Park City/Deer Valley Lifestyle Series Mt. Timpanogos
By Delia ReeceOct 31, 2008
103-year-old Silver Springs woman may be the oldest person who votes in Summit County
By Delia ReeceOct 31, 2008
There have been 18 presidents since 103-year-old Gretchen Tally was born New Year's Eve 1904. The Silver Springs resident says she is closely watching the horserace between John McCain and Barack Obama and plans to vote Tuesday at St. Luke's Episcopal Church a few blocks from where she lives with her granddaughter in the Snyderville Basin.
"I try to be real careful about who I vote for I'm an independent," explained Tally. "Presidents are important because don't they kind of run things? They should." The most memorable U.S. president in the past century was Dwight D. Eisenhower, whose two terms in the White House spanned 1953 to 1961, she said.
Tally, who could also recall voting for John F. Kennedy and Richard Nixon, may be the oldest person who votes this year in Summit County. "There is one person older than her and we don't know if they're going to vote or not," Tally's granddaughter Leslie Harlow said about a 105-year-old who is registered to vote. Tally, who registered to vote just shy of the October deadline, said she hasn't always trusted politicians.
"I trust some of them, and I like to put my two cents' worth in when I can," she said Monday in an interview at her Snyderville Basin home. "I don't really look forward to it, but I am going to vote. Just to say I voted." Harlow remembers her grandmother as a bit of a politics junkie who used to speak on air to Dixon Platt, a popular radio personality in Lubbock, Texas. "I used to call in on the radio a lot," Tally said. "I didn't know Dixon Platt personally but I knew him by talking on the telephone a lot and I had a good time visiting with him." People in Lubbock listened as Tally predicted outcomes in local elections, Harlow said. "She used to win car washes and dinners and all sorts of things," Harlow said. This year McCain is not "a very good prospect," Tally said. "I doubt that I would tell him that," she joked. At 103 years old it's now difficult for Tally to pay close attention to politics. Tally's oldest sister Agnes was 111 when she died, Harlow explained. "She was one of the oldest women in the U.S.," Harlow said. Tally's secret to long life: "I try to be ornery and make trouble for people." "Some people just have longer genes, I don't know," Tally said. Meanwhile, she diverts back to politics to explain dramatic changes in the past 50 years when a black man or a woman could not win the White House, Tally said about Obama and Republican vice presidential nominee Sarah Palin. "I haven't seen it before and I'm glad things have changed," Tally said. Tally's daughter was president of a Texas chapter of the National Organization for Women and race has never mattered to her, Tally said. "I don't think that color has anything to do with anything. It doesn't change a person's way of thinking or the way they do things," she stressed. "But I'm sure some people are bothered by that. Don't you think so?" A survivor of the Great Depression, Tally said whoever is elected president will have to stare down a bad economy. "I know the economy isn't great They need to decide what to do, I can't do it for them," she said. "It's easy to spend that money but it's a little harder to make it."
Only steps from Success ski run!
By Delia ReeceOct 29, 2008
Totally remodeled free standing Stag Lodge town home with BIG down valley views, only steps from Deer Valley's Success ski run. This fully furnished 3 bedroom/ 4.5 Bath unit includes a "State of the Art" Media Room or optional 4th Bedroom, private hot tub, and a two car attached garage. Stag Lodge amenities include heated roads and driveways throughout the property, a full service front desk staff, a spacious fitness facility with outdoor pool, hot tub and fireplace, as well as a private restaurant and lounge with ski-in/ski-out access. Offered Funished at: $3,495,000
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For a private showing please call Delia at 435-901-3064 or Craig at 435-647-8017
WHAT TO LOOK FOR IN A RESORT AREA!
By Delia ReeceOct 27, 2008
Buying a house in a beautiful resort location can be the realization of a lifetime dream – to live where you can enjoy year-round outdoor recreation, rich cultural opportunities and a close-knit community. Since lifestyle and real estate factors vary greatly, it is important to ask the following questions about any area you are considering.
Does the natural environment offer a variety of outdoor activities? The best investment locations are near water for boating, fishing and swimming, have areas for walking and facilities for sports such as tennis and golf. Are home sales high, with home prices increasing? These are signs of a healthy real estate market.
A popular area where buyers outnumber the inventory of homes is a good investment. Are there excellent hotels, spas, restaurants, shops and art galleries? Property values will continue to grow in a prime location with world-class guest services.
Enlist your real estate agent’s help to choose a resort area that exemplifies these features.
For rock solid advice on buying or selling real estate, call Craig Reece at
435-647-8017 or toll free at 1-800-553-4666.
Deer Valley Resort founder Edgar Stern dies at 86
By Delia ReeceOct 24, 2008
Edgar B. Stern Jr., the New Orleans businessman who helped put Utah skiing on the world map by creating Deer Valley Resort and earlier owning Park City Mountain Resort, died Sunday in Seattle. He was 86.
Stern made a fortune opening the first commercial television station in Louisiana in 1948, developing hotels in New Orleans and San Francisco as well as the Gulf Coast region's first air-conditioned shopping center. He then moved in 1968 to Aspen, advancing its transformation into a jet-setters' haven through luxury real-estate development and support for community cultural programs.
He took his first look at Park City that year, admitting later "I was a little shocked at how everything was terribly run down." Stern changed all of that.
Recognizing quickly that newly constructed Interstate 80 would make Park City a quick commute from Salt Lake City International Airport, he bought Treasure Mountains Resort from United Park City Mines and turned it into Park City Resort. Stern came with a $100 million development plan, aggressively building lifts and base facilities. He also brought along Norwegian Olympic champion and ski legend Stein Eriksen to set up the skiing program and give the resort broader recognition.
