Boulder Neighborhoods – Guide for 2016

Boulder Neighborhoods – Guide for 2016

Boulder Neighborhood Guide 2016Boulder Neighborhood Guide

I realized a few years ago that people coming from out of town were having a hard time characterizing the different neighborhoods within Boulder.  In response I created the Boulder Neighborhood Guide. In this report I have split Boulder into eleven different areas and present the lifestyle highlights, schools, shopping districts, local recreation and real estate statistics for each area. If you’re interested in learning more about the different neighborhoods within the City of Boulder this is your guide.

Click this link to view and download the report.  Boulder Neighborhood Guide 2016

It is recognized that Boulder is a great place to live but the neighborhoods in Boulder are a bit hard to peg. Boulder was developed over time in a piece-meal fashion. The result is that many of the neighborhoods are only a few hundred homes in size. It is common to have two adjacent neighborhoods developed at different times and with completely different price ranges. While this report is not comprehensive, it will give the reader valuable information from which to start understanding the real estate market in Boulder. I will highlight the major neighborhoods in each area.

Here are some highlights from within this years report.

Last year homes in Boulder County appreciated roughly 13.52%. But the appreciation varied between areas and price ranges.  Within Boulder neighborhoods as I have split them in the report gains in median prices ranged between 6.6% to 35% depending upon the area.  Here is the list of neighborhoods sorted by median price appreciation last year:

  1. Wonderland Lake / Dakota Ridge = 35%
  2. North Boulder East = 28%
  3. North East Neighborhoods = 28%
  4. Whittier = 24%
  5. Chautauqua / University Hill = 16%
  6. Gunbarrel = 13%
  7. Retail / Industrial Core = 12%
  8. South Boulder / Table Mesa = 11%
  9. East Boulder = 7%
  10. Newlands – 6.7%
  11. Mapleton Hill = 6.6%

A Few Notes: Wonderland Hill / Dakota Ridge is in the far NW portion of town and this is where there are the newest houses coming online. It is also west of Broadway which always means premium prices.  Newlands and Mapleton Hill have some of the highest priced real estate in Boulder. The luxury market did not increase in price as much as other, lower priced markets so those areas saw the smallest average appreciation.

Click this link to view and download the report. Boulder Neighborhood Guide 2016

 

Boulder Neighborhood Profile – Red Fox Hills

Boulder Neighborhood Profile – Red Fox Hills

Boulder Colorado Neighborhood Profile

RED FOX HILLS
Boulder, Colorado 80301

Red Fox Hills is a small neighborhood of 114 homes tucked into a quiet corner of the Gunbarrel area Northeast of Boulder. It is an especially quiet area, away from major streets and rail lines. It is surrounded by open space and many nights the only sounds you hear are those of the neighboring coyotes. The homes were built in the late 1980’s and early 1990’s by the local builder, Hudson Homes. One of the best features of this neighborhood is the proximity to Boulder County Open Space and trails. Many of the homes in the neighborhood back to open space and the trails around The Twin Lakes provide a great place to walk, run or view wildlife. One of the lakes has recently been designated an “off leash” area for dogs. The neighborhood is also known for its community activities such as a yearly progressive dinner and a community garage sale. It is also located near Boulder Country Day School and Mountain Shadows Montessori among others. The community pool is a great place to cool off, have a picnic and to meet neighbors.

DSC07553DSC07554

DSC07556

Red_Fox_Hills

 

Neighborhood Snapshot

  • Number of Homes – 114
  • Percent Owner Occupied – 95%
  • Years Homes were built – 1985 – 1993
  • Distance to Pearl Street Mall – 7 miles

 

 

 Schools

Neighborhood Amenities

  • Surrounded by Open space
  • Quiet Location
  • Neighborhood Pool
  • Large yards
  • Friendly neighborhood activities
  • Choice of High Schools
Boulder Neighborhood Guide

Boulder Neighborhood Guide

Boulder Neighborhood GuideInterested in learning about the different neighborhoods in Boulder? In this report I have split Boulder into eleven different areas and present the lifestyle highlights, schools, shopping districts, local recreation and real estate statistics for each area. If you’re interested in learning about where to live in the City of Boulder this is your guide.

