Thinking about Aurora, any opinions? (Denver, Littleton: real estate, crime, houses)

[Lancie-Pants]

Hey guys, after a few years abroad (September will be 8) I'm considering a position which would require moving my family to Aurora Colorado. I did a little research and to be honest I've received some very mixed signals about the city. The top five schools according to greatschools.com all appear to be in the Cherry Creek area. After about two minutes of power surfing the real estate pages for Cherry Creek and seeing homes with seven figures attached, I concluded that area is out of my price range.

So are there great schools and safe areas that do not require buying power of the "upwardly mobile"?

How's the crime in Aurora? I understand there are good places and bad places of every city. But is crime prevalent everywhere?

If anyone is from Aurora and would be willing to speak for their city I'd appreciate it.

[TinajaCo]

Originally Posted by Lancie-Pants

So are there great schools and safe areas that do not require buying power of the "upwardly mobile"?

How's the crime in Aurora? I understand there are good places and bad places of every city. But is crime prevalent everywhere?

Cherry Creek is overall a good district, and it covers a wide (and diverse, in terms of neighborhood choices) range of neighborhoods to choose from. My guess is you could find something in CCSD that would fit your budget. Douglas County, Littleton, and southern Jefferson County schools are all very good as well and could be other areas to consider.

Northern Aurora tends to be "rougher," although it's not rough in the sense that, say, some areas of Detroit or LA are. It does have more overall crime, but it tends more to be not as well cared-for than other areas. Southern Aurora is okay, and the far southern part of Aurora is indistinguishable from any other newer Denver suburb in most every aspect.

[Rawlings]

Aurora is interesting. It's probably the most maligned city in the state because, well, it's Aurora.

I think Aurora is almost about to become the biggest city in Colorado. Although it's technically a suburb of Denver it's so big it has its own suburbs and center city. It has very ghetto parts--it's where the heart of Denver's black and Latino community lives--and it has great new subdivisions like Green Valley Ranch. It all depends on what part of Aurora you're in.

Schools are so-so. If you're in nice areas there are great schools. If you're in the ghetto, they're terrible inner-city-like schools.

I find it kind of bland. It seems like it's always trying to compete with Denver's other suburbs but always fails because it has that black eye with so much violence in the bad parts. Many minority communities have been priced out of Denver so they move east into Aurora and they get bad gang problems.

With that said, it's close to downtown Denver and it's got lots of jobs. You can find great parts of Aurora where you will never see gangs and drugs and the rest of it. Just stick to the newer parts and you'll be fine.

[CO mom in paradise]

I grew up in the Cherry Creek school district. Lived in the Summer Valley Ranch sub division for 22 years and felt very comfortable. SVR is between Buckley and Tower (East and West) and Hampden and Quincy (North/South).

I've lived in Hawaii the last 5 years and I don't think I would have any issues living back in the same area where I grew up. I don't think I would live any more north and west of Mississippi and Buckley. My advice is that I would stick to the southeast side of Aurora.

I felt very safe where we lived and there was never any violence in our neighborhood. In the 5 years since I have been back, southeastern Aurora has really grown so there are a lot of new areas for you to research.

Aloha

[BillRadio]

I think you might be confusing the Cherry Creek School District (CCSD) with the Cherry Creek shopping area... they are worlds apart. The CCSD serves the southern areas of Aurora, and most of their schools are good to very good. The houses in this area range from 200k to 500k. But you could also live in Centennial, Foxfield and some unicorporated areas, attend Cherry Schools, and live adjacent or close to Aurora.

The "Cherry Creek" area of Denver includes some pricey homes, the Denver Country Club, etc., and there's yet another area called Cherry Creek Villlage, a suburb of mostly $1 Million plus homes. There's too many "Cherry Creeks" around here.

Look for houses in the 80014/15/16 Zip Codes and you'll find more reasonable prices, and still be in/near Aurora, and the CCSD.

[Lancie-Pants]

Thank you everyone who responded. The additional information will make my home search much easier. Also it set me at ease, appreciate it. For a second I thought I might be pursing a job in the Compton of Colorado.

[Princess2531]

Originally Posted by Rawlings

I think Aurora is almost about to become the biggest city in Colorado. Although it's technically a suburb of Denver it's so big it has its own suburbs and center city. It has very ghetto parts--it's where the heart of Denver's black and Latino community lives--and it has great new subdivisions like Green Valley Ranch. Many minority communities have been priced out of Denver so they move east into Aurora and they get bad gang problems.

I am extremely bothered by this poster's comments. A community does not become a "ghetto" just because it is primarily made up of black and Latino residents. That is simply an offensive and ignorant statement. You cannot label a whole group of people based on your limited experiences with a few bad seeds. Besides, there are plenty of traditionally "white" areas that are worse kept and less safe to live in than these so called "ghetto" areas that you have labeled "the heart of Denver's black and Latino community". I think you are insulting and stereotyping the upstanding, honorable, and hard-working people of these communities and other black and Latino communities within the Denver area.

[Katarina Witt]

If you will note, that poster is no longer a member (in other words, he got kicked off). He was a troll. Don't worry about him.

[delta07]

I grew up in southeast Aurora, attended Cherry Creek Schools, but wouldn't move back there if I could help it. The schools were good, but I also think there are much nicer Denver suburbs with great schools as well. It was a giant concrete jungle, anytown America, and has absolutely no character whatsoever. I found myself getting into trouble in high school because there was nothing to do! Crime also tends to be higher in Aurora, even in the so-called nice neighborhoods. We lived in one and our cars were broken into numerous times throughout the years. My parents finally decided to leave Aurora about 5 years ago and never looked back. They live in Littleton now and absolutely love it.

[jazzlover]

Originally Posted by delta07

I grew up in southeast Aurora, attended Cherry Creek Schools, but wouldn't move back there if I could help it. The schools were good, but I also think there are much nicer Denver suburbs with great schools as well. It was a giant concrete jungle, anytown America, and has absolutely no character whatsoever. I found myself getting into trouble in high school because there was nothing to do! Crime also tends to be higher in Aurora, even in the so-called nice neighborhoods. We lived in one and our cars were broken into numerous times throughout the years. My parents finally decided to leave Aurora about 5 years ago and never looked back. They live in Littleton now and absolutely love it.

Amen. I would leave Colorado before I would live there. Aurora is the poster child of everything to do wrong in designing a city.