Although CNNMoney.com is reporting continuing hardship within the job sector in America, concerning both wages and job availability, the economy in Snowmass Village is continuing to improve. This can be seen first and foremost in the three closings on homes in Snowmass Village’s Base Village just in the month of June, but also in the three more residences set to close later this month.

The foreclosure of Base Village and the subsequent lawsuits have hung over the Base Village properties for at least two years, tying up the unsold properties and making them unavailable for sale. However, finally free of legal red tape, due to recent court rulings, many Snowmass Village properties have re-entered the real estate market.

Apparently these properties make their grand re-entrance at a significant discount. The Snowmass Sun is reporting the sales price on the most recent sale to be 40-45% less than the original asking price. It seems that foreigners and many people from around the country and the world have taken notice of the buyer’s market in the Aspen and Snowmass Village market, and are moving in to invest now.

Other markets in the Snowmass Village area are seeing movement as well, for example Sinclair Meadows has seen five lots of the 17 sell, and are hopeful to move even more this summer.

These hopes seem well founded, in the Aspen Business Journal the week’s real estate transactions, hosted by Joshua & Co. posted 18 closings in this week alone.

It seems the time to buy is now, as Base Village broker Garrett Reuss, advised in the Snowmass Sun, “After two more sales, we’ll start to look at raising prices.” If you have wanted to live in the Aspen and Snowmass Village area, and have been biding your time. The time to move is now – gorgeous brand new properties, exquisite Rocky Mountain living at a price that won’t last, not even to the end of the summer.

Invest in the Rocky Mountain dream, where the best skiing in the world is in your backyard, where wild flowers decorate your front lawn. In Snowmass Village, you can have the small town quality of life, complete with beauty, serenity and security, while at the same time enjoying big city amenities like excellent shopping, magnificent dining, high society and a hopping night life.

Have your cake and eat it too in Snowmass Village! Click here to see the homes, properties and condos in the Snowmass Village and Aspen area. Don’t wait another day!

It is the season of bright red watermelon gripped by small, sticky fingers and dripping down a child’s face. It is the season of ice cold lemonade sweating in a glass. It is the season of parades and fireworks, picnics in the late summer sunshine. It is July Fourth!

This year in Aspen, the Fourth of July will be celebrated for a full weekend. Residents of Aspen will be hard pressed to choose how exactly to begin on Friday evening with the large assortment of fine art opportunities offered. The Aspen Chamber Symphony, conducted by Nicholas McGregan, will play works by Beethoven, Bruch and Mendelssohn. For the more light-hearted, the Wheeler Opera House will be presenting Sandy Duncan in the comedy “Becky’s New Car.” Meanwhile, Aspen Peak Magazine will be hosting The Ninth Annual Aspen Antiques & Fine Arts Fair Preview Party, which will open the ten day fair where some of the finest art and antiques in the world will be displayed.  Not far away on Aspen Mountain, the 12^th Annual Boogie’s Bash for the Buddies will be in full swing. This fundraiser is for the 600 youth in the Roaring Forks Valley in need of mentoring, opportunities and positive reinforcement.

Don’t stay up too late on Friday, because with the sunrise on Saturday morning, the Saturday Market will pull out its fare. Over seventy vendors will display their goods from fresh produce, meat, wine, and cheese to clothes, bags and jewelry.  If you missed  “Becky’s new Car,” Saturday evening offers one more chance for a good laugh. In the mood for Jazz, check out the Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra with Wynton Maralis beginning at eight-thirty.

A quiet Sunday morning will allow residents a chance to recover from the first two days of holiday excitement. After sleeping in late, and enjoying a relaxing morning, head back over to the Benedict Music Tent where AMFS director-designate, Robert Spano will conduct the Aspen Festival Orchestra.

