CA to Colorado. Boulder? (Denver, Lakewood: real estate, HOA, condo)

[Aboyadjian]

Hi all... first off I must say this forum has provided me with ample information and I am finally ready to ask my questions...

Me and my girlfriend are considering moving to Colorado in the near future... for a few reasons:
-We currently live in Orange County California. We are beginning to hate all the new developments being built and how overcrowded Southern California is getting. SOCAL traffic is the worst.

- Sick of the people. People are snobby and rude, I think this relates to the overcrowded nature of the area.

- real estate is extremely expensive for what you are getting.

Last but not least....
- we love outdoor sports. Especially winter sports. We travel 400 miles one way at least twice a month during snow season for quality snow.

So my question to you all is what area would suit us best in CO?

Some of what we are looking for:
-some nightlife in the area... we come from Southern California so to live somewhere with no nightlife would be foreign.
-Property affordable, under 650K.
-School nearby, as I still plan to get a degree in the future.
-access to mountain resorts ( sounds like I can get this from anywhere in CO)

We work in sales... so potentially could find a job anywhere.

We have come up with Boulder and areas of Denver like congress park.

Boulder sounds very interesting. What are some pros and cons?
Where else would you recommend?

We plan to go to CO soon for a couple night stay to scout. Where do you recommend we check out?

Thank you for your response and help with this

[SkyDog77]

What are you expecting for $650K?

What kind of degree?

[Aboyadjian]

Minimum 3 bedroom house.
2000+ square feet.
Front yard and backyard.

Will not buy a condo.

Bachelors. In business

Originally Posted by SkyDog77

What are you expecting for $650K?

What kind of degree?

[MN_Ski]

Well just be aware that all of the issues you are complaining about in SoCal are just as true here in Denver.

Traffic, congestion, developments, and rudeness are all growing problems. It's not to the degree of where you are coming from, but it's still just as prevalent here (especially in Boulder).

You will however be closer to the mountains. There are tons of resorts within a 3-4 hour drive (1-1.5 without traffic).

Nightlife is here, but it's very low key outside of downtown. Even in downtown, most places are dead after 10pm during the week.

[hikernut]

Forget Boulder based on your housing budget. You may find something in Gunbarrel, which would have a Boulder address but it's really a separate area (IMO, anyway).

[ajr1995]

Originally Posted by hikernut

Forget Boulder based on your housing budget. You may find something in Gunbarrel, which would have a Boulder address but it's really a separate area (IMO, anyway).

Yeah, I agree.
To the OP, average price of home in Boulder over 1 million, stick to the Denver suburbs if you must come out here. Although, I personally believe Denver is becoming LA 2.0. and that's what you are trying to get away from. Congress Park will most likely be slim pickings for your budget.

[Sobe Itsavized]

Doesn't Boulder have a "must clear sidewalks of snow" by x days after it stops snowing too? Honestly having that kind of rule/law without even being in a HOA community would be a major inconvenience for me but that's just my opinion.

I've never liked the way traffic flows in Boulder but I extremely dislike traffic and inconsiderate drivers to begin with anyway. Maybe when I'm bored I'll post a video of the traffic you can see coming OUT of Boulder. I don't work in Boulder but you can definitely tell most people who work in Boulder don't LIVE in Boulder by the traffic (and it's a known stat floating on the Internet somewhere anyway).

The way Boulder is heading with their limited choices (by the city) in creating LESS parking, which is to directly make a push for more public transit, foot traffic, and bike traffic, you'll find parking is an issue in Boulder even if you drive a Smart ForTwo or Mini. Boulder seems to have something against underground parking garages (for not so obvious reasons) yet they have a height limit on buildings (for obvious reasons). It's not like Colorado let alone Boulder is in "earthquake" valley.

[Hipchik]

"Boulder seems to have something against underground parking garages (for not so obvious reasons)"
Some parts of Boulder are in the floodplain so no underground parking. Most new construction has underground parking.

[brown_dog_us]

Originally Posted by Aboyadjian

Minimum 3 bedroom house.
2000+ square feet.
Front yard and backyard.

Will not buy a condo.

Bachelors. In business

You might be able to buy a 2 bedroom condo for that. Not a bad thing in Boulder. Boulder has so much open space that you don't need a yard.

[NW Crow]

I am just asking:


Is Greenwood Village still in his price range? Any neighborhoods in NW or SW Denver stand out? Best part of Lakewood or Wheat Ridge?


Anybody go to CU - Denver in a business program? Ok, better or bad?