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Alien Tower Trail Highlight
The Deer Ridge Off Leash Area, more commonly referred to as the Alien Tower Trail, is one of the most popular trails to hike in SunCrest. It is a wide trail that makes it great for groups, families, kiddos, and the majority of the hike is a designated off leash area – perfect for your furry friends.
The trail starts at approximately 15215 S. Deer Ridge Drive. It’s pretty easy to find and accommodates plenty of parking. The trail is an “out and back” style trail which allows hikers to choose a distance that best matches their hiking preferences. The most popular destination is hiking to the triangulation tower aka the “Alien Tower” which features 360 degrees of Salt Lake County, Utah County, and the entire SunCrest neighborhood. At the peak, the elevation is just over 6,500 feet.
While hiking up, keep an eye out for wildlife – deer, porcupine, and even an occasional coyote in the less busier months. Expect to see dogs both on and off leash (don’t forget yours!), hikers, bikers, families, wildflowers and of course those coveted SunCrest views. Most of the trail is exposed and it can be a little windy at the peak so be sure to plan accordingly. Sunscreen, water, and a jacket are recommended. Tip: be sure to check back in the winter months, it’s a great snowshoeing trail.
We can’t wait to see your adventures! Be sure to share your pictures by tagging us @suncrestlifestyle.
Interested in other hikes in the SunCrest area? Check ’em all out here.
Enjoy!
Smith’s SunCrest Story
Meet the Smith Family. They moved to SunCrest from CA and have enjoyed the community vibe SunCrest offers. In the summers, you can find them outside chasing their “pet” hawks, relaxing at the pool⛱, mingling with neighbors 👥, or snapping pics of moose (or is it mooses or meeses?🙃). Here is the Smith’s #suncreststory
Do you have a #SunCrestStory you’d like to share? Email us at info@suncrestlifestyle.com. We can’t want to hear it.
May SunCrest Market Update
Maximizing your outdoor space
People love to come to SunCrest for the clean air, the gorgeous views of the mountains, and to recreate, energize and rejuvenate in nature. When it comes to our homes, adding a functional outdoor exterior patio, deck or entertaining space can become an extension of your home and weave the outdoors and indoors together – a perfect compliment to the SunCrest Lifestyle.
Utah receives about 300 days of sunshine a year. Expanding our living spaces into our yards allows us to create specific areas to make memories, gather with family and friends, or find a quiet respite from our busy lives.
Through the use of adding things like visual screenings in our landscapes, cooking stations, gatherings spaces, placement of comfortable furniture and other design elements, we can improve not only the value of our homes but our quality of life in our SunCrest homes.
Our Take
There’s nothing like a SunCrest sunrise or sunset. Maximizing your outdoor space to compliment one of the many views that SunCrest offers is not only a fun and relaxing way to spend your time living here, but outdoor spaces are common “must haves” on buyers wish lists. Considering an update? We’d love to share our opinion on what’s trending.
April SunCrest Market Update
How has COVID-19 affected real estate?
We’ve been receiving a lot of questions about how real estate is handling the COVID-19 situation. We’re going to break it down into two parts: How is the real estate market performing, and second, what are we advising when it comes to buying and selling homes?
Are buyers and sellers still moving forward?
The short answer: yes. The long answer. Let’s look
at the data. Almost immediately following local announcements of stay at home orders, we saw a sharp decrease in showings according to ShowingTime Showing Service – Utah’s leading provider for home showing analytics. Through the end of March, showings continued to trend downward as many home sellers and buyers adjusted to our temporary new normal. Showing activity has since increased since the beginning of April.
But are people buying and selling? Even if homes aren’t being shown as much, they’re still selling. March 2020 does not show any significant changes in number of homes listed or sold when compared to the previous three years. However, looking forward to April, we do anticipate a decline in pending home sales, as the number of current homes under contract is down versus previous years.
How are homes being bought and sold during a pandemic?
One thing is constant—change! Much of the transactional process of buying and selling already went through a paperless transition thanks to cloud storage, electronic signatures, and technology-driven startups that complement a Realtor’s workflow. Real Estate was declared an essential service and things like inspections, appraisals, and walkthroughs are being handled with extra caution and should follow recommended guidelines. We’ve seen increases in 3D tour experiences, more attention driven to digital media, and a stronger emphasis on virtual tours in lieu of (or prior to) physical tours. In-person walk throughs often have gloves, shoe booties, sanitizers, and only those purchasing are encouraged to tour the home.
Our Take
In short, people still want to buy and sell homes right now, and with extra care we’re seeing the market adapt. If you have any questions throughout all of this, don’t hesitate to call, message, or email. We’re here to help.
SunCrest Pizza Party
Over the last few weeks of the stay safe orders to combat Covid-19, we’ve missed being out with our neighbors in person, but have been super grateful for the sense of community we’ve still been able to feel here in SunCrest. Whether it’s friendly waves, online check-ins, the countless random acts of love for our medical workers, elderly, and other residents, we’re feeling how special SunCrest really is.