Monday, July 4^th, starts out with a bang, and the Boogie’s Diner Buddy 5 Mile Charity Race. Followed immediately afterward by the 1 Mile Family/Canine Walk. Just after the race and the walk, the Eleventh Annual “America’s Birthday Party Carnival” offers children the chance to join in the fun with carnival games, a BBQ and a bake sale. Be sure to take a quick break from the party to catch the Old Fashioned 4^th of July Parade down Main street at noon.  Hungry from racing around Aspen, playing and watching the floats go by? Round out the afternoon with the AVSC 16^th Annual Community Picnic at Koch Park or head over to the Aspen Art Museum’s Annual Fourth of July Picnic for free food and art projects. After filling up with all of the delicious holiday fare, enjoy the Free Fourth of July Concert by the Aspen Music Festival Band and then dance in the street until the wee hours of the morning at the “Dancing In The Streets” concert on the mall area off of Mill Street and Cooper Avenue.

From start to finish this Fourth of July weekend the residents of Aspen will be celebrating their country, their city and each other! Join in the fun and then click here to see homes, investment properties and condos in the Aspen and Snowmass Village area.

The Aspen Business Journal is predicting that 2011 may be the fourth best year in real estate history in Aspen. Through the month of April sales were totaling $408 million, an 8.5% increase over 2010. This good news coming out of Aspen seems to be in direct contrast with the national reports of the housing market sliding still further in virtually all markets.

According to William Small, author of the piece “Aspen Real Estate for the Long Run,” Aspen is at the forefront of what may be a cultural shift for housing in America.

To date it has been a necessity for most Americans to live near their work. Generally, this has translated to the majority of the population living in metropolitan areas or nearby in the surrounding suburbs. Advancing technologies have enabled more Americans the luxury of living where they want, and working from home. Naturally people with this degree of flexibility are choosing small, beautiful cities, and very often resort cities, like Aspen. According to Small, within 30 years 20% of America’s population will have left the city and migrated to smaller communities.

These smaller communities, like Aspen, offer their residents an amazing quality of life. Traditionally, quality of life refers to more than financial and employment opportunities. Measuring the financial factors and balancing them against other factors such as educational opportunities, environmental beauty and surroundings, recreation and leisure opportunities and a socially welcoming atmosphere determine quality of life in cities.

While the unemployment numbers in Colorado hover around 8 or 9%, Aspen has held steady at around 3.6% unemployment. Schools in Aspen consistently outspend other schools around the state on a per student ratio. Dedication to the arts and artistic opportunities abound in the Aspen and Snowmass Village area.

A quick glimpse at either of the two daily newspapers, show that Aspenites have plenty of community activities. The outdoors opportunities are bar none – nowhere else in the world can offer the experiences, and beauty as it is seen here in the Rocky Mountains.

The community within Aspen and Snowmass Village is not only extremely active it is also exceptionally welcoming. Most residents in Pitkin County are immigrants from other parts of the state, county and the world. This makes Aspen and Snowmass Village a welcoming and open community.

It’s time to pull the plug on big city life. Kiss traffic jams goodbye, bid adieu to long commutes and impersonal neighborhoods. Come to a place where your mailman knows your name, the servers at the local restaurant remember your favorite drink, where teachers really know your kids, and where neighbors still stand in the street to chat while their children play at their feet.

Aspen and Snowmass Village are the definition of quality of life. To begin your own migration, click here to see homes, properties and condos in the Aspen and Snowmass Village area.

Luxury Portfolio International, the largest global network of brokerages, prides itself on working with only the best real estate professionals in the industry. It is no surprise to learn Greg Rulon and Joshua & Co. have joined the Luxury Portfolio International network. This partnership offers the opportunity to connect the luxury real estate market worldwide with the sumptuous homes and residences available in Aspen and Snowmass Village.

A shared standard of excellence creates a natural fusion between Greg Rulon and Luxury Portfolio International.  Luxury Portfolio International offers worldwide clients the opportunity to view listings throughout the world, including Aspen and Snowmass Village. Customers relocating internationally or nationally have the opportunity with Luxury Portfolio International to click on cities of interest to learn about luxury homes and estates through its state-of-the-art website. Gorgeous photos of properties greet the viewer, along with voice-guided tours on homes over $5,000,000. Critical information is communicated in these tours, such as location in town, views and acreage.  Visitors from over 200 countries and territories visit Luxury Portfolio International’s website each month. Advertising in the American, European and Asian editions of the Wall Street Journal ensures large market coverage of these properties and investments available in luxury markets worldwide.

