Buyer's Guide

OWNING REAL ESTATE IN THE MOUNTAINS

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Owning real estate in Grand County and the Vail Valley lets you be a part of the Colorado lifestyle! Enjoy world-class skiing, mountain biking, golfing, and fishing. We are blessed with the natural beauty of the Rocky Mountains, it’s rugged peaks, high mountain lakes and lush river valleys.

I fell in love with Grand County many years ago. Combining this passion with my expertise of the ever-changing real estate market, results in a smooth and informed transaction intended to exceed your expectation in every regard. I specialize in buying and selling homes, condos and vacant land in Vail, Avon Vail, Avon, Edwards, Eagle, Gypsum, Winter Park, the Fraser Valley, Granby, Grand Lake and Hot Sulphur Springs.

I will work to find you the place of your dreams where you will gather with your family and friends for years to come. Let me use my knowledge of the area, experience within the market, honesty, and professionalism to help find a piece of the Vail Valley or Grand County to call your own. Your satisfaction and positive experience is my goal.

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Constant Communication

From the first time we meet until well after the closing, I communicate with you as often as you like, by whatever means you prefer. Do you want updates once a week, or just once a month? Do you want to hear from me by phone, e-mail, or text? I will keep you in the loop, every step of the way. 

Types of Properties in the Mountains

Vail Valley and Grand County are known for its diversity of communities – Vail, Avon/Vail, Avon, Edwards, Eagle, Gypsum, Winter Park, Fraser, Tabernash, Granby Ranch, Granby, Grand Lake, and Hot Sulphur Springs – and within each of those communities, there’s a variety of properties.

Roll out of bed, put your boots on, and walk to the ski lift for first tracks…That’s the lure of ski-in and ski-out property. If you have young children, this type of home becomes even more appealing. .

Condos in Vail, Avon/Vail, Avon, Edwards, Eagle, Gypsum, Winter Park, Fraser, Granby Ranch, Granby, Grand Lake, and other parts of Vail and Grand County make great vacation homes or second homes, because they’re low-maintenance and can generate nightly rental income. Many also have amenities, including hot tubs, pools, and recreation centers. If you’re looking for a condominium, it’s important to check out the monthly maintenance fee and the financial health, legal structure, and responsiveness of the homeowner’s association.

Townhomes in Vail, Avon Vail, Avon, Edwards, Eagle, Gypsum, Winter Park, Fraser, Granby Ranch, Granby, Grand Lake often include attached garages, and typically, no one is above you or below you. A common floor plan includes a garage and/or bedrooms on the ground floor, kitchen, living room, and dining room and/or a bedroom and bath on the second floor, and additional bedrooms on the third floor. Many town home projects have been completed in Winter Park, Fraser, Granby Ranch, and Granby in recent years, and they offer the latest in home decoration and amenities.

Duplexes and triplexes are available throughout Vail Valley and Grand County, ranging in size from cozy to colossal. In a typical duplex or triplex situation, you’ll own a portion of the building and share maintenance and responsibilities with another owner(s) through a party-wall legal agreement.

Single-family homes, ranging from modest to luxury, are spread throughout Vail Valley and Grand County. Typical lot sizes range from fractions of acres (in the towns of Winter Park and Fraser), to 2 acres, 35 acres, even ranch-size spreads closer to Granby, Grand Lake, Parshall and Hot Sulphur Springs. Most of the homes were built one at a time, but in recent years, the developments of Rendezvous, Grand Park, Grand Elk, and Granby Ranch have offered popular models of single-family homes clustered close together.

Vacant land can be purchased in Grand County for as little as $50,000, or you can splurge into the millions in the Vail Valley. Factors to consider when purchasing vacant land include accessibility, year-round maintenance of roads, utilities, water and septic, forest health, and more. This can be one of the trickiest types of property to purchase, and we’d be happy to help you make a wise decision.

Quarter-share properties are a way for you to enjoy a higher end property at a fraction of the full ownership cost. This is basically how they work… An investor purchases the entire property. They furnish and decorate, to the last detail such as silverware, art, linens, small appliances and electronics. Everything you would need to use or rent the property. Bylaws, owner rules and regulations, for the future shared ownership are then set up. Rules usually say each owner gets to use the property every fourth week, with a rotation at the end of the year so that every owner gets the Christmas week every four years. Depending on the buyers and if the property is already a quarter-share and being resold, or if it is a new quarter-share, rules may or may not be negotiable. If it is an existing quarter-share, with 3 other owners, these owners have already agreed upon the basics, such as no smoking and pets or no pets allowed. You would want to review these documents closely and possibly speak with the other owners to see if this would be a good fit.

