Basalt Real Estate Colorado

Wonderful Properties of Basalt

The following Basalt Colorado real estate is brought to you by your Basalt realty: Basalt Fine Homes.

Our realtors know every crook and cranny of this area and will be thrilled to show you all the available homes in Basalt Colorado.

The charming Victorian mountain town of Basalt, Colorado was founded in the mid 1800's as a railroad stop for the Midland railroad, Basalt has carefully retained its mountain hamlet appearance, character and friendliness.

Restored Victorian brick buildings line the main street and house a wonderful collection of quaint shops, art galleries and charming restaurants.

The junction of the Frying Pan and Roaring Fork Rivers, both internationally acclaimed for fine fly fishing, kayaking and river rafting.

Anglers will rejoice to the trout along the banks of our two gold medal trout streams.

World-class skiing at Aspen Mountain, Snowmass and Buttermilk is just minutes away.

Hunting, hiking, biking, camping and golf are all available.

Nestled between the majestic Sopris and Basalt mountains, 16 miles north of Aspen and 22 miles southeast of Glenwood Springs on Highway 82, cross-coutntry skiing, hiking and mountain biking trails abound through thousands of acres of pristine mountain wilderness.

Ruedi Reservoir offers the most beautiful setting for windsurfing, sailing, and skiing.

The Colorado Midland Railroad, built to carry coal and silver ore between Leadville and Aspen, established the town of Frying Pan Junction in 1887.

Incorporated as Basalt in 1901, the mountain town filled with immigrants from Switzerland and Northern Italy to work for the railroad mines and coal smelters.

With the closing of the mines the railroad rolled up its tracks and the few remaining folks began ranching.

Signs of the great railroad era still remain today in a town now reborn as a vibrant community catering to both tourists and residents in what is fast becoming the heart of the Roaring Fork Valley.

Basalt of today is known as a vacation mecca for families and sports enthusiasts. World-class skiing and cultural opportunities are only minutes away.

Basalt still preserves its original, quaint charm. Whether strolling through its historic downtown or exploring the newly built centers, you will find small fashion boutiques, galleries, and some of the best restaurants in the Roaring Fork Valley.

The Frying Pan River in Basalt offers many different and varied fishing options within a short drive from our store in Basalt.

One can experience everything from small and intimate high-country streams filled with brookies or cutthroats to the huge brawling runs of the lower Colorado and all choices in between.

Call your Basalt realtor today: Basalt Fine Homes -877-855-7913.

Aspen's population has remained relatively steady for more than a decade, but Basalt -- a dozen miles northwest -- has seen its population more than double since 1990. It's on pace to double again by 2010.

"We are seeing an exodus of Aspen's galleries, restaurants, small recreation shops and small businesses coming here to escape the pressure cooker in the ski town," said Fred Durham.

He owns the Town Center Bookstore, which anchors a new commercial project underway along Basalt's turn-of-the-century main street.

It's an increasingly common theme across the Mountain West. Communities that spent decades quietly serving as crash pads for ski-town laborers are erupting into bona fide towns, with vibrant commercial centers, thriving villages and year- round economies.

Populations are climbing. Homes are sprouting. Shops are bustling. Second- homeowners are following the locals, buying vacation homes along sunny down-valley golf courses. Meanwhile, ski towns are left wondering how they lost their cachet and, more importantly, how they can get it back.

Basalt is emerging as the community imagined by Aspen's founders and leaders. They have spent close to 60 years carefully sculpting a communal vibrancy that, in the past decade, has been eclipsed by Aspen's astronomical rent and home prices.

"There's no question the down-valley towns are attracting the eye of the original resorts that spawned them," said Ford Frick, a resort analyst with BBC Research & Consulting in Denver.

"It's kind of like watching your kids grow up. All of a sudden they are 3 inches taller than you, and you ask, 'Hey, what happened here?' (These towns) often have more space, fewer regulatory limitations and are more flexible and accommodating to growth."

The flourishing down-valley vibe coincides with a host of problems in ski-resort towns. Deep-pocketed second-home owners have emerged as the economic force in ski towns, and they have chased away the less affluent locals.

Communities enjoying unprecedented growth include Edwards and Eagle near Vail; Driggs and Victor, Idaho, near Jackson, Wyo.; Hailey, Idaho, near Sun Valley; Truckee, Calif., near Lake Tahoe; Granby, north of Winter Park; and Basalt and Carbondale, near Aspen. They are rife with recreational amenities. They are roomier, sunnier and less expensive than their up-valley ski-resort neighbors.

Basalt was born in the late 1800s as a railroad town, crowded with Swiss and Italian immigrants who worked for nearby silver mines and coal smelters. When the mines closed, those who remained turned to ranching. Today the town is reinventing itself as a destination community able to stand on its own.

Midway between the Gucci store in Aspen and the Wal-Mart in Glenwood Springs along a newly expanded highway, Basalt now offers two top-tier fishing rivers and miles of trails a short drive from the ski slopes.

"I don't want to be in Aspen anymore," says Sonya Taylor, a former Aspen resident who recently opened a children's art center called the Yellow Canary in downtown Basalt. Her studio could not survive in Aspen's high-rent commercial core.

"This is a real town. It's a locals' town. It's laid-back. It's what Aspen wants to be," Taylor said.

