Best Area to Buy a House for a Single Female (early 30s) (Denver: insurance, condo)

[Soniarsenie]

I'm thinking of relocating to the Denver Metro area early next year and I'm wondering what would be the best area for me to settle in and buy a house.

Since this will most likely just be my first house and I don't have kids, I'm not fussed about schools, etc. But I do want to buy a house, not a townhouse or condo. Below are some of my information and kind of a wishlist.

- Price Range: 400k - 550k
- Work: My company allows people to wfh remotely even before COVID so I won't change job any time soon. But I work for a healthcare software company and will likely look for tech-related jobs in the future. But that's not a major issue for me right now.
- What I'm looking for:
- West of Denver so closer to the mountains
- A reasonable dating scene. My main concern of buying a house is that I will settle in a family-oriented community with no single blokes, which is where I live now and partly why I want to move.
- Reasonably open-minded. I'm an Asian female that currently live in the SF Bay Area, which has been great in that regard. So I'm looking for a similar place. (I'm not religious and my political view is moderate but leaning towards the liberal side, if that helps.)
- Reasonably safe.

I don't know what I'm looking even possible, especially outside of Denver.

Also, what's the dating scene like in Denver Metro area? Do people mostly use online dating, especially during COVID, or is there another way to find single people?

Any help and advice will be highly appreciated!



Cheers

[motorcity53]

I'm an asian who left denver recently. the dating scene here is going to be tough regardless where you live, it's nothing like the west coast. Don't let that piece factor into where you pick a home to buy, the home should be in an area that holds value well and isn't near the nuclear waste dump in rocky flats.

[davebarnes]

You really should consider townhomes.

[alloo66]

I would live in Central Park if you like a central location to Denver. Lakewood would also be good. Littleton and Golden to be close to the mountains. I'm Asian too lived in the Bay Area for 12 years. You will notice the lack of diversity in Denver. The Asian enclaves in the city are along Federal/Alameda/Mississippi and Aurora near Havana/Peoria/Parker/Mississippi. Jtown on Lawerence/Park Ave. Nothing like SF, more like SJ.

Dating has been sparse for me too. I'm thinking of moving west because I dislike the cold and erratic weather. I do like the sun more. You get used to it. No where is nearly as dynamic as California. Take a trip out here and check out the housing stock. Get some idea what you're looking for. Good luck.

[davebarnes]

Where is work location?

[daprara]

-your price range is low but given a bit more effort; patience & research could find your the ideal home.
-Denver is diverse where functional citizens are really dont care along racial lines. Also you might find 4 or 5 blocks of like housing in out of the way places as there are few neighborhoods that are exclusive. Generally we have been assimulated and again no one cares. Denver, Boulder are liberal enough but they could be an island.
-if you will initially work at home consider an internet provider that offers reassonable speed but must be reliable too. Nothing like having to call tech support once a month to reset your cable modem. Two main providors are ComCast (cable TV & internet) and or CenturyLink (they have wired some select neighborhoods with fiber). Functional connectivity in Denver is not a given.
-If your are wanting to redice the commute to a mountain get a way; a west Denver location will help a little bit. Most of the mountain drive time is held up in the mountains on i70 outside denver.
-For a west Denver experience look along the Denver RTD lite rail. I think the G line gets you close to the mountains maybe as far as Golden. Denver lite rail is generally brand new, clean and well run. May be expnsive and RTD is expereincing funding issues. The lite rail could expand your Denver restrurant, theater experience.
-Boulder and surrounding communities is the big tech area. At this point the drive from Denver to Boulder is long and challanging. Boulder is ok but some what small, isolated. There is a "Tech Center" south of Denver, its mostly insurance and banking, some IT.

best of luck in Denver.

[Soniarsenie]

Originally Posted by motorcity53

I'm an asian who left denver recently. the dating scene here is going to be tough regardless where you live, it's nothing like the west coast. Don't let that piece factor into where you pick a home to buy, the home should be in an area that holds value well and isn't near the nuclear waste dump in rocky flats.

