Northstar-at-Tahoe, a ski resort community in Truckee, Calif., has seen a major expansion of its vacation home real estate market over the past three years as developers rolled out a slew of multi-million dollar condominiums and homes. The tony ski destination now has a new addition—a development with lower price points that will open this winter. Hyatt is opening fractional residences at Northstar, a luxury spin on its Hyatt Vacation Club product that will offer shares starting at less than $100,000. Unlike other Hyatt Vacation Club locations, which are offered by the week, the Northstar Lodge Hyatt Residence Club is being marketed as a fractional residence, with buyers getting a minimum of 18 days per year of use.

Northstar-at-Tahoe had long attracted families to its slopes, but when developer East West Partners started building a series of big second homes developments at the base of the resort, and constructing nearby golf communities, the profile of the real estate market shifted. There are now multi-million dollar condominiums overlooking a pedestrian-friendly, ski-in, ski-out village, fractional and whole ownership homes at two golf communities and a large mid-mountain real estate project from Ritz-Carlton that is served by its own gondola.

Several destination clubs, including Exclusive Resorts, Quintess, High Country Club and the Lusso Collection, also have condominiums in the Northstar Village.

The Hyatt fractional project has shares starting at $78,400 for 18 days of use per year, making it the least expensive option in the village. When it opens this winter, the Hyatt will offer two- and three-bedroom condos along with penthouses ranging from 1,250 to 1,800 square feet. Prices top out at $228,700 for shares that don’t include Christmas and New Year’s stays. Shares that include winter holiday weeks range from $320,600 to $545,000 and include up to 42 days a year of usage.

Units have decks with outdoor fireplaces and there is a swimming pool, lounge and the requisite ski valet who can store your boots and skis overnight. Buyers at the Hyatt project also get membership in the Tahoe Mountain Club, which includes access to several golf courses, a Jack Nicklaus Signature course among them.

Clearly, the economy is impacting the sales at Northstar. According to one local broker, fractional sales in the community have slowed—the Hyatt, for instance, has been closing just three sales a month.

There are other shared ownership options in the village, including a one-eighth share of a three-bedroom condominium on the market for $280,000 and several other fractional units in the $350,000 to $450,000 range. The Ritz-Carlton Highlands, where residents take a gondola to reach the village below, is selling 78 fractional ownership units in one-twelfth slices that secure 21 days a year of use. Prices for the two- to four-bedroom homes range from $200,000 to more than $600,000, and the project is slated to open at the end of 2009.

Considering a fractional ski home? Download our Decision Guide to Fractional Residences.