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The deep and lasting effects of vacation homes on resort-town finances
An article in the Summit Daily News on May 28, 2006 by Alex Miller discusses the impact of resort-town second-home ownership.
Second-home owners are a huge driving force behind economies of ski resorts and the geographic regions where they're found. Their influence can be seen in local balance sheets. Second-home owners pay property taxes, but don't have kids in schools. They can't vote, but often wish they could. They're anywhere from well-off to fabuously wealthy, and the homes they buy range from humble condos to 15,000 square foot mansions.
According to the Northwest Colorado Council of Governments - a multi-government research and advocacy group - second homes account for 34 percent of all outside dollars coming into the ski areas' local coffers. By comparison, winter visitors account for 28 percent of those outside dollars.
The surge in second-home ownership is directly attributable to the baby boomers reaching their 50's and 60's. And the buying activity has fueled record-breaking real estate sales along the way.
As the social and economic impact of second-home owners have grown over the years, different resort communities have wrestled with the pros and cons of their presence. Perhaps more than anything, the elevation of real estate prices has caused towns to create affordable housing for locals, or at least talk a lot about it.
On the other hand, there's no doubt that second-homes and their owners create jobs. Businesses which cater to the care of these homes and their owners sprout up almost like weeds. Second-home owners expect to pay others to do everything from shovel snow to pull weeds. But the demand for services creates the need for places for the suppliers of services to live, and roads for them to travel on. For example, it is expected that Eagle County will have to import some 30,000 workers daily by 2025. Where to put these workers is the number one concern for governments.
If you want to participate in the real estate boom created by second-home ownership, contact Susan Gunnin by email, or check out her web site.
