Moving from NYC to Denver..need rental suggestions (Aurora, Lakewood: sales, apartment complex)

[dexy]

Hello everybody,

We plan a move for spring 2010. Since we live in NYC, we got used to buildings rather than houses. Has anyone had experience with Axis at 9 mile station apartment complex? Their website is Welcome to Axis at Nine Mile Station :: Luxurious Highrise Apartment Living in Downtown Denver, CO
We are family of three and look for 2 bedroom apartment possibly around $900. This complex looks nice on the picture. Any other suggestions?
I will be working from home so there will be no commute for the beginning. We were thinking of Denver, Aurora and Lakewood.
Is there a good website for rentals showing the neighborhood maps and reviews as well?

Thanks!

[Count David]

No experience with the complex, but the area surrounding isn't very urban, and couldn't really be considered a more "city" part of Denver, even with the train nearby (that is, if the urban-ness of the area is a concern).

[Davros]

I'm a little wary of them claiming they are in Downtown Denver. They are not at all in Downtown Denver. You're right on the doorstep of Cherry Creek Reservoir, so that would offer some good jogging, biking, and warm water fishing opportunities. But I'm not sure that area isn't more suburban than urban. Not sure what kind of restaurants and shops are near there. But, being on the light rail you are only about 30 minutes from Downtown on a very convenient mode of transportation. I certainly would consider trying that location for a year.

You could also look closer to downtown Denver if you want more of a downtown type of living. Just google Denver, CO. Go to the map, and then type in the word apartments and do a search. The feature that comes up lets you search for a price range and number of bedrooms and baths. In your price range, there are some places that show up in rougher neighborhoods such as Montbello and Green Valley Ranch, which are in between downtown Denver and the airport. I would avoid those areas --- high crime, and isolated from the rest of the city.

[Count David]

Originally Posted by Davros

I'm a little wary of them claiming they are in Downtown Denver. They are not at all in Downtown Denver. You're right on the doorstep of Cherry Creek Reservoir, so that would offer some good jogging, biking, and warm water fishing opportunities. But I'm not sure that area isn't more suburban than urban. Not sure what kind of restaurants and shops are near there.

Yeah, they are so not in Downtown Denver, as a matter of fact, just across Parker Rd is the city-limits of Aurora.

Well, Table Steaks is right there, as is Taco Bell, an abandoned McDonald's, King Soopers, and strip malls. Real urban.

[Davros]

Not a very urban place to live, but an area I'd be willing to try for a short time. I don't know what kind of crime is in that area, however. Also, I'd be a little wary of that particular apartment building. Since they're not telling the truth about being Downtown Denver, I wonder what else they're not telling you (i.e. what does "luxurious" really mean? ).

[Davros]

To the OP, try apartmentratings.com to get ratings for the places you find on google. From my experience, the reviews on that site tend to exaggerate bad stuff a bit. But they don't have a lot good to say about the apartment building you're looking at. Sounds like I was right to be suspicious of the term "luxurious".

[Count David]

Crime isn't an issue in that area.

[vegaspilgrim]

I just did a quick google search... this apartment building is actually the old "Aventine Apartments," it's an old, ugly apartment building, with a new name on it. Funny how the sales website doesn't even show any exterior pictures. It's not even all that walkable to the 9 Mile Station; you still would have to walk along Parker Rd sidewalk and cross at Peoria St, a monster sized intersection, not a pretty thing when it snows, you could be stepping knee deep in the muck.

Here's some pictures I took of what the whole Parker Rd corrider looks like:
https://www.city-data.com/forum/denve...hoto-tour.html

This is what the Parker Rd/ I-225 interchange looks like:



On the plus side, there's some good Indian food in that area.

[dexy]

I love this intersection. I wish I could walk along it everyday :-)
Thanks for your opinions, guys. It doesn't look so promising there. I just got used to apartment buildings here so first reaction was 'wow". I usually go to rent.com and apartments.com websites to search. I'll try google maps for more options. From the earlier topics, I see that you are not so optimistic about Lakewood area. It looks closer to downtown Denver than this intersection on the picture above. Right?

[vegaspilgrim]

Have you been to Denver before? What type of living setup are you looking for? Urban, suburban? Are you planning on having a car?