The Trails at Westlake (Mountain View, Meridian: low income, best neighborhood, apartment complex)

[sconno05]

My wife and I were looking for a home in the Redleaf subdivision but came across a beautifully remodeled home in The Trails at Westlake, which is right across Lowell Blvd from Redleaf. The house in the Trails has a much larger living area, has a much larger backyard, has nicer features (granite in the kitchen, newly remodeled bathrooms, etc.), is on a corner lot, and is only 8 years older than the house in Redleaf. Both houses are the exact same price.

As far as I can tell, Redleaf is a nicer and newer neighborhood and is associated with a much better elementary school (Coyote Ridge vs. Centennial). I am concerned with the Centennial elementary school since it received a 3 out of 10 on greatschools.org, but I also think there is a chance that I can choice my children into some of the better schools that are nearby (Coyote Ridge, Meridian, etc.).

I have not found many opinions on the Trails, but it seems like a nice enough neighborhood that is kid friendly. Is there anything that I should be concerned about here? I don't need to be in the very best neighborhood in the area, just something quiet, safe, and kid friendly.

Thanks!

[mic111]

I live in the area and know of nothing against the Trails. But if you want your kids to go to a different school I think it is wise to buy in a neighborhood where they are guaranteed a spot. Also they may have problems making friends in the neighborhood if everyone else goes to a Centennial and they attend Coyote Ridge or Meridian.

The Trails house might be better for those with older kids where everyone goes to the same middle and high school as the surrounding neighborhoods.

[davebarnes]

https://coloradoschoolgrades.com/Sch...aspx?sid=1937E
https://coloradoschoolgrades.com/Sch...aspx?sid=1388E

Coyote - 5% low income
Centennial - 55%

[sconno05]

Well I guess that explains their low scores. Is there an easy way for me to find out a school's area coverage (i.e. where are students coming from)?

[davebarnes]

Originally Posted by sconno05

Well I guess that explains their low scores. Is there an easy way for me to find out a school's area coverage (i.e. where are students coming from)?

http://www.adams12.org/files/boundary/centennial.pdf

I cannot find a map for Coyote

But, I did find http://www.adams12.org/files/boundar...ry_area_es.pdf

[sconno05]

The median price of homes in the Centennial boundaries do seem lower than some of the nearby communities. They only real difference in the homes that I see is the age of the homes, which are only 8-10 years older than communities like Redleaf. Is this really the cause for the large discrepancy? It seems like Centennial is the anomaly, since it is surrounded by much better schools on all sides. I am new to the area, so I feel like I am still missing something that others may be aware of. Are there designated low income communities within these boundaries or something?

[davebarnes]

I don't know.
My first reaction would be kids choicing into Centennial from a crappier school.
But Arapahoe Ridge to the east is higher rated than Coyote. https://coloradoschoolgrades.com/Sch...aspx?sid=0301E
And, Mountain View to the south is even higher rated. https://coloradoschoolgrades.com/Sch...aspx?sid=6150E
And, Meridian to the north is the highest rated. https://coloradoschoolgrades.com/Sch...aspx?sid=0059E

So, it appears that Centennial is much poorer and browner than all the surrounding schools.
A large apartment complex somewhere inside the boundary?
Padmapper only shows 1 rental in the entire Centennial area and the rent is $1400.
Zillow shows zero foreclosures (which is amazing, in my opinion).

My only suggestion is to drive to Centennial at the end of the school day and talk with some parents.
What you may find is that there are really two schools. One without free lunch doing quite well and one with free lunch doing poorly.

P.S. All my research was wasted thanks to Mic's insightful observation 4 minutes later.

[mic111]

In the SE corner of the Centennial district, NW corner of Zuni and 128th, there is a large mobile home park. Looks like about 1/6th of the area. The density is probably higher in a mobile home park than the single family homes. My guess is the 55% low income comes from this mobile home park.