20's age couple looking to buy a house outside of Denver. (Lakewood: for sale, real estate)

[Katarina Witt]

Actually, there are a lot of houses for ~$150K in SW Denver. You can see my post about this on, of all places, the Pittsburgh forum.

[asmith0387]

I actually travel for my job, so I have no ties to the Denver Tech Center, that was just the best apartment we could that would accept dogs. A fixer upper would be fine with me. The only location we have to stay near is we are attending grad school at CU Denver. I've been busy with work and haven't gotten to explore most neighborhoods, and there are many surrounding Denver. I am at this point open to any places to consider, I know very little about what neighborhoods are nicer than others.

[Winter01]

Originally Posted by SkyDog77

Buying a house for two years rarely makes financial sense. Were I planning to leave soon, I would continue renting.

By the time you factor in realtor commissions, loan fees, interest, insurance and maintenance there is a good chance you will come out way behind. If you are doing a 30 year mortgage, you will barely be touching the principle the first two years. The good news is you get the deduction, but the rest of what I listed is all bad.

Especially if you buy a house that needs work. Also--the market seems pretty high right now. It may keep going higher but who knows really. It would be a risky investment if you are only planning on 2 years.

[asmith0387]

The 2 years isn't a set thing. After graduation we're going to re-asses our situation, and see if this is where we want to stay. I was really hoping to find something since I've spent the last 5 years of my life in apartments and have hated every day of it. I have noticed the market is really high, and was hoping there were places somewhere that were unaffected by this.

[SkyDog77]

Originally Posted by Winter01

Especially if you buy a house that needs work. Also--the market seems pretty high right now. It may keep going higher but who knows really. It would be a risky investment if you are only planning on 2 years.

I would actually say that a house that needs work is the best potential place to make money, but I'm guessing that a guy who travels a ton for work and is going to grad school, probably isn't up for a major remodel.

[asmith0387]

I'm beginning grad school in the fall, and am leaving my job this summer, so a house that needs work wouldn't be bad. If we do stay, the plan was to use it as a rental property. So it would almost be ideal.

[Lost Roses]

Check in area code 80110 on Zillow. This is old Englewood/Littleton area. Small houses but decent area to live and close to everything.

[2bindenver]

$150,000 is a tough price range right now. I would expect prices to continue to appreciate for the foreseeable future.

Maybe consider a townhome - smaller yard and smaller price.

[SkyDog77]

Originally Posted by 2bindenver

$150,000 is a tough price range right now. I would expect prices to continue to appreciate for the foreseeable future.

Maybe consider a townhome - smaller yard and smaller price.

The big problem with that in my mind is short term ownership of a condo is an even worse investment because you have to tack on HOA fees and condos rarely appreciate at the same rate houses do.

I think you need to find a way to get that $150,000 figure up about 25%.

Find a Realtor and go look at a bunch of properties. it is the best way to really find out what is out there in your price range.

[Claire S.]

If you need to be close to the airport, you may want to consider areas like East Colfax in Denver or Boston Height, Jewell Heights, and New England Heights in Aurora. Smaller homes, but nice sized lots...and a lot of interest due to proximity to the Anschutz Medical Campus. Prices are ticking up towards $200K in most cases, but you can find fixers for less.