The west suburbs (Denver, Aurora, Lakewood: home sales, neighborhoods, high school)

[ladyfish]

Hello .....

I just want some general opinions/thoughts about the west suburbs of Denver as compared to the east suburbs. I grew up in Aurora and always thought that the west suburbs would always be more desirable than the east suburbs simply because they were closer to the mountains. Is it fairly true that with things like home sales/values and higher prices, that places like Lakewood/Golden/Applewood/Wheat Ridge will generally be higher in value than places like Aurora? Especially because Colorado is an outdoor lover's state, and with gas prices so high, I can see people preferring to live in the west side just to save money on gas to go hiking or mountain biking.

Both sides of the city have their super suburb-y feeling areas and their potential to become more urban (Belmar, east Colfax) so I wonder if the deciding factor for home values would ultimately be proximity to the mountains (when job location isn't a deciding factor).

This is just something I'm genuinely curious about!

[2bindenver]

The view is better from Aurora.
The mountains are closer - but some things are farther away - like the airport.

It seems to me that this is a case of the grass is always greener...

[vegaspilgrim]

Originally Posted by ladyfish

Hello .....

I just want some general opinions/thoughts about the west suburbs of Denver as compared to the east suburbs. I grew up in Aurora and always thought that the west suburbs would always be more desirable than the east suburbs simply because they were closer to the mountains. Is it fairly true that with things like home sales/values and higher prices, that places like Lakewood/Golden/Applewood/Wheat Ridge will generally be higher in value than places like Aurora? Especially because Colorado is an outdoor lover's state, and with gas prices so high, I can see people preferring to live in the west side just to save money on gas to go hiking or mountain biking.

Both sides of the city have their super suburb-y feeling areas and their potential to become more urban (Belmar, east Colfax) so I wonder if the deciding factor for home values would ultimately be proximity to the mountains (when job location isn't a deciding factor).

This is just something I'm genuinely curious about!

No, the suburbs on the west side of town are not necessarily any more expensive or nicer than the east side... unless if you are talking about areas backing right up to the foothills. The west side, in general, is older than the east side of town. Parts of the west side of town are very run down. Parts are nice. But then again, the southwest metro area around Columbine High School was also "nice"... but I'm kind of suspicious of those parts. The "nicest" part of the Denver metro, going by strictly the home prices, other than historic neighborhoods in Denver, is most likely the south metro. And that includes SE Aurora... there are some new million dollar + developments out there. I think it's a misconception among many that closer to the mountains = more expensive = more desirable. Contrary to what some think, proximity to I-70 is NOT the #1 factor that comes into play for most people when deciding where to live. And ironically, the views of the Rocky Mountains are often better the farther away from them you go.