From The Daily Planet: October A Huge Month For Real Estate Sales

October a great month for property sales

Property sales highest October levels since 2007

By Collin McRann
Staff Reporter

Published: Wednesday, November 14, 2012 6:06 AM CST

October was full of more than just warm weather in Telluride and Mountain Village as property sales heated up.

According to data compiled by Judi Kiernan of Telluride Consulting, eight homes were sold in Telluride during October totaling around $19 million. A high dollar value was seen in other areas of San Miguel County. So far this year, Mountain Village saw a huge increase in home sales with around $43.4 million in sales up from $23.6 million from all of last year.

Kiernan said many factors have contributed to the big jump from last year’s numbers.

“I know anecdotally what people would consider to be the good deals in town are being purchased,” Kiernan said. “The savvy buyers are realizing that it appears our market here in Telluride is beginning to improve, and if they are going to get one of those good deals, now is probably the time to do it. Maybe it’s even past time to do it.”

Since 2007, the number of properties sold each month in Telluride has been inconsistent as some months have been up while others have been down. But according to Telluride Consulting’s data, October of this year was the best October since 2007 with 46 property sales in San Miguel County.

“Needless to say, the market is doing very well,” said Lynn Ward of Peaks Real-Estate in Telluride. “The title company just told me that last month was one of the highest real estate transfer tax months that we’ve had in a very long time.”

Kiernan said one of the contributing factors to October’s strong sales was the completion of some new construction projects. She said in small markets such as Telluride, the completion of construction contracts could offset a month’s sales results.

But as for what November and the remainder of 2012 holds for real estate sales, the stellar numbers of October might not been seen again. October, however, does show the highest dollar volume in sales for that month since 2007, with $49.1 million compared with $56.4 million in October of 2007.

“As I always say, one month does not a trend make,” Kiernan said.

But just about every month this year, property sales in San Miguel County have been above those in previous years since 2007. With 2012’s sales showing an upward trend, the hope is that sales will continue to improve.

“In Telluride if you look at the dollar volume from 2011 to as of right now in 2012 to date, we’re up about 127 percent,” Ward said. “So that’s pretty exciting.”

As for what type of properties are selling in October in San Miguel County, Kiernan’s data shows the top three units selling are single family homes in Telluride with eight units sold, followed by eight Mountain Village half-duplex condominiums and five Telluride half-duplex condominiums, all totaling more than $32 million.

The comeback has been a relief to a lot of people who have managed to hold on to their properties, Kiernan said.

For more information on Telluride real estate, please contact Telluride Real Estate Corp. at 970.728.3111, info@telluriderealestatecorp.com or visit www.telluriderealestatecorp.com

Telluride Ranked #1 Ski Resort In North America In 2012 Conde Nast Readers' Poll

Following a jump in Telluride's ranking by Ski Magazine readers (up to #5 from last year's #10 ranking), the news was released this week that Telluride has been ranked #1 in North American ski resorts by readers of Conde Nast Traveler.  Resorts were ranked based on terrain, lifts, lines, local ambiance, dining and apres-ski options, with Telluride scoring an average 94.3 out of 100, beating out the #2 resort by a full 2.9 points.

For more information on this or Telluride area luxury real estate - homes, condos or land - please contact Telluride Real Estate Corp. at 970.728.3111, info@telluriderealestatecorp.com or visit www.telluriderealestatecorp.com.

From The Daily Planet: New Joint Ski Pass Between Crested Butte and Telluride

New joint ski pass between Crested Butte, Telluride

Ultimate 6 Pass offers three days at Telluride, three in Crested Butte

By Collin McRann
Staff Reporter

Published: Friday, November 9, 2012 6:06 AM CST

Winter is on its way and so are some new ticket deals that offer days in both Telluride and Crested Butte — with no blackout dates.

A new pass called the Ultimate 6 Pass offers up to three days in Telluride and three in Crested Butte. The pass has been put together as a promotional effort between Telluride Ski & Golf and the Crested Butte Mountain Resort. The pass is only available in limited numbers, and though the exact number of passes has not been released, they are available now for $399 at Liftopia.

“Basically it’s stemming from Crested Butte participating with the Telluride Montrose Regional Air Organization,” said Telski Communications Director Tom Watkinson. “It’s helping to bring people to both resorts, and this is a great way to do that.”

