If you are moving or planning to move to Park City Utah then you should become familiar with the following people and organizations:

Rock Mountain Power - Provides electricity to the area. 801-237-2293 or toll free 1-888-221-7070.

Questar - Natural gas provider. 435-654-3600 or 435-649-0670.

QWest - Telephone service. 800-244-1111 for residence and 800-603-6000   for businesses.

Park City School District - 435-645-5600.

Schools in the area include McPolin Elementary, Jeremy Ranch Elementary, Parley’s Park Elementary, Trailside Elementary, Ecker Hill Middle School, Treasure Mountain Middle School and Park City High School.

Park City Library - 435-615-5600.

Park City Transit - Offers a free bus system. 435-615-5350

Police Department - 435-615-5505.

Park City Chamber of Commerce/Convention and Visitors Bureau - 435-649-6100 or 800-453-1360.

Park City Medical Center - The local hospital. 435-658-7000.

Park City Utah is a community like any other community. We have a full range of community services and public service agencies and government offices. You’ll like living here as much as we do.

How many communities can you say have a signature drink? Well, Park City held a contest and a local bartender won. The 2009 winner of the Park City signature drink contest was Deer Valley St. Germain Elderflower Cocktail by Bonnie Ulmer.

Just in case you’re wondering how to make the Park City drink, here’s the recipe:

• 3oz Prosecco (Italian Sparkling Wine)
• 1 ½ oz St. Germain Elderflower Liquor
• 1 ½ oz Sparkling Water
• Garnish with a sprig of mint and lemon zest

Fill a tall skinny glass with ice and pour the Prosecco, the liquor and the sparkling water in. Stir. Serve with mint and lemon zest. Simple, right?

This is the kind of fun you can have in Park City. Not only can you enter the signature drink contests every year, but you can drink them on a regular basis and you can start a bar or hot night spot that serves great drinks of its own. Park City is a truly a diverse and cultural town. We think you’ll like living here.

As real estate agents, we devote extra attention to issues facing struggling homeowners. But any homeowner should know that the FBI has reported a 400 percent increase in mortgage fraud cases from five years ago. Sadly, some people are preying on those who need help the most.

If you or anyone you know is going through a mortgage-related transaction, there are some “red flags” to be aware of. We created a report on my website that gives examples of what fraud cases the FBI has been noticing.

Please send anyone here who needs this free information:

http://www.avoidforeclosuresinparkcity.com/

If you have any questions about mortgage scams, or if anyone you know needs legitimate, professional help with avoiding foreclosure, please don’t hesitate to contact us.

We’re here to help.

Jim & Billie Harsch

Mountain Town Realty Group

435-615-6637

One of the most important aspects to purchasing a home in any market is the negotiating process. That’s just as true in Park City Utah. Since this is a luxury home market and many home owners in Park City are on their second or third home - and even those who are not recognize that owning a home in Park City is a privilege - negotiating takes on a different flavor than it does in most other home buying markets.

Price is still important, of course. But price may not be the most important factor in your Park City home purchase. When you start talking about half million dollar homes, ten thousand dollars in price is not a huge selling factor. That’s especially true in financing terms.

That’s why many home buyers in the Park City market turn to other details for negotiating a successful close. Added amenities, completion of necessary repairs and other home owner perks like payment of the first year’s home ownership association dues are some of the terms that buyers have requested of sellers in order to close on a Park City home. It makes sense. A luxury home with a swimming pool and no hot tub is nice, but it’s not super nice. and the cost of a hot tub is not so great that a seller will balk if it means selling the home. The same is true of HOA dues - the seller has been paying them all along any way, so what’s one more year?

Negotiating terms is not all about price, even in Park City.

Luxury may be more attractive in sound economic times, but haven’t you heard? - the economy is improving. Even if you’re skeptical, luxury homes are as attractive today as they ever were. And you can sell your Park City luxury home fast in any market if you keep a few standard principles in mind.

