Renting in Golden v. Boulder

From a younger climbing family's perspective, what are the basics of each? We are looking to move to the front range in the next few years and find either to be a decent fit for work and climbing. We (3 of us) currently live in a 1600sq' home and could trade a room or 2 for a garage;) How about Landlord references?
Cheers and Thanks

yeah you and everyone else is moving here. Expect to find the renting / buying market difficult and thin. Expect less for more money. Should be considerably worse by the time you get around to moving.

It sounds like your looking to rent right? It used to be a lot cheaper to rent in Golden vs. Boulder but the rental market has become crazy out here. Your best bet if your looking for a home that size with a 2 car garage would be to look at the suburbs outside Golden (Lakewood, Wheat Ridge, Arvada) or Boulder (Lafayette, Gun Barrel). There are certainly options within Golden and Boulder city limits, but you'll be paying a lot more for a lot less. Conversely, living in town does have its perks so it's up to you what will be the best fit for your life/budget.

I can't comment much on Boulder landlords/ property managers, but avoid Laurel Property Services in Golden. They are the biggest manager, 300+ properties, and they are absolutely awful to work with and could care less about the properties.

Regardless, don't get discouraged, living in Golden/ South Boulder is great and once your settled in you'll forget all about the headaches of getting there :)

Monty wrote: I can't comment much on Boulder landlords/ property managers, but avoid Laurel Property Services in Golden. They are the biggest manager, 300+ properties, and they are absolutely awful to work with and could care less about the properties.

I generally prefer to deal with mom and pop landlords. Being that the options appear to be slim I may talk with Laurel. When you say "could care less about the properties" are you talking from the property owners perspective? or do you mean they are bad at managing renter's maintenance issues?

Do you think $1500 monthly could get me 900Sqft with out a garage? Again, searching right now comes up darn near blank at any price!

MarcHL wrote: I generally prefer to deal with mom and pop landlords. Being that the options appear to be slim I may talk with Laurel. When you say "could care less about the properties" are you talking from the property owners perspective? or do you mean they are bad at managing renter's maintenance issues? Do you think $1500 monthly could get me 900Sqft with out a garage? Again, searching right now comes up darn near blank at any price!

That price is about right. Interesting read for you.

denverpost.com/business/ci_…

Scott McMahon wrote: That price is about right. Interesting read for you. denverpost.com/business/ci_…

Thanks for sharing.

Over the years I have visited in the past decade and a half, things have been developing quickly in Golden.

MarcHL wrote: Thanks for sharing. Over the years I have visited in the past decade and a half, things have been developing quickly in Golden.

Yeah the amount of buildings going up is crazy. Good time to be in construction, development, or the beer / weed industry.

Monty wrote:It sounds like your looking to rent right? It used to be a lot cheaper to rent in Golden vs. Boulder but the rental market has become crazy out here. Your best bet if your looking for a home that size with a 2 car garage would be to look at the suburbs outside Golden (Lakewood, Wheat Ridge, Arvada) or Boulder (Lafayette, Gun Barrel). There are certainly options within Golden and Boulder city limits, but you'll be paying a lot more for a lot less. Conversely, living in town does have its perks so it's up to you what will be the best fit for your life/budget. I can't comment much on Boulder landlords/ property managers, but avoid Laurel Property Services in Golden. They are the biggest manager, 300+ properties, and they are absolutely awful to work with and could care less about the properties. Regardless, don't get discouraged, living in Golden/ South Boulder is great and once your settled in you'll forget all about the headaches of getting there :)

Ugh agreed about Laurel. Awful. We rented from then for 6 months when we first moved here then ended up buying a house in Arvada for about half of what we were paying in rent. Never thought I'd love the suburbs, but for the price and a yard and the closeness to down town, Boulder and I70 it's pretty rad.

I've done my share of renting in Golden and it is a tough market. The town itself is great (walk to everything you need) and its proximity to climbing, skiing, mountain biking, etc make it totally worth it in my opinion.

I have a rental available now in Golden, thought I'd share on this thread to give you an idea of what's available...

denver.craigslist.org/apa/4…

Thanks for sharing!

Is the house for rent or is it a basement apartment?

You can find better deals just east of Golden or Boulder depending on the size of the place you are looking to rent.

Post up how much you can afford and you will probably get a better idea of what you can expect to pay for what you are looking for.

Currently I'm renting a basement apartment and living upstairs. Eventually, I may rent out the upstairs as well.