It is recognized that Boulder is a great place to live but the neighborhoods in Boulder are a bit hard to characterize. Boulder was developed over time in a piece-meal fashion. The result is that many of the neighborhoods are only a few hundred homes in size. It is common to have two adjacent neighborhoods developed at different times and have completely different price ranges. While this report is not comprehensive, it will give the reader valuable information from which to start understanding the real estate market in Boulder. I have arbitrarily split up Boulder into 11 different segments. I will highlight the major neighborhoods in each area.

Boulder Neighborhood Guide – 2015to view and download the guide.

 

Mapping Boulder Home Sales By Price and Location

Mapping Boulder Home Sales By Price and Location

I’m revising my Boulder Neighborhood Guide and thought it would be helpful to show not only where sales are taking place but at what price. I found a way to manipulate the sales data for the City of Boulder and show it on a map and label it by price range. It’s called a heat map.

The first one shows all of the sales of houses and condos in and around Boulder in 2014. It’s a little busy, but you can generally see that there are more large orange circles on the west side of town. Orange circles represent the highest 1/3 of prices. Medium green circles represent the middle third and small blue circles stand for each sale in the lowest third of the price array.  When there are a bunch of sales in close proximity the sales are bunched together and the circle becomes larger.  You can see some normal sized circles on the east side of the map. So far in 2014, the City of Boulder and the close surrounding area  has had 1,698 sales with a median price of $475,000. To see a larger view of each map, just click on the picture.

Boulder Heat MapIn order to see what is happening a bit clearer I’ve split the data into thirds.  The first map below shows the sales in the Boulder area up to $350,000. This is the bottom one third of the market. Within this market segment the blue dots are the least expensive, the green dots are the middle segment and the orange dots are the most expensive segment. You can see that most of the sales are centered around 28th Street which is the main north south artery in town.

Boulder Home Sales Bottom Third

The middle price range in Boulder during 2014 are those properties selling between $350,000 and $560,000. In this price range there are quite a few more sales west of 28th Street, more in South Boulder (Table Mesa, Martin Acres) and more sales in Gunbarrel.

Boulder Home prices middle third

The last map represents the upper third of the price range; between $560,000 and $5,300,000. The map shows that most of the sales in the upper price range take place west of Broadway.

Boulder Home prices upper third

The heat maps were created at OpenHeatMap.com with data supplied from IRES MLS.

A Profile of New Apartment Developments in Boulder County

A Profile of New Apartment Developments in Boulder County

If you have been driving around Boulder lately you undoubtedly have noticed the building boom happening. Commercial buildings are going up, the University of Colorado is working on some big projects, there are hotels being built and most notably to me there are a bunch of new residential apartment complexes going up.

A full half of all residential housing units in Boulder are for rent. Many of those apartments and townhomes were built in the 1960 – 1980 era and frankly many need a facelift. A few bold developers have recognized this over the past few years and have come to the market with a new housing product to Boulder; luxury apartment communities. These apartments work off of the premise that people will pay higher prices for really high end places with amenities. After the first project like this worked, a flood of similar projects raced to be second.  In this article I will give a few examples of some of the notable new high end apartments in the Boulder area.

Boulder

TWO NINE NORTH – www.twoninenorth.com

two nine northTwo Nine North is located at the North East boundary of the Twenty Ninth Street Mall. It is a high end apartment complex that is well located. Prices for a one bedroom unit start around $1900 and the largest two bedroom units (~1350 sq. ft.) go for around $2800. The community amenities include: Underground Garage Parking, Outdoor Pool, Cats and Dogs Accepted, ClubHouse, Smoke free, Fitness Center, Business Center, Onsite pet park.  The apartments themselves are well appointed and the website lists these features: Plank wood flooring, Faux Stainless Appliances, Central Heat, Roman-style tub, microwave, Private Balcony, Electric Range, Ice maker, Garbage Disposal, Key fob entry,Fireplace – electric, Energy efficient appliances, Walk-In Closet, Ceiling Fan, In-unit W&D,Granite Countertops, Central Air Conditioning, Dishwasher.
Solana 3100 Pearl – www.solana3100pearl.com/
solanaSolana 3100 Pearl is located within 2 blocks of Two Nine North. This project is recently completed and is going through its initial leasing. When complete there will be 319 units for rent. It’s located at the Boulder Junction which will eventually be a mass transportation hub just east of 30th Street on Pearl. The availability at Solana ranges from a studio 573 sq. ft. studio for $1450 to an 1,183 square foot two bed, two bath for just under $2500 per month.  I toured this project and found that the community areas reminded me of a new four star hotel. Big booths and tables in which to socialize and work on your laptop, a well equipped fitness room a spinning room and outside courtyards with comfortable seating a gas firepits.  The infinity pool will be open soon.  From their website:

