It is amazing since the pandemic it seems everyone has had way too much time to watch YouTube and Instagram and are now experts on everything including Colorado ski real estate. Unfortunately ski real estate is not that simple. Look at the picture above, can you identify 3 issues (they should jump off the page and a 4th bonus issue)? What does the picture signify? What big changes are happening in Colorado ski real estate?
3 issues in the picture above
Unfortunately this is not going to be like trying to find Waldo, the issues should jump off the page if you know Colorado ski real estate. It is important to note this house is a new construction build that passed all codes, but that does not mean that it was built for mountain climates.
- Vent stack for furnace/fireplace is less than a foot from the roof deck. As anyone in the mountains should know, we get snow and lots of it. Last season I had 5 feet plus on my roof basically from November to May which is why vent stacks are placed higher so that they do not have issues venting in the snow. Furthermore the vent is placed in the lower section of the roof with no chimney or other support to prevent against movement from snow.
- Sloped roof with no snowguards: the purpose of a sloped roof roof is for snow to slide, but this sliding snow creates huge hazards in the winter, countless are killed each winter due to “roof avalanches”. This particular roof slopes towards the back yard where kids, dogs, etc.. could be creating a huge hazard
- Snow stops around vents: As mentioned above, sloped roofs are meant to slide (and even asphalt roofs will shed snow) so you must either put your venting at the top of the roof protected near a dormer or you should use protection to ensure your vents don’t get ripped off during the first snow.
- Bonus issue 1: somehow the snow must go from the top roof to the porch roof. With a drop off between the two, this is just a recipe for a huge ice dam as the snow moves from one heated roof to an unheated roof. Long term it will likely create issues.
- Bonus issue 2: if you zoom in you will see the roofing material appears to be EPDM or some other membrane that is meant for a flat roof. With our snow loads as the snow moves and sticks to the material it will stretch and most likely fail. This is a bad choice of roof material for a sloped roof in a snow environment with the intense movement of snow loads.
These are just the high level items I saw in the pic which is surprising as this is a multi million dollar new construction house that passed all the applicable building codes. Do you agree with my analysis or did you find other items?
What does the picture signify?
The picture is indicative of the large increase in “rookie” mistakes I am seeing in the mountains. Long time builders in ski towns would not make these mistakes but as every ski town has seen insatiable demand there is no way that local builders could keep up with it all.
It should come as no surprise that there is a shortage of skilled workers which means many new builds are being done by builders outside the area. New builders continue to enter the market that often do not have the expertise of mountain building. Just because someone built in Denver or Golden does not mean that they are now experts in the high alpine environment even if they are following code to a T.
There is huge risk for property owners as they likely do not know the intricacies of mountain building as the builder is following the local codes so theoretically everything should be good. Unfortunately the outcome will not end well with many property owners as they will face long term issues with the house and ultimately lower resale prices.
Don’t get me wrong it is expensive to build in Colorado’s ski towns, but not paying the money upfront with local builders/experts that understand the mountain climate will lead to bad outcomes for property owners.
Big changes in Colorado ski towns
Even more importantly the picture signifies the huge changes occurring in Colorado ski towns. A recent Colorado community study showed an increase of new residents and second homeowners in recent years — 27% moved to the area in the last five years and 57% since 2008. If almost a third of all new residents moved here in the last 5 years, this means that many professionals are also new to the area from roofers to plumbers to realtors, etc… which means it is even more critical to utilize trusted professionals that specialize in the mountains.
Seek out true local Colorado Mountain expertise
Just because someone lives in a mountain town does not mean they are an expert by an stretch of the imagination. With almost a third of all new residents in the mountains new in the last 5 years, seeking out truly local professionals is an absolute must.
A good example, I got a call the other day from a broker who was working with an out of area lender on a file in Steamboat. At the last minute the lender said they couldn’t do the loan as Steamboat “wasn’t a good market”. The median home price in Steamboat is almost 2 million, definitely not in the poor house by any metric, but the lender had no clue of the intricacies of steamboat.
Also note, just because you know one ski market in Colorado doesn’t mean they are all the same, Telluride is much different than Aspen and Crested Butte is different than Steamboat or Breckenridge. Each market has its own unique characteristics.
Summary
Having worked and lived in the Colorado mountains for almost 25 years, I have seen firsthand what happens when property buyers/builders don’t have local expertise.
The pic above is just one example of what I have seen since the pandemic. I could send hundreds of pics similar to above where I just scratch my head and wonder why :< At the end of the day a property owner is going to feel the pain in higher maintenance costs, leaking/other issues, and ultimately a lower resale than they should receive. All of this is preventable by using true local experts that understand the intricacies of each ski market.
Additional reading/resources
- https://coloradohardmoney.com/why-are-silverthorne-and-granby-real-estate-prices-falling-what-colorado-towns-are-next/
- https://coloradosun.com/2024/06/25/resort-communities-survey-tourism-resident/
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Glen Weinberg personally writes these weekly real estate blogs based on his real estate experience as a lender and property owner. He is the owner of Fairview Commercial Lending. Glen has been published as an expert in hard money lending, real estate valuation, financing, and various other real estate topics in Bloomberg, Businessweek ,the Colorado Real Estate Journal, National Association of Realtors Magazine, The Real Deal real estate news, the CO Biz Magazine, The Denver Post, The Scotsman mortgage broker guide, Mortgage Professional America and various other national publications.
Glen resides in Colorado, lends in Colorado, owns property in Colorado, and services loans in Colorado which provides a unique real estate prospective of what is actually happening on the ground both in Denver and throughout Colorado. My goal of this real estate blog is to provide an honest assessment of what I see happening in Colorado real estate and how it will impact real estate owners, buyers, realtors, mortgage professionals, etc…
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