Schuss Boom in Colorado

Where is real estate climbing fastest in the U.S.? Try Aspen and neighboring Snowmass, Colo., the ski-and-sun resort area whose population of 17,000 swells to 35,000 when the snow is on the trails from Thanksgiving through mid-April. Six years ago, studio apartments in the Lichenhearth condominium complex sold for $30,000; today, these 675-sq.-ft. jewel boxes go for $175,000. Last year Jay Kuhne, a California real estate man, parted with $275,000 for his three-bedroom town house condo on the Aspen Club grounds; this year the unit is selling for $675,000. Prices are rising by the month. A studio with sleeping alcove that changed hands at $125,000 in January is now priced at $175,000.

Some of the demand comes from Europeans, who find the Rockies cheaper than the Alps, but condo buyers are mainly affluent U.S. skiers. A big reason for Aspen's inflation is its restrictive zoning and new growth-management plan, which encourage low-income housing and limit the pace of luxury construction. Says Hans Cantrup, a developer: "The building quota has already been used up for the next three years." Canny Cantrup has growth-management approval for his plans to put up 30 town houses. Price: $1 million each.

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