“Solana 3100 Pearl is a brand-new community that offers contemporary living in an unbeatable location with upscale apartments in Boulder, CO. The environmentally conscious amenities combined with the thoughtfully appointed floor plans ensure that residents are continually satisfied with their living experience. This LEED Silver Certified apartment community offers studio, one and two bedroom apartments with luxurious layouts, and all of the homes are pet friendly with few restrictions.This exceptional community offers a wide variety of features for the conscious resident. There are plenty of exercise options with the community’s fitness center, which features a spinning room and a yoga studio. Active residents will appreciate the community’s commitment to alternate methods of commuting, which include an electric car charging station, over three hundred bike parking spaces and a bike repair station. Residents who love to mingle often take advantage of the clubroom and social room, and the community’s rooftop is home to a luxurious lounge that has an inspiring view. Our drought tolerant landscaping guarantees a beautiful looking community year round.

The homes are as luxuriously appointed as the community is. Each apartment comes with standard slab doors, wood flooring and sizable bedrooms. Select homes even include upgrades such as carpeting in the bedrooms, side-by-side refrigerators and garden bathtubs. Each one of these premiere homes was carefully designed with space, comfort and eco-consciousness in mind.”

The Lofts at Peloton –  www.theloftsatpeloton.com/

The Peloton is a large project that was initially slated to be sold as condos.  Halfway through the sales effort the developers decided that the rental market was better than the sales market and turned half of the complex into rental units.  The community center is really outstanding, best of the bunch, and features a health club quality workout center, a beautiful roof top pool and hot tub, a club room and a movie room. From their website it appears that they have 1, 2 and 3 bedroom units. One bedrooms start around $1900 and two bedrooms are just under $3,000.

peleton poolThe photo to the left is of the rooftop pool at The Peloton. Here are the amenities from the website.

*Rooftop pavilion with year-round pool, 2 hot tubs, fire pit & bbq grills *   Private 6,000 sq ft fitness center with spa & yoga studio *   Game room with billiards, shuffleboard, flat screen TVs & movie theater with stadium seating for 22 *   Fully wired & networked meeting/conference room *   Inviting outdoor gathering places & fountain *   Gated, subterranean parking *   Bike & individual storage lockers *   Fenced dog park, with doggie drinking fountain *  Convenient, ground-floor retail shops *   Cable/Satellite TV *   On the RTD public transportation route *   Bathroom Window *   Shaker-style Cabinetry *  Central HVAC *   Corner Unit *   Covered Parking *   Deluxe Mtn View *   Dogs/Cats Allowed *  Dual Vanity Sinks in Bath *  Elevator Service *  Extra Storage *  Fireplace  *  Full-sized Appliances *  Gas Stove *  Glass Shower *   Hardwood Floors Living/ Dining *  Hardwood Flooring Kitchen *  Kitchen Island *  Oversize Balcony *   Loft / Studio Style *  Microwave *  Mtn Views * Pantry *  Quartz Countertops * Reserved Parking *    Sliding Doors *  Stackable WD *  Upgraded Stainless Appliances * Stand Up Shower with Seat *   Technology Center *  Tile Floors Laundry *  Walk-in Closet in Master *  Side-by-Side WD *  Wood-style Blinds *   Wood-Style Flooring * Quartz counter tops * Shaker style cabinetry with self closing drawers *  Gas fireplaces (select apartment homes) * Stainless steel, Whirlpool appliances including a gas stove & microwave *  Washer and Dryer Provided * Spacious, walk-in closets * Designer fixtures & hardware throughout *  Private decks and patios, with gas hook-ups for grills *