Instead of cramped century- old homes or crowded condos, Basalt residents can choose from funky farmhouses, creekside cabins and a 10-city-block New Urbanist community just west of town.

"Yeah, Aspen is great, but there's a better quality of life here," said Jacy Allen, who moved from a fun-focused life in Aspen several years ago when her son was born.

She lives with her husband and son in Willits, the new urban dream of Aspen architect- turned-developer Michael Lipkin. He spent 23 years in Aspen before buying three ranches near unincorporated El Jebel. In the past five years he has developed the parcel into an affordable mix of retail, office and residential space.

When finished in 2010, Willits will add 2,400 residents, nearly doubling Basalt's population. A 600,000-square-foot town center, with lofts above offices and retail space, will anchor the community of single-family homes, condos and townhomes.

Lipkin describes the town as what Aspen would be if it had never been discovered by people who pay $3 million for a home they intend to tear down.

"It's unimaginable how rich you have to be to live in Aspen now," he said. "It's crazy. I saw a need for a community for the rest of us, the working people. It has turned out to be more popular than I expected."

Before he broke ground this spring, Lipkin sold 38 of 44 planned lofts with prices ranging from $250,000 to more than $700,000. Condos sold out five years ago for more than $220,000 each, townhomes sell for as much as $500,000, and single-family homes fetch $700,000 or more. Since Lipkin began building in 2000, prices for everything have more than doubled.

"Everyone I know lives down here now," said local Realtor Wendy Lucas. "There's no question we will hit the $1 million mark for condos."

But if, in fact, Basalt is the "New Aspen," then what happens in 10 or 20 years when Basalt's home prices reach $4 million? Residents hope they can avoid Aspen's mistakes.

"Truthfully, it's looking kind of bleak for the workingman in Basalt right now," said Tom Newland, a longtime local. The home he bought in 1982 for $98,000 is now worth nearly $1 million.

Newland hopes his hometown can avoid the fate of the ritzy burg up the road. He's helping by building trails and creating more reasons for the recreationally minded to come.

Another lesson his town can learn, he said, is to plan for the second-home owners who undoubtedly will arrive. Such a move is underway at the elite Roaring Fork Club, a golf- and-fishing private playground for wealthy members.

"Aspen didn't build any neighborhoods for the second-home owners, and the west end of town was taken over by people who scraped off the old houses and built new ones they live in maybe a few weeks a year," he says.

BASALT VS. ASPEN:

Basalt, Eagle County

1990 population: 1,359

2000: 2,681

2003: 2,989

2000 median household income: $67,200

2000 median sales price for home: $482,500

2003 median sales price for home: $510,000

Aspen, Pitkin County

1990 population: 5,049

2000: 5,914

2003: 6,455

2000 Median household income: $53,750

2000 median sales price for home: $3.35 million

2003 median sales price for home: $3.18 million

Golf in Basalt

ROARING FORK CLUB - Private (18R, 6,018-7,016 yards), (970) 927-9100, 100 Arbaney Ranch Road, Basalt, CO 81615. Greens fee: NA. Pro: Gary Nutt. Architect: Jack Nicklaus. Directions: One mile east of Basalt on Hwy. 82.

The 18-hole "Roaring Fork 1" course at the The Roaring Fork Club facility in Basalt, Colorado features 7,130 yards of golf from the longest tees for a par of 72. The course rating is 72.8 and it has a slope rating of 138.  Designed by Jack Nicklaus, ASGCA, the Roaring Fork 1 golf course opened in 1999. 

Basalt Real Estate

Snowmass & Basalt are home to some of the finest resort-living in Colorado.

 Snowmass Village is a thriving community at over 8,100 feet above sea level and is set within the millions of acres that make up the Maroon Bells-Snowmass Wilderness Area and the West Elk Mountain Range.

It is located in Pitkin County, which is also home to Aspen, and boasts true ski-in, ski-out lodging accommodations, skiing, snowboarding, and snowshoeing conveniently located right outside your door.

Lodging ranges from quaint to full-service hotels, family condominiums and luxury condominiums as well as gorgeous slope side vacation home rentals.

A great Snowmass Village tradition is the annual Snowmass Mardi Gras Festival held in late February.

 Basalt, Colorado is a charming mountain area known as Colorado's town for fishing, hiking and skiing.

Centered at the heart of the Roaring Fork Valley, this picturesque community of about 3,000 is nestled between the magnificent Mt. Sopris and Basalt Mountain in Eagle County.

These mountain communities are vacation dream destinations for families and sports enthusiasts from around the world.

In the heart of all the attractions, these historic towns still preserve their original charm.

Nearby, in Basalt, Old Snowmass, and Snowmass Village, you will find fashion boutiques, galleries and great restaurants.

Naturally, the skiing in this part of the state is literally some of the best in North America and during winter there is always plenty to do while surrounded with beautiful panoramic views.

However, there is no shortage of great activities in the summer and both communities are great places to live year-round.

Each town comes together to celebrate community events, including the annual Basalt River Days and the Chili Pepper and Brew Fest featured by Snowmass Village every summer.

Basalt and Snowmass are located 23 and 40 miles, respectively from Interstate 70, providing you easy access to Denver and the rest of Colorado.

Basalt real estate consists of single-family detached homes and condominiums.