Relocating for PhD! (Denver, Aurora, Arvada: lease, HOA fees, condo)

[rpritch]

Hello! This is my first post, so bear with me.

My wife and I will be relocating to the Boulder/Denver area at the end of Spring 2018. I will be attending the University of Colorado's PhD program and teaching intro-level Spanish at the same time. My wife and I have been pre-approved for 185k--very limited as we are both one year out of our undergraduate career.

We are looking into purchasing a condo/townhouse within driving distance of both Boulder and Denver. At this early stage, we are looking at suggestions on where to move and where NOT to move. We have never visited the area, and would like suggestions. This will give us some ideas when we make our first visit in a few months.

What we are looking for:

Condo or Townhouse
Near Boulder & Denver
Access to outdoor activities
Outside of city centers
Pet friendly environment (two dogs and two cats (this is the main reason for not renting!))

Thanks in advance for the help!

[Norrov]

You could probably find a 2/1 condo in Westminster or around there around that price point. Beware of the HOA fees though, they'll set you back anywhere from 200-300 bucks/mo.

I've never rented in Denver but my friends have always rented and they have two Boxers and a cat. They don't seem to have much trouble finding options. I honestly think purchasing a small condo would be cheaper in the long run anyway.

Once you finish school you can rent it out to students, use it as a income property while you move forward with life.

[Mach50]

You should look in Thornton or Westminster, and possibly just rent as 185 is very low for Denver metro.

[davebarnes]

2 dogs and 2 cats is very problematic for renting.
$185K for purchase is difficult.
Use Redfin.com with a max price of $175K/$200K.
I think you should consider Iowa.

[rpritch]

Thank you all for the replies. Renting will not be an option for us. The cost of rent is much higher in this area than where we are currently, and I am tired of throwing away money. Moreover, our pre approval has luckily accounted for $250/mo HOA fees. Colorado is also our best option in terms of job prospects for my wife. Other states will not be considered as a result.

That being said, I have looked into Westminster and have been pleased. I have also looked into Longmont and have found a handful of options. We are looking anywhere around either Denver or Boulder seeing as I will work in Boulder and my wife in Denver. Other suggestions. Anywhere that we should avoid?

[brown_dog_us]

Your price point is on the low end. It will be tough to find a place, and those places will be in the not so nice parts of town. The good news is that there really aren't any awful parts of Denver/Boulder. Thornton and Westminster are fine. Some crime, but nothing to deter you.

Longmont to Denver would be an awful commute. Can be done, but I'd drive it before signing a lease or buying a house. Longmont does have a lot to offer though.

I'd avoid the Southern portion of Commerce City near I 270. Almost everything else between Boulder and Denver is fine. You can come back and post a new thread about a specific area if you are worried.

[coschristi]

Hi, OP & congrats on your PhD!

Maybe avoid the Capitol Hill area but you were wanting to avoid inner-city anyway so that shouldn't be too restrictive. I've been out of that area for several years now but the go-to places to suggest used to be Louisville or Broomfield. That may have changed, though.

[NorthDenverGirl]

Like others have said your budget is definitely on the lower end for anywhere that surrounds Boulder/Denver areas. Saying that there are some towns you may want to explore.

Westminster
Thornton
Northglenn
Brighton ( a little further from Boulder but there are back roads that might help, more affordable area)
Longmont
Mead
Firestone
Frederick
Dacono
Arvada

Expect that at the price point you are looking in that you will likely be buying a fixer upper so you will need to put some sweat equity into your property.

[Katarina Witt]

For some reason, the OP has two threads going, one here and one on the Colorado forum. Something the OP left off here is that his wife will be working "in the Denver area". Of course, that could mean anything.

FWIW, I usually recommend when a compromise has to be made that it is the student who lives closer to the university. A working person can get up, go to work and come home. Students have to also study, as in the case of a PhD conduct research. That means they need to be in a reasonably close distance to the university as even now, it can't all be done online.

Another issue to consider is the winter driving for both partners. I would not recommend living somewhere quite distant that is totally unavailable to public transit. There is no public transit service at all to Mead, Frederick, Firestone or Dacono. There is limited RTD service in Brighton to Denver, but not to Boulder. You have to transfer in Broomfield to get to Boulder from Brighton and vice versa. It takes about 1 1/2 hours, just on the bus (with the wait for the transfer), probably about a 2 hr one-way commute portal to portal.
https://www.rtd-denver.com/app/plan/...it&when=depart

[abcdefg567]

Aurora may have some options.