought in terms of real estate and the associated values. This likely has a lot to do with the differences in terms of Park City having been an old mining town that developed ski resorts versus Vail having been a ski resort that developed into a town.

For in-depth neighborhood by neighborhood real estate information about Park City, UT, contact a realty professional with the YouInParkCity.com Group at (888)968-4672.

Here is a new program designed to insure the value of the home you are buying. Equity Lock Solutions is offering a product called Home Price Protection.

Generally the plan works like this: The buyer or seller of a home or condominium in Park City can purchase a plan of up to $2 million for a one time fee of 1.8-3.0% of the plan amount (costs vary slightly but Keller Williams agents have access to the lowest rates). The plan is tied to a local House Price Index published by the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA). The index for the Park City area is tied to the Salt Lake City metropolitan statistical area. If the index drops from the time of purchase to the time of sale, the plan pays the percentage difference in the fall to the owner at the time of the sale.

If you as a buyer purchased this price protection and bought a $1 million Park City home and five years from now when you go to sell the home the House Price Index has gone down 10%, the Home Price Protection Plan will pay you $100,000 when you sell the house. The plan is a hedge against the housing market going down, not the individual home, so choosing the correct home is still important.

For more in-depth information about this program as well as the current HPI for your area, go to: http://equityocksolutions.com/faq/ .

The NAR (National Association of Realtors) has picked Home Price Protection as their product of the year.

This may give a buyer the peace of mind they are searching for as they wonder if they are truly buying at the bottom of the market.

For more information about Home Price Protection or any Park City or Deer Valley, UT real estate questions contact a realty professional with the YouInParkCity.com Group of Keller Williams Park City Real Estate at (888)968-4672 or email us at info@YouInParkCity.com.

For the fifth year in a row the readers of SKI Magazine have named Deer Valley as the number one resort in North America. This is the 6th time in the last 7 years that Deer Valley has been named number one overall. The resort has not been lower than 3rd in the last 11 years.

The rankings take in many different aspects of the resort and while Deer Valley may not be the toughest or largest resort, or get the best snow, its ranking as best overall is impressive. Deer Valley Resort always gets accolades for its grooming, food, andguest services. The editor of SKI Magazine notes that the size of the resort and the fact that snowboarding is not allowed helps Deer Valley to edge its large competitors Vail and Whistler for the number one spot.

The other Park City area resorts alos fared well with Park City Mountain Resort coming in at number 6 and Canyons Resort in the number 16 slot.

A new lifestyle category named Park City Mountain Resort as the best place in North America to ski with kids.

The consistent rankings from the readers of SKI Magazine have a great impact on tourism in Park City as well as housing values. A town with the best overall ski resort ranking which shares a ropeline with the resort ranked as the best place to ski with a family makes for quite a place to live or own a vacation home.

Park City Real Estate Market Turning Upward

The bottom of a market be it stock prices, commodities or real estate in Park City, Utah can really only be seen in hindsight. We can never be sure of the bottom until we look at it in retrospect and study the sales data. While we cannot yet call the bottom of Park City real estate prices, we can see definitive signs of the bottom.

Real estate sales in the second quarter of 2011 show a strong increase in the number of transactions. The 451 closed real estate sales in Park City for the second represent a 20% increase from the first quarter of 2011 and the best quarter since the fourth quarter of 2007.

The recent increase in sales in the area has been accompanied by a decrease in the number of newly listed properties in the Park City real estate market. So while demand is increasing, the supply is falling which should in time lead to an increase in pricing.

While it may be too early to call the bottom of the market in terms of pricing, we may be seeing signs that some of the best deals are gone. It is kind of like that big sale at the store and we are in its last days. There are still good values to be found in the Park City real estate market, but there is far less to choose from. A good example of this may be the Promontory area of Park City: so far this year there have been 15 homes sold for under $1.5M that were not part of the “cabin” communities and only 10 remain in this price range. It doesn’t mean that there are no more deals to be had in the area, only that the remaining opportunities have been picked over.

There are other areas within Park City that show real estate values possibly finding their bottom as well as localized areas which have indicators pointing toward further price reductions. For information on specific buying and selling opportunities in Park City real estate contact a realty professional with YouInParkCity.com.