VAIL — Well-heeled renters in the Vail Valley are sitting pretty in multimillion-dollar homes as the slow economy works to their advantage.
Sellers of luxury homes who were previously reluctant to become landlords are doing just that as their homes linger on the market.
“At least they’re paying the utilities and part of the mortgage,” said Michelle Steedley, who recently found renters for the home she and her husband, Josh, own in the Vail Valley neighborhood. “It just made more financial sense to do that.”
The Steedley house is listed for $1.19 million. The couple moved to Tennessee, and their house has now been on the market for a year.
Michele Garner, a property manager and owner of Reach Destinations, sees the shift firsthand. She is looking for a renter for a client who listed a Vail golf course home for $8 million before taking it off the market for the winter. The home is expected to be relisted for $6 million.
“(Before), they said, ‘We don’t want a renter’ and they don’t need to worry about it. Now, they’re thinking, ‘Why not?’ It’s just going to sit vacant now,” Garner said.
Luxury rentals in the Vail Valley can go for $10,000 to $15,000 per month, though the rate could drop as more properties go up for rent.
Kyle Webb, owner of KH Webb Architects, found a renter for his former home in Singletree after he bought a new house. Webb’s Realtor, Tracy Bossow, suggested he rent his home out during the winter months, since sales drop off drastically in the winter in Singletree. Located on the north side of Interstate 70 about 3 miles west of Beaver Creek Resort, Singletree is seen as a summer golf-course community.
“Because so many people can’t get mortgages right now, the rental market is increasing,” Webb said. “The way things are, people will do whatever they can to make things work, (so) it’s working well.”
The strong rental market is a bright light in the current economic downturn, Webb said.
“I think it’s a positive spin on the whole situation. The rental market is upbeat, and there’s a lot more opportunity,” Webb said.
Bossow said that she has approached other sellers who own second homes and that many have agreed to allow renters. Some property managers have seen similar patterns, including Steve Stafford at Slifer Management Co.
“Some of these owners probably won’t have considered it before, but because they’re not in town now, they just consider it to be a little debt servicing,” Bossow said. “We’re helping the sellers out and providing more housing. It’s been a win-win for everybody all around.”
Others say they haven’t seen any change in the number of rentals in high-end homes, including Catherine Jones Coburn, a Realtor in the Slifer Smith & Frampton Bachelor Gulch sales office.
The number of high-end homes on the market may be rising slightly, however, she said, although it’s still just 10 percent of the total. Homes for sale currently range from $8 million or so to about $12 million in Bachelor Gulch and Beaver Creek, she said.
“More houses are coming on the market, and most of them are second-home owners,” Jones Coburn said. “Because of the market, people are trying to be more liquid.”
