How to buy a ski home in Park City (process, documents, occupancy)

If you’re flying in this fall to buy a ski home, start with what you’re buying — condo, cottage, basin house — before you fall for the mountain photo.

Here is how I walk an out-of-area buyer through a Park City purchase: the documents that matter, the three occupancy systems people mix up, and what belongs inside due diligence before you are locked in.

Main Street cottages bring design review and a business license, not just a vibe. Photo: Don Ramey Logan, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0.

Start with housing type, not the mountain view

What you buy sets the paperwork. A few common shapes:

• Ski-in/ski-out condo or lodge (Silver Lake, Empire Pass, parts of Canyons Village, some Town Lift condos). “Ski-in/ski-out” in MLS remarks is a claim. Walk it. Snow-dependent paths and “ski access” are different sentences.
• Lock-and-leave attached (HOA snow/exterior) that is not ski-in. Park City Transit has been fare-free since 1975 — that matters for lock-and-leave that is not ski-in.
• Historic cottage (HR-1/HR-2; Historic District Design Review)
• Basin single-family (Snyderville; county, not city)
• Custom lot / to-be-built
• Branded / hotel-managed residence or condotel — the rental program is a contract, not the deed

Club membership (Talisker, Promontory, Glenwild, Deer Crest, and the rest) is a separate contract. It does not convey with the deed unless the club says so in writing.

Jurisdiction next — the mailing address can mislead you

Park City municipal limits, unincorporated Summit County (Snyderville Basin), and Wasatch County (Jordanelle / Hideout / Heber side) are three different flagpoles. Nightly-rental license path follows the flag, not the mailing line “Park City, UT.”

Unincorporated Snyderville Basin is not Park City municipal. Properties in the Basin are regulated by the Snyderville Basin Development Code (Title 10); eastern unincorporated county runs under a separate code. See the county development-codes page. Named basin neighborhoods — Pinebrook, Jeremy Ranch, Summit Park, Old Ranch Road, Silver Creek — are still county.

Summit County nightly-rental licensing is its own ordinance path (Title 3 business regulation). Fee tables circulate on aggregator sites; go to the Summit County Clerk and current Title 3 for the dollars that actually apply.

Three occupancy systems — keep them separate

Buyers often blend these. I keep them on three tracks:

Lender occupancy: primary vs second home vs investment. Second-home underwriting is not the same as a primary. Down-payment percentages belong in a conversation with your lender, not a blog guess.

Property tax occupancy: second-home buyers usually don’t get Utah’s primary residential break (~45% of value off the tax base). You apply with the county assessor — Summit County for most “Park City” mailing addresses; Wasatch County if the parcel is on that side of the line. Details and statute live on the Tax Commission residential page.

Use occupancy: owner-use vs long-term tenant (>30 days) vs nightly rental (<30 days). Nightly rental is zoning + license + HOA — three gates. “Lockout unit” and “nightly rental” are code uses, not household size.

Park City Transit at Kimball Junction — fare-free bus is part of lock-and-leave math, not a ski-in claim. Photo: Maylingoed, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 4.0.

The Utah contract spine

Utah licensees must use the state-approved Real Estate Purchase Contract (REPC) unless the parties agree otherwise. The posted PDF was approved by the Utah Real Estate Commission and the Office of the Utah Attorney General, effective December 4, 2024. Forms index: commerce.utah.gov state-approved forms.

The Due Diligence Deadline is your document-and-inspection window. HOA resale package, CC&Rs, budget, reserve study, minutes, estoppel, and (if applicable) club status belong inside that window. That deadline is when you still get to walk from HOA minutes.

The REPC addresses HOA assessments and change-of-ownership / transfer / reinvestment fees in the standard form. Seller vs buyer allocation is a negotiated blank — read the form rather than assuming a custom “HOA always pays” rule.

A 2027 REPC is reported in broker/legal blogs as Commission-approved August 2026 and mandatory January 1, 2027. Confirm on the Division forms page before you tell a 2026 buyer their form will change mid-escrow. 2026 deals use the current form.

City nightly rental — if the purchase story depends on it

Inside city limits, nightly rental is under 30 days, and a license does not transfer when ownership changes — plan a new application. Renewals run on the city’s Sept/Oct calendar; pull the current FAQ for fees and timing. HR-1 allows nightly rental; a lockout unit needs a CUP. Always cross-check zoning map + CC&Rs for that parcel.

Apply / questions: nightly_rental@parkcity.gov or 435-615-5231. Long-term rentals (>30 days) are licensed through Summit County if within their limits. New licenses go to Planning, Building, and Police for approval; the city says allow 5–10 business days.

Resort-base village buildings — confirm HOA + county/city license + rental program separately. Photo: Leijurv, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0.

What to order inside due diligence

• Inspection — treat water, septic, snow-load, and parking easements as inspection items for that parcel
• Pull the HOA packet for that building — dues and rules live there (CC&Rs, budget, reserve study, minutes, estoppel)
• Club letter if membership is in the story
• Nightly-rental license status (new application on ownership change) and zoning map
• Insurance quote (WUI / wildfire surcharge is a real Q1-narrative issue — get a quote rather than assuming a premium)
• Current PCBOR quarterly statistics for pricing context. As of early September 2026 the board HTML still showed Q1; KPCW covered Q2 ($1.35 billion). Use the board. A single listing is not “what you will pay.”

If you want a specific parcel run through zoning + HOA docs + license path + occupancy (lender / assessor / use), happy to walk it with you.

Esteban J. Nunez, Park City Realtor.