It was an eventful Labor Day weekend in Aspen Snowmass. We had Sting, The Black Crowes, Dierks Bentley, and One Republic headlining JAS Aspen Snowmass Festival. When people ask what makes Aspen Snowmass special, the first thing that comes to mind is the ski town and the surrounding mountains. The same can be said about many mountain towns throughout North America. We are fortunate, though, to have a community of individuals who give back and who understand the collective value of having the arts woven into our DNA. We are a small town with global access.
I'm reminding myself and all of you of this because there is a reason why it can be challenging to live here and own a home here. We have seen our housing market skyrocket in the last few years. From January 1st, 2023, to August 31st, 2023, there were 259 closed transactions in Aspen and Snowmass, totaling just shy of $1.6B. From the start of this year until August 31st, 2024, 222 transactions totaling just shy of $1.7B. We had fewer transactions but higher dollar volumes, the five highest transactions alone were worth $352M. In 2023, the five highest sales totaled $250M. In Aspen, there are currently 109 homes for sale. We had six close in August, so we have about an 18-month supply. In Snowmass Village, there are 24 homes for sale. We had three close in August, so we have an 8-month supply.
Real estate is a hard asset. Hard assets can increase like they did the last few years, and now the question for many potential buyers is whether they will decrease over the next few months. People who can are still paying top dollar for the very rare legacy property. Based on the inventory and monthly supply available, we are seeing more negotiating room for most buyers, but it is still a good and healthy market for sellers who are priced appropriately and are patient with the days on the market.
The market is 'normalizing' a bit, but to make it way too simple, people want to be here. Life is precious, and as Dierks Bentley said last night, there is a difference between getting through life and living. We are living.
