the neighborhood hunt

Chris and I have been house-hunting since late January.  We arrived in the area with a plan. We would meet up with a realtor, visit communities in Stapleton and buy a home. But we quickly realized that our plan was ill-conceived. When visiting Denver in June, the Stapleton community seemed very "doable." We knew we couldn't get into our dream home, but there were great options that fell comfortably in our budget. But in six months time, prices jumped twenty to thirty thousand, and we were suddenly faced with needing to locate a new more affordable community.

Everyone has said to "stretch" ourselves; figure out what you can spend, and then go just a little over. And that's good advice, but we also have no interest in being house poor. If we're going to love Denver as much as I think we might, we need to have the freedom to play, explore and travel without fear of breaking our budget.  So with a very specific number in hand, we've visited every neighborhood within a 20 mile radius of the Denver metro area, and we think we've settle on a great new community in North Denver. The search (and the wait continues) but we're just a breath away from making some decisions. 

This New York City girl, who was looking, with shock and awe,  at $550,000 one-bedrooom apartment in Astoria just a few months ago can't believe she may actually own a home in 2013.