The Crested Butte Mountain Resort announced in late October that it will be a private supporter of the TMRAO, namely the organization’s newest airline, Allegiant. As part of the deal, marketing efforts would be aimed at air passengers focusing on Telluride as well as Crested Butte.

Watkinson said the pass also offers a 20 percent discount on tickets at either resort if someone wants to go over the three days offered.

Telluride and Crested Butte are roughly 158 miles apart by road, with Montrose between them.

While the Ultimate 6 Pass is a good deal to hit up both resorts, Telski and Crested Butte are also offering their season pass holders a half-price deal for single-day tickets. If a Crested Butte or Telski season pass holder wants to buy a day ticket at the other resort, they are eligible to get it at half price. However, Watkinson said the half price deal does include some blackout dates, notably around the holidays.

Telski will be selling discount season passes and other passes at the KOTO Ski Swap Saturday at the Wilkinson Public Library.

This year, Telski is also selling a special three-day pass option for those with passes to Powderhorn Mountain Resort near Grand Junction.

“We figure Junction is such a big market for regional skiers, that we’re offering a three-day pass at $169 with the purchase of a Powderhorn pass season,” Watkinson said. “There’s no blackout dates and it’s available immediately.”

Telski plans to open on Thanksgiving.

For more information on this or Telluride area real estate, please contact Telluride Real Estate Corp. at 970.728.3111, info@telluriderealestatecorp.com or visit www.telluriderealestatecorp.com. 

From The Telluride Daily Planet: Telluride To Angle for a Spot in the 2013 Pro Cycling Challenge

Telluride to angle for 2013 Pro Cycling spot

Officials aren’t as keen about it this year

By Katie Klingsporn

Published: Wednesday, October 31, 2012 9:50 AM CDT

Editor

Telluride will throw its name into the host city hat for the 2013 USA Pro Cycling Challenge, but with pressing capital projects, other expenses on the horizon and weaker expectations for getting selected, the town council has less enthusiasm for the event than last year.

The Telluride Town Council decided in a 4-3 split on Tuesday to go ahead with a proposal for the host city spot. Proposals are due in the second week of November.

Council members all said that the race was a tremendous event that was well organized and pulled off skillfully. But with some big expenditures on the horizon, they weren’t as keen to hosting in 2013 as they were a year ago.

 

“I think there’s a lot of things on our plate that are going to be bigger and better investments for our town, not to mention the necessities that we need to come up with,” said council member Bob Saunders.

The town spent approximately $92,000 on hosting the stage 1 finish of the race, according to a town memo.

A great deal of energy was put into securing a host city spot on the 2012 seven-day stage race. Regional officials put together a website complete with a video as part of their proposal. And when it was announced that Telluride had landed a spot, the news was widely celebrated by officials and citizens from the region.

Telluride, Mountain Village, local lodgers and other regional entities spent a great deal of time and significant amount of money working out logistics and preparing for the crush of media, racers and spectators expected during the race.

When the race flashed through Telluride on Aug. 20, it brought a thrilling sporting event. Riders climbed 125 miles from Durango and over Lizard Head Pass before sprinting into Telluride and hurtling westward down Colorado Avenue in front of a roaring crowd.

But in the wake of the event, it became clear that the crowd of 20,000 that organizers had prepared for failed to materialize, and many local restaurants and business owners reported that the event didn’t bring them a boost.

Council member Thom Carnevale said that following the race, he got a lot of emails and phone calls from the local business community. Many businesses put extra employees on, bumped up their inventory and braced for a crush of customers that never came, he said.

Carnevale said that while he really enjoyed watching the race, he’s not sure that the benefits outweighed the costs, and the town should put its focus now on the hefty financial issues it faces. The town plans to help pay for the enclosure of the Hanley Pavilion in 2013 as well as foot a big chunk of the bill for the construction of a new roundabout at Society Turn, and officials recently discovered they are about $5 million short of the money needed to finish the new Pandora Water Treatment system.

“As much as I enjoyed it … I just don’t think that going ahead with it when we have all these other obstacles in front of us is a good idea,” Carnevale said.

Brian Werner noted that many events see small turnouts in their first year and said the town can learn from the event and adjust to fit it better in the future. The media exposure locally, nationwide and internationally was huge, he said.

