Our trip to Colorado

We had a very busy trip to Colorado. We just returned and are really tired. We got a few things accomplished while we were there. First, WS had to have a medical exam before he could start work at his new job. He passed the exam ( I never thought that he wouldn't) and I was able to see where he will be working.


Additionally, we were able to meet with a real estate agent to look at a few homes in Centennial. This is a suburb South of Downtown that has fabulous schools. One of the school districts in Centennial is Cherry Creek. The reputation of this school district is a huge draw for us. It is supposed to be the best around. We also really like this area because it's family friendly and has everything that we could ever need/want. Also, it's very safe and just an ideal place. I took a few pictures to give an idea of what a typical street in Centennial is like.



We found that in Centennial the more established area of town is pricier and the homes are older (built in the 1970s and 1980s), but this part of Centennial is the more desirable area. The homes in this part of Centennial that are in our price range would require a little bit of updating. I'm not sure if this is what we want. However, the older part of Centennial is really better and seems closer to everything. WS really likes the older part of town. He found a house that he really likes in this area.

This house definitely has great curb appeal, but the inside really needs some updates. All of the carpet that is upstairs would need to be replaced and most of the rooms have floral wallpaper. I know that wallpaper is not easy to remove. We tend to be the ones to do the projects around the house. We don't hire out because it's cheaper for us to do it ourselves. However, it seems that if we want to be in the best part of Centennial, we will have to do some home projects.

The newer part of Centennial is farther East. This borders some areas of Aurora. Aurora has kind of a bad reputation in Colorado. I'm not sure why, but everyone says not to move there. Aurora is huge though. I don't think that people are talking about the part of Aurora that borders Centennial. I love the houses in this area because they're new, but the neighborhoods have much less character. The trees are not as mature and the yards are much smaller. I really don't mind this aspect. However, WS is concerned that his commute to work will be longer if we live that far East. I found a house that I liked out in this area of Centennial.

This house is only a few years old and is move in ready. That's what I like. It also has a finished basement that would be great for guests to stay in. Additionally, there are 5 bedrooms upstairs. You definitely get a lot more house for your money the farther East that you look in Centennial.

Although we're not ready to buy right now, it was great to be able to see what is out there in the area where we are most likely going to buy. We are not really considering Stapleton anymore. Although I like the idea of it, the schools are not what we are looking for. When we drove through Stapleton on Friday I began to realize that Stapleton is surrounded by some pretty seedy areas. Although Stapleton is safe, forget about walking outside of it. I don't think that we've totally ruled it out, but we're definitely leaning towards Centennial.