Park City & Deer Valley real estate can boast of having many fine golf communities completed or nearing completion.  These include Glenwild, Tuhaye, Promontory Ranch, Hideout Canyon, Victory Ranch and Red Ledges.  Promontory features two courses, an equestrian center, club houses and numerous kids programs.  Tuhaye has one course (plus another in the works), a ski boat on the Jordanelle Reservoir, many kids programs but is unique in that its membership includes the Talisker Club amenities at Deer Valley ski resort. Victory Ranch will have an exceptional course but what separates it from the other clubs is that it has private river frontage on the Upper Provo River and fantastic fly fishing,  Red Ledges will open its Jack Nicklaus designed course 4^th of July weekend and will have world class tennis facilities and other amenities. Glenwild’s crown jewel is its Fazio designed golf course. It is a golf country club type of community complete with workout room, restaurant and swimming pool. All of the above are gated communities.

                 I think Park Meadows Country Club, which often seems to fly under the radar screen, is worth considering when a family is deciding to purchase a primary residence or vacation home in a Park City and wants golf to be a part of their Park City lifestyle.  It is not a gated real estate community and does not have many of the built in programs and amenities associated with these other clubs. On the other hand it is located within the Park City town limits which means all of the activities and amenities in Park City are readily available to families that purchase a home in Park Meadows and join the Park Meadows Country Club.  Some of the amenities in Park City are the Racquet Club, the free bus system, the Skate Park and City Park.  The Park City restaurants, clubs, events and shopping match its real estate in being world class.

                Park Meadows Country Club, originally designed by Jack Nicklaus, was renovated last year by John Harbottle. Park Meadows has a swimming pool, restaurant and workout room. It is adjacent to the Park City Racquet Club and is part of the city-wide free Park City bus system, a real plus for getting kids to and from all that Park City, Utah has to offer.

                No one knows what Park City real estate areas will appreciate more rapidly as we climb out of this recession but if I had to put money on it I would bet homes, condominiums and lots inside of the Park City town limits to bounce back more rapidly just based on the principle of scarcity. 

                If you are considering the purchase a home or condominium in the Park City or Deer Valley area and want to live on or near a golf course don’t forget to take a peek at Park Meadows.

                For more info on Park City Real Estate contact a YouInParkCity.com Keller Williams Park City Real Estate specialist.

             Golf courses and spas are a major component of resort real estate in the Park City and Deer Valley area. Many of the real estate communities in The Canyons area of Park City have some reliance on golf in the area. A meeting will be held today to discuss why the proposed golf course adjacent to The Canyons Resort in Park City, Utah has not come to fruition.

            In the late 1990′s as part of The Canyons Resort specially planned area (SPA), a golf course was required as part of the plan. The plan required a course to be in place by 2002.

            The Spa allows for increased density at the base of The Canyons Resort and has many conditions which allow for the density increase such as a golf course (golf is often developed as “open space” in large development and SPA areas in and around Park City, Utah), roads, trails public right-of-ways, etc. Many of the problems with the proposed golf course and overall development of the base area at The Canyons Resort stem from the fact that there are over 25 different land owners involved dealing with complicated trades, leases and other transactions to get the original SPA approved.

            With the Talisker Corp. as the new owner of The Canyons Resort, it was widely anticipated that due to its golf background, the course would move forward quickly. This has yet to happen and the lawsuits surrounding the area can only make matters worse.

            Many of the real estate developments within and around The Canyons and Park City have made mention of the future course and no doubt many Buyers have made real estate purchases based on the proposed course.

            The proposed golf course at The Canyons could play an important role in making the resort and surrounding tourism driven developments more profitable year-round. Most of the newer real estate developments in The Canyons area (The Grand Summit, The Sundial Lodge, Escala, Vintage on the Strand, The Westgate, Dakota Mountain Lodge, Fairway Springs and more) have made some claim to proximity to and added benefit to owners and guests that the proposed golf course at The Canyons will bring.

            Unfortunately, golf courses are not cure-all prescriptions for real estate and tourism. Local private and semi-private Park City area golf courses are experiencing difficulties. These can be seen by the recent bankruptcy and subsequent emergence from bankruptcy at Promontory, as well as the exodus of over 100 members at the Jeremy Ranch golf club and heavily discounted memberships becoming available at Park Meadows Country Club.

            The completion of the proposed course at The Canyons Resort in Park City will be a welcome addition by area golfers and tourists alike, but how well the Park City area which boasts more than 14 golf courses (and at least 3 more on the way) within a 20 mile drive can absorb enough tee times to make them all work is yet to be seen. The effect on the real estate surrounding the Park City and Deer Valley area golf courses is a great discussion.

            For more information about golf related real estate opportunities in the Park City and Deer Valley areas, contact a YouInParkCity.com real estate agent.