“I think it’s a great event for Colorado, and I’d like to see Telluride be a part of it,” he said.

Chris Myers also said he thought it was a remarkable event that aligned well with Telluride’s values, but he suggested that Telluride take a year off to step back and learn more about how to make it more successful in the future.

“I’m thinking a pause would be an opportunity to learn more,” he said.

Council member Ann Brady suggested that Telluride submit a proposal to keep its name in the minds of the race organizers, but not put a huge effort into it. She said she believes the race is going to move north and that Telluride won’t get a host spot this year anyway.

Mayor Stu Fraser, who sat on the local organizing committee, was in favor of submitting a proposal. He thinks that Telluride can learn a lot from the first race and find a way to tailor it better to the small town next time around, he said.

“I think we should show our desire to be in it for 2013,” he said.

In the end, Fraser, Werner, Brady and Kristen Permakoff were in favor of submitting a proposal, outnumbering Carnevale, Myers and Saunders.

Telluride Tourism Board President and CEO Michael Martelon said that they will basically spruce up last year’s proposal and resubmit it.

According to USA Pro Cycling Challenge, the 2012 race saw attendance numbers of more than 1 million over the course of seven days and brought an estimated economic impact of $99.6 million to the state of Colorado.

For more information on this or Telluride area real estate, please contact Telluride Real Estate Corp. at 970.728.3111, info@telluriderealestatecorp.com or visit www.telluriderealestatecorp.com.

Telluride Ranked #8 In The Top 40 Ski Resorts In North America By Outside Magazine

Monday, November 05, 2012

The Best Ski Resorts in North America: 08. Telluride Ski Resort

Telluride, Colorado

By: Avital Andrews

 

Though people tend to think of Vail and Aspen first when they consider Colorado skiing, Telluride shouldn’t be overlooked. A host of the FIS Snowboard World Cup this year (December 14 and 15), Telluride’s inches of average annual snowfall (300) and rate of powder days per season (11 percent) are respectable. But it’s really the laid-back vibe combined with hands-on service that makes Telluride great.
The staff-to-guest ratio here is one to three, and employees do jobs spanning from ski valet to instructor teaching Burton’s Learn-to-Ride program to facilities manager who’s helped turn this eco-friendly place into a certified Audubon Cooperative Sanctuary.
Telluride’s 125 trails have a collective vertical drop of 4,425 feet. And though the biggest number of runs here are for experts, the 2,000 skiable acres are varied enough so that everyone can have their fun. Strung above groomers, and three terrain parks and bowls are 18 lifts whose capacity pushes 22,386 people per hour.
Besides alpine skiing and riding, Telluride offers Nordic skiing, snowshoeing, NASTAR racing, heli-skiing, ice climbing—and, for those who’d rather be aloft for longer, glider rides and paragliding.
The ski patrol is small, and it’s 65 miles to the nearest surgical hospital—a 30-minute airlift—so try to stay upright. The resort does offer a 24-hour emergency service, and there’s at least one onsite physician.
We recommend Hotel Madeline, as lovely as it sounds (unwind at Spa Linnea) and the Inn at Lost Creek, which manages to be simultaneously rustic and upscale. Before your head hits the pillow, though, make sure you’ve squeezed all you can out of a Telluride day: There are three ice-skating rinks, raucous nightlife venues, and good restaurants: Rev in Hotel Madeline is particularly worth trying. The Eco Kids program teaches youth about mountain wildlife, and two pedestrian villages, linked by a free-admission gondola (it gives more than two million rides per year), comprise a historic town whose residents seem to be mostly bearded mountain men.
The number of attractive males at Telluride goes up exponentially in late February during Gay Ski Week, while mid-February brings a comedy festival featuring big-name stand-up artists.
For more information on Telluride or Telluride area luxury real estate (homes, condos and land), please contact Telluride Real Estate Corp. at 970.728.3111 or info@telluriderealestatecorp.com, or visit www.telluriderealestatecorp.com.

