Best affordable suburb / neighborhood / schools for families & kids? (Denver: for sale, low crime)

[J_the_Nomad]

OK, so we're looking at the possibility of moving to the Denver area after the past five maddening years in California, and don't know how to find the right landing spot. We've spent quite a bit of time looking through this forum, as well as Wikipedia and a handful of "best places to live"-type sites... and we're lost. I'm sure you've all heard the questions before, but we need to figure out the best place to live for:

1.) Good public schools (particularly for special needs children - my preschooler is autistic);
2.) Reasonably priced housing, ideally on larger parcels of land (so tired of our 6000 sq. ft. lot out here);
3.) Low crime rate;
4.) Lots of stuff for the kids to do - parks, recreation, etc.;
5.) Not too far from the airport, but also not too close;
6.) Lower cost of living (I don't know if there's a difference in sales taxes, property taxes, etc.); and
7.) Finally - since we're a Jewish family - it would be nice to not be the only one in the neighborhood. Here in Temecula, CA, the evangelicals are making us feel quite unwelcome. So proximity to a synagogue is a bonus, but we're not particularly religious... just looking for more people "like us" in the area.

Trouble is, when I look at neighborhoods online, I can't really tell the difference. Highlands Ranch? Centennial? Cherry Creek? Castle Rock? Anthem? Boulder? (I know that's a separate forum, but still...) So, those of you who know the area... which towns or neighborhoods are the real gems? If you had family or friends moving to the area, what would you recommend?

I know someone's going to chime in and tell me to go back and reread old threads on this forum... but I promise, we tried to do that! Too much information. I need a personalized recommendation from those who know the lay of the land. Any help is greatly appreciated. Thanks!

[davebarnes]

1. Where is/are the work location(s)?
2. What is your house purchase budget?

[J_the_Nomad]

I telecommute, so I'm not too concerned about work location, per se. But I do have to fly to other cities a couple of times per month, hence the concern about not being too far from the airport. Right now, I'm over an hour from the nearest airport, and the hassle of it all just drives me crazy.

House budget... maybe $400K. We could probably go up to $500K, but I'd like to keep it on the lower side to provide more free cash flow for family activities, travel, etc.

[davebarnes]

Cherry Creek School District.
Cherry Creek School District
Pick the schools and make sure you live INSIDE the school boundaries.
School choice in Colorado does not really exist for popular, highly-rated schools.

[mic111]

I see why you are confused. You have too much choice. Alternatively, depending on what you consider a big lot you might not have much choice. What do you consider a big lot? Do you have pets?

The only anchor item I can find in your post is the synagogues. Here is a map of them.
Denver Synagogues Map | Denver Jewish Directory
Deselect the type you don't want to be near. Find the school district you want to be in and then you have a better way to target.

You can easily find something in the $400K range on a larger lot if you don't mind older homes. Newer homes on big lots are usually at a premium unless they are pretty far out.

I'm going to ignore the synagogue criteria because I don't know much about that but here are two areas to consider on opposite sides of the metro area. They provide very different living experiences (one rural, one older suburbs). Both have top rated schools, are safe and have plenty of things for kids to do.

If your work is willing to pay your tolls to the airport then coming north from Centennial on C470 is an option but 225 is often a nightmare so if work won't pay the tolls then take that into consideration. Staying in the North Metro to NE metro will get be one of the easier trips to the airport as you can go east on 104th or take the C470 toll road (again if work is paying as it is expensive). Public transport is another option. Even though it is only a 30 min. drive to the airport near where I live many of us will drive to the wagon road park and ride and hop on the express bus instead of driving ourselves. They are building a train connection to the airport which may make living on a rail line a good idea. The Centennial option I selected below is on a rail line although I imagine going downtown, switching trains and going to the airport could be time consuming. I don't know if they will route express trains straight through.

Here is a home in Broomfield, on an acre, top rated schools. I don't know anything about autistic services so you would want to call the schools yourself to check it out.
15285 Lipan St, Broomfield, CO 80023 is For Sale - Zillow
More of a 4H type atmosphere so good opportunity for the kids to have more freedom than a typical suburb. Nearby Broomfield rec center has lots of activities for kids. Walking distance to movie theaters, restaurants, huge gym with big outdoor and indoor pools, stores and grocery.
City and County of Broomfield - Official Website
Area has many parks, trails, sports fields etc.

In Centennial there were many in the .4 acre range so I just randomly picked one.
7381 E Hinsdale Ct, Centennial, CO 80112 is For Sale - Zillow
This is walking distance to a library, grocery, restaurants and a rail stop. Homes are older and on larger lots.

[davidv]

Originally Posted by davebarnes

Cherry Creek School District.
Cherry Creek School District
Pick the schools and make sure you live INSIDE the school boundaries.
School choice in Colorado does not really exist for popular, highly-rated schools.

Cherry Creek High School has a substantial Jewish population and is close to two synagogues - Aish Denver and Temple Sinai. Aish even maintains an eruv.

The area of Centennial east of Holly, south of Belleview and north of County Line feeds into Cherry Creek.

[J_the_Nomad]

Thanks everyone - this is really helpful info! We're going to fly out in a couple of weeks to look at homes in the Cherry Creek school district, and maybe also Boulder (though I still don't think we can afford what we want out there). Any other areas you think we should take a quick look at while we're out there? I really appreciate the input.

[brown_dog_us]

Boulder is too expensive.

It's tough to find bigger lots in the Denver area. I really like the idea of Cherry Creek High School. Great schools, safe, bigger (for denver) lots, and about 30 mins to the airport.

[J_the_Nomad]

Thanks. We will definitely check out the Cherry Creek school district. What about Castle Rock? Is that worth a look, or is it too remote (or otherwise undesirable)?

[davebarnes]

Castle Rock is NOT part of RTD.
Castle Rock will have huge water problems within a decade.
The commute north on I25 in the morning is hell.