You have finally decided you want to move to Park City, UT. But how do you decide which home is right for you? After all, there are so many great houses available.

Price:

You can afford to buy the home you love, but are you comfortable with the monthly payments you’ll need to make? Is the down payment within your means? Will you have enough cash to pay transaction costs and moving expenses?

Size and configuration:

Is the house the right size for your needs and does it have the right combination of bedrooms, bathrooms and other living areas? Does the kitchen have enough cupboard and countertop space? Is the garage wide enough and deep enough for your vehicles? Will your piano really fit in that alcove near the staircase?

Comfort:

Does the house have a central heating system? A central air-conditioning system? Are those climate controls important to you? Are the windows large enough and positioned to create cross ventilation? If the house has two stories, are you comfortable with the idea of walking up and down stairs every day? Is there a downstairs bathroom (and bedroom, if needed) for guests who can’t navigate the stairs?

Style:

Do you like the style and design of the house? Is it too modern or traditional? Or is it too rustic?

Features:

Some buyers fall in love with pricey home amenities that seem attractive and desirable at the time, but later prove to be more headache and less pleasure than the buyers anticipated. Do you really want a swimming pool? High-maintenance ornamental trees? Commercial-grade built-in kitchen appliances? Expensive hardwood floors? Some homes are easier to visit than they are to own.

Keep the above in mind and don’t buy that dream house on a whim. Especially in a festive place like Park City, UT, it is easy to get star-struck over the beauty of it all.

You cannot go to Park City without spending much time on Main Street. Back in the late 1860s, Park City, Utah was primarily a mining town.

By 1880, over 10,000 people made Park City their home. However, “the great fire of 1898″ destroyed over 200 homes and businesses. A tragedy, but the town was rebuilt, and many of the buildings now seen on Main Street date from that time.

A stroll down historic Main Street is all it takes to bring back the romance of the Old West.

Today, a visit to Park City’s Main Street is a feast of fantastic restaurants, quaint shops, art galleries, bars and private clubs.

It’s only a short walk to the Park City Mountain Resort. Additional storefronts showcase Park City’s eclectic nature, holding everything from hardware to sportswear, handcrafted furniture to designer boutiques.

Ask any local where the best dining destinations are located and they will tell you Main Street. From casual settings with simple burgers to elegant gourmet full meals, Park City’s restaurants are known worldwide for fine cuisine and outstanding service.

Let’s face it, Park City, UT has so much to offer it’s hard to list them all. The city is one of the top cities to live in the country, and below you will find ten great reasons to buy a home in Park City.

1. Compared to most ski towns such as Jackson Hole, Aspen, Vail & Tahoe, Park City is much more affordable.
2. Park City offers a great mix of both vacation home residences and primary residences.
3. The city is super easy to get to with only a short 30-40 minute drive to the Salt Lake City International Airport.   No other ski town offers this close proximity to an international airport that happens to have numerous non-stop flights from all over the U.S.
4. Three Great Ski Resorts (Deer Valley Resort, Park City Mountain Resort and The Canyons Resort) as well as seven other ski resorts within a one-hour drive.  Deer Valley Resort Rated #1 by Ski Magazine (October 2007).  Park City Mountain Resort  Rated #1 Terrain Park for two years running by Transworld Snowboarding (January 2006).  Canyons Ski Resort is Utah’s largest ski resort.
5. Park City weather is terrific because it has low humidity year round and numerous days of sunshine.
6. Park City offers several public & private golf courses as well as several gated golf communities.
7. The Sundance Film Festival.
8. The Park City indoor ice rink offers ice skating and ice hockey.
9. Great trail system with over 300 miles of improved trails for mountain biking, hiking or horse back riding.
10. Amazing mountains and views.

You are ready to move into a luxury home in Park City and you want to make sure you tell your agent everything. But, is it a good idea to divulge every thought, idea and top price you are willing to pay for your new home?

It’s not that you can’t trust your agent. Top agents have ethics, however, you might want to keep how high you will go a secret. The agent might not even want to know.

Knowing your high price can compromise the objectivity of some agents. You want your agent to have conviction on the lower side of the price tag and not be biased by thinking you can do better or go higher.

Look at it from the other side as well. The listing agent can often wrangle out of buyers’ agents how much higher their buyers will go, or read subtle clues in body language while talking that tell them, “this buyer will go up.”

It is just better to keep this knowledge to yourself, and if a particular home comes along that happens to be on the higher side, and it is the perfect home, then you might still be able to wrestle the price down a bit.

Deep into Silver Springs, at 1414 Meadows Connection, Park City, Utah, is a lovely contemporary home that you could turn into your dream home or vacation home.

The neighborhood is quiet and a great place to raise your children, with a fenced in yard and not far from Parley’s Elementary School.

There are biking and hiking trails nearby and plenty of outdoor activities.  The house itself sits on a .28 acre lot, is a single family residence that boasts a three car garage.

Entering the 4,126 square foot home, you will find the price tag modest for what this house offers. Five bedrooms and three baths, plus one half bath mean lots of room for a big family or guests.

Built in 1982 in the Park City school district, the home also includes a basement, den/office, dining room, family room, fireplace, forced air heat, a laundry room and a walk-in closet.

Outside, besides the fenced yard, you will find a deck/patio, balcony, nice landscaping and beautiful views. Pets are allowed and the community offers recreational facilities and tennis courts.

When buying a home in Park City, UT, it’s a smart idea, as it is anywhere, to be sure you know the real estate agent you are dealing with and be sure they are ethical in their dealings as well as yours with them. Below are a few tips that might come in handy.

Some real estate agents are members of the National Association of Realtors, which does have a code of ethics for their 720,000 members.

An agent or a seller is not obligated to divulge details of competing offers. You can ask for it in a counter-offer, but you may be taking a risk on losing the property altogether.

If you feel you were a victim of fraud, you should consult with an attorney and ask him or her for advice.

Read everything you sign. And get copies.

Remember; Most mortgages don’t allow the borrower to borrow money for the down payment. If you conceal the fact that you are borrowing money for the down payment then you are committing fraud against the lender.

Is the Realtor doing anything illegal? From the lender’s point of view, the borrower is the client, not the Realtor. So, if the Realtor is unethical, it could reflect on the borrower (you).

When people think of Park City, UT, they usually think of the three ski resorts for which the city is so famous. Or they think of the Sundance Film Festival, or even the 2002 Winter Olympics.

But, when folks think about summer, they generally think warm weather and beaches. However, Park City has some fantastic summer activities for everyone.

Do you like to bike ride? Park City offers some of the absolute best in mountain or road biking. The town’s three ski resorts provide lift-served, single and double-track mountain biking during the summer months.

How about an outdoor concert? Park City offers music to suit all listeners in settings ranging from the the Snow Park Lodge Outdoor Amphitheatre at Deer Valley Resort, to the Forum at The Canyons Resort, or a club on Historic Main Street. And don’t forget the annual Park City Jazz Festival.

Don’t forget golf! Park City is famous for its fantastic and beautifully scenic golf courses. A total of 13 golf courses—seven public courses and six private—are located within a 20-mile radius of the town. And the altitude helps the balls fly!

Park City Mountain Resort. The Ziprider is a thrilling ride located on the mountainside that is an exhilarating 60-second ride that suspends you 110 feet off the ground at its highest point and reaches speeds up to 45 mph.

Horseback riding is a must for a summer day. There’s nothing like scenery from the back of a horse. Walk through aspens and pines or gallop through an open field. Several local stables offer horseback guided tours for equestrians of all abilities, while daily to seasonal horse rentals are available for the more experienced riders.