Market Sharing with Vail's Liz Leeds: PART 2

EDITOR'S NOTE: This is the second part of our "Market Sharing" Q&A series with Liz Leeds, a 17-year Vail Valley native, 25-year of sales and marketing veteran and one of the area's top fractional real estate experts.

TER: What are your affluent clients’ top wants and needs?

LL: Ease of use is their number one desire. They want to be able to come to their vacation property and have all of the services at their fingertips. They also want to be able to travel quickly to their home, so that they can board a flight in the early morning and be on the slopes by noon! A premier location also sits right at the top of their list of wants.

TER: For the first time in 2009, luxury fractionals in Pitkin County, Colorado actually surpassed high-end luxury home sales by a 20 percent margin. Are you encouraged by this report?

LL: There is no doubt that fractionals makes great sense for the buyer who can only visit an area a few times a year. It does not tie up so much financially for them. I see the fractional market only continuing to grow in and around the U.S. The Pitkin County numbers do not surprise me, but I am encouraged that more and more people are thinking along these lines when it comes to owning vacation properties.

TER: Where do you see the luxury market in Vail heading in the next 2 years?

LL: We are already seeing an increase in sales in the Vail luxury market. For example, in January of 2010, we have doubled our luxury sales from January 2009 to January 2010. Properties across Vail in the $7 million to $12 million range have sold during the last few months as well. I am not sure Vail will ever see the inflated prices we had a few years ago, but I see the luxury marketing improving year after year by quite a bit.

TER: Are you optimistic about the luxury shared ownership opportunities in Vail?

LL: Yes, the numbers are showing us that there will always be a

market for shared ownership here in Vail.

TER: Tell us a little bit about The Èlan Collection’s shared ownership opportunity at The Arrabelle.

LL: The Arrabelle at Vail Square is nestled at the base of the Vail ski resort and just footsteps from the Eagle Bahn gondola. The Arrabelle itself was inspired by the classic grand alpine hotels of Europe. The Arrabelle offers a variety of services and amenities such as valet parking, ski and boot storage, a beautiful spa and health club, outdoor ice skating rinks, all surrounded by shops and restaurants. Everything is at your fingertips at The Arrabelle. It’s truly a great fractional ownership opportunity starting at $950,000 per share.