All these good vibes made us want to throw a big pizza party to celebrate the good, but how could we do that while maintaining our social distance to slow the spread of Coronavirus? We reached out to a business owner who’s a SunCrest resident (and veteran) and found a solution that provides the biggest pizza party our community has seen—the #suncrestpizzaparty!
Thanks to everyone who signed up for a pizza, and to those who instead donated theirs to the Utah Food Bank.
Huge shoutout to SunCrest residents and business owners Kevin and Christa Hutchinson for the perfect execution of preparing and wrapping nearly 100 pizzas!
Next time you’re in the mood for a pizza, visit them Murray at 659 W 5300 S or 900 E 5692 S.
SunCrest, thank you for continuing to rally for yourselves, your neighbors, and your community. Day by day, slice by slice, we’ll get through this.
SunCrest Market Update – February
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Our SunCrest Market Update is a hyper-local analysis of the most up-to-date information regarding the SunCrest real estate market. The previous month’s SunCrest housing information and future editions are released monthly.
4th Quarter Utah Market Report
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4th Quarter Utah Market Report
- The number of homes for sale in the final quarter of the year was 14.4% lower than in the same period a year ago and 21.3% lower than the third quarter of 2019.
- The average home price in the region continued to rise in the fourth quarter, with a year-over-year increase of 9.5% to an average of $403,186.
- Inventory levels remain low, even in the face of modestly increasing market time.
Wondering what this may mean if you’re looking to buy or sell? The market looks different throughout the year so you’ll need a season-specific game plan. Please don’t hesitate to contact us with any questions you may have.
SunCrest Market Update- January
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Where did 2019 go? As we close out the year that was, we’d like to thank you—each resident of SunCrest—for all your support as we provide these monthly updates. Your comments, messages, and social and real life interactions keep us going. Now that 2019 is over, let’s look back at the SunCrest real estate market last year.
Total SunCrest Properties Sold: 182 (Highest in over 10 years)
Composition of Properties: 111 Existing homes, 64 New homes, 7 vacant lots
Highest Sold Price: $2,000,001
Lowest Sold Price: $281,500
Median Sales Price: $529,000
Most Active Sales Period: 3rd Quarter – 56 Closed transactions
Median Sales Time: 21 Days
We thought it would be fun to create a profile for the “average” SunCrest home sold in 2019. Not that there are any “average” homes in our neighborhood, but based on the data here’s what that profile would look like:
Built 2011
4.14 bedrooms
3.18 bathrooms
2.45 garage
.21 acres
Price – $553,373
$144 square foot
44% finished basement
42 days average time to sell
Our Take:
What a year! While it was a very active year for SunCrest real estate and we find it informative and helpful to look back, we also recognize that each home sale and purchase are a unique case. It’s always best to take a hands-on approach and assess each home for its own merits. Averages can also be misleading, as there are always wide exceptions to it—that’s how averages work, after all. Things like timing, condition, location, and quality all have an impact on buying and selling and you can get frustrated pretty easily if your home sale or purchase don’t seem to be fitting the “average” experience. Having a hyperlocal expert in your corner who knows how to spot out of average opportunities can help turn any transaction to your benefit.
Our SunCrest Market Update is a hyper-local analysis of the most up-to-date information regarding the SunCrest real estate market. The previous month’s SunCrest housing information and future editions are released monthly.
SunCrest Market Update-December
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- Price – The average and median sales price of SunCrest homes has gone up consistently over the last 5 years, but we actually don’t see any appreciable spike in price in January.
- Days on market – One thing is for certain, putting your home up for sale in April has historically led to a quicker sale, but that advantage has been steadily decreasing for five years. Since 2015, homes listed in January have been selling nearly as fast. In 2019, homes listed in April sold only 5.5 days quicker than January. A stark difference from 2015 when the difference was 91 days.
- Negotiation – The data didn’t reveal any significant difference in price negotiation. Whether a home was listed in January or April, when we compared the original asking price to the final sold price, it varies from year to year without consistent pattern.
Our Take:
The Realtor.com study and our own data prove it: winter is definitely not a bad time to buy and sell a home. In most cases, you just need a season-specific game plan. Depending on your circumstances, winter might actually be the best time to buy or sell in SunCrest. Working with an experienced agent or team who can help guide you through the home buying or selling process can help you make the smartest selling or buying decisions in any season.
Our SunCrest Market Update is a hyper-local analysis of the most up-to-date information regarding the SunCrest real estate market. The previous month’s SunCrest housing information and future editions are released monthly.
This is SunCrest
The sun comes up over the mountain and shines on the gambel oak around you. The Salt Lake Valley has disappeared beneath the inversion, but in SunCrest, the sky is bright and blue. What will you do today? Sled with the family? Snowshoe down your favorite trail? Stop by the community clubhouse for the neighborhood mixer? Winter, spring, summer, fall—there’s always something to do. This is SunCrest. This is the SunCrest lifestyle.
