Area home sales slip as prices increase
Home sales in central Ohio and elsewhere dropped in June, while competition among buyers escalated.
Columbus-area homes sold at a near-record pace and prices jumped 7.5% from a year ago, illustrating that demand for homes shows no signs of cooling.
The median sales price of a central Ohio home in June was $228,000, up from $212,000 a year ago, according to the Columbus Realtors trade group. Central Ohio home prices are now up 9% through the first six months of the year compared to the same period last year.
During June, 3,228 central Ohio homes changed hands, down from 3,338 last June.
Homes sold after being listed an average of 23 days, tied for the fastest pace recorded by Columbus Realtors.
Not surprisingly, lowerpriced homes sold the fastest.
Homes costing $350,000 or less took an average of 18 days to sell while those $350,000 to $500,000 took about 30 days to sell. Homes costing $500,000 to $700,000 sold in an average of 53 days, and homes over $700,000 took an average of 72 days to sell, according to Columbus Realtors.
“In addition to price, location and condition of the home play a vital role in determining the demand and length of time it will
$15 million in the 17 former Peak properties.
“We are incredibly excited to have the opportunity to add such a powerful network of ski areas to our company,” Rob Katz, chairman and chief executive officer of Vail Resorts, said in a news release.
“With this acquisition, we are also able to make a much stronger connection to guests in critical cities in the Mid-atlantic and Midwest and build on the success we have already seen with our strategy in Chicago, Minneapolis and Detroit. The acquisition fully embodies our philosophy of Epic for Everyone, making skiing and riding more accessible to guests across the U.S. and around the world.”
The deal allows Mad River season pass holders access to other Vail properties, at a premium over current Mad River rates.
Buyers of the annual “Epic Pass” ($939 for adults, $489 for children) will have full access to the 17 former Peak properties plus several Vail properties including Breckenridge, Vail, Beaver Creek, Keystone, Park City and Stowe, in addition to limited access to some Vail partner properties including Rob Katz, chairman and chief executive officer of Vail Resorts
“We are incredibly excited to have the opportunity to add such a powerful network of ski areas to our company.”
Telluride, Sun Valley and Snowbasin.
Buyers of the annual “Epic Local Pass” ($699 for adults, $569 for teens, $369 for children) offers full access to the 17 former Peak properties and several Vail properties including Vail, Keystone and Beaver Creek, and limited access to other Vail properties including Park City and Stowe.
Mad River’s current annual passes, which grant access to all Ohio resorts, are $399 for adults and $329 for children.
Upper Arlington snowboarder Kurtis Roush and his wife, skier Jessica Roush, already signed up for the $699 Epic Local Pass, which allows them to save several hundred dollars off a planned trip to Breckenridge this winter.
“I’m very excited about it,” said Kurtis Roush, 37. “I think a large number of skiers and snowboarders will use Mad River as their winter-long spot, but many of us also plan a trip out West every year.”
Roush said he expects to get annual Epic passes in the future through Vail.
“This is genius for Vail,” he said. “In the past, we’d consider Aspen or other properties, but now we’ll stick with the Epic resorts.”