Business Week recently named Fort Collins as Colorado’s Best Place to Raise Kids.
The magazine said the town, which is home to ColoradoStateUniversity and nearly 126,500 residents, has excellent schools, low crime and a vibrant downtown, dubbed OldTown, in addition to miles of hiking and biking trails, 600 acres of parks and 5,000 acres of natural areas.
Business Week named the best places state by state this year, instead of ranking them nationwide. It worked with OnBoard Informatics, a New York-based provider of real estate analysis, to select towns with a minimum of 50,000 residents and a median family income between $40,000 and $100,000. It then narrowed its search down with weighted criteria, including school performance, number of schools, household expenditures, crime rates, air quality, job growth, museums, parks, theaters and other amenities, and diversity. The magazine weighted school performance and safety most heavily, but also gave strong consideration to amenities and affordability.
The organizing principle was affordability, according to the magazine, so it weighted the results to prevent pricing out most readers. Some cities may have performed well in categories such as schools and amenities, but were too expensive for many to afford to live there. Other cities may have not made the list because of a higher crime rate. Fort Collins has a median household income of $76,172, according to Business Week.
Aurora and Loveland were Business Week’s runners up for the Best Places to Raise Kids in Colorado. Other cities named tops intheir state around the nation were Mount Prospect, Ill.; Murfreesboro, Tenn.; Arcadia, Calif.; and Columbus, Ohio. To find out what other cities were named best for families in their states, visit http://www.businessweek.com/investor/content/nov2008/pi2008117_238652.htm.
Park Gables is an enclave of 10 homes in the tradition of the Bungalow style in a gorgeous setting at the foot of Flagstaff Mountain and Boulder Creek - an easy walk to the West Pearl District and downtown Boulder. Each home features private outdoor spaces and an oversized two-car garage with ample storage for outdoor gear.
These easy-to-maintain homes include an HOA that manages everything from snow removal and lawn maintenance to exterior window washing and trash removal, making them perfect lock-and-leave homes for those with heavy travel schedules or who live in Boulder only part time.
Prices of these Bungalows start in the $900,000s and go up to $1,425,000; they range in size from 1,621 square feet to 2,529 square feet. The first phase will be ready for move in in winter 2008. For additional information, please contact me!
Shannon Derby is the fitness director for Mountain’s Edge Fitness Center in the Table Mesa Shopping Center and owner of Fitness In Balance Personal Fitness Training. She has worked full time in the fitness industry since 1991 and teaching fitness classes since 1986.
Shannon currently works individually with people looking to improve muscle tone, lose weight and train for specific athletic events as well as provides secondary rehabilitation after physical therapy. Fitness and health are passions for Shannon: she delights in sharing her enthusiasm and knowledge with everyone she encounters.
Shannon enjoys the outdoors here in beautiful Boulder alone, with clients, groups and her son. She’d love to meet you and help you with any fitness or health-related questions you might have. If you don’t run into her on the trails, you can reach Shannon at msderby1@comcast.net or by phone at the Mountain’s Edge, 303-494-5000.
Arapahoe Ridge in Boulder is a neighborhood that’s been around long enough to have established its own character while offering amenities that attract everyone from retirees and professionals to mid-age and young families. Neighbors are warm, friendly and eager to help each other out, so once new home owners move in, they usually stay.
Located between Arapahoe and Pennsylvania avenues and Foothills Parkway and 55th Street, Arapahoe Ridge is made up of mostly ranch-style, two-story and tri-level homes built between 1966 and 1976. The homes in Arapahoe Ridge all have two-car garages and generous backyards. Sale prices in the last year have ranged from $474,000 to $625,000, depending on the level of updating and house size.
The neighborhood has an excellent location on the Centennial Trail bike path and has great access to the Boulder Creek path. It is within easy biking distance of the East Boulder Recreation Center and is across the street from the new hospital and Flatirons Golf Course. And whether taking the convenient bus service to and through the neighborhood or private transportation, getting to Foothills Parkway, the Meadows Shopping Center and Meadows Branch Library and 29th Street Mall amenities from Arapahoe Ridge is a breeze.
Eisenhower Elementary School is central to Arapahoe Ridge and adjacent to the school is the Arapahoe Ridge Park featuring the famous rock cave, popularly known as the “rock park.”
To find out if Arapahoe Ridge is the kind of neighborhood you’re looking for, please give me a call.
Given the recent events in the economy, it’s no surprise to Ken Hotard that the real estate market produced a mixed bag of statistics in September.
“There are two really big things that jump out at you: one is positive and one is negative but to be expected,” says Hotard, senior vice president of public affairs for the Boulder Area Realtor Association.
First, the number of homes sold is significantly down in nearly every category of dwelling unit and in almost every BoulderCounty community from Sept. 1, 2007, through Aug. 31, 2008, compared with the previous year. That is directly related to credit tightening in the mortgage industry, Hotard says.
“To me, that’s what those numbers reflect,” he says. “Folks are not able to get mortgages. People with good credit still are, but people right on the margin are finding it difficult and more costly to get (mortgages).”
On the other hand, the latest statistics show that the inventory of available homes in many parts of BoulderCounty is down. For instance, Longmont, which had a 12- to 13-month supply only a few short months ago, now, with 501 on the market, has only a six-month supply, Hotard explains. The owners of some of the homes for sale previously have taken them off the market, but others are selling.
Boulder’s September statistics were an exception to that trend, though, with only 51 homes selling in the month. It could take eight months to absorb the 401 homes on the market at that rate, Hotard says. A low absorption rate is unusual for Boulder and relates more to sales volume – the city historically sees 80 to 100 sales a month – than with inventory of homes on the market.
But he says with the current market conditions, it’s not likely that the sales volume will pick up anytime soon. “This tight-credit thing is serious,” Hotard says.
Another positive aspect of the latest statistics is that average sale prices remained steady throughout BoulderCounty and even climbed slightly in all but three communities – Lafayette, Longmont and the mountains, he notes.
Hotard says it’s hard to say how the current economic situation will play out, as it’s a new experience for all involved.
“Don’t we wish we had a crystal ball?” he asks. “For a lot of people, this (the government’s solution) looks an awful lot like guesswork. We’re going to have to ride this out for a while until the picture clarifies for us. Those with money in the stock market have to hold their breath and ride this thing out.”
In the meantime, those with good credit and ready to buy real estate may get a good price now, but some buyers believe prices will drop even more if they wait, Hotard says. And even borrowers with great credit won’t likely find mortgages for nothing down; they should be prepared to bring 10 percent – if not 20 percent – of the loan to the closing table.
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