Gunbarrel

Boulder View Apartments – www.boulderviewapartments.com

boulder viewIf you don’t mind driving a bit to get to town you can look out in Gunbarrel.  Gunbarrel isn’t technically a town it’s an area of Boulder that was annexed back in the 1970’s to allow for IBM to move to the area and have an Boulder address. Downtown Boulder is roughly 7 miles away and right across the street is a neighborhood shopping center with a supermarket, restaurants, coffee shops etc. These apartments are brand new and as of the end of September they were just about 100% leased. There are less than 70 units and I found that their common amenities were not as nice as the properties in Boulder, just some chairs around some outside fire pits and two over sized hot tubs built into a deck.. Rents range from $1100 for a studio to a listed price of $1860, although the onsite leasing agent said that for certain locations the rents are more, not all units have a garage.

From their website.

Located in the thriving Gunbarrel area of Boulder, this community offers plenty to do, with open space trails, bike paths and spectacular views. Boulder View offers 68 brand-new apartments with high end finishes, a comfortable feel, and breathtaking views.In select units we offer adaptable storage for bikes and outdoor equipment. Just off the Lobo Trail and bus line, we are easy access from anywhere in Boulder County. The community amenity deck includes a hot tub and swim spa, 2 fire features and an outdoor kitchen with terrace.

 Apex 5510 – www.apex5510.com

Apex 5510 is a complex of 261 units also located in Gunbarrel. This complex is still under construction and they plan to have their first move-in’s on October 15th 2014. The prices here a bit higher than at Boulder View (which is within a short walk away) but it seems that they are providing more amenities.  Prices range from $1300 for a studio, $1465 for a one bedroom and the prices for a two bedroom range from $1900 – $2300. The amenities include a 24 hour fitness room, a lounge area with big screen TV’s and a paw spa for washing your dog. This area also has some retail space so hopefully that will fill in with something attractive to tenants. It also has a seasonal pool as well as a year round hot tub.

From their website:

Apex 5510 puts you in the heart of it all. Here, you’ll find studio, one- and two-bedroom apartment homes in North Boulder’s
Gunbarrel business district. It’s the perfect blend of inspired design and a healthy, sustainable lifestyle, so of course it’s 100% smoke-free.
You’ll be well within walking distance of some of our premier companies, including IBM, HP and Covidien. In fact, more people walk to work in Boulder than any other city of our size.
There’s direct access to Boulder Reservoir and more than enough protected open space to make sure nothing blocks your view of the front range.
With downtown Boulder, Pearl St. Mall and 60 parks just five miles away, Apex 5510 will remind you every day that this is where you were meant to live all along. And now you do.
Apex 5510. At heart, you’ve always been a Boulderite.

 Louisville

North Main Apartments at Steel Ranch – www.steelranchliving.com

steel ranchAs the name suggests, this apartment complex is located where Main Street in Louisville ends at its north end. It is located conveniently next to the new Afalfas Market. It has an impressive amenity list and is similar in many ways to the high-end properties in Boulder. Prices start at $1215 for a one bedroom, top out at $1900 for a two bedroom and range from $2325 to $2574 for a three bedroom. Here is a list of their amenities from their website: Sundeck with Fountain Spa * 25 yard Heated Lap Pool w/pool house * Jacuzzi/Hot Tub * Fitness Center * Business Center * Covered Parking * Some Pets Allowed * Media Room * Garage Parking * Pet Bathing Station * Bicycles * Expansive Clubhouse with WiFi Coffee Bar * Dual Conference Center * Chef Inspired Kitchen in main Clubhouse with complimentary cooking classes * 24 Hour Health and Fitness Club * Fire Pit with BBQ & Picnic areas with access to Pool House * Community Park * Direct Access Garages and Covered Parking Available *  Velo Station for Bike Cleaning and Maintenance * Walking Distance to King Soopers, Alfalfas and many coffee shops, restaurants & retail stores in Downtown Louisville * Premium Island Kitchens * Upgraded Appliances *  Garbage Disposal *  Washer/Dryer in Unit *  Balcony, Deck or Patio *  Walk-in Closets * Dishwasher *  Custom Cabinetry * Granite Countertops * Spacious Patios and Balconies * Unobstructed Mountain Views * Built in Tech Desks * Dual Master suites * 9 ft Ceilings *Faux Wood Flooring * Two Tone Paint with accent color walls * Oversized baseboards throughout home

 Other Options

If these prices seem high to you there are other options. There are other, older apartments complexes with fewer, less fancy amenities available and there are many privately owned condos and townhomes for rent that have varying degrees of updates. The privately held units are most readily found by doing a Craigslist search.

