Estes Park (Loveland, Vail, Meeker: ski resorts, rental, brokers)

[Idunn]

Estes Park is more expensive than most places in Colorado, although less so than towns such as Boulder. On average you're possibly looking at about $350,000 for a typical house. I know of small ones as low as $129,000, and anything over $500,000 should buy you something rather nice.

Although the town itself is rather small and compact, with any familiarity you'll probably come to desire some areas more than others. Due the mountains each area has a different micro-climate and feel, but the people and ambience much the same over the entire area.

It is a truly beautiful area with ready access to Rocky Mountain National Park. Lots of tourists in the summer and quiet come winter. In more than a few respects entirely enchanting.

[TahoeTexan]

Originally Posted by rusirius

We're thinking of moving from the Phoenix area to Estes Park area next summer. Can anyone tell me what the real estate market is like?

Thanks.

We spent a week in Estes Park last month...LOVE IT! Idunn's estimates are accurate from what we saw (actually looked through a few real estate mags). You could definitely spend more than $500K if you want to/can afford. But there are also plenty of options in the $300-400K range.

Our vacation has led us to consider CO for our next move (we move a lot). We are mainly looking at Evergreen, but Estes Park would be tops on the list if it was a little closer to the airport.

[Tom Emmerling]

Real Estate in Estes is more than say the Loveland/Fort Collins area. Everything else is more too, like groceries, gas, etc. It is a tourist town after all. What will be bringing you to Estes Park? You are looking at around 250,000 for a descent size family home.

[estesparkbound]

We are conidering moving to Estes Park and would like to know if any one has some advice about the weather there? I would like to open a restaurant there do you think the winter months would do as well as the summer months? I also heard come streets in Colorado are heated, is this true? any advice would be helpful. Thank you!

[Katiana]

Originally Posted by estesparkbound

We are conidering moving to Estes Park and would like to know if any one has some advice about the weather there? I would like to open a restaurant there do you think the winter months would do as well as the summer months? I also heard come streets in Colorado are heated, is this true? any advice would be helpful. Thank you!

I will answer your last question first. I have never heard of heated streets in Colorado. I think you should do a little market research before you open a restaurant in Estes Pk or any other town. I am not an entrepreneur, but I would think at a minimum: does this town need another restaurant or is it saturated? What kind of restaurant would go over well in this town?, etc. There is lots of weather data on City-Data and other websites. In general, I'd say it's coooler yr round than metro Denver, but warmer than the high mtns.

[Fuzz]

I've been to Estes Park in the winter while snowshoeing in RMNP a few years ago. It was pretty dead in the evenings. Some places were completely closed for the season. And it's definitely a place with a "real" winter, unlike say Denver. Here are EP's weather graphs from CD:




I agree with what pittnurse said -- it can be pretty hard to open yet another restaurant in a tourist town like EP.

But someone who has spent longer than a few days in the winter in EP can probably tell better.

[Market Mama]

Estes Park is pretty much a summer vacation town, although it perks up again nicely in the fall for the elk bugling season and ScotFest, and again for a short Christmas shopping season. And it has worked hard to bring in rodeos, horse shows and a variety of festivals (ScotFest is my fav, for sure – all those sexy men in kilts!). But you will need to able to ride out long winter stretches when nothing much is happening, because when winter snows close down Trail Ridge Road in the Rocky Mountain National Park, it also closes down the flow of tourists. Also, you'll find that the population of elk that winter right in town is higher than the number of year-round residents -- which you may, or may not, find amusing (they're pretty hard on landscaping and cause a fair number of collisions with vehicles, which kill the half-ton elk and usually total even large trucks).

Before you commit any resources or make any decisions please visit it for a week in February.

[sunsprit]

EP is definitely a tourist town with a major summer season. It has a long history of being a summer resort area with a focus on Indian goods and art sales.

Through the summer months, it's very active in the hospitality trade, and there's lots of tourist activities ... horsebackriding, the mountains, RMP nearby, the lake, and there's lots of restaurants, motels, lodges, B&B's ... and lots of folks coming through for a holiday. The fairgrounds are host to many activities through the summer, and one of the largest Wool Markets in the country.

It's a busy place, and we find that we have to book our lodging there a year in advance for the lower cost accomodations we need for the shows we attend up there.

However, many businesses close for the winter after Labor Day weekend. That's when they run their end of season sales, blow-out merchandise, do the big markdowns, etc. Many restaurants close down, too, because not only does the trade die off, but much of the local resort labor pool moves on for the winter months.

There's still some winter time outdoor activities for tourists, but ... for the most part ... the town is pretty quiet during the winter months.

IMO, you'd be best off to head up to EP during the summer season to gauge the traffic for your intended operation, size up the available places to do a restaurant, and then come back during the winter months to see if there's enough action for you to survive after your summer season. You may find that you can do what you need to do in gross sales during the summer season and shut down like so many other businesses do for the winter.

There's a fair amount of turnover in the storefronts in EP. You may be able to secure a lease on a restaurant some years very easily ... and some years, maybe not. The town is rather built out in the commercial district, so there's a rather limited number of places available. Once out of the commercial district, there's virtually no place to run a business. It's not an inexpensive town to open a business and live in, too.

There are a few heated street areas in mountain resort towns in Colorado. Generally in a pedestrian targeted plaza area to help keep the area free of snow/ice for the local commerce. A few commercial buildings have heated outside entry areas, too, for the same reason ... easier snow/ice removal and safety for the people going in/out of the building. Also, some high end homes have heated driveways and walkways. This is not common as it's expensive to install and operate, but a few situations do justify doing this for safety, labor savings, and esthetic reasons.

[estesparkbound]

Thank you all very much, you have given me alot to think about!

[pmjinnh]

Looking at property to rent in the Giant Track Rd area. Is anyone familiar with this area? Just want to get a feeling for the upkeep and general flavor of the neighborhood.
Thanks