of the remaining debt in 2009. The new owner applied to the city for an exemption from the real estate transfer tax it charges, on the grounds that it had acquired the property through foreclosure proceedings. It was granted, because the city normally does not charge lenders in those situations since they usually resell the property. Later, however, the city learned that Jerome Properties in fact intended to retain and benefit from ownership. In 2010, it told Jerome Property that the sale might indeed be taxable. Jerome Property then took the unusual step of foreclosing on its own subsidiary. It also filed in state court for a declaratory judgement that that transfer wasn't subject to the tax, either. The city responded that the foreclosure had been a fraudulent conveyance in order to avoid a tax bill estimated at around a half million dollars. In 2011 the judge ruled in favor of Jerome Property, saying the city had interpreted its own statute too narrowly. The city is considering whether to appeal. Later that year, Jerome brought in Auberge Resorts to replace Rock as the hotel manager. In January 2012 the entire hotel was rented out for a weekend for a bat mitzvah. Later that year the hotel closed down for several months prior to ski season to renovate the interiors of all rooms as well as the J-Bar. Reviews Travel writers and guides have heaped praise on the Jerome. "[It is] one of the best places to stay in Aspen—for those who can afford it", says Frommer's. Fodor's gives it a Fodor's Choice, calling it "[o]ne of the state's truly grand hotels." "Fancy digs aren't my priority when I travel," wrote Phil Marty of the Chicago Tribune, "but then you walk into something like Room 302 and think, 'Well, maybe I should spend more time in my room.'" He praised the staff's helpfulness in finding another place to valet-park his car with two bicycles on top, and the two half-liter water bottles and Toblerone candy bars on the desk when he came in. He had a few minor complaints: at the time (2007) the hotel did not have free Wi-Fi, the room's light switch could not function as a dimmer, and the hotel would stock the mini-bar only on a guest's request. See also List of hotels in the United States List of reportedly haunted locations in the United States National