EAGLE COUNTY, Colorado — Eagle County real estate is off to its best start since 2008 in both transactions — 181 compared with 235 in 2008 — and dollar volume — $196.9 million compared with $331.3 million in 2008. February had 91 transactions, the majority of which were sales in Eagle and Gypsum, cumulatively accounting for 26 percent of all sales. Land Title Guarantee Co. released February real estate numbers on Wednesday. Ten of the 22 bank sales for February took place in Eagle and Gypsum with an average sales price of $178,000. These sales contributed to the total of sales in the county under $500,000, which accounted for more than half of all transactions. Vail Village continues to see a lot of activity with eight transactions closing in February, accounting for nearly 22 percent of the county’s dollar volume. Four of the five transactions in February were over $4 million and took place in Vail, the highest being sold at Solaris for $6.4 million. This sale also accounts for the highest price per square foot for February at $2,218.

- Vail Daily

Vail Colorado — Even with the scars left by the housing mess, homeownership is still a goal for many Americans.

If you vowed to make your homeowner­ship dream come true in 2012, it’s time to get started. Indeed the timing may be ideal. Housing market observers say that prices appear to have bottomed out in many mar­kets, and mortgage rates are at their lowest point ever.

But don’t let prognostications cause you to jump in too quickly. As many have learned since the housing bubble burst, being ill-prepared financially can cause lasting damage.

Although there were some positive signs in recent months, it will take many years before the housing market is back on track. In 2011, home sales totaled 4.26 million. That was up slightly from 4.19 million in 2010, but was far below the 6 million that economists equate with healthy housing markets.

That gives prospective home buyers a chance to get their plans in order before taking the plunge.

First, make sure you’re really ready to buy. That’s more than a financial calcula­tion. Consider if you expect to remain in the same city for several years? Ask yourself if you’re ready for the lifestyle change that comes with the responsibility of owning? Will you be able to handle simple mainte­nance or can you afford to call someone in every time a drain clogs?

You might want to start with some class­es through organizations like Neighbor-Works America, www. nw. org , where you can learn the basics of home purchasing and upkeep.

Second, make sure you pursue the right type of home for you. There are benefits and pitfalls to various types of ownership. Co- ops and condos, for example, can relieve owners of the responsibility for tasks like shoveling snow and dealing with contractors for major repairs. But both property types require collective decision making for even small items, like rules on holiday decorations, which can be frus­trating. Similar issues may arise in town­house developments.

Single-family homes offer more freedom and control of the property, but place the burden and the costs of everyday mainte­nance and major projects on the home­owner.

Here are some tips to get started on the path to homeownership:

1. Shop around for a mortgage.

You should visit several banks and cred­it unions to find out what mortgage amount you may qualify for, before you get your heart set on a home that’s out of reach. Banks these days are looking for substantial down payments — 20 percent of the purchase price is again considered standard. Although it’s not as common as during the boom, banks may still overesti­mate how much house you can afford. Make sure any home fits into your budget, remembering that property taxes and home insurance will also be part of the monthly payment.

2. Expect competition.

It’s still a buyer’s market, to be sure, but prices are rising in many parts of the coun­try. And the National Association of Real­tors says one in five homes sold in 2011 was purchased by an investor. Many buyers from other countries are making purchas­es, often in cash, so be prepared for com­peting bids.

3. Educate yourself on inspections.

Home inspections shouldn’t be shrugged off as a routine detail. They can uncover major problems that might con­vince you to search for another house or bargain down the price. Make sure you know what your inspector is looking for: radon gas, toxic mold, termites and other pests, asbestos and lead paint are not typi­cally included in the standard inspection, according to the National Association of Home Inspectors. Those problems will likely require a separate inspector, or at least a separate fee.

More resources

Visit: The guide for first-time homebuy­ers produced by NeighborWorks America has tips and tools to help you decide if you’re ready to buy and how to manage your finances, at www.keystomyhome.org . The federal Department of Housing and Urban Development also has advice and links to programs in your state, at www.hud.gov .

Download: The free apps from Zillow.com and Realtor.com can help you search for homes for sale, bookmark potential houses and even find driving directions to get there — available for iPhone, iPad or Android

Listen: The “ Money 101: Homeowning” series of podcasts by the team from Amer­ican Public Media’s “ Marketplace” pro­grams covers details from finding a good real estate agent to what you need to know about buying a foreclosed property. Find them at iTunesU. 

- AP

Vail, CO – Vail Resorts has agreed to buy Kirkwood Mountain Resort at Lake Tahoe, Calif., for about $18 million.

The deal includes residential and commercial property at the base. Kirkwood will continue to be involved in the property development.

If the deal goes through, Vail Resorts would operate three world-class mountain resorts in the Lake Tahoe region, including Heavenly Mountain Resort in South Lake Tahoe, Northstar California on the north shore and Kirkwood Mountain Resort.

