Denver - Hampden (apartment, houses, neighborhood)

[Thatdutchgirl]

My other half is in the run for a position at the University of Colorado which is downtown. I am now concentrating on good schools for a possible move. Since my children are in international school PYP programm now, the Bradley school would be a good option. Houses in the area seem to be moderate with pricing. The area would be fine. Not too bad with commuting to downtown via light rail I think. Any thoughts about this area? Thanks!

[Dreaming of Hawaii]

Just to clarify, the Bradley International School is at 3051 S. Elm Street. I got curious and looked it up. Sorry, not familiar with the neighborhood.

[alloo66]

I guess its along the light rail route.

[DenverBrian]

That's the University Hills or U-Hills area. Mostly older home stock, 1940s to 1960s. Probably mostly 1 bathroom homes and/or 1-car garages.

I see nothing under $750K in that area of any type. Don't know what your definition of "moderate" price is.

[Dreaming of Hawaii]

Originally Posted by DenverBrian

That's the University Hills or U-Hills area. Mostly older home stock, 1940s to 1960s. Probably mostly 1 bathroom homes and/or 1-car garages.

I see nothing under $750K in that area of any type. Don't know what your definition of "moderate" price is.

I was just looking at realtor.com. Found the following:

3081 S. Flamingo Way, $315,000
2265 S. Birch St., $399,000
3031 S. Birch St., $975,000

Rest were over a million.

[lovecrowds]

Southmoor Station is off Interstate 25 and Hampden, its about 20 minutes to get to downtown Denver from there on the light-rail.

The interstate would be 10 minutes during non-rush hour times to downtown Denver, more like 20 minutes during rush-hour depending on traffic.

The area is mainly medium-sized, 1960s houses. It is a very suburban area. I don't know what it is like in 2017, but it seems like it is mainly an empty-nester and retiree neighborhood but there are still quite a few families I think.

I think in general you get more for your money in that area also then much of Denver, especially on a per square foot basis.

I know the closer you get to east you go in the area, the more apartment like out towards Dayton and Quebec.

To me that whole area is much like the southern to it's south which is Centennial. It is quiet, no-frills 1960s housing but very safe and clean.

Much of the reason why that area is clean and quiet is because it is more empty-nesters and retirees or at least it was a decade ago.

The area closer to Dayton and Nine Mile is more multi-family housing and some of the area can be a tiny bit sketchy but Elm and Hampden is a few miles away and is very much 1960s single-family homes.

The area around Hampden and Elm is mainly 1960s ranches and 1/6 acre lots. The area in general is very, very suburban in a 1960s sort of way.

Lots of retail in the area, especially big-box chain stores. There are lots of 1960s small shopping centers scattered around also.

[COLO_RE_Broker]

This is a fairly decent area of town, the further west of I25 you go the nicer it is. You can also find everything retail along Hampden.

[Augie Daugie]

Current inventory feeding into Bradley is practically non-existent. However, when you look at everything that's been on the market in the past 180 days, you'll see that roughly 75% (63 of 84) of the homes were priced under $500K. Overall, this is a very nice area. I've been seeing a lot of scrapes over the past couple of years, but the majority of the original housing stock is still there.

[Thatdutchgirl]

Thanks for your information. Coming from outside US we will probably first rent, then buy. Suburban and quietness is ok. School quality is important to me.

[emm74]

I don't know Bradley enrollment data, but if you are set on a specific school, you need to make sure that where you live is in the boundary. Yes, there is a choice process, and you can participate in it, but there is no guarantee you'll get your top choice, esp. if it's a popular school. I would also recommend that you make sure you would be happy with the middle and high schools you would be zoned for, because the same choice issues apply to those as well.