Caring for Your Crested Butte Second Home

Caring for Your Crested Butte Home - Service ProvidersCaring for Your Crested Butte Second Home – Who will you hire to keep your Crested Butte home in ship shape when you are not there? Dealing with service providers and subcontractors in a small mountain town is much different than in a large metro area. Any small town will have a handful of quality contractors for every trade.

You may be surprised to find out that most Crested Butte Property Managers amd service providers are college graduates, some will have master’s degrees, and many have traded their big-city corporate job for the choice to live full time in a small mountain town (you are considering buying a second home in a mountain town for some of those same reasons).

  • It is not uncommon for your service provider to have two or three jobs or small businesses in a mountain town to make ends meet.
  • There is competition for your business, and building a relationship with your service provider is key to you being a happy second-homeowner
  • You should expect to pay more than the going rates in your home metro area for labor and materials in your mountain town.

You may want to get recommendations from neighbors, property managers, and your real estate agent for which service providers or subcontractors are the best for your needs.

Caring for Your Crested Butte Home - Service ProvidersDon’t be that person – It is fine to get bids for specific jobs and select the best contractor, but typically, “strong-arm” tactics when negotiating and dealing with local contractors will backfire on you. Yes the customer is always right, but unreasonable expectations and demands, or “slow pay” may put you on the local black-list.  These tactics may be the norm or part of the culture in the big city, but in a small mountain town, not so much. Word travels fast, and you could become the pain in the rear second homeowner that nobody wants to deal with. Don’t be that person.

I provide my clients with recommendations on property managers and service providers along with contact info.

As you approach closing it is a good idea to hire a property manager to help you get settled in your new home, and watch after your home when you are not there. There will be many initial tasks that a local property manager can help you with, including the items below.

  • Cleaning – House will probably be broom swept clean, but you may want a “deep cleaning” done.
  • Final walk-through – You and/or your inspector or property manager inspect items that were to be fixed and ensure furniture items and appliances are there per the detailed list. 
  • Keys, codes (gate, garage, security), openers (gate, garage), locks changed (house, building, owner’s closet), codes changed.
  • Hanyman tasks – this can be a long list, but may include simple items like cutting the grass, painting the garage (before it is filled with stuff), hanging shelves, adding cabinets, repairing any additional items from inspection report, sealing the driveway, weeding the flowerbeds, shoveling the decks or roof in the winter…etc.

For other tips and articles like Caring for Your Crested Butte Second Home see my Crested Butte Real Estate Blog

How can I help you? The Crested Butte area offers a wide variety of properties including ski in/ski out single family homes, ski-in/ski-out condominiums, lake and river frontage properties, golf course property, and true fine mountain homes on acreage. To see featured properties or search the MLS – visit www.ChrisKopf.com. If you considering Selling your Crested Butte home and are interested in finding out what your existing property is worth – call me. How is the Crested Butte Real Estate Market doing? Click this link to see my monthly Crested Butte Real Estate Market Reports I appreciate the opportunity to earn your business and be your Crested Butte Real Estate Agent.

Contact me at: (970) 209-5405, or ChrisKopf@BighornRealty.com

Thanks,

Chris Kopf
Previews® Property Specialist
Coldwell Banker Bighorn Realty

Crested Butte CO real estate

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Call or Text: (970) 209-5405

Chris.Kopf@CBMP.com

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