This is YOUR adventure.
Halloween in Park City, Utah, is not a holiday to be trifled with. Perhaps you remember the Halloween Hoards of 2013 or Halloween 2014: The Candy Apocalypse. Evidence of our Halloween enthusiasm is present throughout town, but for me, Daly Ave. in Old Town shines the brightest.
Some homes are adorable and charming.
I am a member of the Park City Board of Realtors Statistics Committee, and every quarter we gather to look at how the sales numbers actually shake out, and we compare it to our personal anecdotes about what has been happening in our individual businesses. And every quarter we collectively walk away with wide eyes, open minds, and particular areas we plan to watch for the next quarter. It’s a reality check, the whole picture. As we all know, by picking and choosing particular stats, advertising and news media can paint any economic picture. As Benjamin Disraeli said (and Mark Twain made famous): “There are three kinds of lies: lies, damned lies, and statistics.”
Yesterday’s stats meeting was another brain melter. Two years I’ve been attending and I haven’t left a meeting yet feeling like there were no surprises left. Get ready: there is a lot of meat to chew through here. So, I have a TL;DR Version and a Full Edition. LET’S DO THIS THING.
TL;DR
Lower Deer Valley condos are finally selling. Prospector and Kimball Junction condos are selling like crazy. Jordanelle is going gangbusters on condos, houses and vacant land. If you’re building a home, you’re probably buying land in Heber or Jordanelle. The PCMR/Canyons connection is potentially making Deer Valley more exclusive. Median sales price for single family homes in the Park City limits is $1.439M, up 18% over last year; Snyderville Basin $874,500, up 20%; Heber Valley $354,900, up 3%; Kamas Valley $475,000, up 35%. Greater Park City, median home prices are steadily increasing, but are in the same range as 2006, 2009 and 2010.
Continue reading “Lies, Damned Lies, and Statistics: 3Q 2015 Park City Stats Committee”
Have I mentioned how lovely fall in Park City is? The air–if it can be so–is crisper. The light is warm and rosy and lays sideways in the afternoons. The leaves are golden across the valley. And let’s just say evening open house event attendance is quite high because who wouldn’t want to drink in as many moments of this as you possibly could:
What a dump.
Continue reading “Big Views and Fancy Fixtures at a Preserve Estate”
I have a thing for baked goods. For crispy and chewy pastries, just barely sweet enough to make black coffee amazing. I also love the whole idea of food trucks, like fancy little trailers with baller kitchens. So when the Waffle Love food truck rolled over to Metro Title Company‘s open house I really had no choice.
Waffle Love was parked in Park City for the Sundance Film Festival two years ago and though I missed a waffle at that point I have been thinking about it ever since. And particularly since my waffle iron got packed away in a “Kitchen B-List” box and hasn’t made it to the house yet. As any test of a baked good, try it plain first. If it’s not good without whipped cream or syrup or Nutella then it will just be lovely things on a crappy pastry. This was not a crappy pastry. My guess is it’s a yeast-raised waffle batter that they stick sugar cubes in once it’s in the iron.
Continue reading “Restaurant Review: Waffle Love Food Truck”
As part of my continuing series, “Tips to Help Your #Hustle,” here is another quick tip to help dominate in your working life. The sooner you conquer your career the sooner you can be free to start living the life you’ve worked so hard for. For me, that life happens up high in the mountains of Park City, Utah.
Another great site I like to follow is Inc.com. Loads of great articles on all manner of business items, and all written with a decent sense of humor. Stephen Colbert started his reign as the new Late Show host last week, and Inc ran a timely article quoting some of the splendid advice Colbert has dished out in his life.
Remember, no matter happened last week, you are only as good as your last deal. Dig deep. Find solutions. Offer before you are asked. Get the job done better than anybody else can. Happy Monday. Game on.
The latest in my “Adventures of Old Home Ownership” series about my own experience owning an older home; a one-owner, 1955-built home in Sugarhouse (a hip suburb of Salt Lake City). Even an experienced agent like myself will run into unforeseen circumstances when it comes to these character-filled houses. The key is to take it all with a grain of salt, keep your sense of humor, and start buying beer by the case.