Since 2005 Luxury Portfolio International has been the ‘luxury standard of excellence’ throughout the world. Listing properties in 45 states, and 25 countries, the name and quality associated with Luxury Portfolio International has earned the respect of investors and estate owners worldwide. Aspen and Snowmass Village have long carried the same level of pedigree.  Greg Rulon and Joshua & Co. have made this connection to mutual excellence more accessible than ever.

Aspen and Snowmass Village are the ultimate in excellence and luxury living. With the best skiing and snowboarding the world can offer, accessorized by high culture, excellent art and accompanied by the best music of every genre, Aspen and Snowmass Village have a little bit of everything wrapped up in the most beautiful setting imaginable. Truly a small community, Snowmass Village and Aspen offer the perfect combination of a laid-back community mixed perfectly with high fashion and society.  A welcoming atmosphere loved the world over, residents of Pitkin County pride themselves on welcoming people from every walk of life, every country in the world and making them feel at home in the Aspen/Snowmass Village area.

In conjunction with Luxury Portfolio International, Greg Rulon and Joshua & Co. will push the definition of excellence – taking it to new levels and exceeding every expectation. To see properties, homes and real estate investment opportunities listed by Greg Rulon in the beautiful and extraordinary Aspen and Snowmass Village area, click here. Experience truly luxurious living in the Colorado Rocky Mountains!

For many, the words, “Aspen Food & Wine Festival,” evoke images of Padma Lakshmi, Tom Colicchio and Gail Simmons. They also give rise to visions of beautiful foods, tremendous cooking challenges and the talented, entertaining chefs who have competed on the show, “Top Chef.”  Prizes for those chefs include reward money, a spread in the Food and Wine Magazine and best of all, a showcase in the Aspen Food and Wine Festival.

However, the Aspen Food & Wine Festival has been coming to Aspen for 28 years. Hosted by Food & Wine Magazine, this Aspen event is one of the most anticipated food events of the year. Chefs and food lovers from the world-over, flock to Aspen to see the most innovative food and food trends in the country and throughout the world.

Beginning Friday, June 17^th at 9:15 a.m. and continuing late into the afternoon on Sunday, June 19^th, clinics, seminars and cooking demonstrations will take place featuring such celebrity chefs as Mario Batali, Jacques Pepin and of course, Tom Colicchio and Gail Simmons. These chefs, and many others will introduce new food to the American pallet, such as Seafood of the Adriatic, other will reinvent the wheel with classics like, ‘Grilled Cheese, Please.”

When purchasing tickets, attendees create their own itinerary based on their interests from Friday morning through Sunday afternoon, by requesting courses from the schedule. During the course of these three days there are several reserve tastings and private sessions with select chefs or wine specialists. Upgrading the base ticket allows guests to attend the New Chef Dinner. Private attendees, coming purely for the love of food, have a list of ‘foodie’ activities geared toward the advanced home-cook or serious food lover.

Trade tickets allow those in the restaurant industry a more specialized view of the industry and its advances. Networking power lunches are scheduled throughout the festival, as well as trade wine tastings and food samples.

The Grow for Good Pass is the ultimate ticket, allowing 100 exclusive guests, trade or private, a sneak peak at the lives of celebrity chefs, while donating $1,000 to the Food & Wine “Grow for Good” charity campaign. These limited tickets open the doors to a private reception on Thursday evening before the events kick off, as well as an invitation to the New Chefs Dinner on Saturday night, in addition to many other perks throughout the weekend.

Events like the Aspen Food and Wine Festival remind residents and visitors alike of the creative power that dwells within Aspen.  The long history of cultural events makes Aspen a perfect venue for the Food & Wine Festival.  The exposure to the best of the best in virtually every industry, Aspenites are a discerning audience, with refined tastes and excellent judgement concerning every art or sport they encounter.

Aspen/Snowmass Village are like an amuse bouche – one taste is just never enough. After your first taste of life in the Rockies, click here to see home, residences and investment properties in the Aspen/Snowmass Village area and dig in to all the best life can offer!

