They are both loved by the world and Coloradans in particular. In fact, last week I had lunch with a dear friend of the late John Denver. I was very interested to hear, among some of the stories, that there is a performing John Denver artist in every country around the world carrying on the John Denver songs for the fans. You have to agree that John’s folk song, “Rocky Mountain High” still gives you goose bumps each time you hear it.
As far as Aspen real estate, while Aspen has not been impervious to the downturn, they have had an impressive rebound. Consider the following facts:
1) At a time when development land is being picked up from banks for pennies on the dollar, Base Mountain Village a train wreck of a development, is now witnessing a bidding war. The unfinished 20 acre project is located at the bottom of Skico’s largest mountain, Snowmass Ski Area, just outside of Aspen. It ran into financial trouble in April 2009 when Related Cos. defaulted on a $520 million acquisition and construction loan from Hypo Real Estate Credit Corp. According to The Aspen Times, three other companies are also thought to have submitted bids: East West Partners of Vail, Real Capital Solutions of Louisville, Colorado, and Related Cos.
2) Home sales in the Aspen area are surging even though the housing market is in a slump nationwide. Real estate officials say annual sales from 2009 and 2010 will be easily topped this year. Real estate officials say total sales topped $1 billion in October, an increase of 19 percent over the same period last year. In September alone, 86 real estate transactions were valued at more than $137 million. Source: AP
3) Aspen Ski Company, aka SkiCo posted an increase in 1.7% over the previous year in number of skier visitors to Aspen. Most of the increase was from season pass holders vs. destination travelers. Colorado continues to gobble up the largest share of the skier and rider market. Its resorts log 20.4 percent of annual visits nationwide. California is next highest with 12.1 percent. Vermont’s share is 7.1 percent while New York is at 6.9 percent. Utah rounds out the top five states with 6.8 percent of the market.
All in all, the Aspen real estate market is proving to perform ahead of the competition. On the personal side, if you have never visited Aspen, I would highly recommend it. You may even spot a famous person in the lift line or perhaps a John Denver look alike!
Also, please join us for our bi-monthly education series called Life’s Financial Navigator at the Denver Athletic Club on November 16th with our guest speaker, Alison Dunnebecke, CPA, Tax Partner at Hein & Associates in Denver. Alison will be discussing year end tax planning and topics such as planning ideas for closely held businesses including a discussion of tax benefits relating to business assets, use of automobiles, retirement plans, other business deductions and available credits. Alison will cover the current rates in affect and when they are due to expire. She will also touch on “what’s new in Washington” and IRS exam activity, along with personal tax tips for individuals.
Resort Realty Capital is currently searching for value-add and opportunistic acquisitions in Aspen and 10 other Rocky Mountain markets through our broker partners. If you would like to learn more, please contact us.
Darren Nakos, CCIM
Resort Realty Capital
111 Main Street
Frisco, CO 80443-0630
(720)-663-1430
THIS IS NOT A SOLICITATION FOR INVESTMENT – THIS INQUIRY IS TO FIND OUT IF YOU ARE INTERESTED IN RECEIVING ADDITIONAL INFORMATION. NEITHER RESORT REALTY CAPITAL, LLC, IT’S AFFILIATES AND REPRESENTATIVES MAKE ANY REPRESENTATION REGARDING THE RISKS OF INVESTING IN COMMERCIAL REAL ESTATE. YOU SHOULD CONTACT YOUR OWN PROFESSIONALS TO MAKE THE DETERMINATION AND ASSESS THE RISK OF INVESTING. AS WITH ANY INVESTMENTS, THERE ARE INHERENT RISKS AND NO GUARANTIES OF RETURNS. PLEASE CONSULT WITH YOUR OWN PROFESSIONALS IN DETERMINING THE RISKS ASSOCIATED WITH INVESTING IN COMMERCIAL REAL ESTATE.