How is it like to live in Boulder CO for a family (Denver: real estate)

[Anke Groene]

How is it to live in Boulder? I fell in love with the city when I first saw a House Hunters show. I live in Miami and have 3 small children and I don't want them to grow up here ( to materialistic,high crime,too hot and too dangerous to play outside,no good public schools,to expensive).I love to be outdoors and not be running from one air conditioning place to another.I love to meditate , live healthy,joga and have a simple live.I have a feeling there are a lot of people with a free spirit in Boulder.How is the weather? Is it hard to breath? Does the skin feel dry? My son has a minor Asma, will the cold, dry air affect it ? Do you have to cover yourself up to your nose to get out in the winter?
If it snows does the snow stay there? I love the fact that there are a lot of bicycle paths through the city (I hate driving). Why is the real estate so expensive? My husband is an electrical engineer and realtor , can he find a job ? Thanks for all the info you can give me.

[Mike from back east]

It's as nice as you've heard, though most TV spots tend to be over the top and gushing. Boulder itself is generally expensive but it depends on your situation; look at homes on realtor.com to get an idea. Other parts of Boulder County are excellent and a good deal more affordable.

Climate here is dry, about 12-14 inches of rain per year and dry air, so you won't be sweltering in summer like in FL or AZ, etc. Cold winters but with dry and 40+ degrees it's amazingly comfortable, not bone-chilling. Snows some here on the lower elevations 5000-6000 feet, and really dumps snow up in the mountains west of the Denver metro area.

All of your outdoor things will be doable, almost every day of the year except perhaps for the most extreme days. Air is dry, nose will need saline, home will need a whole-house humidifier; skin lotion; sunscreen; sunglasses; hat to cover the face; and drink lots of water too -- this part of the nation is a semi-desert and it is DRY here. For some, asthma improves, for some it does not or worsens, depends on the person.

Realtor jobs suck everywhere right now, he'd have better luck as an EE. Boulder is one of those cities that seems to generate jobs, at least more so than many areas. He can check the web sites for opportunities.

Boulder Valley School District (BVSD) is one of the best.

[OhioToCO]

Originally Posted by Anke Groene

How is it to live in Boulder? I fell in love with the city when I first saw a House Hunters show. I live in Miami and have 3 small children and I don't want them to grow up here ( to materialistic,high crime,too hot and too dangerous to play outside,no good public schools,to expensive).I love to be outdoors and not be running from one air conditioning place to another.I love to meditate , live healthy,joga and have a simple live.I have a feeling there are a lot of people with a free spirit in Boulder.How is the weather? Is it hard to breath? Does the skin feel dry? My son has a minor Asma, will the cold, dry air affect it ? Do you have to cover yourself up to your nose to get out in the winter?
If it snows does the snow stay there? I love the fact that there are a lot of bicycle paths through the city (I hate driving). Why is the real estate so expensive? My husband is an electrical engineer and realtor , can he find a job ? Thanks for all the info you can give me.

Boulder is nice for a family - we moved here last Spring with 2 kids and my teenager now tells me we did the right thing. We came from a middle-of-nowhere in Ohio though, so it was a win-win for us. Coming from Miami must be very different - both because of opportunities and climate. I suggest you don't base your opinion on the TV show - you need to come here and visit.
Mike above gave you a pretty good run down on climate etc. My younger son has mild eczema that always flares up in winter, when the air inside is dry. He didn't have any problems this summer, it's much dryer than it was in Ohio, and def. dryer than in Miami, but 30-40% humidity is all his skin needs to be comfortable. Right now it's cold outside, so the heater is ramping up in the house, and I see little patches of dry skin appear on his problematic areas. We just turn on a room humidifier and it helps a lot. We rent now, so no whole house humidifier for us, but we will get it as soon as we buy our own place.
I LOVE Boulder schools, my kids like them too. We are in a middle of trying to choose a High School for our older one, and it seems like a tough choice - all look great. He told us that we can't make a wrong choice though. Clearly, he is the wisest in the family

[CoCo10]

Both Mike and Ohio put it well. I'm fairly new here, been here with partner since March. Came fro a humid place... Seattle. Yes it is very dry and takes some getting used to over time. The elevation is a bit hard on breathing at first. My allergies are different, in seattle they were thick ugly sinus infections all the time and here I get clear runny nose from time to time. I use a netty pot saline rinse every night. I humidify by putting a pan of boiling water on every so often but don't forget it is on... lol. This is the absolutely best place to live and I wish to God I could get our adult kids to move here and bring the grandkids. Like you we fled high crime and such in Seattle. We just gush about Boulder but that is because we have just fallen in love with it, people here tell us we have the Boulder Glow.
Come on up and jump the abyss you won't be sorry. But it may be hard at first to get established, all worth it in the end.

[Bideshi]

Originally Posted by Mike from back east

Other parts of Boulder County are excellent and a good deal more affordable.

For example? Louisville? Or?

[Scott5280]

Originally Posted by Bideshi

For example? Louisville? Or?

Lafayette,Gunbarrel,Superior, Niwot, Erie ,Lyons even Marshall and Eldorado Canyon to a lesser degree