In 1975, Stern sold Park City Resort to Nick Badami, former chairman of underwear company BVD and owner of Alpine Meadows ski area in California. Badami, who died in June, had come to ski Park City with his son, Craig, and met Stern while staying at the C'est Bon Hotel, built by Stern's business group.
Stern's Royal Street Land Co. acquired the rights to 1,700 acres of private land. That is now Deer Valley, a venue for 2002 Olympic events and Ski magazine's designee as North America's top resort for two years running. Stern retired as chairman of Royal Street Corp., parent of the land company, in 2007.
Since 1986, Stern has lived on San Juan Island, Wash. He was president of the board of the San Juan Community Theatre while also serving on the visitors committee of the Harvard Graduate School of Education and the boards of the University of Chicago and Tulane University.
He is survived by his wife of 61 years, Polly; one daughter and three sons, seven grandchildren and one great-grandchild. The family is having a private memorial service but intend to have a public celebration of his life later in Park City.
Courtesy of:
Article Launched: 10/14/2008 10:29:09 AM MDT
Park City homes holding their value
By Delia ReeceOct 23, 2008
But buyers seem to be waiting for prices to fall
The good news is Park City real estate hasn't lost a lot of its value. The bad news is that sales volume is down 42 to 45 percent, according to Park City's Board of Realtors.
The market, observers say, has yet to bottom out. Eventually, that could lead to more significant dips in housing values. But according to the Park City board's latest statistics - covering Summit and Wasatch counties - the median sales price compared with one year ago is down just 3 percent for single-family dwellings, to $653,750.
Set against a national real estate market that's been on the skids amid double-digit losses, that figure is comparatively good. Remarkably, the median sales price in Park City proper was up 12 percent, to $1.82 million. By contrast, that statistic in nearby Snyderville Basin is down 13 percent over the 12-month period that ended Sept. 30.
"We're seeing a lot of interest," said Tyler Richardson, the organization's president. "But people are still sitting on the sidelines, seeing how things flesh out."
For the past decade or longer, Park City real estate - particularly high-end property - has been largely immune from ups and downs in the economy. The run-up to the 2002 Winter Games and then its afterglow continued to push growth in the area's upscale vacation housing market established 25 years ago by Deer Valley. Resort real estate since the late 1980s - particularly in the Park City area - has proved to be a good investment for those who can afford it. Prices have gone higher and higher.
But this financial crisis is different. "We've seen a leveling off of sales and in some cases decreases as we've seen national events unfold," Richardson said. "Nobody knows how it's going to shake out."
The majority of second-home owners in the Park City area - as well as potential buyers - live in other states, where real estate values have declined more precipitously. And buyers are waiting for bargains, which means that sellers, if they are in a position to do so, have to be patient.
"Buyers are in the driver's seat," Richardson said. "They have a lot of choices to look at."
The low sales volume has left many in Park City's veritable army of real estate agents with little to do but watch and wait. Utah economists say real estate prices in the state are not yet at their lows, according to Dave Anderton, public relations director of the Salt Lake Board of Realtors.
"I have people call me every day and ask if we've hit the bottom yet? I think the median price will go lower statewide." Sales volumes also are way off in tony Deer Valley.
But the transactions that have gone through represent increases in the median sales price, said Bob Wells, the resort's vice president of real estate and development planning. In lower Deer Valley, the median sales price is $1.98 million. In upper Deer Valley it's $6.65 million. To some extent, Deer Valley remains buffered from economic ups and downs.
"The property owners are a very affluent group," Wells said. "They buy in Deer Valley for family use, not for speculation. And a lot of them pay cash." Nonetheless, Deer Valley and Park City, like the rest of the nation, should prepare for tough times and a slow recovery, Wells added.
"You have to expect this will have an effect [on real estate sales] this winter. In history, that's been determined by snow, not economic downturns. This could be different."
Courtesy of:
Article Launched: 10/23/2008 12:00:00 AM MDT
Business Week-Hot Property!
By Delia ReeceOct 22, 2008
Deer Valley Real Estate Market
Skiing @ Deer Valley
HOME IS WHERE THE HEART IS!
By Delia ReeceOct 20, 2008
The first step toward finding your dream home is to fully visualize your ideal home so you can describe its special features, size and location to your real estate agent. Matching your dream with physical reality will be much easier if your realtor understands your heart’s desire.
As you visit properties and compare them with your dream home vision, remember that a house can always be remodeled, repainted and landscaped to meet your needs. When you buy a property, it is yours to change, modify and decorate as you wish. Upgrading the home also increases the market value of your property, which benefits you as the homeowner.
Stay focused on your goal until the right property comes on the market. If a mountain or oceanfront property is your dream setting, ask your realtor to alert you the moment such listings come up. With patience and persistence, you will find the house that warms your heart and becomes your home.
For rock solid advice on buying or selling real estate, call Craig Reece at
435-647-8017 or toll free at 1-800-553-4666.
Great Views from this Top Floor Unit!
By Delia ReeceOct 17, 2008
Enjoy the convenience of Old Town, just a short walk to Main Street shops, dining & PCMR's Town Lift. This large 3BR/ 3BA Town Pointe home has fantastic ski run views, great floor plan & private hot tub. Granite kitchen counters, black appliances, large dining area & beautiful stone fireplace are a few of the amenities. Offered furnished, this unit can sleep at least 10 people! Co-Listed with Georgia Rush
$1,195,000
Call for a private showing 435.647.8017
