The summit of Teton Pass, like many trailheads and access locations across the west, continues to see an increase in users. Ease of side-country terrain access at ski resorts, better equipment, increasingly available information, and the overall surge in popularity of backcountry skiing within the past decade are all contributing factors to the area’s popularity. The next time you see lines forming or vehicles jockeying for a soon-to-open parking spot, you may also see a familiar face.
Brian Siegfried, an Associate Broker with Jackson Hole Sotheby’s International Realty since 2008, is in his third winter serving as one of twelve volunteers within the Teton Backcountry Alliance Volunteer Backcountry Ambassador Program. The volunteer ambassador program was initiated in 2020 to support the work of Jay Pistono. Pistono, as Teton Pass Ambassador, is a Forest Service employee and has served as the “protector of the pass” since 2005. Teton Backcountry Alliance sought to augment “a presence where there is pressure on the resource,” according to Siegfried.
Siegfried on the Glory bootpack as a part of his Volunteer Backcountry Ambassador patrol.
Siegfried, who has been an avid skier of Teton Pass for thirty years, says the position is rooted in education. “It’s Wyoming Department of Transportation’s world. We’re just living in it,” he quips when referencing that the sometimes-contentious parking area atop the pass is actually a turn-out intended for brake checks and highway operations.
Large acreage and expansive views define a tranquil neighborhood.
by Staff Writers
Diary Subdivision is a small, private subdivision in the northern South Park region of the Jackson Hole valley just beyond the westernmost edge of the town of Jackson. Comprising more than 525 acres, Dairy Ranches, as the area is commonly known, offers pastoral ranchette-style lots ranging from ten to thirty-six acres with an ideal balance of seclusion and convenience.
A sense of privacy and a preservation of open spaces define the subdivision, while panoramic views of some of the region’s iconic peaks accentuate the subdivision’s properties. Views of the Cathedral Group of the Tetons rise from between Boyle’s Hill and West Gros Ventre Butte. Glory’s signature eastern bowl and the Snake River Range’s ridges along Teton Pass are visible throughout the west, while the rolling flanks of Munger Mountain anchor the southern expanse.
Dairy Ranches is able to provide a balance of privacy and ease of access in part due to each of its three residential roads being terminal, eliminating any through-traffic. The large parcels of the former cattle ranch and dairy operation that gives the neighborhood its name offer a permeability to the landscape that allow migrating elk and other wildlife to move through the area, and help to define its semi-rural character.
2675 W Dairy Lane is an equestrian estate on 25 acres just west of the town of Jackson, complete with a 4,300 square foot barn, eight paddocks, grass riding area and dedicated jumping/riding arena.
Within the highly-esteemed subdivision, 2675 W. Dairy Lane has recently come to market and is among the valley’s most refined equestrian estates. The property’s twenty-five acres are home to a beautifully appointed, nearly-five-thousand square foot main home with three bedrooms within its single-level floor plan. A combination of log spans and timber beams lend and airy and open feeling to the home, and are accented by elegant stonework. Expansive windows showcase Teton views throughout, and provide a light-filled balance to the home that melds refined rustic accents with traditional and farmhouse elements for a warm and inviting aesthetic.
A thousand-square-foot guest home provides an additional two bedrooms and two bathrooms on either side of an open, light-filled living space. Cathedral ceilings, a generous fireplace, a kitchenette and dining area complete the guest accommodations.
The property’s equestrian facilities are among some of the finest available, with the centerpiece being its deluxe seven-stall barn of more than 4,300 square feet. The barn incorporates a tack and trophy room, workshop, and includes its own dedicated laundry and kitchen facilities. Outside, the property features two distinct riding areas—one of irrigated grass, and the other with professional footing dedicated to riding and jumping.
To the south, 2605 W Dairy Lane provides a nearly-four-thousand square foot, four-bedroom main home on eleven acres. Recent renovations include a gourmet kitchen that flows into an open and inviting layout of primary and secondary living areas—including dining area and a large den. The open plan affords a flexibility that is equally suited to entertaining and daily living, alike. Contemporary accents extend into the home’s bathrooms, where simplified lines, and monochromatic material selections provide a luxurious feel, offset by contrasting cabinetry and stainless hardware.
2605 W Dairy Lane underwent recent renovations to the nearly-four-thousand square foot, four-bedroom main home and offers a bright, open floor plan with contemporary accents. A guest apartment and separate caretaker’s quarters provide flexible accommodations.
Additional accommodations are provided via a thousand square foot guest apartment above a detached three-car garage, and a separate caretaker’s quarters within the property’s barn. All told, the property provides three distinct residential units and six garage bays to maximize versatility within this Dairy Ranches retreat.
Despite barely missing the symbolic year-end $500M mark for total dollar volume, the Teton Valley real estate market had its second-best year ever in 2022 by posting $492.7M in dollar volume with 749 transactions.
While sales for the valley were down 35.6% in 2022, individual property values generally held firm as the post-Covid wave of real estate demand began to recede. For the three main property types in Teton Valley (homes, condos/townhomes and vacant land), all three categories posted year-over-year gains for average individual sale prices.
The regions of Alta, Wyoming and Tetonia, Idaho both saw precipitous declines in total dollar volumes for sales (down 59.6% and 53.6%, respectively), but Victor and Driggs managed to hold their own in a transitional year for the market with modest drops of only 14.6% and 3.3%. The $411.0M of sales generated in Victor and Driggs also accounted for 83.4% of all dollar volume in the Teton Valley region. It should be noted too, the year-end total for the entire Teton Valley region in 2021 was $364.4M.
Jackson Hole Sotheby’s International Realty represented 149 sellers in the last 12 months, helping more sellers navigate an uncertain year than any other firm, and successfully closed one in five of all listings in Teton Valley for 2022.
For the Jackson Hole real estate market, 2022 will be remembered as the year that came in like a lion, and went out like a lamb.
Following the heady Covid surge of 2020 and 2021, the valley market cooled off in the first six months of 2022. Rising interest rates, a contentious election cycle and other external forces chilled the regional market further in Q3 and Q4.
Heading into December, the year-end dollar volume had the potential to break the symbolic $1 billion mark for the third year in a row. But a tepid final month of the year that saw only 12 closings for $50.8M landed the year-end dollar volume for the Teton County real estate market at $961.4M (down 49.4% from 2022). It’s important to note, however, that total is still greater than the pre-covid, year-end total from 2019 of $927.6M (and with nearly 50% fewer transactions than three years ago).
While the market climate is still in a state of flux, Jackson Hole Sotheby’s International Realty (JHSIR) maintained its perennial place as the leading brokerage in the valley. Despite a challenging year on several fronts, JHSIR sales accounted for 41.9% of the overall dollar volume market share in 2022, which was also greater than the next five brokerages’ totals combined.*
As the global pandemic subsides and Teton County returns to its new normal, let the resources and reach of the valley’s leading real estate brokerage help you with your real estate needs in 2023.
