where 2 go (Denver, Englewood, Evergreen: ski resort, real estate, apartments)

[ddy50]

I have researched places to live near breckenridge co and i find that apts (tnhse and condo included) are very expensive and limited. Is there a town (not necessary a resort town) that is a great place to live, no more than 30 mins fm breckenridge (give or take) going southeast or something. I will be traveling back and forth to co springs and denver in my spare time. What is englewood or evergreen about? Are those places too far to travel everyday to go to work in breckenridge? If so, please give me some suggestions on where to live. If i have to live closer that will be fine but i don't want to buy a home. I only want to rent an apartment or something like that.

[Dogmama50]

I wanted to try to give you a direct link to the CDOT camera for Eisenhower Pass so you can see for yourself why commuting to Evergreen would be unwise, however it would only link me to the whole CDOT site. So please click on the link and scroll to I-70/Eisenhower Tunnel to see the current weather conditions. Road Conditions, Speeds, Travel Times, Traffic Cameras, Live Streaming Traffic Cameras, Road Closures and Road Work Information provided by Intelligent Transportation Systems (ITS) a branch of Colorado Department of Transportation Since you are not used to driving in the snow it can be a scary experience. We have a winter storm warning tonight with 8-16 inches expected, our plow guys are great but it will be a messy morning tomorrow.

Breck is a resort town and yes, very expensive. South of Breck is Blue River, I see homes for rent on Craigslist there quite a bit and then Alma is further south. Heading north is Frisco and probably your best best for finding something more affordable (for the area). Here's a link to the Breck area paper, not sure if you have looked in their classified section yet: Breckenridge & Summit County Colorado | SummitDaily.com News Many houses have "inlaw" apartments, which may be a good route for a rental. I'm not sure who your employer is here but many of the human resource departments have someone who helps with relocation to the area.

Please take a good look at the topography on google maps, most mountain towns are very compact because there are massive mountains surrounding them. You can even do google street view for much of the area and really get a better feeling for the surroundings.

[wanneroo]

Sorry but it is what it is. I think once you set foot there, the topography will all make sense to you. It all looks so nice and easy on the map, but not in real life.

I just spent 8 hours stuck in Silverthorne yesterday due to the winter storm and doing things like commuting from englewood and evergreen are not possible at all. Englewood to Breck is 2 hours drive in good weather and traffic, bad weather and bad traffic, sky is the limit. Evergreen when it boils down to it, isn't really much closer. Those towns may as well be a world away.

Breck and Summit County, is all about skiing and second homes. They are expensive places to live, because they are popular places to live and because they are popular and develop-able land is limited real estate development is more focused on expensive vacation homes rather than family housing.

You pay the price to live there and that's just the way it is. You can try to wiggle around that, but by doing so, you either create very long days for yourself or add hidden expenses and costs.

Fairplay and Alma are on the other side of a pass from Breck, but both towns are very rustic and isolated and although people commute from there, I don't see that being a lot of fun.

Dillon, Silverthorne and Frisco are your only other options.

[breaksraver13]

Breck.....Dillon.....Silverthorne.....Frisco...... ...It's all the same when it comes to cost......there really isn't a difference in cost...........If working in Breck, Alma and Fairplay are definitely options.....Just remember you will have to commute over Hoosier pass (a plus is that it never closes)........As said above Alma and Fairplay are rustic (they don't even have a "proper" grocery store) and are fairly cold/windy but get lots of sun

Commuting from Evergreen or Englewood is about out of the question.......I have a co-worker that commutes from Denver to Keystone and she stays with a friend about 40-50% of weekdays in the winter, due to fear of not making it home or back in the morning........

It is expensive, like most compromises while you may lose in real-estate you gain the most awesome lifestyle available.


Good luck!

[delta07]

Originally Posted by breaksraver13

Breck.....Dillon.....Silverthorne.....Frisco...... ...It's all the same when it comes to cost......there really isn't a difference in cost...........If working in Breck, Alma and Fairplay are definitely options.....Just remember you will have to commute over Hoosier pass (a plus is that it never closes)........As said above Alma and Fairplay are rustic (they don't even have a "proper" grocery store) and are fairly cold/windy but get lots of sun
Good luck!