Thank you very much for the info, even though it's a bit scary lol. If you don't mind me asking, are you a bloke or a girl? I'm just wondering if that makes a difference in dating.

To be frank, dating hasn't been that great for me in the west coast either lol. I live in a very family-oriented city (because that's where I work), which makes dating a tad difficult.

Good to know about the rocky flats! I didn't know about that. I'm looking primarily in Arvada, Wheat Ridge, and Lakewood, all on the east side to be a bit closer to Denver. Should I look somewhere else or do you have any suggestions?

Thanks again!

[Soniarsenie]

Originally Posted by davebarnes

You really should consider townhomes.

Is that because of the price? Or is there any other reason? I'm actually not looking to buy a house in downtown Denver because of the price and also because I'm not a big city person. The areas I'm looking at are Lakewood, Wheat Ridge, Arvada, etc.

Right now work location is not an issue as I work from home. So I don't have to worry about the commute, thankfully.

[Soniarsenie]

Originally Posted by alloo66

I would live in Central Park if you like a central location to Denver. Lakewood would also be good. Littleton and Golden to be close to the mountains. I'm Asian too lived in the Bay Area for 12 years. You will notice the lack of diversity in Denver. The Asian enclaves in the city are along Federal/Alameda/Mississippi and Aurora near Havana/Peoria/Parker/Mississippi. Jtown on Lawerence/Park Ave. Nothing like SF, more like SJ.

Dating has been sparse for me too. I'm thinking of moving west because I dislike the cold and erratic weather. I do like the sun more. You get used to it. No where is nearly as dynamic as California. Take a trip out here and check out the housing stock. Get some idea what you're looking for. Good luck.

Thank you for the feedback! I've been looking at houses in Lakewood and Littleton, especially those close to Denver. I like Golden but it seems too far from Denver that I worry about the dating situation. I don't know if that's a valid concern or not. What do you think about Arvada and Wheat Ridge or other places a bit up north?

Yeah, I'm prepared for the lack of diversity, especially food-wise. But I spent 4 years in a small town in Pennsylvania so I suppose I've experienced worse lol. As long as people are open-minded and integrated I'm fine with that.

[Soniarsenie]

Originally Posted by daprara

-your price range is low but given a bit more effort; patience & research could find your the ideal home.
-Denver is diverse where functional citizens are really dont care along racial lines. Also you might find 4 or 5 blocks of like housing in out of the way places as there are few neighborhoods that are exclusive. Generally we have been assimulated and again no one cares. Denver, Boulder are liberal enough but they could be an island.
-if you will initially work at home consider an internet provider that offers reassonable speed but must be reliable too. Nothing like having to call tech support once a month to reset your cable modem. Two main providors are ComCast (cable TV & internet) and or CenturyLink (they have wired some select neighborhoods with fiber). Functional connectivity in Denver is not a given.
-If your are wanting to redice the commute to a mountain get a way; a west Denver location will help a little bit. Most of the mountain drive time is held up in the mountains on i70 outside denver.
-For a west Denver experience look along the Denver RTD lite rail. I think the G line gets you close to the mountains maybe as far as Golden. Denver lite rail is generally brand new, clean and well run. May be expnsive and RTD is expereincing funding issues. The lite rail could expand your Denver restrurant, theater experience.
-Boulder and surrounding communities is the big tech area. At this point the drive from Denver to Boulder is long and challanging. Boulder is ok but some what small, isolated. There is a "Tech Center" south of Denver, its mostly insurance and banking, some IT.

best of luck in Denver.

Thank you for the very detailed reply. That's really helpful!

For the price range, if I'm looking in places like Lakewood, Arvada, etc, will that be reasonable with more options? I don't have to live inside the city of Denver but I do want to find a place that fit my criteria.

Thanks for the tip about the South Denver Tech Centre. It sounds like maybe somewhere between Denver and Boulder might be my best choice? Do you have some recommendations? East Arvada seems to have quite a few options in my price range. What about the area close to Regis University?