Kimberly Adams

But trying to predict what the Fed will do is complicated.

Now there's the conflict in Iran and the resulting jump in oil prices to consider, too, says Stephen Bushbaum at TREP.

...by trying to stimulate growth.

If the Fed rates saw a cut, construction loans could too.

For his part, Robert Dietz at the National Association of Home Builders says for now, he's still expecting the Fed to cut rates twice this year, though he thinks those could happen later than initially forecast.

Because, he says, lower Fed rates mean lower construction loan rates, which would potentially mean more supply and lower prices for buyers.

I'm Carla Javier for Marketplace.

We talked earlier about the Winter Paralympics, and even though it's March now, there is still a bit of the winter snow sports season left for those of us not quite ready for our Olympic or Paralympic debut.

But as the warm weather rolls in and the snowpack disappears, it's time for ski resorts to start closing the slopes and do some accounting to see how the season went for them.

But in the last few decades, that end-of-year tally has been looking different for ski resorts that accept certain ski passes.

Roberto Ferdman is a senior video correspondent with The Wall Street Journal, where he produced a piece called How Vail Changed the Economics of the Entire Ski Industry.

Roberto, welcome to the program.

So this piece really hinges on what's called the epic pass from Vail.

What is it and how does it work?

And why was that an important catch?

How has this pass model, like that Vail rolled out with the Epic Pass, changed the industry overall?

So you mentioned this a bit already, but in addition to the Epic Pass, there's the Icon Pass and the Indy Pass.

What does it mean, especially for skiers and snowboarders, that this pass system is now so pervasive throughout the system?

So even though these passes have been such a big moneymaker for Vail and similar resorts, sales for that pass have been slowing in recent years.

What do you see as the future of the system?