From the St. Louis Post-Dispatch - Ski Resorts Hope To Rebound in 2012/2013 After a Low Snow Winter in 2011/2012

From the St. Louis Post-Dispatch

October 30, 2012

By Amanda St. Amand astamand@post-dispatch.com

 

Skiers and snowboarders who endured the stingy snowfall of last season are hoping for better things this year.
So are the resorts that saw skier visits — and revenue — drop off in 2011-12, one year after most western resorts in the United States reported record- or near-record snowfall.
"That made it tough, having a bad snow year right after such a great one," said Craig Bannister, spokesman for Colorado Ski Country, a trade association that represents 22 ski areas in Colorado, including large ones like Winter Park, Copper Mountain and Crested Butte.
So what's the best-case scenario?
"We've talked to a number of meteorologists who think it's going to be an el Niño year, and the late season is going to be very good," Bannister said. "Come January, February, March, it looks like we will get plenty of snow."
Then, Bannister hedged. A little. Being a snow-predictor in Colorado "is very difficult," he said. Two feet of powder might fall at one resort, while a neighboring mountain 15 miles away gets little more than a dusting.
The resorts have no control over how much snow falls, so they spend the offseason making improvements and upgrades in areas they can control. With revenue and skier days down last year, many of them spent less in the offseason months of 2012 than they had in previous years. Upgrades were spread out across all areas of many resorts.
At Winter Park, Colo., that meant adding a tubing run. Vail marks its 50th anniversary this year with a new 10-passenger gondola — complete with heated seats and Wi-Fi access. Copper Mountain added a zipline ride that takes riders over a lake in the summer and an ice skating rink in the winter. And some resorts boosted their snowmaking equipment, figuring what Mother Nature won't provide, man will.
At Copper Mountain, for example, the annual average snowfall is 282 inches. Last year? Only 160 inches. No wonder they started making snow on Oct. 2 — the first Colorado resort to fire up the snowguns.
"Of course the forecast is that the snow will be better this year," said Katherine Bush, communications coordinator for the resort that sits just off Interstate 70, 90 minutes west of Denver. "But we want to make sure we do everything we can to make every guest experience a good one."
The season got started — at least officially — on Oct. 17 when Arapahoe Basin won the annual race to be the first resort to open with one lift and one trail available. A Basin, which averages 350 inches of snow a year, measured far less last year. And many resorts closed earlier than usual because of the low snowfall and warm spring.
Colorado isn't the only western state with world-class skiing. Four Colorado resorts earned spots in Ski magazine's annual top resort rankings this season — Vail, Telluride, Snowmass and Beaver Creek. But Utah claimed the No. 2, 4 and 10 spots with Deer Valley, Park City and the Canyons, respectively, while Whistler Blackcomb in British Columbia, Canada, took top honors, and Jackson Hole, Wyo, and Sun Valley, Idaho, also finished in the top 10.
Getting to any of the Western resorts is the biggest battle for most St. Louis area skiers and riders. Many of the Colorado resorts can be reached via a very long one-day drive. When you start talking Utah and Wyoming, flying is usually the choice, which adds big bucks to the cost of a ski trip. And after last year's dismal snow, some Midwesterners might hesitate before plopping down so much money for something that's not a sure-deal.
So some resorts are offering special deals to entice people out. At Keystone Resort, there's a "kids ski free" deal for families who stay at Keystone-owned hotels or condos. All season long, including weekends, kids 12 and under get free lift tickets. At Winter Park, the resort decided to offer early season visitors a guarantee — if the early season (up to Dec. 20) snow is not to their liking, they can reschedule their visit for later in the season. The Winter Park promotion, Bannister said, is meant to give guests the versatility and options they might find appealing.
"I think after last year, everybody is just looking for different ways and different promotions to attract visitation,' he said.
Elsewhere in Colorado, Telluride has improved its on-mountain dining, as did Crested Butte.
Vail Resorts, which owns Vail, Breckenridge, Keystone and Beaver Creek in Colorado, along with Northstar, Heavenly and Kirkwood in California, saw a drop in skier visits last season just like most resorts. But that couldn't stop them from spending big to celebrate Vail's 50th anniversary this season. Sure, there's the new gondola. But Vail will also hold a red carpet premiere on Dec. 14 of a commemorative film by Roger Cotton Brown — on the eve of the resort's Dec. 15 anniversary.
Up until about Dec. 20, the prices are low mostly because the snow can be dicey. Prices skyrocket at the holidays, regardless of the snow.
So skiers and riders looking for the best deals should avoid the Christmas break, President's Day weekend and spring break season in March; snowhounds looking for the best powder should check each resort's snow report on their websites. Even then, though, some resorts seem to take an optimistic approach in their measurements.
"We are an optimistic industry," Bannister said. "After all the difficulties last season, it has to be better this season."
For more information on Telluride area real estate, please contact Telluride Real Estate Corp. at 970.728.6655 or info@telluriderealestatecorp.com or visit www.telluriderealestatecorp.com.