A Step-by-Step First Time Buyer's Guide

Buying a home is one of the most exciting milestones of your life. To prepare yourself for this moment, you need to know what to expect during the process. This step-by-step first time buyer’s guide created by your agent will help reduce the stress of buying a home and help you enjoy the journey as much as possible.

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Step 1: Research

Do you already know where you want to buy? If you want a condo, townhome, or single-family home? Which features do you like and dislike? What’s available on the market now? If you answered no to any of these questions, now is the time to start researching. In addition to looking for homes that interest you, also take note of any changes in asking prices. This could give you valuable insight into housing trends in specific neighborhoods and help you when the time comes to make an offer.

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Step 2: Decide on Your Budget

Notice we said to decide on your budget—not determine how much the mortgage company will give you. In many cases, a mortgage company will pre-approve you for more than you’re comfortable spending, which is why you need to determine the monthly payment you feel comfortable with before talking to a lender. This likely includes doing a full household budget and taking into consideration what changes other than a mortgage payment will occur once you move into your new home. If you’ve lived in an apartment or with roommates, you may overlook new expenses like garbage, water, or HOA fees that could easily blow your budget.

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Step 3: Get Prequalified

Just because you think you can afford a certain payment every month doesn’t mean the mortgage company will agree. Just as they may approve you for too large of an amount, they may also approve you for a lesser amount or deny you a mortgage altogether. Lack of time at a job, insufficient credit, past bankruptcies, or other financial issues can cause major problems when trying to secure a mortgage. Before you get your heart set on a property, talk to a mortgage professional to find out what amount you can qualify for. This will also be an advantage when you make an offer on a home, as some sellers won’t entertain offers from those who aren’t already prequalified for a loan.

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Step 4: Choose a Real Estate Agent

Can you shop for, look at, and ultimately make an offer on a home without a real estate agent? Technically yes, but why would you when it costs you nothing for an agent to take much of the stress off your shoulders? Not only will I help identify properties you might be interested in, arrange showings, and ultimately handle the offer process, but I also have a knowledge of the market that you don’t possess. I may be able to steer you away from certain homes or neighborhoods, suggest hidden gems, or give you pointers that will help you find your dream home for the right price.

My goal is to provide you with the most personalized service that is designed to help you buy your MOUNTAIN PROPERTY.

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Step 5: Find the Right Home

This should be the most enjoyable step of the entire process (other than moving in!). I will arrange showings of homes you’re interested in that are within your price range. Take notes about what you like and don’t like, and make sure to pay attention to details. Turn light switches on and off, open and close doors, and run the faucets in various rooms. Don’t limit your inspection to the home itself. Make sure to take time to explore the neighborhood and keep an eye on traffic at certain times of the day, the parking situation, and how close it is to necessities like schools and grocery stores.

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Step 6: Make an Offer

Once you have selected the perfect home, work with your agent to craft a fair offer based on the value of comparable homes on the market. Depending on what the home is listed at and whether the current environment is a buyer’s or seller’s market, your offer may be below, at, or even above the asking price. Your agent will be able to help you negotiate if you receive a counteroffer and reach an agreement. At this point, the property will go under contract.

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Step 7: Have the Home Inspected

In most cases, your offer will be contingent on having the home inspected to ensure there is no major structural damage or large repairs needed. I can help you arrange this, and you can schedule it within days of making an offer. If there are no major issues, the process goes to step eight. If there is, you can renegotiate your offer based on what needs to be fixed, or you can withdraw it.

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Step 8: Select Your Loan

Now is the time to go back to the mortgage lender who pre-approved or pre-qualified you and choose your mortgage. You will be presented with various options based on your unique financial situation, including fixed-rate, variable-rate, 15-year, 30-year, or special programs such as VA loans or FHA loans. Work with your mortgage lender to select the option you feel the most comfortable with.

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Step 9: Get a Home Appraisal

Your lender will have your new home appraised so they have their independent value of it. The appraisal is to ensure that all parties involved are paying a fair price for the house.

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Step 10: Finish Paperwork

No one looks forward to all the paperwork involved in buying a home, but it’s a necessary part of the process. Fortunately, everything will be arranged by your lender and title company and, when you’re finished, you’ll know you are the legal owner of your new home.

Congratulations!

After signing the final paperwork to complete the purchase, you are now the owner of a new mountain property. It may take a few days for your loan to be funded once the paperwork has been returned to the lender, but once that check is delivered to the seller, you’ll be all set to take possession of your mountain property

Testimonials

Melinda B.

