Another "Retire in CO" thread... (Denver, Boulder: co-op, how much)

[brightdoglover]

Originally Posted by EricBabula

...

I was thinking something like a 3 bed/2 bath home, somewhere between 1,400sf and 2,500sf. To me, that's moderate. To some, that's small. To others, that's a pretty large home. We do want room to have relatives/friends to be able to stay over, and to not be on top of each other. Seems about right-sized. No?

I think that's absolutely right-sized for multiple people. I have 800 sq.ft. with two very small bedrooms and that's fine for me, mutts and visitors.

[otowi]

Originally Posted by brightdoglover

I think that's absolutely right-sized for multiple people. I have 800 sq.ft. with two very small bedrooms and that's fine for me, mutts and visitors.

Agreed. I have 900 sq ft for me, pets and visitors and it is enough.

[brightdoglover]

Originally Posted by otowi

Agreed. I have 900 sq ft for me, pets and visitors and it is enough.

It would be nice to have like a suite/bathroom just for visitors but then I'm getting into sort of a bigger house and steps and all. I can have two visitors (if they're people who can share a bed and room) and I promise to keep the dogs out of their bedroom. My former house back East was about 1350 sq.ft. with a huge loft/bathroom and it was great for part-time housemates (my father in long visits, a friend who left her husband) but overall, the house was just too big and too much for me. I much prefer my cabin now.

[COcheesehead]

Originally Posted by EricBabula

Terms like "small", "big" and "nice" are all relative. I've seen posts in this forum where people say they have a nice little log cabin (5,000sf). That, to me, is definitely NOT little! LOL!

I was thinking something like a 3 bed/2 bath home, somewhere between 1,400sf and 2,500sf. To me, that's moderate. To some, that's small. To others, that's a pretty large home. We do want room to have relatives/friends to be able to stay over, and to not be on top of each other. Seems about right-sized. No?

We are at 2200 sq ft. All one level. Big storage room underneath the house not included in sq footage so we have gobs of storage space. 3 car garage. Lives bigger because we have almost no hallways and no stairs. This was our definition of small, but nice.

[Dogmama50]

I live outside of Vail so I will not suggest my ridiculously over priced area even though we have a great life here. I will comment on the Log Cabin thing, we live in a log-strocity for 5 years when we first moved back here and it cured me of that forever. Give me a nicely framed house with insulation and drywall and I'm happy.

The western slope is a great area and places like Grand Junction do have lots of accessibility to creature comforts and recreation. Ridgway is a beautiful area and really deserves a hard look. The airport component can be an issue but GJ has some solid options and Eagle-Vail in Gypsum (about 1.25 hours from GJ) is a great regional option and my choice over Denver, Montrose is pretty solid too. You may have to take a smaller plane to Denver or Dallas but TSA generally takes less than 3 minutes so there is a nice trade off.

[StealthRabbit]

As retired who hosts frequent international travelers, I prefer a small cozy house, with separate place for guests. Casita, Bunkhouse or shop with apartment and RV hookups.

Having lived with high winds and mtns for my last 60 yrs... I would build an ICF, My next place will be Rammed Earth if I live long enough to tamp it. Artistic (sand painting) inside and out, no need for wall treatments except to clear seal it as if you poured a slab. Using Backpack sprayer.

Passive solar is a must have.

[happygrrrl]

My adult child moved to Colorado, and after visiting, I took the highway through the San Juans and also went over to Black Canyon. There are 2 towns that, as a tourist, looked pretty good, Montrose and Durango. I wasn’t in either place for long, but was curious enough to look up real estate prices, and it’s less expensive than the little mountain resort towns, yet close enough to enjoy the mountains. Just a thought.

[EricBabula]

Originally Posted by COcheesehead

We are at 2200 sq ft. All one level. Big storage room underneath the house not included in sq footage so we have gobs of storage space. 3 car garage. Lives bigger because we have almost no hallways and no stairs. This was our definition of small, but nice.

We currently live in a 1,950sf home in which we raised 2 kids. We did finish out some of the basement, to make about 2,600sf, which was plenty big enough for the four of us for the past 28+ years. In our CO home, it'll be just my wife and me, with occasional visitors staying a week or so. So, I'm still thinking 1,400sf - 2,000sf, maybe up to 2,500sf tops. I like the idea of an open-concept great room (kitchen/dining/living space), and little to no hallways. I don't need huge bedrooms. Would like a basement that we could finish out as needed. Oh, and the garage will have to be oversized - two vehicles, four kayaks, ATVs, snow blower, tools, etc., etc. So, if I'm thinking say, 2,000sf, with a $500K budget, that would be $250/sf. Hmm, seems that something is gonna have to give, here......food for thought.

[EricBabula]

Originally Posted by StealthRabbit

As retired who hosts frequent international travelers, I prefer a small cozy house, with separate place for guests. Casita, Bunkhouse or shop with apartment and RV hookups.

Having lived with high winds and mtns for my last 60 yrs... I would build an ICF, My next place will be Rammed Earth if I live long enough to tamp it. Artistic (sand painting) inside and out, no need for wall treatments except to clear seal it as if you poured a slab. Using Backpack sprayer.

Passive solar is a must have.

I haven't thought of the separate place for guests, such as the shop with apartment above. Of course, that would separate us from our guests. A thought as an option, though.

Never looked into ICF homes. Gonna have to research.

I like the idea of passive solar - get as far off the grid as possible. Might have to do that slowly, once we see how far our funds are gonna stretch.

[EricBabula]

Originally Posted by happygrrrl

My adult child moved to Colorado, and after visiting, I took the highway through the San Juans and also went over to Black Canyon. There are 2 towns that, as a tourist, looked pretty good, Montrose and Durango. I wasn’t in either place for long, but was curious enough to look up real estate prices, and it’s less expensive than the little mountain resort towns, yet close enough to enjoy the mountains. Just a thought.

Thanks. When we make our reconnaissance visit, we'll have to check out that area. Would want the view of the mountains from our deck!