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Boulder real estate is 60% more expensive than the
national average, with the average single-family home selling for
$375,000. And that is a pretty average home.
Those in the more sought-after neighborhoods sell for considerably
more. The "Hill," west of roughly 15th Street, may
be Boulder's most distinctive neighborhood. This area
stretches from the CU campus up to the edge of the foothills where
the terrain becomes too steep for building. Homes here
were built in the 1920s and 1930s and are large, mostly brick and
rife with character and charm. Many belong to University
professors and local professionals. This is the area, too,
where the Ramseys, of JonBenét infamy, lived.
Homes (2,000-2,600 square feet with 3-4 bedrooms) here start at
around $500,000 and can easily reach a million dollars or
more. As they say, location, location, location.
Another sought-after neighborhood runs along the
downtown area's northern edge and is historic Mapleton Hill.
Here, homes also run in the $900,000 (and considerably higher) range
and date from the turn of the 20th century. Most have
been renovated and have 3-4 bedrooms. Just down the street
stands the home from the opening credits of the old "Mork and
Mindy" television series.
Table Mesa, toward the southern edge of the city,
is another neighborhood of note; homes here date from the
1960s and are fairly standard, bi-level and tri-level tract
housing with 2-3 bedrooms. Some of these are also rented by
students. Prices here start in the low $400,000 range.
One would think prices would drop as one moves out
from the center of town, but in Boulder, that is not the case
because the city is surrounded by open space, mountainous terrain
or adjoins another municipality. Boulder is built to the
brim, with nowhere for new building to happen unless something old
is first torn down. In fact, the least expensive home for
sale we found was a 800 square foot cabin (built in 1884) in Gold
Hill, an area that backs onto open space and has wonderful views
of meadows and mountains. It was priced at
$215,000. We found one other home under $250,000 and
eight under $350,000. Most begin in the $400,000
range.
Boulder does have some condominiums and town
homes, although many of these house students. The least
expensive condo we found was $106,000 (600 square feet) and
located in an unattractive condo complex. $300,000 will buy
about 1,200 square feet of condo or town home, and $675,000 will
fetch nearly 1,500 square feet! Boulder does have an
affluent student population so even some of these higher-end units
will house students. Students tend to live all over town but
primarily on the lower edge of the "Hill" and on the
immediate east and north sides of campus.
To find more affordable real estate, one really
needs to look at the surrounding communities of Lafayette,
Longmont or Louisville (the "L" towns), although these areas
have seen a pricing boom recently because everyone wants to live
near Boulder.
Beautiful
Boulder, Colorado, Continued.....
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