July 2013 • FREE SEE OUR CENTER SPREAD
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C O M P A N I E S
All it takes is two. “One” buyer and “one” seller. Simple.
By Eric Ossorio Prudential/Ossorio Real Estate 406 539 9553 Eric.ossorio@prumt.com
The good news is that something is continuing to happen in the Big Sky real estate market. The bad news is that no one can accurately put their finger on what it is. Somewhere in there lies opportunity. Summertime is here, the water is high, the fish are jumping, hikers are hiking, PBR (Professional Bull Riders) is coming back and the Beach Boys are going to croon for adoring fans of all ages to celebrate Independence Day Festivities, under our own Big Sky in the Town Center. So, what’s up? All sorts of fun stuff. Many land owners are making plans to spend more quality time here. An increase in new homes construction is back in swing after a bit of a lull. A quick look at Land Use Permit applications and BSOA Architectural Board reviews shows that activity is on the up and up. Gallatin County/ Big Sky zoning district Land Use Permit reviews were up 30% for the year May 2012-June 2013 over the previous year. And that does NOT include the fast pace of activity in the Yellowstone Club. Backhoes are digging, the skyline is changing. The Club at Spanish Peaks looks to be poised for a new start. On the more speculative side, for some the pool is looking deep and full, so a few developers, confident that a market recovery is ripening, are rushing in to fill a need that they feel they must satisfy. Plans are afoot for two new Condo developments in the Meadow Village. A 7 unit project is underway on Tract 5
at the east end of Curley Bear Road near the Golf course club house. Another development offering new construction is has been approved on the corner of Little Coyote Road and Two Gun White Calf, turning the Broadwater Tract, also known as Tract 9, into 28 units. Demolition of the “Titanic” (Big Sky’s original and iconic Medical Clinic building from the early 1970s), midway between the Meadow and the Mountain on Lone Mountain Trail, is underway, suggesting plans are afoot, though no specifics have been approved by the Gallatin County/Big Sky planning department, yet. The remainder (four units) of the suspended Fairways development on Tract E is pending, and Alpine Meadows Luxury suite building 7 in Moonlight Basin found a buyer/developer who is reinvigorating the project, with a sale of one out of four units pending. Additionally, a vacant commercial lot adjacent to the Lone Peak Cinema in the Town Center is under contract. A 4.6 acre tract adjacent to American Bank along MT 64, Lone Mountain Trail, sold this spring. 142 acres in Section 31 is under contract...and several more projects are in the works.
What do the numbers tell us? There are 433 active listed properties (all classes...land, homes, condos, commercial) in the greater Big Sky area (including those properties in the “YC” Yellowstone Club) listed for sale on MLS. 71 properties are located in the North and South Canyon. Roughly 1/2 are priced at over $500,000, with 15 priced at over $1,000,000. 362 properties are listed in the Mountain and Meadow markets. 64 are listed at over $1MM, 24 at over $3MM, 14 at over $4MM. 30 properties traded hands for over $1MM (6 were in the YC). Looking at residential only (excluding the YC), 247 properties are listed. 53 properties are listed for over $1MM in the greater Big Sky area...22 are priced over $2.5MM, and 3 priced over $4MM, with one extraordinary property at $27MM. 114 properties
are listed for under $500,000, 47 under $250,000 and only 6 at under $100,000. On the sold side, 196 residential units sold May 2012 to June 2013, representing $113,344,457 in value. (there were 28 distressed sales...14%) The previous year (May 2011 to June 2012) saw 209 trade hands representing a value of $102,160,378 (56 distressed sales ..26% of the sold units). Fewer units sold this past year, but at a greater value and with fewer distressed sales. This past year, 171 residences sold for under $1MM, with 25 sales over $1MM and 13 over $1.5MM (4 were in the YC) On the land side, there are 153 parcels listed in the greater Big Sky area. 18 parcels are priced over $1MM, and 13 over $1.5MM. 47 parcels are listed for under $250,000. On the sold side, there were 78 properties that sold between May of 2012 and June of 2013. 34 sold for under $150,000, 15 more sold over $150,000 up to $250,000, 20 more sold up to $500,000 and another 10 sold for over $500,000, with one large sale at $2.5MM. The previous year (May 2011 to June 2012) saw 26 parcels trade hands, an increase in activity of 300%. What does this tell us? It depends on what you want to do where you want to go with the information. Opportunities exist. But that’s for another article.
Eric Ossorio is a managing Broker at Ossorio/Prudential Real Estate in Big Sky, Montana where he’s lived with his wife and partner, Stacy for over 20 years, raising their three children here. Both have been active Brokers since the early 1980’s. They know this market, so you don’t have to. To contact him, call 406 539 9553, or see http://www. ossoriorealestategroup.com