HOW'S THE MARKET?
The Yampa Valley was blessed with a wet spring and summer, which has resulted in a brilliant palate of golds, oranges, and reds in our hills. With recent dry weather, it’s the perfect time to get out on those trails and appreciate Mother Nature’s autumn bounty.
Routt County currently has 155 active residential listings; that’s down from this time last month (185) and down from this time last year (184). The number of current pending listings (52) is also down from this time last month (77) and also down from this time last year (102). Closed listings county-wide have also diminished with 75 last month compared to 120 in September 2021. The median sale price has also fallen from a high of nearly $1.6M in May 2020 to about $1.2M last month.
At the same time, the median days before going under contract has gone up, from a low of five days in June 2022 to 19 days last month (median days in the MLS in September 2021 was seven). Over the past year, the ratio of asking price to closed price was 100.2% (meaning that homes sold, on average, slightly above asking price). Last month, the ratio was 97.4%, meaning that homes sold, on average, slightly below asking price.
Indeed, if you’ve been watching the news, you might think that the sky is falling (from a real estate perspective). On the contrary, things are just leveling out. This is the important distinction: home appreciation is decelerating but home values continue to appreciate. As indicated above, the median home sale price was about $1.2M; in September 2019, it was about $660K, a near doubling of appreciation in three years.
So, no, the sky is not falling. The market is returning to a more balanced state. However, we are not quite there yet (six months’ supply is a balanced market; we’re sitting at three months’ supply). Whether you’re considering buying or selling, one of our experienced agents is here to help you with any and all of your questions. Give us a call to find out how.
Ultimately, whether you’re considering buying or selling, our agents are expertly trained in helping you zero in on what makes the most sense for you and your family. We’re here to help you with any and all of your questions. Give us a call to find out how.
REMAINING HOMESITES AT ALPINE MOUNTAIN RANCH AND CLUB ARE RELEASED
It’s late afternoon on a fall day in Steamboat Springs and several of us from The Group are driving through Alpine Mountain Ranch and Club to view the last remaining homesites in the luxury community, which is located between town and the base of Rabbit Ears Pass. We are on Panorama Drive when we slow to a complete halt. Our traffic stop is a thrilling one, not only for the spectacular view, but the pedestrians in our path are a sight to behold. Momma moose and her two calves, trot on by, unfazed by other road users.
This is the first of two stops we need to make, both times for deer. Our journey through the 1,216-acre ranch is a taste of what residents experience on a daily basis. Of the 63, five-acre homesites, only 23 remain for sale and 13 of them just hit the market. Each site is part of Upland Preserve, located at the highest point of the development. The wooded area borders national forest and is accessed through a private entry.
Each home will be 5,500SF or larger and will benefit from a range of incredible views including the South Valley, the Flat Tops Wilderness Area, and Steamboat Ski Resort. Owners within the ranch have use of an Owners’ Lodge, Guest Cabin, concierge services, fishing lake, equestrian facilities, Nordic skiing, snowshoeing, a private backcountry cabin, 10+ miles of private trails, private fishing on a 1.5-mile section of the Yampa River, and membership opportunities at the five-star, slopeside Alpine Mountain Summit Club, located at One Steamboat Place.
Aside from the amenities and splendor, something glorious stood out to us all: the constant connection with nature. It is clearly an inherent part of life at Alpine Mountain, guaranteed by the 900 acres they dedicated to open space and a wildlife preserve.
Very few places remain in ski towns across Colorado where you can savor such personal space, while enjoying immediate access to the benefits of town. A homesite in Upland Preserve starts at $3.35M, and we all agreed its worth every penny.
THE ROLAND REED GALLERY OPENS IN STEAMBOAT SPRINGS
This summer, a remarkable American photographer finally received recognition for his contribution to our Nation’s history. The largest collection of Indigenous American photography, by turn-of-the twentieth century pictorialist Royal W. (Roland) Reed JR. (1864–1934), was unveiled in a permanent location at The Jace Romick Gallery, 837 Lincoln Avenue, Steamboat Springs.
