Visiting the Denver area Aug 12-14 to see if it's a fit. We would appreciate some input about the city. (Aurora: short sales, condos) - Colorado (CO) - City-Data Forum

KevinJPPark · 07-25-2008, 12:32 PM

Hi we are visiting the Denver area for 3 days and would like some suggestions on where we should look

Quick Bio
-My wife and I currently live in St. Louis.
-We are 27. One baby girl already here with a 2nd in the oven.
-We originally both are from the West (California and Washington), and want to escape humidity and the flat lands of the midwest.
-We are devout Christian's. Not wed to a particular "sect" of Christianity but gravitate towards Protestantism, and more specifically the PCA, but a good church community is vital.
-We plan on buying a home that will be ours for a minimum of 15 years. A house we can grow into. We would prefer to pay around 185,000-230,000 range, but for the right fit we would be willing to go up to 275,000 range.
-Good school district will be vital.
-Close to a major hospital center would be a huge plus. My wife is a Nurse and we hate commutes.
-We are willing to live up to about an hour drive from Denver (so loveland and such are not out of consideration).
-My wife loves the cliche McMansion new construction. I am the opposite, preferring older communities with character. I love the charm of older construction. I am willing to cave on this though. So that was a long way of saying we'd probably prefer to be in a more up and coming area... though she's not so against the idea of an older style community that you have to exclude it from suggestions.
-I work out of the house
-I LOVE TO SKI and I LOVE LAKES. An area in the western reaches of greater Denver would probably be preferable. My ideal day is a camel pack on my back and skiing from open to close on a mountain. Though Loveland or Fort Collins if people think they are places we should consider wouldn't be too far...
-My wifes ideal "average" day is shopping a little at a quality mall, stopping by a kid oriented park to enjoy the outdoors a little, and finishing it up with a nice meal... oh with a coffee house break somewhere in the day.

So what areas might you suggest as "must see" when we travel around Denver and the surrounding greater area based on what you learned about us? If everyone could maybe list three areas that might work for a young family it would be much appreciated. Also with the wonderful invention of Google Maps these days... maybe if you could provide a landmark by the area you suggest. I know most cities have hit and miss areas within them. We are going to be using our GPS... so if I can look up actual places malls/hospitals/quaint areas/etc... that'll help our trip be more successful.

Thanks ahead of time for those who take the time to reply.

DenverLawGal · 07-25-2008, 01:55 PM

One thing I want to point out to you -- I live here and work downtown everyday, I've lived here for 19 yrs. now... The DNC is coming the last week of Aug. As such, I've been seeing some changes here, a lot more people, etc. Just so you know, I think Denver is a little bit more quiet than it's been lately and will be.

Dreaming of Hawaii · 07-25-2008, 02:16 PM

In your price range, if you want something newer, you will have to go out of town. There are lots of newer growing areas north and east of Denver (i.e., Windsor,Milliken, Firestone, etc.). You should be able to find lots of older homes in the price range of lower $200's. Of course, you start narrowing that down with good schools, close to major hospital, etc., and you will narrow down your options.

I'm not familiar with Loveland or Longmont, which are north of Denver, but you may be better off looking up there.

Katarina Witt · 07-25-2008, 04:22 PM

I am looking at the "Homes" insert from my daily paper (Boulder Daily Camera). On the page "properties from $87,500 - $210,000": 7 out of 30 listings are condos/townhouses/duplexes, even in Longmont. A couple of "short sales", sold "as is".

$212K - $269K: More choices, still a number of condos, short sales, nothing you would consider McMansion.

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The major hospitals are at the CU Health Sciences Center in Aurora (Children's and University), downtown Denver (Denver Health, Pres-St. Luke's) and St. Anthony's is building in Aurora. There are a number of medium sized hospitals around as well. It may be difficult to meet all of your criteria, especially with the house price.

Lakes? Nothing like the midwest. A few reservoirs in the metro area, and a couple of big ones in the mtns, Lake Dillon and L. Estes, plus Grand Lake, a natural lake.

KevinJPPark · 07-25-2008, 09:30 PM

Thank you for the feedback so far. The DNC point was one I had forgotten about... I knew it was in Denver this year... I just forgot that we'd be traveling around the same time.

So it seems like my price point is a little ambitious. Fair enough. Living in St Louis where 180k can get you into some really nice areas and nice homes... I underestimated the difference of markets... so 275k seems to be a more realistic price point.

Kibbiekat · 07-25-2008, 09:44 PM

Look at Highlands Ranch. I bet your wife will love it. Lots of cliche McMansions, lots of churches. Lots of shopping near the east side (Park Meadows). Lots of parks including Civic Green with fountains for the kids to play in. Lots of kids. 4 rec centers with pools. Littleton Adventist Hospital is nearby on Broadway and Mineral. Skyridge Medical Center is on I25 just south. For $275,000 you might be able to get a 3 (maybe 4) bedroom, decent living area, with a basement you could finish in the future (I'm not a realtor, but $275 was kind of our bottom price range a year ago, so I'm going off that). Town Center is kind of the "downtown" of HR with townhomes and condos, shopping, dining, Civic Green Park. Lots of events are held there. Check that out. More shopping on Highlands Ranch Parkway and University.

KevinJPPark · 07-26-2008, 02:14 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by rkb0305

Look at Highlands Ranch. I bet your wife will love it. Lots of cliche McMansions, lots of churches. Lots of shopping near the east side (Park Meadows). Lots of parks including Civic Green with fountains for the kids to play in. Lots of kids. 4 rec centers with pools. Littleton Adventist Hospital is nearby on Broadway and Mineral. Skyridge Medical Center is on I25 just south. For $275,000 you might be able to get a 3 (maybe 4) bedroom, decent living area, with a basement you could finish in the future (I'm not a realtor, but $275 was kind of our bottom price range a year ago, so I'm going off that). Town Center is kind of the "downtown" of HR with townhomes and condos, shopping, dining, Civic Green Park. Lots of events are held there. Check that out. More shopping on Highlands Ranch Parkway and University.

Yeah highlands ranch was an area we already investigated a little. A search off Realtor.com found some homes in our price range... that will be an area we'll consider and take a long look at while we are out there.

bhcompy · 07-26-2008, 03:51 AM

highlands ranch and parker would be where i would look. in parker you can find both modern and older houses in your pricerange. either way, douglas county would be a good place to start

Katarina Witt · 07-26-2008, 08:02 AM

I'd like to make a correction from yesterday. St. Anthony's is building in Lakewood, not Aurora. I'm surprised no one caught this!

KevinJPPark · 07-26-2008, 11:33 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bhcompy

highlands ranch and parker would be where i would look. in parker you can find both modern and older houses in your pricerange. either way, douglas county would be a good place to start

Thanks for the Parker suggestion. That looks very appealing.. can anyone give a review on the parker adventist hospital? or maybe hospitals in the surrounding Parker area?