As a product of suburbia, there are many things I take for granted. Like a car. A parking space. On-site private laundry. When we bought this little charmer, I have to admit I thought we’d be just a warshing away in our own washer and dryer as I have done literally my entire life.
HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAKILLME
For reasons having everything to do with having an old house full of surprises character (and ones that make for another post), we were not able to hook up our washer and dryer for four months. So I got to experience for the first time, in the sorry age of my 30s, just what the laundromat is all about.
1. Proximity. Choose a laundromat that is close-by. You want to keep the mileage on your underpants to a minimum (SORRYNOTSORRY). I chose Highland Coin Laundry.
Continue reading “O Washer, My Washer: Top Tips for Laundromatting”
As part of my continuing series, “Tips to Help Your #Hustle,” here is another quick tip to help dominate in your working life. The sooner you conquer your career the sooner you can be free to start living the life you’ve worked so hard for. For me, that life happens up high in the mountains of Park City, Utah.
In another great share by my broker, Thomas Wright at Summit Sotheby’s International Realty, this excellent TED Talk discusses getting to the heart of what you’re selling. Applicable to every single entrepreneur ever, and some great points that go beyond the usual “sell features and benefits” discussion.
I read an article once that suggested that entrepreneurs read one article and watch one TED Talk per day for self-improvement. I can’t say I’ve been faithful to that kind of commitment but hey, sometimes we start small. And this? This is a good place to start.
Remember, just because it’s Labor Day doesn’t mean we can’t take some time to clarify our vision, streamline our processes, and revisit our purpose. It’s still Monday, y’all. Game on.
As part of my continuing series, “Tips to Help Your #Hustle,” here is another quick tip to help dominate in your working life. The sooner you conquer your career the sooner you can be free to start living the life you’ve worked so hard for. For me, that life happens up high in the mountains of Park City, Utah.
Today’s tip comes from Entrepreneur.com, a great place for articles on building your business, leadership, work-life balance and management. Seriously. Follow them on Facebook and Twitter for just a quick sliver of the value they can bring to your day-to-day activities.
Barbara Cocoran pulls no punches. Remind yourself: You have as much right to be here as anybody else.
Remember, it’s the start of a new week, a new chance to build our business, tighten our procedures, clarify our direction. It’s Monday. GAME ON.
I frequently see homes upwards of $5M that are terrible. (The Mo’ Money principle.) The higher the price tag, often the more specific the home and the less agreeable it will be to a larger number of people. You can see why: if you’re going to own a home that expensive it’d better be exactly the way you want it.
Which is why I don’t talk about every high-end home I see. It’s like dropping names, “Oh, I was in a $9M house today lah tee dah.” For it to be worth talking about, it really is more about the character of the home. Last Wednesday I toured a home in the gated upper Deer Valley Resort-area community of Bald Eagle that is definitely worth talking about. For the moment, this house is for sale, and you can view the official photos here and additional listing information (and full MLS property search) here.
I can’t stress enough how important a good entry is, and this house had some to spare. In the front door, down a few steps to a balcony overlooking the living area.
Continue reading “View Had Me Like Whoa: 7815 Falcon Ct in Bald Eagle, Deer Valley”
Here’s a fun thing to do: Make coffee twelve ways* for a taste test then see how much of your house you can get cleaned because COFFEE COFFEE COFFEE COFFEE
I’ve tried dozens of coffee brands, bought a burr grinder to grind whole beans, and I still can’t find a blend that’s not overroasted. So the gentle and sweet magic that cold press promises is super appealing to me. To keep things as scientific as possible and also because THIS IS SPARTA TYPE-A I brewed the coffee each time in my French press with the same amount of coffee and water, and the same batch of freshly ground coffee.
Did I drink a gallon of coffee? YES TALK FASTER
Kristina Watkins, Summit Sotheby's International Realty 