Three Months in Boulder (Denver, Longmont: to rent, buying a house, buying) - City-Data Forum

dlepik · 11-23-2009, 08:25 AM

Greetings all. Three months ago my wife and our two youngs children moved to Boulder from New York. It was a life change of epic proportions. We did it with a 2 1/2 year old and a 22 day old infant but for us it was time and we thought Boulder would be the place.

Before we made the plunge we were on these forums 24/7 gathering info on different places to live since Boulder wasn't our only option. I thought if anyone had any questions about what the move and what this place are really like I'd post this and throw it open to questions since we do have a pretty fresh perspective.

Our background in NY/NYC based for most of our lives. We have some $$$ but we aren't rich by any stretch! We're very active and wanted our kids to be raised that way but we wanted culture and a university nearby and a few other things as well.

If anyone has questions about our take on the People's Republic of Boulder, please...throw them out there!

dlepik · 11-23-2009, 12:02 PM

I should also have proof read the previous post better....I am not illiterate though it might seem like it after reading that...

SunnyP · 11-24-2009, 10:35 AM

Thanks for the post! We'll be moving back out there by this summer, with our 2 young children. I grew up in Boulder, but have lived away for about 14 years. How do you like it so far? How has the adjustment been?

dlepik · 11-25-2009, 09:18 AM

Amazing...there are many things in life you draw up on paper and they never quite work out the way you hoped. Boulder has been the exception. We're hiking and running in the mountains nearly every day. And my experience is people here are very friendly. But it's all about perspective. We come from NY so we're used to un-friendly.

Three people gave my wife their phone number in the first two weeks here just so they might ease our transition. That would NEVER have happened in New York

O'Dell · 11-26-2009, 05:11 AM

I'm curious -- are you renting currently, or did you buy a home when you moved to the area? This seems to be a "chicken and egg" problem: it's hard to buy in a region you don't really know, but it's a hassle to rent a house for just 8-12 months in order to get a better lay of the land.

dlepik · 11-26-2009, 07:11 AM

We rented. It was too big a leap to buy immediately. If we didn't like Boulder for whatever reason we would have been kicking ourselves for buying. Either way isn't cheap but we're in North Boulder at the foot of the mountains and paying less than we would have back east so we can't really complain...

In discussion with many people here it seems the closer you get to the mountains the higher the prices...it's a bit comforting to know that in a year or two when we decide to buy (and we will) that Longmont, Louisville etc are options and much, much less expensive...

sickofjerz · 11-26-2009, 08:46 AM

We jumped in with both feet. We are not actually moving there for another 18 months, but are buying a house (settlement next month). The house is near the Reservoir. I liked the area since it was a bit less densly populated than right in Boulder.

I have 2 kids who love the beach and since we currently live at the shore, I thought this would also be the best compromise for them. Having the Reservoir within walking distance to our house.

Any thoughts on that area of Boulder? Good or bad. Thanks

dlepik · 11-26-2009, 09:25 AM

You're absolutely right, there's definitely more open space out there than Boulder proper. I love the rez and if you've got kids who are used to LBI or Point Pleasant or places like that then you can't go wrong. Plus it's only a 5 minute drive from where we live and maybe 10/15 minutes to Pearl Street.

That's the great thing about being here. The scale of Boulder is so much smaller. I feel like everything is within 50 minutes...DIA, Denver. And everything you want around Boulder is within 15.

lauralew813 · 12-01-2009, 01:01 PM

Im in MA and considering a move west. I love the idea of Boulder but think it may be a little pricey for us. I see you mention 2 suburbs - Longmont and Louisville. Any suggestions on other cool areas that are less expensive?

dlepik · 12-01-2009, 05:27 PM

Well Longmont and Louisville are the two that I see mentioned most but there's also Niwot, Superior, Brighton and others. But I haven't experienced enough of any of these towns to have an informed opionion. I think other posters have covered this topic many times in other threads and you may want to check those out.

One place I know that's close to Boulder that I rarely see mentioned in Nederland. We know a couple in their mid-20s that couldn't afford Boulder so they rented a place there and they seem pretty happy. Far less expensive but then again maybe there's a reason for that.

My only experience with Nederland is running up there and since it sits at about 9,000 feet it was a bit brutal...!