Real Estate Report
Photography: Courtesy of Deer Crest
It’s hard to imagine that a few decades ago, the residents of Park City numbered only a few thousand, and buying a home in the area seemed like an expensive folly. Changing economic focus from mining to skiing, however, built up the reputation, desirability and list of amenities in this once-dying town. Now we’re considered a world-class visitor destination and community.
The latest burst of the real estate market bears the additional legacy of the 2002 Olympic Winter Games, adding to the luster of buying a home in Park City. In just over an 18-month period spanning 2004 and 2005, for example, realtor A. Flint Decker has represented buyers and sellers in
37 multiple-offer real estate deals. Before the 2002 Games, however, “multiple offers were seldom [seen] within the Park City market,” says Decker. “Since the Olympics, they have become commonplace.”
In addition, it’s more common for sellers to get their asking price—sometimes even more—than in previous years, says Nancy Erni, president
of the Park City Board of Realtors. “We’re on the map now, and the Olympics helped do that. The exposure was tremendous, and so was having a great snow year last winter,” adds Erni.
The Olympic afterglow is one of the many reasons credited with the continued boom in the local real estate market. 2004 saw more than $1.2
billion in sales, breaking the previous sales volume record by almost half a billion dollars. The first six months of 2005 alone could have stood as the second highest year, with a volume of close to $1 billion. The predicted sales volume by the time 2005 is over?
Between $1.7 and $2.2 billion.
Few community leaders draw a direct correlation between the 2002 Olympics and the current prosperity of the local real estate market, but there is little doubt that the Winter Games helped warm things up a little faster. Because of the Games, for example, infrastructure projects such as fiber optic Internet lines, road improvements and the Old Town Transit Center were completed in a shorter timeframe. Although quality of life issues still top the list of potential homebuyers’ desires, the exposure from the Olympics has more people reciting that list. It’s the real estate equivalent of snagging the eye-level shelf in the grocery store.
“Did the Olympics add luster to things we were already doing? Yes,” says Myles Rademan, public affairs and communications director for Park City Municipal Corporation. Did recent years of record-breaking skier days—the 2003/2004 and 2004/2005 winters—stem from hosting the Games? Probably not. After all, the winter directly following the Games only ranked fifth in all-time skier visits. “When it snows, we’re all geniuses,” laughs Rademan. He added, however, that the Games did enhance the area’s reputation. “The Olympics catapulted us into the first tier of resorts,” he says.
The boom of real estate across the country, coupled with favorable lending terms and the uncertainty of the commodities market, has naturally benefited Summit County’s market, but realtor Mike Sloan, statistician for the Park City Board of Realtors, has noticed impacts from the Olympics. Park City has achieved new heights in popularity, he says, and in a similar pattern as the Atlanta market after the 1996 Olympic Summer Games.
According to Sloan, statistics revealed in the Rocky Mountain Resort Alliance report ranked Park City number one in total unit sales for the first quarter of 2005 and number two in total volume sold for the same period. That’s the first time Park City has outranked communities such as Aspen, Whistler and Telluride. Sloan attributes that extra boost to the recognition brought on by the Games.
“We’re starting to get more clients from the Vail and Aspen areas because we’re still considered a good value,” comments Erni. The numbers support her statement; although Park City ranks number two for sales volume, it only ranked number seven in average sale price, lower than Vail, Aspen, Whistler, Telluride, Teton and Sun Valley.
Hosting the Games has been like a “giant Good Housekeeping seal of approval” for Park City’s economy in general, says Bill Malone, executive director for the Park City Chamber/ Bureau. Winter sports enthusiasts have taken notice, but interest in the area has extended beyond skiers and snowboarders. This summer, thousands of teenage and preteen girls visited the Utah Olympic Park for the opening ceremonies of the Triple Crown Girls Fastpitch World Series—now Park City’s biggest summer event. Female Olympic winter athletes met and talked with the softball girls, making another connection between 2002 and 2005, says Malone. Malone pointed out that groups such as Triple Crown would not come without other needs being met [accessibility, lodging and dining options, sport venues, etc.], but the Olympic legacy enhances their experiences. The general attitude is, “all the things that made the Olympics great make my experience great,” says Malone.
Decker has also noticed a new breed of client emerging since the Olympic-stimulated improvements: the virtual employee/business owner. “T1 lines, satellite-based Internet service and closeness to the airport put Park City on par with any other resort community,” says Decker. “It gives people even greater freedom to get back a quality of life. We’re not talking about getting hours back [by not commuting]; it’s about getting months and seasons back.”
Erni admits she is amused when asked why Park City is such a hot market right now. “Every day I’m blessed when I walk out my door. The question isn’t why would someone want to live here? It’s why wouldn’t you want
to live here?”
Monika Guendner is a Park City-based freelance writer who considers her “location, location, location” to be perfect, perfect, perfect.
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