4-day neighborhood scouting trip (Denver, Lakewood: city hall, rental, townhome)

[NYSD1995]

I posted this about the same time last year, but due to the economic situation we decided to postpone our trip. Looks like this year is going to be the right time!

//www.city-data.com/forum/denve...ods-areas.html

Right now the plan is to come out around April 1 for about 4-5 days, I would like to see as much as I can to get a feel if Denver is a place we'd like to live. I have been there several times before but this would be a first time for my wife. I am planning to spend 1 day going to Boulder and RMNP and the rest will be scouting neighborhoods in Denver.

A couple of minor changes in our priorities from last year... we are going to investigate areas to rent as well as areas to buy. For a rental we are going to look for something very new with minimal maintenance issues, ideally a townhome, in a central area. We are looking very closely at Stapleton for that, but really it will probably end up being nearby wherever I end up working.

To buy however, criteria would be quite different:
- quiet, safe, clean area with well-kept homes and low vehicle traffic
- highly-rated schools from Elementary to High School
- stable middle-to-upper-middle class neighborhood with minimal churn (no up-and-comer neighborhoods, but not necessarily a yuppie area)
- large(r) lots preferred (around .25/acre or more is ideal)
- older, single-story homes are preferred but not a must
- prefer area that is not too cookie-cutter (i.e. Highlands Ranch)
- access to a light rail or cute downtown area preffered but not a must.
- price under 350k

Please note that "walkability" (i.e. to cute shops or for daily errands) is of minimal importance. The most walking we do is around our neighborhood or to the local park.

Based on previous recommendations and research I have narrowed down to a subset of areas that I think makes sense:
- Applewood
- Holly Hills
- older parts of Littleton east of the downtown
- older parts of Centennial

Applewood is the leader as it seems to have all that I am looking for. I also like the easy access to Golden. But it seems that 350k is going to be at the bottom of the price range. There are some areas of Applewood east of the highway that seem like they should fit the bill. Holly Hills is second because it has Cherry Creek schools and is so centrally located.
Littleton seems like it's also a good choice overall, especially with access to light rail and the cute downtown.

Some other areas that seem to potentially meet the criteria:
- Western Lakewood, Wheat Ridge (some shabby areas?)
- DU / Observatory / Eisenhower park areas (scrapes? schools? seems expensive)
- Ken Caryl Ranch and Western Arvada (seems a bit remote and cookie-cutter)
- Green Mountain area (seems cookie-cutter, small lots)
- Lousiville (seems far out and expensive)
- Westminster? Broomfield? (seems mostly cookie-cutter)

Although I still plan to check out these areas, I am tentatively ruling out the following areas for various reasons:
- Highlands, North Denver, inner Denver, Park Hill, etc (expensive, schools, flux, some areas not well-kept?)
- Washington / Platt Park (expensive, schools)
- Older inner-areas of Denver and Englewood, Arvada, Harvey Park, Virginia Village etc. (schools, not very well-kept?)

Any other suggestions or comments? Other areas I should check out? Thanks in advance for your input.

[Katarina Witt]

I live in Louisville. I would not call it "expensive" overall. There are some moderately priced homes here. Lots are not huge. We have 8000 sq. ft (about .2 acre) and that is considered fairly large. As far as "far out" it depends on where you will be working, which is?? Louisville has way more of a small town atmosphere than most suburbs; it has a cute little downtown with restaurants, boutiques, the city library, City Hall, etc. It has an annual 4th of July celebration including a picnic in the park with *free* hot dogs/brats cooked by the city staff; and a 3 day Fall Festival over Labor Day weekend with a huge parade. (Tons of pols attend in elections years). There is a downtown ice skating rink in the winter which the rest of my extended family feels is very "Norman Rockwell"-ish, plus lots of other recreational programs. If you're going to Boulder, you should most definitely look at Louisville.

You will find good schools most anywhere you desire to buy a house in " stable middle-to-upper-middle class neighborhood with minimal churn (no up-and-comer neighborhoods, but not necessarily a yuppie area)".

[Count David]

In addition to those you mentioned:

Greenwood Village
SE Denver (80237, 80231, 80222)

[NYSD1995]

Originally Posted by David Aguilar

In addition to those you mentioned:

Greenwood Village
SE Denver (80237, 80231, 80222)

Would this include the "Hampden" area? Thanks for the info.

[NYSD1995]

Originally Posted by Katiana

As far as "far out" it depends on where you will be working, which is??

It depends. Most likely it will be the tech center or downtown. I do have an opportunity in Boulder. I am in IT so I need to expect that I will change jobs every 3-5 years. It's preferable to stay relatively central to multiple job centers as opposed to being very close to any single job center. I have no problem with a 30+ minute commute.

[2bindenver]

I don't think living Central (i.e. Central Denver) is a good idea. There are plenty of jobs in the Westminster/Boulder/Broomfield corridor so that living NW would be better. Tech Center jobs would put you south/southeast/east side of Denver.

There was another poster a way back who wanted to know a reasonable commute if one worked in DTC and the in Boulder. I told them they could both be miserable living in the Highlands, about half way to both.

It's not "reasonable" given the amount of traffic on I-25 or 36, and the weather, to live central. Fr example, Observatory Park to Boulder would be 40 minutes on a good day, and 25 minutes to the Tech Center (depending on where) but given weather or traffic, you are now looking at double that.

[NYSD1995]

Originally Posted by 2bindenver

I don't think living Central (i.e. Central Denver) is a good idea. There are plenty of jobs in the Westminster/Boulder/Broomfield corridor so that living NW would be better. Tech Center jobs would put you south/southeast/east side of Denver.

What about Applewood / Lakewood / west side of Denver metro?

[Count David]

Originally Posted by Sassberto

Would this include the "Hampden" area? Thanks for the info.

Yes, why?

[Katarina Witt]

You can get some places downtown in 30 min from Louisville, though it's safer to allot 45 portal to portal. DH works in IT; has worked in Golden, Genessee (that was a bear!) and now Boulder. There are also IT jobs in Broomfield. From Louisville to BoulderBroomfield is 10-20 min, depending on just where to where.

If you're looking central, I'd suggest Broomfield. It doesn't have the small-town appeal that Louisville has, but it's a nice city with a mixture of old and new homes, not all of which are "cookie cutter".

2beindenver is correct; it's not possible to be centrally located to all the IT hubs, w/o a long commute to most of them.

[NYSD1995]

Originally Posted by David Aguilar

Yes, why?

Just trying to narrow it down to area names, they are easier to search for than zips.

Most of the stuff I am seeing in my particular niche are either in Downtown Denver or DTC, Boulder and surrounding seem more Hi-Tech manufacturing or Website / Startup (stuff outside my particular language / tech specialty)