Urban Denver or Foothills?

[BosoxNelly]

So I'm assuming a scrape is a complete rebuild? No existing structure left?

[Chewey1]

I haven't read all the responses you have received, but the 1st question I have is where will you be working? If you want public schools, Denver is your least likely location. If you are in the foothills, you will be in the Jefferson County school district...definitely better. The best school districts in the area are Douglas County and Cherry Creek (not to be confused with the Cherry Creek area of town which is part of Denver). Douglas County is not in the foothills and neither is Cherry Creek. However, in Douglas County there are some nice, wooded, hilly areas (see Castle Rock, Parker, Larkspur which is getting a ways out of town, and Roxborough which is in the southern end of the foothills). All of these areas have excellent access to hiking/biking trails and other outdoor activities. $700K will get you a lot more house in this area than Cherry Creek and Wash Park. Since you are used to living in smaller homes, that might be okay.

By the way, I am in the mortgage business and have done loans all over the metro area including Boulder. Where you are going to work is going to be key. [ Mod Cut ] By the way, I wouldn't live any where else...this is the best of all worlds.

[kristenfromdenver]

I would consider the west side of Denver in the Highlands (closer to the mountains). You could get an amazing home there with plenty of space and character, a nice yard and walking distance to parks, coffee, restaurants etc.. And the best part is that you can easily drive to the foothills and be hiking, biking or snowshoeing literally in 15 minutes. My fiancee does it everyday and there is no traffic at all if you take Highway 6 to Golden. Feel confident if you look in this area you will find a beautiful home!!! This area is one of few that continues to appreciate as well so it's a great neighborhood. Also, it's only a 15 minute walk to downtown as well. Just one example...

Single Family Home - 3236 WYANDOT ST, DENVER, CO, 80211 - Realtor.com

And no, I'm not a realtor, I just really enjoy looking at older homes with tons of character.

[steveco.]

Originally Posted by BosoxNelly

So I'm assuming a scrape is a complete rebuild? No existing structure left?

Yes its when someone tears the entire existing structure down and removes the foundation and builds completely new or uses the old foundation but builds a much bigger house on top. I have also seen now they take some of the older brick and timber houses, remove the wood and make a huge addition on top of the old brick structure.

[Katiana]

the best part is that you can easily drive to the foothills and be hiking, biking or snowshoeing literally in 15 minutes.

15 min is a bit of a stretch from that neighborhood. According to Mapquest, from the Wyandot St. address to Golden is 13+ miles, 19 min. Then it's a little farther to the foothills.

[steveco.]

Once in golden you are practically at the base of the foothills..

[kristenfromdenver]

North Table Mountain right in Golden is great hiking, mountain biking and snowshoeing and not very busy either. Great for during the work week. Just one example. We also love Apex for moutain biking and Lookout Mountain - both within approximately 20 minutes from Highlands. I find the trails in Golden tend to be much less busy than in Boulder, probably because there are fewer outdoor enthusiasts in Golden, I suppose.

[BosoxNelly]

This has been a great thread....our plans have changed a bit. We're still trying to get to Denver but the opportunity I had fell through....so I'll be perusing the IT Denver threads.......still hope to get there just not as soon as we'd like. Hopefully before we run out of water in AZ!