Vail Resorts said Heavenly and Northstar pass holders will have access to Kirkwood and Kirkwood pass holders will be able to ski and ride Heavenly and Northstar.

Vail Resorts expects to close the deal next month, contingent on transfer of the U.S. Forest Service permit.

- Vail Daily

VAIL, Colorado — Monday’s storm brought big snow to local ski areas.

Vail reported 10 inches of snow, while Beaver Creek reported 9 inches as of 6 a.m Tuesday.

Vail Mountain currently has 1,603 of 5,289 acres open and over the weekend that they intend to open parts of the Back Bowls as soon as possible after Monday’s storm.

Vail has received 105 inches of snow so far this year.  As for Beaver Creek, it offer 1,408 of 1,815 acres of open terrain, and has received 96 inches of snow so far this year.

The Good News is that there is a chance of snow Wednesday, Thursday and Friday

-Vail Daily

Vail Colorado local Lindsey Vonn ended a five-week winless streak Sunday with a dominating victory in a World Cup super-G that moved her into sole possession of third place on the career wins list.

The Colorado native clocked 1 minute, 26.16 seconds down the Olympia delle Tofane course, finishing a massive 0.61 seconds in front of German rival Maria Hoefl-Riesch, with Tina Maze of Slovenia third.

Vonn captured her 47th career victory.

-Vail Daily

UPDATE :  Vail received 10-12 inches over last 72 hours.

Vail Valley  — Resorts can’t keep secrets anymore, so we all know the Vail Valley could use snow, and lots of it. But the bright news is that people are still coming to the valley for vacations.

While some travelers are canceling or delaying their ski trips due to the lack of snow, many others are coming anyway.

At the Simba Run condos, general manager Farrow Hitt said there haven’t been any cancelations at all so far this season. Beyond that, Hitt said reservations for this season are running ahead of last season’s pace.

- Vail Daily

VAIL, Colorado — The Lionshead Welcome Center project is in the final stretch of construction over the next few weeks and will require additional staging to complete the project safely. As such, beginning today, the green construction fencing on the south side of the building will be extended to the edge of West Lionshead Circle to allow the contractors to complete overhead work on the roof and windows.

The fencing will be in place for approximately two weeks. The shuttle bus loading area will be available from the restroom entrance and to the east. The building’s restrooms and lockers will remain open.

The new 10,600-square-foot Welcome Center replaces the 30-year-old auxiliary building.

VAIL, Colorado — Vail Mountain has already begun making plans for its 50th anniversary in December 2012 by announcing the planned installation of a new, state-of-the art gondola to replace the Vista Bahn Express Lift (No. 16) inVailVillage.

The new gondola, which will have the number “1” to commemorate Vail’s original gondola in that location, will provide a 40 percent improvement in uphill capacity over the existing Vista Bahn Express Lift – the highest of any gondola in North America. The state-of-the-art gondola, the first installation of its kind in North America, will offer new features, such as free Wi-Fi access for guests.

EAGLE, Colorado — Tebowmania has brought national attention to little Bonfire Brewing in Eagle.

The brewers at Bonfire a few months ago cooked up a barley wine — a high-alcohol, heavy-drinking concoction — with the intent of selling it at the brewery and putting it into the commercial tasting event at the Jan. 7 Big Beers, Belgians & Barleywines festival in Vail. The brew is ready, and last Sunday the Bonfire team was tasting and trying to think up a good name for the stuff.

Like many people who enjoy beer, the team was also watching football while they tasted, and watched the Denver Broncos pull out another in a series of improbable wins since Tim Tebow has become the team’s starting quarterback.

That’s when Ken Hoeve, Bonfire’s “Ale Ambassador” said, “Let’s call it Tebrew!”

The name stuck, a logo was created — a beer-holding man kneeling in the now-familiar “Tebow” pose — and the company put up the name on its Facebook page.

At that point, automatic Internet thingies trained to search for anything with the word “Tebow” in it went to work. The name soon hit beer blogs and newspaper websites, and the Tebow tsunami soon engulfed Bonfire.

“We’ve been getting calls from all over the country,” brewery co-founder Andy Jessen said. “It’s been great for the brewery, great for Eagle and great for the state.”

Jessen acknowledged that he doesn’t know whether Tebow drinks beer or not — but said the brew is more about fans and football than the player.

“It’s just a good time to be in Colorado and be a football fan here,” Jessen said.

VAIL, Colorado — After years of work and untold millions invested, Vail Village is a finished product — for now. Now, even as the national economy still staggers, the village has become a hot spot for businesses.

The town of Vail has issued more than a dozen new business licenses in Vail Village since June 1. Most are for retail operations. Several new businesses have opened in the Solaris building, but a few new shops have opened on Bridge Street. A couple of those are national retailers.