For the first time in my 25 years here in Park City it snowed in August. Last Saturday August 15th an unusually strong cold front brought the snow level down to mid mountain or about 8000 feet. While here in town at 7000 feet it was just a cold rain up at 10,000 feet an inch of snow accumulated. THIS IS WAY TO EARLY, particularly after a cold and rainy June. Six weeks of summer just is not enough. This was the second strong cold front to come through northern Utah in August with another forecast of cold weather to arrive this weekend. Hopefully this is a sign of a cold and snowy winter.
Ski resort towns are a different animal in that we actually look forward to snow storms during the winter months and the larger the storm the better. As Park City receives over 300 inches of snow per year we are very equip to handle snow and it generally takes a storm of upwards of 2 feet overnight to close schools or snarl traffic. It is not uncommon for storms to last a week or more.
But on to cheerier subjects….Real Estate. Comparing July 2009 vs. July 2008, this year 53 homes sold compared to 50 homes in 2008. Condominium sales saw an even larger change with 43 sales in 2009 compared to 33 in 2008. In addition, the average sales price rose from $645,000 in 2008 to nearly $738,000 in 2009. Interestingly, vacant land sales which have been on a decline for the last several years saw an increase from 18 sales in 2008 to 19 sales in 2009. See the graph posted above for sales trends for the last 14 months courtesy of the Park City Board of Realtors.
As fall approaches and buyers start looking for their ski property for this winter the upward trend that we have seen since late winter is very encouraging. I am hearing from many buyers that they feel now is the opportunity to pick up ski property while there are still bargains to be had. While the U.S. economy is certainly not out of the woods yet, it does appear that we are on a road to recovery. If the upward trend that we are seeing continues through the fall we may, by mid winter, be looking back to this time as the end of the bargains.
While it is certainly too early for autumn colors already, with the unusually cold weather I am expecting an early fall. September is one of the most beautiful months in Park City and if the leafs do start to change next month it will be a time not to miss.