1. Maximize your curb appeal - It doesn’t mater what the home looks like on the inside if no one wants to get past the curb. Make it attractive from viewing through a car window in the street because that will be the first impression that everyone has of your home and you don’t want them just driving by.
2. Don’t price it too high - People expect to pay for luxury, but no one wants to pay too much. If you price your home too high then you will scare buyers away before they even pick up the phone. Some people won’t even drive by if they perceive that you have priced your home out of the market.
3. Don’t price it too low - As contrary as it may seem, you can also price your home too low. If you are considerably lower than market then you are essentially telling buyers that something is wrong with your home - something they’ll need to fix. Some buyers will not even talk to you because the perception is they’ll have to put sweat equity into owning their Park City home. If nothing is wrong with your home then don’t price it too low.
4. Hold an open house - Draw in potential buyers with an open house. It works to get people to a viewing then begin negotiations.
5. Focus on the kitchen and bathroom - Even in a luxury home, you’ll sell your house quicker if you make your kitchen and bathroom more attractive. Women home buyers will spend a lot of time in the kitchen. Even if they only spend a part of the year in the home, a lot of that time will be spent in the kitchen so make it appealing.
6. Spruce up your back yard - While the kitchen will get a lot of use, the back yard will too in the summer time. Even in Park City Utah back yard barbecues are fun and you can expect the back yard to be used. Make it look “homey”.

Never underestimate the power of a luxury home in any market. You can sell your luxury home in Park City fast if you stick to the basic principles.

Visitors to Park City Utah rave about our restaurants. Modestly speaking, we do have some of the best restaurants in the world. Several world class chefs live and work here and if you enjoy dining out then Park City is the place to be.

Most people take for granted the restaurants in their town. You go out to eat and pick your favorite but you likely don’t stop to think about all the people and all the activity that goes into the preparation of your meal. In Park City, we hope that won’t happen. The restaurants here are divinely fabulous and while you may have your favorites, we doubt that you’ll take them for granted.

Here are a few of the restaurants in Park City that many people, visitors and residents alike, pick as their favorites:

• Flying Sumo - This restaurant features a sushi bar and rustic Asian decor. If you don’t like sushi, there are other Japanese and Asian alternatives.
• Reef’s Kitchen - If you like hummus you’ll love Reef’s. The menu consists of European-style dishes and cuisine from Lebanon, Syria, Morocco and Israel. A truly beautiful place.
• El Chubasco - Mexican food never tasted better. And it’s not that bad eating at the mall.
• Blind Dog Grill - The first restaurant named for a blind dog. You’ll love the Alaskan hallibut wrapped in prosciutto. And there are other seafood treats as well, but if seafood isn’t your thing then feast on the crabcakes. Yum yum.

These are just a few of the best restaurants we have here in Park City. If you lived here then you could enjoy them any time you want. But don’t let me persuade you. Just call a Park City real estate agent and set up a showing.

We recently went through the following exercise, only to find out that it is a real estate scam that is going around the internet.

Mr. Ming Xing, allegedly the Chief Financial Officer of the Hangzhou Iron & Steel Group Company, (Bogus name, Valid company and Website), contacted us through our website searching for a home in Park City. He requested some selections up to $1.2M.  We were suspicious, however, we sent him 10 listings meeting his criteria and he chose one. He indicated that he wanted us to write an offer and he would be in town in 4 weeks to review, but in the meantime his stockbroker would send a deposit check to our lawyer.  We responded that he could send it to our title company, InWest Title Services. We also outlined the purchase process and we even obtained a signed Buyer Agency Agreement. We proceeded with the offer and even got to an accepted offer by Addendum Two, and in every request, received a prompt response and signed documents. At each step I did advise the Owner/Agent of the property that this could be a scam and it might not work, however, we both decided to proceed.  The “check” arrived at the title company from his “stockbroker” in California via UPS within a week of our initial contact.  The “check” was for considerably more than the requested Earnest Money amount and we were directed that the excess should be held until his arrival for the purchase of furniture and other items and that his relocation manager would be contacting us. Needless to say the “check” did not clear and the title company informed us that there was another agent in the Salt Lake Valley, that had done the same thing, and received a check for the same amount and that it was a scam that was going around the country.

Fortunately, we were only out some time and expectation, but had we done completely as requested, it certainly could have cost us a substantial amount of money.  We wanted to provide this warning to real estate agents, and if you have any questions, please contact Jim and Billie Harsch with Mountain Town Realty Group at http://www.unlockparkcity.com