For many, the words, “Aspen Food & Wine Festival,” evoke images of Padma Lakshmi, Tom Colicchio and Gail Simmons. They also give rise to visions of beautiful foods, tremendous cooking challenges and the talented, entertaining chefs who have competed on the show, “Top Chef.”  Prizes for those chefs include reward money, a spread in the Food and Wine Magazine and best of all, a showcase in the Aspen Food and Wine Festival.

However, the Aspen Food & Wine Festival has been coming to Aspen for 28 years. Hosted by Food & Wine Magazine, this Aspen event is one of the most anticipated food events of the year. Chefs and food lovers from the world-over, flock to Aspen to see the most innovative food and food trends in the country and throughout the world.

Beginning Friday, June 17^th at 9:15 a.m. and continuing late into the afternoon on Sunday, June 19^th, clinics, seminars and cooking demonstrations will take place featuring such celebrity chefs as Mario Batali, Jacques Pepin and of course, Tom Colicchio and Gail Simmons. These chefs, and many others will introduce new food to the American pallet, such as Seafood of the Adriatic, other will reinvent the wheel with classics like, ‘Grilled Cheese, Please.”

When purchasing tickets, attendees create their own itinerary based on their interests from Friday morning through Sunday afternoon, by requesting courses from the schedule. During the course of these three days there are several reserve tastings and private sessions with select chefs or wine specialists. Upgrading the base ticket allows guests to attend the New Chef Dinner. Private attendees, coming purely for the love of food, have a list of ‘foodie’ activities geared toward the advanced home-cook or serious food lover.

Trade tickets allow those in the restaurant industry a more specialized view of the industry and its advances. Networking power lunches are scheduled throughout the festival, as well as trade wine tastings and food samples.

The Grow for Good Pass is the ultimate ticket, allowing 100 exclusive guests, trade or private, a sneak peak at the lives of celebrity chefs, while donating $1,000 to the Food & Wine “Grow for Good” charity campaign. These limited tickets open the doors to a private reception on Thursday evening before the events kick off, as well as an invitation to the New Chefs Dinner on Saturday night, in addition to many other perks throughout the weekend.

Events like the Aspen Food and Wine Festival remind residents and visitors alike of the creative power that dwells within Aspen.  The long history of cultural events makes Aspen a perfect venue for the Food & Wine Festival.  The exposure to the best of the best in virtually every industry, Aspenites are a discerning audience, with refined tastes and excellent judgement concerning every art or sport they encounter.

Aspen/Snowmass Village are like an amuse bouche – one taste is just never enough. After your first taste of life in the Rockies, click here to see home, residences and investment properties in the Aspen/Snowmass Village area and dig in to all the best life can offer!

The towering, snowcapped mountains of Aspen and Snowmass outside the window, and the piles of ski equipment on the floor from yesterday’s last season run call out, begging for just one more trip down one of the four mountains in the Aspen/Snowmass area. Rather than pack up the suitcase and prepare to head home, take a moment to relish the experience. Walk through the shops once more, revisit the restaurant that really touched your pallet this year and then, when you’ve really finished this trip, start planning next year’s ski season.

The beauty of skiing one of the four mountains in the area is that it isn’t necessary to choose one mountain, or budget to visit multiple mountains. Ski passes purchased in the area are honored at all four mountains. This option allows visitors to try a little of each, and then choose their own favorite mountain. Undoubtedly, there is a mountain for you in the Aspen and Snowmass area. Snowmass Mountain offers 147 miles of skiing trails and a huge range in elevation. Aspen Mountain, or Ajax, is the mountain that made Aspen famous way back in 1947. The local’s favorite, Aspen Highlands, boasts incredible views and over 84 miles of runs.  Buttermilk rates as a top mountain for snowboarders. Voted #1 by Transworld Snowboarding Magazine for best park and pipe, Buttermilk offers over 100 features including 22-foot superpipe, and XGames slopestyle course. All four mountains have varying levels of difficulty, enabling skiers of different skill-levels to ski in the same area, meeting up for drinks or lunch on the mountain. For the less experienced or the kids, ski lessons are available at any resort.