 

 

Five Reasons For The Drop In Home Inventory

Five Reasons For The Drop In Home Inventory

February InventoryWhere Did All The Homes For Sale Go?

It seems that the headlines around the country in stories written about real estate inevitably have two major themes; low inventory and increasing prices. And for anyone who is familiar with economics at all this isn’t a surprise. They should go hand in hand. Given equal demand,  a decrease in the supply of any good will result in an increase in the price of that good. The technical term is scarcity.  It results not only in a buyer paying more for something but in most cases they also have to demonstrate patience as they wait for delivery. But this equation doesn’t always end up with the same number of transactions taking place. Many of the would-be buyers get discouraged with the process of the purchase and decide to make other arrangements.

In the real estate world “other arrangements” mean that a would-be buyer decides to stay where they are or decide to rent instead of buying a new home. The market isn’t operating efficiently and in the end, the result is fewer sales.  We are already seeing all of these variables come into play: lower inventory, higher prices, fewer sales. Here in Boulder County inventory is down approximately 50% from the same point five years ago.

The question that I haven’t seen adequately answered is “where did all the homes for sale go?”  I don’t have ‘the’ answer but here are my ideas on the reasons why inventory of homes for sale has steadily decreased both nationwide and locally.

  1. Financial Distress – When homeowners don’t have enough equity or cash to sell a home they have three choices; pursue a short sale, let the home go into foreclosure or keep making the payments and hang on to the house until their equity rises to a point where their costs to sell are covered. Prices have risen and we are through the worst of the latest foreclosure wave but the most recent recession was deep and home prices did fall to a point where the recent appreciation in many areas is just now making up the accumulated loss. If you bought in 2005 – 2007 chances are that your equity vs. selling cost equation is still about breaking even. Therefore, the mindset for many people is, that I have made it this far and prices seem to be headed in the right direction so if I hold on a bit more it will be even better. Many in financial distress either can’t afford to sell or are waiting for more appreciation.
  2. Trade-up Conundrum – For homeowners hoping to trade-up to a larger, more expensive, or different house there are two parts of the equation, selling and then buying. Right now the selling part is easy. In the Boulder County area if you have a decent house you can sell your home for a good price in fairly short order. But once you sell you must find a new home, and fast. There are two problems here. 1) Low inventory means that a buyer has very few choices on the buying end and it might take a double move to make it work. 2) Prices are rising and there might not be enough equity (see #1 above) to put into the new home to make the financing and monthly payments work.
  3. Investment Buyers – When a new listing does come on the market competition between buyers is tight. Exasperating this competition is the proliferance of investors who many times make cash offers. More buyers means that it takes even more new listings to satisfy the demand.
  4. Rising Prices – I had a prospective seller do some quick math at the kitchen table recently. He knew that prices had risen approximately 9% over the past year on his $500,000 home. This meant that every month his home was going up another $3,750. There are some serious assumptions in this equation, but I don’t doubt that many homeowners do the same math. The answer to this optimistic equation for them is “let’s stay here another year and sell it next year for $50,000 more”. I love the optimism, but this type of thinking doesn’t work in perpetuity. If you follow the housing market, the stock market, the commodity market or any other free market, you know that these forward looking assumptions are easier to make than they are to collect on.
  5. No Place To Go – “Sure we could sell our house, but where would we go?”. These words are echoing across the area, and alas the nation. Instead of taking the plunge into the market, these would-be sellers/buyers then decide to do nothing, thereby fueling the self-fulfilling spiral of even lower home inventory. In our area this is further exasperated by a lack of rental homes that in a different market take up the slack if the logistics don’t work just perfectly.