Moving to S Aurora, Sub Farm (Parker: light rail, station, parking)

[2bindenver]

Sorry, I cannot predict the future. I can tell you only about the past.

I can tell you that Days on Market is down, and that in certain price ranges, we are experiencing appreciation (small but steady) over last year.

[steveindenver]

~2000 sf, no older than 70s. Easy to resale (at least no furhter depreciation) in the next a few years.

The area you are looking in has a very high forclosure rate; has seen depreciation in the past couple of years and has a higher than normal taxation rate.

I know some people who work downtown and purchased out there a few years back. It was a drive until you qualify situation; they wanted a new house and they could not afford to go over 250k. They got a really nice house for the money.

I don't know the names of the neighborhoods in Aurora, but there are some that would appear to match your requirements roughly south of 6th Ave, East of Havana and generally tucked right up along 225 near the Aurora Mall. Any realtor should be able to do better than this, but keep in mind they are legally restrained from commenting on the areas schools.

[mechenic]

Originally Posted by 2bindenver

Sorry, I cannot predict the future. I can tell you only about the past.

I can tell you that Days on Market is down, and that in certain price ranges, we are experiencing appreciation (small but steady) over last year.

Then where do you recommned to buy now other than Farm please?

[mechenic]

Originally Posted by steveindenver

The area you are looking in has a very high forclosure rate; has seen depreciation in the past couple of years and has a higher than normal taxation rate.

I know some people who work downtown and purchased out there a few years back. It was a drive until you qualify situation; they wanted a new house and they could not afford to go over 250k. They got a really nice house for the money.

Thanks for your comments! If I can afford 300k, where do you recommend to buy? 80111?

[Vynlriche]

what is farm? r u looking for land? Lowry might be a good one to look at. It has newer or new homes. good schools, neighborhood, easy commute

[Vynlriche]

I live in 80014, we have homes around here (foreclosures) going from 130,000.00 up. I think if you go a little further south you can get into the Cherry Creek school district. that is where u would want to be if u have children.

[Jerry Bckr]

Your statement about futher depreciation seems to indicate that you're concerened about falling home prices. In fact, many neighborhoods have stabalized and have actually seen some appreciation. Not much, but some. I want to stress that much of what people have read in the press about falling prices, was really about falling average sales prices. In other words, the mix of home sales have changed. The high end of the market ($400K in Denver-$300K in the suburbs) has slowed tremendously. The higher you go the slower it gets. What this means is that there are more lower priced homes added to the mix, thus giving a lower average sales price compared to the previous year or quarter.
If you had a dealership that traditionally sold 8 Cadillacs for every 2 Chevys, month in and month out, you would have established an average sales price. If the mix changes where now you're selling 5 Cadillacs and 5 Chevys every month, but still selling 10 cars, your average sales price will have dropped. That's basically what happened in Denver. Our low end is very active with many homes having multiple offers, provided they were priced correctly. Your price range will be OK. You'll find many homes to choose from and in some great neighborhoods.
Go to www.schoolperformancemaps.com/co/ to check out school locations and how they rate. I say this because good neighborhoods will generally have good schools and attract buyers. This is what helps keep values up.
Since you work downtown, stay close to Santa Fe (US 85) or I-25 because both of these routes are also served by light rail. You could also check out the west suburbs. There will be a light rail line opening in a couple of years that will run to downtown. I think its completion date is 2012. In the mean time you could use 6th Ave.

[mechenic]

Originally Posted by Vynlriche

what is farm? r u looking for land? Lowry might be a good one to look at. It has newer or new homes. good schools, neighborhood, easy commute

farm is the name of a subarea in 80016. Might be the best area for the middle class family in Aurora.

[2bindenver]

Arapahoe at the Farm is the subdivision's name.

I do not believe there is one "best" area for all of the middle class.

There are more than 50 houses on the market in Denver or near suburbs, built since 1980.

The average commute time in Denver is less than 20 minutes. In bad weather, that easily triples.

Cast a wide net at first, explore different neighborhoods, see what feels good to you, then see every house in that area that meets your needs.

[mechenic]

Originally Posted by Jerry Bckr

Your statement about futher depreciation seems to indicate that you're concerened about falling home prices. In fact, many neighborhoods have stabalized and have actually seen some appreciation. Not much, but some. I want to stress that much of what people have read in the press about falling prices, was really about falling average sales prices. In other words, the mix of home sales have changed. The high end of the market ($400K in Denver-$300K in the suburbs) has slowed tremendously. The higher you go the slower it gets. What this means is that there are more lower priced homes added to the mix, thus giving a lower average sales price compared to the previous year or quarter.
If you had a dealership that traditionally sold 8 Cadillacs for every 2 Chevys, month in and month out, you would have established an average sales price. If the mix changes where now you're selling 5 Cadillacs and 5 Chevys every month, but still selling 10 cars, your average sales price will have dropped. That's basically what happened in Denver. Our low end is very active with many homes having multiple offers, provided they were priced correctly. Your price range will be OK. You'll find many homes to choose from and in some great neighborhoods.
Go to www.schoolperformancemaps.com/co/ to check out school locations and how they rate. I say this because good neighborhoods will generally have good schools and attract buyers. This is what helps keep values up.
Since you work downtown, stay close to Santa Fe (US 85) or I-25 because both of these routes are also served by light rail. You could also check out the west suburbs. There will be a light rail line opening in a couple of years that will run to downtown. I think its completion date is 2012. In the mean time you could use 6th Ave.

Greatly appreciate your comments! Do you think 80016 is a good location for us (under $300k, 4br, 2bath, newer than 90's, good shcools, convenient transit to downtown...)? Where do you recommend to buy? Thanks!