Depending on the time of year of your visit, planning a year in advance is not just fun; it is necessary. Christmas, in particular, is an especially busy time of year in the Aspen and Snowmass Village area. Hotels and condos fill up a full year in advance, as people love the ambiance of Aspen at Christmas. The fabulous shopping in the area makes for excellent last minute gifts and souvenirs. From Antiques to rugs, shoes, winter equipment and clothes, the shopping in Aspen covers every possible need – and want. Too busy having fun to shop? Personal shoppers from AspenStyle.net are available to select the items you would like. Whatever season you choose, winter, fall or spring, book now so you can be sure your vacation is set.

Savvy planning can often lead to great savings for visitors. Many hotels, such as The Little Nell, offer packages including free lift tickets after a certain number of nights at their hotel. The Limelight Lodge offered a third night free for guests visiting during the week during the 2010-2011 season. Particularly in the spring, there are many deals to be had for those willing to bargain hunt. A full year’s lead will ensure the very best deal everywhere!

Of course, if you really love to ski Aspen and Snowmass Village, go ahead – turn your vacation destination into home. Rather than planning your next trip, plan your new life on the ski slopes in the world’s most beautiful city! Click here to see homes, investment properties, and condos in the Aspen and Snowmass Village area. Many residences are just minutes away from the best skiing in the world. Stop dreaming; create your own reality in Aspen and Snowmass Village!

Oliver Wendell Holmes, Sr. once said, “Where we love is home – home that our feet may leave, but not our hearts.” While this quote was not spoken about Snowmass Village, it does capture the love felt for this town by longtime resident Greg Rulon. In 1972 Greg and his closest friends spontaneously decided to move to Snowmass Village. Upon arriving, Greg fell in love with the mountains, the people and most of all, the lifestyle.

Greg’s is the kind of adventurous spirit Aspen and Snowmass Village were founded upon. The four mountains surrounding the Aspen and Snowmass Village area call to these adventurous spirits and fill them with inspiration and a lifetime of adventures. Great skiing and snowboarding run from fall to early spring.  The fabulous summer months are filled with breathtaking hiking and mountain biking. Home to the Winter-X games, no where else in the world can exhilarate and test the spirit the way Snowmass Village does.

More than just an exciting place to live, Snowmass Village is deeply focused on its community. Throughout the year the people of the community gather together to celebrate holidays, the seasons and the beauty of life. These celebrations are created for the youngest citizens, the oldest residents of the town, and everyone in between. The open and warm spirit of the people of Snowmass Village allow temporary residents and tourists a sense of place within their community and their celebrations.

The sense of freedom and independence that the mountains lend its residents calls many to give up the lives they once had in places far away.  Liberated from traffic, noise, and the rush of city life, the citizens of Snowmass Village have found that there is a better way to live. Many successful businessmen and women have walked away from huge firms and lucrative business deals to live in Snowmass Village. In many cases they have created their own small businesses in town as a true representation of their vision.  These small, locally owned stores are frequented, appreciated and deeply loved by residents and tourists alike.

Because of Greg Rulon’s deep love for the Aspen and Snowmass Village, he has spent his life helping others to find their place with in the community. He is deeply committed to placing individuals and families in just the right house at just the right price. To see the residences, investment properties and homes listed with Greg Rulon for sale in Snowmass Village, click here. Uncover the secret to life in the mountains and find out what it means to find a place where your heart is truly at home.

Americans have become wallflowers. Scared by investment losses across the board, many investors and every day Americans are standing on the sidelines, holding their money tightly in their pockets – waiting.  Waiting for the right investment. Waiting for the economy to stabilize. Waiting to feel confident that their jobs are secure. Waiting.

The time to sit on the sideline is past.  In a CNNMoney.com piece, CEO and founder of the property research firm MetroStudy, Mike Castleman explains that the housing market is about to boom again. According to the studies performed by MetroStudy covering approximately 65% of the housing market, the low prices of resale homes and the large surplus of resale homes on the market, has lead to a shortage in new construction. The practical freeze on new construction throughout the country will eventually create a housing shortage. As the economy recovers and Americans begin to return to the housing market, the greater demand will cause shortages in housing. Shortages will in turn drive prices upward – creating profits for those wise enough to invest now.

