Real Estate Activity Accelerates in the Vail Valley

Real estate activity accelerates in Vail Valley Vail Valley locals, first-time owners buying; coming ski season also drives activity by Sarah Mausolf VAIL VALLEY, Colorado— Steve Pywell took a big step toward selling his Cordillera home on Saturday, a year after he put it on the Vail Valley real estate market. Like many people selling their homes during the recession, the Houston, Texas, resident had to slash the price before attracting a buyer. He said he cut $700,000 from the price of the home, which was listed at $3 million. “I would say finding buyers today is not easy,” Pywell said. “I think there's certainly signs in the last couple of months that people are looking again. I think you've got to be prepared to discount the pricing somewhat to get people motivated to buy.” Apparently, more people are motivated lately. Real estate spiked within the past 30 days in the Vail Valley, with a slew of residential properties going under contract, the Vail Board of Realtors said. Seventy-seven residential properties went under contract between Aug. 10 and Sept. 10. That compares with 22 contracts between Jan. 1 and July 10, statistics released by the Board of Realtors show. What caused the jump? “Consumer confidence is up because our economy is not getting worse,” said Scott Bandoni, a real estate broker with Prudential Colorado Properties in Beaver Creek. Although Vail Valley real estate hit a slump in October 2008, things could be looking up, some say. “I think people are recognizing that we already hit the bottom back in June or late May,” said Chad Brasington, chairman of the Vail Board of Realtors. With slow sales have come low home prices, and they're attractive to buyers. “There are some great deals out there,” said Amy Dorsey, branch broker of the Park Hyatt Slifer Smith and Frampton office in Beaver Creek and president of the Colorado Association of Realtors. For sellers, the downside is their homes are losing value, Bandoni said. “What you paid for a property in early 2008 is going to be sold for less in middle of 2009, so it's not all roses,” he said. Who's buying? Two very different types of buyers are snapping up real estate, Bandoni said. First-time home buyers and locals have been buying homes under $500,000, he said. In fact, homes under half a million dollars account for 39 percent of home sales so far this year, up from 30 percent last year, said Larry Agneberg, a broker with Prudential Colorado Properties in Lionshead. This year, 119 of the 304 homes that sold as of the end of July fell in that price range, he said. In 2008, 422 of 1,292 homes sold for under half a million, he said. On the other side of the spectrum, the upcoming ski season has been driving second home-owners to buy luxury homes, Ban-