My husband and I lived in Fairplay almost 10 years ago and he worked at Breckenridge Ski Resort. The first year he was there, he took take a bus from Fairplay to Breck, but they cut that service the second year. That was enough for him to find a different job in Fairplay. The commute isn't terrible in good weather, but it can easily get pretty bad during storms. Yes, Hoosier pass never closes, but it's scary to say the least when you get one of those crazy ground blizzards.

Fairplay is just about the opposite of Breck, but it has grown since I lived there. There is a grocery store there now, which is way better than the Country Store that used to be there. However, if you are commuting to Breck daily, you won't need to worry about this. There are plenty of stores there.

Even though the commute isn't ideal, the cost of living in Fairplay and Alma is going to be much more affordable than Breckenridge. It can be tough to find apartments though. There aren't that many. A lot of people also live in Kremmling and commute to the resort towns. However, that would be a much longer commute to Breckenridge.

[wanneroo]

Originally Posted by delta07

My husband and I lived in Fairplay almost 10 years ago and he worked at Breckenridge Ski Resort. The first year he was there, he took take a bus from Fairplay to Breck, but they cut that service the second year. That was enough for him to find a different job in Fairplay. The commute isn't terrible in good weather, but it can easily get pretty bad during storms. Yes, Hoosier pass never closes, but it's scary to say the least when you get one of those crazy ground blizzards.

Fairplay is just about the opposite of Breck, but it has grown since I lived there. There is a grocery store there now, which is way better than the Country Store that used to be there. However, if you are commuting to Breck daily, you won't need to worry about this. There are plenty of stores there.

Even though the commute isn't ideal, the cost of living in Fairplay and Alma is going to be much more affordable than Breckenridge. It can be tough to find apartments though. There aren't that many. A lot of people also live in Kremmling and commute to the resort towns. However, that would be a much longer commute to Breckenridge.

I'd never recommend anyone live in alma or fairplay and commute to Breck. I've seen enough of hoosier pass in the winter to know, you don't want to be dealing with this for six months of the year.

To me my time is worth money and when these ski resort questions come up, my response is live as close to your daily job as possible. I learned the hard way that when dealing with winter issues on a daily basis, even if you pay a bit extra in rent, it more than makes up for not having to commute long distances.

[jazzlover]

Originally Posted by wanneroo

I'd never recommend anyone live in alma or fairplay and commute to Breck. I've seen enough of hoosier pass in the winter to know, you don't want to be dealing with this for six months of the year.

To me my time is worth money and when these ski resort questions come up, my response is live as close to your daily job as possible. I learned the hard way that when dealing with winter issues on a daily basis, even if you pay a bit extra in rent, it more than makes up for not having to commute long distances.

I absolutely agree with wanneroo on this. Setting oneself up for a long commute in the mountains is foolhardy when one considers the time factor and weather risks involved. Truthfully, with what is coming with fuel prices (and possible shortages) within the next few years, I think anyone setting themselves up for a long commute is a fool, no matter where it is.

[delta07]

Originally Posted by wanneroo

I'd never recommend anyone live in alma or fairplay and commute to Breck. I've seen enough of hoosier pass in the winter to know, you don't want to be dealing with this for six months of the year.

To me my time is worth money and when these ski resort questions come up, my response is live as close to your daily job as possible. I learned the hard way that when dealing with winter issues on a daily basis, even if you pay a bit extra in rent, it more than makes up for not having to commute long distances.

That's exactly why I said it's not ideal and that the commute was enough for my husband to find another job closer to our home in Fairplay. However, the OP was asking what towns are within commutable distance from Breck. Many people do this commute, it's just a fact of working in a mountain community. It's not an easy life, but for some people the benefits outweigh the negatives.

I, for one, would much prefer this commute (having lived there and done it for a few years) to the daily crunch commute along the Front Range. To me, sitting at a dead stop in traffic for an hour is enough to make my head spin.

I do agree though, it's best, to live where you work. But if you will be working in Breckenridge, or any of the ski resort towns, it's often hard to do that unless you're willing to live with a group of people.