Legendary Skier, Ski Area Designer, and Coach Emile Allais Dies at Age 100 in France

Emile Allais dies at 100

Telluride Ski Resort’s Allais Alley named for French skiing visionary

By Heather Sackett
Associate Editor

Published: Wednesday, October 24, 2012 10:02 AM CDT

Telluride Ski Resort would not exist, at least not in its current form, without the French skiing champion Emile Allais. Allais died last week at a hospital in France at age 100.

Telluride ski area developer Joe Zoline hired Allais to come evaluate the land and explore the potential for a ski area in the early ‘70s. A renowned ski resort designer, ski racer and coach, Allais was a visionary, seeing the possibility for a world class ski area where others only saw hard-to-access terrain, too-steep pitches and dangerous cliffs. After his initial visit, he agreed to design and act as the technical consultant on the fledgling resort. Allais’ vision and subsequent construction of the ski resort helped transform Telluride from sleepy mining town into a vibrant mountain community.

In March 1970, local skiing expert Billy “Senior” Mahoney guided Allais around so he could get a feel for the rugged territory. Allais then prepared a feasibility study for Zoline.

“Emile and I spent another 10 days laying out all the ski runs, and he wrote a report that there was a good potential there,” Mahoney said. “I don’t think they would have put up the money and built the lifts without Emile’s report.”

The two, beginning at 6 a.m., used snow machines to explore every conceivable place on the mountain from Gold Hill to Bald Mountain to Prospect Basin. They skied the front side five times in one day, Mahoney said. Allais, 58 years old at the time, stayed with Mahoney, then 42, at his home during the visit. Other consultants who Mahoney had previously guided around to evaluate the future ski area didn’t think much of the land. But Allais’ analysis offered the potential for a world-class resort.

“The Telluride terrain is not real nice like Vail,” Mahoney said. “There wouldn’t be a ski area if it wasn’t for that man. He just knew how to do it. That’s just my opinion, and I think I’m right on it.”

According to a March 1970 story in the Planet’s predecessor The Telluride Times, Zoline chose Allais for his knowledge of the ski industry and reputation. Zoline knew skiers from Denver and other urban areas would only come to remote, isolated Telluride if the skiing here were as good or better than other places.

According to The Telluride Times, Allais at first had doubts about the other side of the ridge that leads into Prospect Basin.

“The importance of the proposed runs on the other side of the ridge above town lying directly to the north of Prospect Basin cannot be overstated,” Allais said. “These runs are necessary to tie in the whole complex of runs on that ridge with the proposed base area at the bottom of the basin.”

Allais won gold medals in the downhill, slalom and combined in the 1937 world championships. He also popularized skiing with the skis parallel, a new method at the time. A former coach of the French Olympic team, Allais also taught skiing at Squaw Valley and Sun Valley.

Allais Alley, an expert, narrow, bumpy run with a run-out gully off of Chair 6, commemorates Allais’ contributions to on the ski area.

“It’s right up there on lift 6,” said Johnnie Stevens, one of the first employees and most recently chief operating officer at Telluride Ski Resort. “It was the old lift line. We have moved the lift since then. We named that Allais Alley in 1972.”

Allais also gave Zoline some advice about working with the Forest Service to secure the proper permits for the ski area: Think big. Those words of wisdom have proven valuable as Telluride Ski Resort has expanded and added more lifts and hike-to terrain over the years.

“He said you always want to think big and take all the territory you can possibly get,” Mahoney said. “He even put some runs on Bear Creek as a potential.”

For more information on Telluride area luxury homes, condos and land, please contact Telluride Real Estate Corp. at 970.728.3111, info@telluriderealestatecorp.com, or visit www.telluriderealestatecorp.com.