The Roland Reed Gallery has been a long time coming, to honor a historian whose untimely death in 1934 left him near penniless and in an unmarked grave in Colorado. All images, printed directly from his original glass plates, are showcased alongside a replica apple-box sized camera, an original watercolor sketch, handwritten notes, and excerpts from his journals.
Reed, an unsung contemporary of Edward S. Curtis, was a self-funded and self-directed photographer, who made it his life’s work to document the traditions and customs of Indigenous Americans. Unlike Curtis, who produced around 40K images, Reed’s collection was limited to several hundred glass plates for two main reasons: cost and time spent gaining his subject’s trust.
Reed chose to immerse himself in no more than 12 tribes, taking weeks and sometimes months to document an accurate representation of the subject's historic way of life. Reed shunned commercial gain from his work, turning down large dollar amounts for his photographs to appear on postcards and tourism goods for fear of losing authenticity.
Some of the images were printed and sold by the Kramer Gallery in Minneapolis, who bought the collection from Reed’s family, after it spent decades in storage. Upon the Kramer’s retirement in 2010 it went back into storage.
Jace Romick, a local photographer and gallery owner in Steamboat, was well acquainted with Reed’s work and sought to purchase the entire collection of 120 glass plates and personal artifacts in spring 2021.
“I feel an eerie sense of responsibility that in 200 years someone might be looking at an image I’ve printed directly from the plates, of a photographer I revere,” he says. “I am compelled to do it right and represent Roland Reed with complete integrity. I want to give this incredibly talented artist and historian a platform to showcase a way of life that has been forever altered.”
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YAMPA VALLEY HOUSING AUTHORITY PRESENTS INITIAL VISION FOR BROWN RANCH
On October 6, the Yampa Valley Housing Authority stood before a large local audience to present the preliminary vision for the future of their 536-acre site west of town, known as Brown Ranch. The land, which has been the subject of turmoil for several commercial investors since 2007, was bought in August 2021 by an anonymous donor with the intent that YVHA develop it.
“It is indisputable that we have an affordable housing crisis in Steamboat Springs,” stated Executive Director, Jason Peasley. “We live in a desirable place: demand has outstripped supply. We have consistently under-built for locals and studies show we need 1,400 homes for our current workforce.”
In fall of 2021, YVHA formed a steering committee of 20 community members to kick off a monumental outreach effort. They hired technical consultants and formed focus teams to analyze housing demand, environmental sustainability, economics and stewardship, urban design, and infrastructure. Over the last year, they met with 230 groups and 3,300 individuals.
“We listened to the community and created a neighborhood plan that reflects their needs and desires,” said Sheila Henderson, Director of Community Engagement for the Brown Ranch. Peasley said people want choices in housing types with opportunities to rent or buy, access to biking and walking trails, parks and open spaces, shops, schools, and access to medical service.
All homes built will be primary residences and there will be an income verification. Residents will need to currently work for, or be retired from, a business physically located in Routt County. Stipulations will continue for subsequent owners and short-term rentals will not be permitted.
YVHA gave a rough estimate of $400M for infrastructure including $220M for roads, water, sewer, trails, and parks. $180M will pay for road improvements around the development, upgrades to the electrical grid and an additional water treatment plant in the future, all of which are considered off-site developments. Not all of the money would be required up front.
YVHA has access to grants from local, state, and federal resources to pay for design and infrastructure construction, and around $10M per year will be needed from the City of Steamboat Springs.
It is hoped that the first phase of units will be ready by the end of 2026 with a total of 2,300 units by 2040. The overall proposal includes 1,486 apartments or condos, 484 single family attached homes, and 294 single family detached homes. Phase 1 will include a 15,000SF community food market, 48,000SF of retail space, 10,000SF of office space and 5,000SF earmarked for childcare. Future commercial amenities will follow as the development grows.
“We are a community that likes to solve its own problems and the Brown Ranch is the solution to our affordable housing crisis,” Peasley said.
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