One bedroom properties in the Big Five at Copper Mountain increased in value approximately 15% when analyzing price per square foot sales price and 25% when analyzing average sales price from 2006 to 2007. Copper Mountain is one of Summit County's premier ski resorts. I lived at Copper Mountain for almost three years and found the skiing/riding to be the best in Summit County (in my opinion.) Copper Mountain is also a great place for kids to learn how to ski and ride. Summer is a great time to buy your Copper Mountain property.

Recently we posted a document entitled "What Can I Get For my Money?" in response to the question "How much does it cost to live in Summit County?". Here is the second half to this document, including the towns of Frisco, Keystone, and Silverthorne.

What can I get for my Money?

Frisco

Keystone

Silverthorne

Data obtained from http://www.summitmlxchange.com/

Listings may not be current and do not necessarily represent listings of Landmark Real Estate Group, LLC

I am often asked, "How is 'the market' doing!?" with the questioner wondering whether they should be ready for a barrage of complaints to stream out of my mouth. However, I always respond: "Great!" -- and I'm being honest. The media has represented, in very broad strokes, a nationwide real estate market crisis. Luckily, it has not applied to us.

How is it that Summit County and other ski resort real estate markets like Vail and Steamboat, have remained virtually immune from the real estate problems facing most of the rest of the country? I have a few theories:

First, almost 70% of home owners in Summit County are second homeowners. Second (or subsequent) homeowners' purchases of real estate are discretionary, which means that they normally have the financial resources to complete the sale. We have not seen the volume of sub-prime loans that other communities have experienced given the demographics of our buyers. Therefore, we have very few foreclosures compared to areas where sub-prime loans were more prevalent.

Second, land is at a minimum. In most ski resort communities, the terrain is heavily forested with steep mountain pitches. What is buildable is often already built out or owned by government agencies like the Forest Service. Further, mountain planning commissions are very careful as to what is allowed to be built. So, developers cannot come into mountain communities, buy up land, and build numerous huge condo developments, as happened in Florida, for example. During the housing boom, development units were purchased heavily by speculators who wanted to "flip" the units when the project was complete. After the real estate market slowed, there were not enough buyers to absorb the speculators' purchases. Consequently, developments have stopped and speculators purchased units for more money than they are worth today.

Finally, our inventory is low compared to the number of units available in Summit County. From a simple supply and demand approach, we have more than enough buyers who want a piece of paradise to consume the available properties for sale.

So, in closing, if you are thinking of buying a first or second home in Summit County, don't be afraid of "the market." But, also don't expect to get a bargain because of "the market."

Amy Nakos, JD, CLHMS

Summit County is a ski resort community that draws around 4 million visitors a year! Often we are asked "How much does it cost to buy a place here?". So, we created this document called "What can I Get for My Money". We thought you may find this interesting and perhaps useful.

What can I get for my Money?

Breckenridge

Copper Mountain

Dillon

Data obtained from Summit County MLS. Listings may not be current and do not necessarily represent listings of Landmark Real Estate Group.

Copper Mountain/Frisco, Amy Nakos

For February, I wanted to give the Summit County real estate community a summary of sales in both Frisco and Copper for the years 2006 and 2007.

Copper Mountain

In 2007, there were 115 properties sold in Copper Mountain with a total sales volume of $47,985,179. The average sale price was $417,262. The highest price sale was $1,800,000 and the lowest priced sale was $110,000.

In 2006, there were 158 properties sold in Copper Mountain with a total sales volume of $57,521,845 - almost $10 million more than in 2007! The average sales price per unit was $364,062 with a high sale of $2,159,000 and a low sale of $130,000.

Copper Mountain experienced a drop of sales by 17% from 2006 to 2007.

Frisco

In 2007 there were 220 properties sold in Frisco with a total sales volume of $122,826,035. The average sales price was $558,300. The highest price sale was $1,575,000 and the lowest priced sale was $160,000.

In 2006, there were 206 properties sold in Frisco with a total sales volume of $108,542,468. The average sales price was $526,905. The highest price sale was $2,400,000 and the lowest priced sale was $119,000.

Frisco experienced a gain in sales by about 12% from 2006 to 2007.

I hope everyone has taken some time to get out and enjoy the amazing snow we have had recently. See you in March!