Michael Klein hadn't intended to sell the recently constructed Aspen house he had invested in. As a property developer specializing in high-end real estate, he was earning over $300,000 per month from the spacious 9,000-square-foot home, making him inclined to keep it in his portfolio. However, a phone call, now common among property owners in the affluent mountain community, changed his mind: an offer had come in.
For Klein, the offer was compelling enough: $60 million. “It was an intriguing proposition, so I decided to sell,” remarked Klein, whose company, Michael Bennett Homes, had constructed the house on a plot acquired for $2.85 million in 2014. The buyer, revealed through insider information, was fellow developer Carl Panattoni of Panattoni Development.
Klein is just one of the many property owners capitalizing on Aspen's unprecedented surge in property prices. Since 2020, the number of home sales in the Aspen area exceeding $30 million has skyrocketed, leaping from two in 2020 to 17 the following year, as per a property records analysis conducted by The Wall Street Journal.
While affluent homebuyers began flocking to Aspen during the Covid-19 pandemic, a series of groundbreaking transactions underscore how rapidly property values have escalated. Moreover, in an area with limited available properties and stringent building regulations, prices for newly constructed, expansive homes continue to rise.
Michael Klein’s roughly 9,000-square-foot house recently sold in an off-market deal for $60 million. VIDEO: LEGENDARY PRODUCTIONS
Aspen's allure extends far beyond its renowned skiing and picturesque mountains. Locals assert that its vibrant restaurant and retail scene has transformed the area into a year-round destination with a unique charm that is hard to replicate," noted Klein.
The real estate market in Aspen, already relatively small, experienced further constraints in 2022 due to a construction moratorium imposed by the city, leading to a scarcity of available properties, real estate agents reported. Currently, Pitkin County officials are contemplating a proposal to decrease the maximum allowable square footage for construction from 15,000 to 9,250 or even smaller. This shift has driven up prices for existing large homes, as buyers rush to acquire properties they might not have the opportunity to build in the future, explained Riley Warwick, an agent from Douglas Elliman.
This situation has firmly placed sellers in the driver's seat, as observed by Tim Estin from Aspen Snowmass Sotheby’s International Realty, who closely monitors the market.
This situation has firmly placed sellers in the driver's seat, as observed by Tim Estin from Aspen Snowmass Sotheby’s International Realty, who closely monitors the market.
Current Listing: 901 UTE AVENUE, ASPEN, CO 81611 $150,000/mo. - click to viewAccording to Estin, over half of transactions exceeding $20 million are taking place off-market. Some agents argue that this trend tends to inflate prices even further. Carrie Wells from Coldwell Banker Mason Morse noted, 'Often, when something is not officially for sale, we witness higher prices because people are reluctant to part with what they already have.'
One of the most prominent property flips in the Aspen area in recent years involved fashion designer Tommy Hilfiger. He sold a slopeside home for $50 million in 2022, just three months after acquiring the house for $31 million.
One of the most prominent property flips in the Aspen area in recent years involved fashion designer Tommy Hilfiger. He sold a slopeside home for $50 million in 2022, just three months after acquiring the house for $31 million.
In a recent off-market transaction, designer Holly Hunt sold a sprawling 13,000-square-foot mansion for $70 million to an undisclosed buyer. Hunt had purchased the land in 2015 for $5.85 million and invested several years and significant resources into the design and construction of the luxurious home.
Determining the exact profit that Aspen sellers are making proves challenging. Constructing luxury homes in Aspen is a time-consuming and costly endeavor, with locals emphasizing the unique challenges posed by building regulations, diverse terrain, and the complexities of transporting goods and labor in and out of the mountainous region.
Architect Earl Anderson revealed that the construction costs in Aspen typically range from $1,500 to $3,000 per square foot and beyond. For a 5,500-square-foot house built at the average rate of $2,250 per square foot, the total expenditure would amount to $12.375 million. These figures underscore the substantial investments required to create high-end residences in Aspen's exclusive real estate market.
Nevertheless, the underlying market conditions remain robust enough to inspire repeat investments from certain individuals, such as Texas oil heiress Christy Thompson and her husband, Stephen Hill, who have engaged in multiple swift buying and selling transactions within the region.
The couple recently completed the sale of a 15,000-square-foot mansion for $63.75 million to Jeff Vinik, owner of the Tampa Bay Lightning, and his wife, Penny Vinik, after acquiring it for $51 million just the previous year. In another noteworthy transaction in 2022, they sold a property at the base of Aspen Mountain for $60 million, a deal that involved an unconventional exchange of $22 million plus a Florida house.
The couple recently completed the sale of a 15,000-square-foot mansion for $63.75 million to Jeff Vinik, owner of the Tampa Bay Lightning, and his wife, Penny Vinik, after acquiring it for $51 million just the previous year. In another noteworthy transaction in 2022, they sold a property at the base of Aspen Mountain for $60 million, a deal that involved an unconventional exchange of $22 million plus a Florida house.
Although the pace of ultra-luxury sales in Aspen has moderated slightly since the previous year, there are still significantly more high-value transactions than pre-pandemic times. In the current year, there have been eight deals exceeding $30 million. Sellers, undeterred, continue to list their properties at staggering prices. In August, car dealership owner Terry Taylor listed an 8.4-acre compound just outside downtown Aspen for a jaw-dropping $105 million. He had acquired the property for $32 million in 2020, according to records. Additionally, this month, investors Todd Lemkin and Kasey Lemkin placed a mansion near downtown Aspen on the market for $70 million, approximately a year after purchasing it for $60 million in a private, off-market transaction.
