9 Things You Should Really Know Before Buying a Denver Home

When making a big decision like buying a house or moving to a new city, obviously the more you know, the better. Well, here are nine things you should know about lifestyle in — and around — Denver homes.

There’s something for everyone in the recreational activities available in Denver and the surrounding area. Many are family friendly but there are also adult activities to tempt your wilder side.

Professional Sports Mecca. If you are a professional sports enthusiast, you will love living in Denver. The town is home to four professional sports teams: the Denver Broncos football team, the hockey team known as the Avalanche, the Denver Nuggets basketball team and the Rockies baseball team. For added measure, Denver has not one, but two professional lacrosse teams. Not many US towns can say that! Definitely, something for every season and every sports lover.

RockyGrass Music Festival. If music is more your thing, you will not want to miss the RockyGrass Music Festival each summer in Lyons, about a 45 minute drive from Denver. The festival is four days of rock, blues, and the sounds of bluegrass that takes place at the end of July. You can camp out for four days of fun and music or grab a tube to float down the river.

Red Rocks Amphitheater: One of the biggest attractions for music buffs is the Red Rocks amphitheater. As its name implies, the natural red rocks of Colorado form the outdoor concert venue. Behind the stage on both sides, huge, vertical natural red rock formations angle out. More than 9,000 attendees can sit in-between these wonders of nature and listen to concert music, watch movies, or attend church services. It’s uniquely Colorado architecture. Denver runs the amphitheater which is part of the Denver Mountain Parks system.

The Wild West. If you’re learning toward choosing one of Denver’s homes because of the wild west history, this western mecca will not disappoint you. The National Western Stock Show takes place in North Denver the first two weeks of every January. Watch a real live rodeo, see the cowboy parade, bid on premium livestock at the auction, or enjoy the performing horses. And the kids will love the junior roping contest. What better way to get in touch with our cowboy past.

Bike Riders Welcome. Colorado was fitness conscious before it was trendy. Denver’s bike-sharing system provides bikes in bike stations all around Denver. Visitors can access the bikes and return them at any station by just purchasing various bike riding packages. In addition, bike riders will love the Cherry Creek bike path that begins in Denver and runs for 40 miles into the Denver suburbs like Aurora. It’s a favorite way that many Coloradans bike to work or just enjoy the scenery.

Denver Art Museum/Denver Nature and Science Museum/Zoo. Before we leave the family friendly activities behind, we have to mention the Denver Art Museum and the Denver Nature and Science Museum. The Denver Art Museum often waives entry fees on certain days to provide all visitors access to the rotating displays of artwork. The Denver Nature and Science Museum will entertain your kids with dinosaur exhibits and fascinating tidbits about the human body. They can even experiment and play in the kid zone. And, of course, we can’t leave kid zones without mentioning the Denver Zoo, especially the Zoo Lights experience. Every winter, for a few weeks, the Zoo becomes a lighted exhibit in the evenings. It’s magical.

16th Street Shopping Mall. Your prospective home buying research must include information about shopping. One of Denver’s charming downtown “happenings” is the 16th Street Shopping Mall. This area is part of downtown that the city closed to vehicular traffic and to make it available only to pedestrians. Denver provides shuttle buses within the shopping mall grounds. Visitors can listen to music, watch street performers, or ride in carriages. Meanwhile, the area is chock full of stores, restaurants, and bars for your shopping and dining pleasure.

Craft Beers. Well, we promised adult selections and here they are. Everyone knows that Colorado is the original home of Coors beer; however, since the rise of the micro brewing industry, Denver has become home to several micro-breweries. Come crawl the brewing mecca, taste test your palette, and decide where your favorites are. In fact, the Guinness Book of World Records called Denver’s Great American Beer Festival the largest beer festival in the world. You can sample the Vanilla Porter at Breckinridge Brewery or the Graham Cracker Porter at Denver Beer Company. If ale is your cup of tea, you won’t want to miss the Denver Pale Ale which you can find at the Great Divide Brewing Company. There’s also Strange Pale Ale at the Strange Brewing Company, started by two IT professionals when they lost their day jobs. And last, but not least, you won’t want to miss the Rail Yard Ale at Wynkoop Brewery. This brewery was Colorado’s first brewpub, started by former Denver Mayor Hickenlooper and others who wanted to revitalize Denver’s lower downtown section.

Gambling. Okay, so maybe gambling casinos aren’t exactly in Denver. There are, however, two towns about 30 miles away where gambling is legal. The cities of Blackhawk and Central City nestle in the Rocky Mountain foothills. For weekend getaway fun, you will find the Isle Casino Hotel Black Hawk, the Ameristar Casino Resort Spa, and the Lodge Casino. A tiny city with population of 119 in 2010, the founders established the historic town of Black Hawk in 1859 during the famous Pike’s Peak Gold Rush days. Nearby Central City grew up around another historic mining town called Gregory Gulch. This area blossomed during the 19th century mining boom and grew substantially with the mill construction and the opening of a stop on the railroad line leading to Golden, Colorado. The Black Hawk area declined in the 20th century;however, the town revitalized when Colorado revived gambling in 1990.

To read about the expected housing boom in Denver in 2016, read the article from the Denver Post from May 25, 2016, entitled “10,000 new homes expected in Denver this year as builders kick into overdrive.” Experts say that the new metro area of Denver homes cost on average $503,000.

To talk more about Denver homes, or anything else about Colorado, please contact me.