Boulder County neighborhood 30 something couple? (Denver, Fort Collins: for sale, how much, house)

[jxyca]

I've browsed the sticky thread, but many posts look dated so I'll ask here:

Which neighborhood would be the best fit? Louisville, Superior, Longmont, Fort Collins?

My husband and I are in our early 30's, have always wanted to live in Colorado, and are now able to make the move. We have a max 450K budget for a home, so unless I want to live in a small and dated town-home, I think Boulder is out of the running. We need to be no more than an hour from the airport since hubby travels for work, and where we ultimately live is dependent upon where I find a job in the education field. I don't mind a commute of about 30 minutes, but want to have grocery, farmer's market, and non-chain restaurant options nearby. We want to be close to hike and bike trails, and in a solid school district. He's an avid outdoorsman, and snowboarder. I love the outdoors, but also want access to the arts - I know Denver is nothing like Houston in terms of arts, and that's okay. I can't wait to get out of this concrete jungle! Well, this is my first post here, so I hope to start a friendly dialogue. Thanks!

[brown_dog_us]

It's going to be tough to find a house close to Boulder with solid schools. Are you looking for solid schools to teach in or for your kids? Either way, here are some basic ideas to get you started.

Niwot- Just North of Boulder. Has a small market and few eateries. It's a small community. Example

Longmont- Big city about 20 mins North ob Boulder with a lot of different areas. Some not so nice, but others really nice. Has a great downtown and a lot of the neighborhoods close to the downtown are gentrifying. example. Southside of town is newer and has more of a suburban feel. example. If you zero in on Longmont, then you would be wise to start a specific thread. There is a lot of options.

Superior and Louisville- South of Boulder. Superior is a small town without a downtown and Louisville is larger with a very vibrant downtown. There is one house for sale in Superior under $450k and none in Louisville. You might find one though depending on when you look. example for Superior. Example for Louisville

Lafayette is another option. The schools around the downtown are average. The better schools are a bit out of town. example.

If you are willing to live outside of Boulder County, then you could also look at Golden and Arvada. Golden would give you the hiking and biking trails and quick access to the mountains. Plus soon the train will go from Golden to DIA.

[DressageRider]

Without more specifics, I think that you could get what you want in any of those towns. My preference would be for Longmont or Fort Collins. As Brown_Dog pointed out, Louisville is getting very pricy. You will get a lot more for your money in Longmont. I don't really care for Superior. Fort Collins is a very cool town, but it puts you the farthest away from the airport.

I've written lots about why I love Longmont, particularly old town, in many previous posts.

Welcome and good luck!

[davebarnes]

Originally Posted by jxyca

need to be no more than an hour from the airport since hubby travels for work

Forget:
Niwot
Fort Collins
Boulder

You need to live within 30-40 miles of the Jeppesen Terminal building at DIA.
There are not that many roads, so "as the crow flies" will not give you the correct answer.
Time for Google. Remember, Google lies about time by a lot. When you see 470 as a recommend road, you need to know that it is really expensive.

[jxyca]

Thank you! I have lots to consider.

[Sobe Itsavized]

Originally Posted by davebarnes

Forget:
Niwot
Fort Collins
Boulder

You need to live within 30-40 miles of the Jeppesen Terminal building at DIA.
There are not that many roads, so "as the crow flies" will not give you the correct answer.
Time for Google. Remember, Google lies about time by a lot. When you see 470 as a recommend road, you need to know that it is really expensive.

For some people, the time spent driving (in traffic), cost, and convenience of using E-470 outweighs taking the smaller roads everyone used to take before E-470 was opened up. Even if it is a tad more than I'd expect for a toll road, I can understand how they have to keep it up and running besides trying to make a profit. Thankfully I personally only have to use it once or twice every year.

I have relatives who live in Erie (west Vista Ridge) and the husband used to travel every week driving to and from DIA (coming home for the weekend) to fly between Colorado and the east coast. Both of their vehicles had the E-470 transponder (sticker now) and I'd have to agree with taking the easier, expensive way to the airport rather than dealing with traffic come Monday mornings and Friday nights.

As far as where to check at least, I'd have to say Lousiville. Taking Baseline Road out to Sheridan or I-25 is never something I'd recommend given how much traffic there is at any given time. Taking into account your desires and the quick access to E-470 from Lousiville, I'd say it's a good place to start. Some people on this board recommend staying within the Boulder Valley School District (BVSD) anyway. I wouldn't be able to say anything about which district is more preferable since I've only had experience with one school district (BVSD) for the two decades I've been in Colorado.

[WhereTheSidewalkEnds]

Not sure why Niwot would be out. We live in s.w. Longmont and my husband travels a lot. Takes about 45 minutes to get to the airport using E470. When traveling for business I would assume your husband can do what mine does - turn in the tolls as an expense. So the cost isn't that big a deal. Frankly, I think it's $5.40 or so each way.

I also would not call Longmont a big city.

[Meowen]

Longmont best fits your criteria and your budget. It's a very nice self contained town with a pretty good downtown area and a good amount of non-chain restaurants. A few neighborhoods to avoid but nothing downright dangerous.

[geopainter]

We also moved to CO from Houston. We live in Longmont because it's about halfway between our jobs (mine in Denver, wife in Ft. Collins). We're in our 30s, no kids, active...Longmont is a good fit. Like the small town vibe as opposed to Houston, great proximity to the mountains, nice local trails, and if you get bored, Boulder's just a few miles down the road, and our commutes to Denver and Ft Collins are ~50 min. 45 Min to airport on 470.