When met with this investment advice many people are skeptical. Stories from the hardest hit markets in the country still pervade the discussion concerning housing. Horror stories of up to 55% losses on homes in areas such as Las Vegas, Phoenix and Miami have made investors and homebuyers ultra cautious. However, as CNNMoney.com explains, these distressed markets are areas where people will always want to visit and live. Indicators are showing the job markets in these areas are beginning to improve. As the economies in these areas recover, those who have been waiting on the sidelines to invest in their first home, or to re-enter the housing market after their credit scores have recovered from foreclosure or short-sale, will enter the market enthusiastically.

Within the non-distressed markets like Texas, San Francisco, and parts of the south, where there was much less speculative home buying and flipping in the early 2000’s, housing prices fell much less.  The prices in these areas will recover more quickly in the coming months and years because these cities do not have a large surplus of houses on the market waiting to sell. However, one of the largest reasons the housing market will grow is the price of purchasing a home is becoming less expensive compared to the cost of renting a home or apartment. While many people appreciate the low-risk of renting over purchasing, the high demand of rental properties is already driving cost up. As former renters enter the housing market, new homes hold a special appeal. Many new buyers prefer new construction due to the fact that they are unaccustomed to maintaining a home.

Investors who have been waiting to purchase real estate in Aspen and Snowmass, now is the perfect time. Prices have stabilized, and according to the first quarter of sales, they are even beginning to climb. Click here to see homes, properties and condos in the Aspen and Snowmass Village area. It’s time to get off the sidelines and get back into the investment game.

Once upon a time, this house was the perfect house. It suited every foreseeable need. It had enough storage and the perfect number of bathrooms. It was located in the best, most convenient part of town. It was the Dream House!

However, as the years have slipped by, changes have come to this little house and the people in it. Along the way an extra dog or two has found their way into the house and are curled up in the middle of the suddenly too-small-living-room. Children, with all of their toys and clothes and shoes have established themselves firmly in a bedroom down the hall. And a newfound passion for skiing, along with a lifelong passion of mountain biking, has devoured the space in the garage. Just like that, the Dream House has become much less dream-like.

According to the Aspen Times, right now is the perfect time to outgrow a house. The Times has reported that the real estate market in Aspen is strong and bouncing back from the recent global recession. The one hundred sixty-seven properties were sold and/or placed under contract in the first quarter of 2011 show an increase of  70% in transactions this year over last year.  These strong numbers encourage economists and everyday homeowners about the strength and health of the real estate market. At last, with some confidence, property owners can put their house on the market for a reasonable price, and watch, as it quickly becomes someone else’s Dream House.

To get the house ready for its debut on the real estate market, take some time to declutter. For many people the decluttering of a home is very emotional, however it is a critical part of preparing the house for potential buyers. Brightly colored rooms, or unusual paint choices are easily painted over, at very little expense, allowing potential purchasers a clean slate with which to build their own future. Small details such as new knobs on cabinet doors give the house a sharp new look without a lot of upfront investment. Many contracts on properties include larger ticket items such as roof repair, or other structural repairs. These improvements need to be negotiated as part of the sale, don’t rush to invest in fixing them until said negotiations have taken place.  Finally, freshly planted flowers and a well-groomed yard go a long way in the first impression a home makes. Throughout the process be sure to keep up on the outside appearance of the house.

Selecting the proper real estate agent is also a critical aspect of placing a house on the market.  For the past 30 years Greg Rulon has worked within the Aspen and Snowmass Village area’s real estate market. His extensive experience and professionalism makes him a must have asset as you prepare to place your home for sale in the Aspen area. Once your house is up on the market and being seen, Greg Rulon will be there to introduce you to your next Dream House and to walk you through the steps of buying your next home.

Click here to see the properties and homes in Greg Rulon’s listings. Start building a new dream, in a new home – today!