Boulder, CO: Real Estate Information

The 2007 population for Boulder was 101,547. And in 1997 the city population was 94,136, an increase of 8%.

Typical Starting Price:The price range to buy a 3 bedroom, 3 bath, 2,000 square feet and a 2-car garage is in the $475,000 to $550,000.  And this is just the lowest price range.  Prices go up considerably when looking at bigger homes or in some of the more expensive neighborhoods.  As for property taxes, Boulder Homes listed around $600,000 have annual property taxes between $2,500 to $3,000.

Sales statistics from 2006 and 2007.  Median Sales Price in 2006 was $545,000 and in 2007 it was $550,500. The Average Sales Price increased from $638,642 in 2006 to $662,656 in 2007.  And the Average Days on Market increased from 89 days in 2006 to 98 days in 2007.  These statistics are for residential homes.

People always ask me--What is so special about Boulder?  Why is Boulder Real Estate so expensive compared to other cities in Colorado?

I lived in Boulder for 19 years and it is a very special place to live.  Having the Flatirons surround you every day is a beautiful sight. You can do so much in the city, hiking trails are accessible from the south end of Boulder all the way to the North end.  Pearl Street Mall is a great place to hang out on warm summer evenings--eating dinner downtown and then checking out the street performers. 

Look at that picture of Chautauqua--it's an amazing place.  A public park at the foot of the Flatirions in Boulder.  It's just a beautiful place to have a picnic with family and friends.  And it's one of the most popular hiking places in Boulder.

Boulder is very protective of Open Space so there has not been much significant housing development in the city proper for a long, long time.  The housing supply in Boulder is not growing and the Demand is very high thus the prices have always gone up over the years. 

Pluses of Boulder, CO Real Estate
When you buy a house in Boulder it's an excellent investment.   There are people who bought homes in Boulder in the 1970's for $50,000 to $75,000 that are now worth today over $1M primarily because of the land on which the house sits.  So even if you buy a house in Boulder today for $700,000 to $800,000 it's an excellent investment because it has been proven over the years that people will pay a very high premium to buy a house in Boulder to live in Boulder. 

Boulder Schools in Boulder are above average and a lot of them have " excellent" ratings.  The Boulder Valley School District is recognized as a leading school district in the country.  Some of the best elementary schools are in Boulder, Bear Creek Elementary and Mesa Elementary and both are in South Boulder.

Negatives and Challenges Facing Boulder
Boulder has grown quite a bit over the years, the population now is just over 100,000 and the C.U. enrollment is now close to 30,000.  When I gradutated from C.U. in the 1980's our enrollment was in the 22,000 to 23,000 range.  The crush of people in Boulder affects car traffic very negatively, it can take you 30 minutes or more to get from the North end of Boulder to the South end nowadays.  And try driving thru 28th Street during rush hour, it's extremely difficult. 

Other issues facing Boulder in the last few years is that student enrollment for Public Schools have been diminishing to the point where some middle schools and elementary schools have been shut down.  So when looking at homes you need to take a close look at the map of the schools.