                Several clients have asked me if the new St. Regis at Deer Crest will be open for the 2009/2010 Deer Valley® ski season in Park City. And after my tour yesterday of this amenity rich hotel I have to say I believe it will. Everywhere I looked I saw people working, over 400 of them in fact.  The 100% wool carpet is going in; kitchen equipment is being hooked up for the banquet kitchen as well as Chef Jean Georges new restaurant. The final touches are being added to features like the waterfall, and the fire garden (my name for it) next to the “ski beach” slope-side pool area. After watching the steady progress over the last couple of years all of the pieces seem to be coming together for the Park City and Deer Valley ski season opening. 

                Another question I can now answer is: what justifies the price? The condominium and residence units will be appointed at least as well as the other newer luxury homes and condominiums in the Canyons, Empire Pass, Old Town and Upper Deer Valley. I didn’t see a residence or condominium without a fantastic view; even those on the first level appear to be about forty feet above the Deer Hollow ski run and look up to other ski runs. But when one considers the Five Star Services and amazing common area which owners of the Residence and Condominium units will include the price seems in line. In my opinion this will be one of the finest real estate offerings in Park City or Deer Valley.

                Granted Park City Real Estate has experienced a down turn but I think scarcity will play a role in these condominiums and residences bucking the trend. If you want the level of service, the on hill location and the common area amenities that the St. Regis offers there are only 32 units still available, 8 residences and 24 condominiums. I can’t help but think there are 32 more families out there that will see the value in this exceptional project.

                For more information on the St. Regis and other Park City and Deer Valley real estate opportunities please contact us.

                Rob Harris – YouInParkCity.com

                In Park City and Deer Valley, Utah summer is here, well almost, and the lift assisted mountain biking and hiking program at Deer Valley Resort which opens June 19^th will be a great way to see the beautiful mountain views, the wildlife and the wildflowers all of our spring showers will bring.  You can see all of this without a lot of uphill hiking or riding.  For more information on the Deer Valley Resort lift assisted hiking and biking programs see the YouInParkCity.com news release.

                For the adventurous home buyer looking for that perfect Park City home or condo biking can also be a great way to see some of Park City and Deer Valley real estate and a few fantastic neighborhoods. With the lift assisted program you can easily visit Upper Deer Valley communities like Bald Eagle, Black Bear Lodge, the Chateaux at Silver Lake, Stein Erikson Lodge, Stag Lodge just to name a few.  Continuing down the mountain to Lower Deer Valley  it is an easy ride through some of Park City’s great communities like Solamere, the Lodges at Deer Valley, Silver Baron, Pinnacle, Fawngrove, Deer Lake Village, Black Diamond Lodge and many others.  If you have the energy, just continue downhill into Old Town where you can visit one of the fine restaurants for a light lunch for a well deserved beverage before continuing on to Prospector Square, Park Meadows or Thaynes Canyon.

                  Park City is, for many homebuyers, as much about lifestyle as it is about the home or condominium you purchase. Some of the communities are gated and if you want to get into tour individual homes or condominiums you will need a REALTOR®. So, if you want to take a ride and visit some great Park City homes we are offering our services (think of it as a summer ski tour).  Just contact us and let us know you want to do a Deer Valley or Park City home tour on bikes and we schedule some time with you.

            On June 2, 2009 KSL.com News reported that ‘short sales‘ are on the rise in Salt Lake City, UT. The report gives very few details and goes on to quote a few Realtors in Salt Lake City about the effects of short sales and whether or not they are good for a potential buyer. The overall report had very little information in terms of data, but it does note that 1 in 7 listings in Sandy, Utah (a suburb of Salt Lake City) is listed as a short sale.

            Information like this that goes out nationally (most of the news about Utah is delivered via Salt Lake City) gives people the idea that the news is applicable throughout the state including Park City and Deer Valley, Utah. Real estate is a very local commodity and it is impossible to make assumptions based on one neighborhood and imply that it is true across all neighborhoods. The number of short sales per active listing in the Park City area is less than one in 25. While there is a glut of homes on the market here in Park City, most homes are not a distressed sale.

            This is not to say that there are not any deals to be found in the Park City area. Many neighborhoods in the Park City real estate area are seeing prices of homes and condominiums fall by 20% off of their highs. There are also short sales in the Park City & Deer Valley real estate market, and they cover just about every price range including a short sale in the Colony at The Canyons Resort listed at $3.99M down to condominiums in the Kimball Junction area listed at $119K. Of the 50 or so short/distressed sale inventory in the Park City area, nine are listed at over $1M, and 20 are over $500K.

            Short sales are not the only way to purchase a property in Park City and Deer Valley at a bargain price, and the relatively few short sales in the area (1 in 25 versus 1 in 5 in Draper, UT) make them a longer and tougher process. Due to the fact that many owners in Park City have a lot of equity in their homes, the deal is often not a short sale, but just an owner taking a large loss.

            So when you are looking for a real estate deal in Park City, keep a focus on the end you are hoping for, whether it is a home to retire to, a weekend get-away, an investment or rental property. The deals are there, contact your YouInParkcity.com Keller Williams REALTOR® to find the one that is right for you.