Earlier this season, Boulderite Christopher Carter launched skihausswap.com, the first home swapping community for ski house owners. The idea is that Front Rangers with second homes in say, the Vail Valley, can try skiing someplace different by swapping their ski resort getaway with someone who owns a place in say, Tahoe. “We’re not a rental site,” says Carter, 41. “Just swaps, and specifically, just ski home swaps.” His site is driven by Google Maps, which ties it to a database of every ski resort in America and Canada, and sets it apart from less-visual list-driven sites like Craigslist. Users fill out information about their property, including distance from resort, year built, number of rooms and amenities, and also note their local favorites like best run and tastiest place for breakfast. In addition, users flag their top three swap destinations, triggering backend logic to suggest direct property matches with other ski house owners. Carter, whose family owns a ski house in Fraser, is pretty sure he’s onto something, and even set up a sister site called Golfhaus Swap to extend his services beyond ski season. But he recognizes that the real value won’t be apparent until several thousand users sign up. To help build the online network, he’s waiving the $99 annual fee for the debut season. skihausswap.com