Melinda B.

The Grand Mountain Group was a pleasure to work with, they truly are a great team. Amanda and Carol really made purchasing a property fun! The team was knowledgeable about the real estate and rental market in Winter Park, CO. ...
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MARLENE & KIM

MARLENE & KIM

Was a pleasure working with the Mara, Carol and Amanda. It is a top-notch team. They respond quickly to all your questions and are there to help and make this a very easy thing. We bought the house almost 10 years ago and at th...
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WALLY J.

WALLY J.

Outstanding Experience. The Berkshire Hathaway Home Services Colorado Real Estate team made buying a home in Colorado a painless experience. Mara, Brenda and Carol worked seamlessly together. This was our first experience with ...
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LINDSAY M.

LINDSAY M.

I’m a real estate professional in Denver and highly recommend Mara, Brenda and Carol. When my husband and I purchased a home in Tabernash five years ago, Grand Mountain Group was the listing agent. I represented us on the buy s...
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BUYER & SELLER

BUYER & SELLER

We have worked this group for many years. They are extremely professional and know the area inside and out. As our wants and needs changed throughout our years of looking for the right place, we could always count on them to gi...
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SCOTT & KAREN

SCOTT & KAREN

Mara, Carol and Amanda were great through the process of selling our property in Fraser. We had originally thought we were going to have to include some major renovations on the property. They came in and gave us an honest asse...
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TAMMIE V.

TAMMIE V.

Mara and the Grand Mountain Group were great. I was referred to her back in June 2020. She showed me a number of properties, was well prepared with the printouts and knowledge of the locations we were seeing each day. I ended u...
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ELAINE M.

ELAINE M.

Our experience with the Grand Mountain Team was superb. The whole process was very professional and easy to navigate. We appreciated the friendly, responsive guidance and help from the team whenever we had questions or needed m...
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MARTY B.

MARTY B.

Mara, Carol, and Brenda at Berkshire Hathaway Home Services Colorado Real Estate provided great assistance and advice while helping us find a property in Fraser. These ladies know their stuff. It took months and many showings b...
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BUYER

BUYER

Mara, Brenda, Carol and the whole team were great. They helped me find a place in under two months. All three were a delight to work with and they worked to meet my schedule for days and times that I wanted to see properties. D...
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KATIE P. B.

KATIE P. B.

We were thrilled with the service we received from Berkshire Hathaway Home Services Colorado Real Estate: Grand Mountain Group. Brenda was our lead agent on a commercial project and she did a great job protecting our interests....
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BUYER

BUYER

We were referred to Mara, Amanda and Carol by a friend, and are so glad we had the opportunity to work with them. From the initial inquiry through securing our property, they were incredibly helpful. We appreciated their dilige...
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DEBBIE B.

DEBBIE B.

Great experience with this team. They closed my sale in 3 weeks, with no issues. I never had to wait more than 30 minutes for an email response to all and any questions I had. Helped immensely with communication between buyer a...
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PATTIE K.

PATTIE K.

I have known Mara and Carol for over 20 years and knew they would be the best team in the Winterpark area to sell my property. Their knowledge of the market, responsiveness and constant communication led to the quick, smooth an...
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ADAM S.

ADAM S.

This was my first time working with a team of agents. I'm not sure I'll ever go back. They worked seamlessly together, and one of them was always available to answer questions or schedule showings. The whole team is well respec...
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CHRIS B.

CHRIS B.

I’ve completed 3 transactions with Grand Mountain Group and I’ve always been pleased with their capability, professionalism and ease to work with. I would recommend them for buying or selling your home.
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KRISTIN L.

KRISTIN L.

They are extremely hard-working, know the area inside and out, are beyond responsive and provided expertise to all of our questions. They exceeded our expectations. And we are very happy with the end result.
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JENNIFER C.

JENNIFER C.

This was our fourth time to use them (2 as buyers and 2 as sellers). We have been so delighted using them. They are extremely knowledgable about the area and easy to work with. Very professional.
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PATSY J.

PATSY J.

Mara, Carol and Heather were all very helpful and responsive. They answered our questions promptly and were very flexible in accommodating our schedules. They were just a pleasure to work with.
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WALKER J.

WALKER J.

We have been working with this team for years through a couple of transactions. They are professional, responsive, knowledgeable and awesome to work with.
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Work With Me

Carol Underwood with Grand Mountain Group is proud to be part of Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices Colorado. My experience, innovation, and passion allows me serve clients skillfully, market homes effectively and seamlessly close transactions.

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