When we are asked what neighborhood is an absolute favorite, both by all of us at New Era Realty and by our clients it is most certainly the Lower Highlands (LoHi)!

Looking for the best of Denver dining, the best new restaurants, the patios serving the best of Denver cuisine... that's LoHi.

Looking for the most bike friendly, pedestrian friendly, even people friendly (really, everyone here just seems nice... I think it is because of all the fun they are having) neighborhood in Denver... that's LoHi!

And if you are looking for the neighborhood offering the best variety in real estate options.. from historic homes to modern and cool condos.... well that's LoHi too!

John Stegner, Co-Owner / Broker of New Era Realty shared this about the amazing LoHi Neighborhood.

Lo-Hi is literally exploding with new constructions townhome, loft and condo projects popping up everywhere.  I have watched the price per square foot on these projects climb month over month over during the last year. I think that the new retail and restaurants are part of the draw to the area for buyers.  The walkability score keeps increasing as well.  It is a neighborhood where you see residence riding b-cycles, walking home with their dry cleaning, congregating on the roof top deck at Vita, or standing in line at Little Man Ice Cream. Because of this, people get to know each other unlike many neighborhoods in the city.”

“Not long ago, it was the Highlands that was the fastest appreciating neighborhood in Denver.  This was driven mostly by single family homes being purchased and improved.  Lo-Hi may turn out to be the fastest appreciating area in 2011 and this instead will be driven the townhome, loft and condo market.  People who are attracted to Lo-Hi really want to be close to the action and amenities.  They also seem to want the simple lifestyle that a loft or condo offers.  The theme is active people who want to be able to go have fun at the drop of the hat.  Maybe go kayaking at confluence park and then walk past the grocery store on the way home or stop at one of the eateries for a quick bite.  Maybe fuel up before walking to see a Nuggets, Rockies or Bronco’s games.”

“The extension of the 16th street shuttle to Riverfront Park is also going to improve access to downtown.  Once completed, Lo-Hi will offer a car free lifestyle for people who work in the city center.”And today there are three amazing new LoHi projects available that we wanted to spotlight this week.  Here are the details:

3127 – 3145 Vallejo Street - 10 townhomes for sale in the Heart of Lohi:

One of Denver's hottest design / architecture firms has done it again with 10 beautiful townhomes in the heart of LoHi.  With square footage from 1031 to 1700 square feet and prices from $329,000 to $475,000 these townhomes are an incredible value and expertly designed.  These gorgeous residences offer incredible views of the Denver skyline and the Mountain Range, outdoor entertainment spaces ready for hot tubs or outdoor entertaining, and many other design elements that you won't find anywhere else.  If you haven't seen the awesome floor plans and designs from Sprocket the townhomes on Vallejo are a MUST SEE!

Tejon34 - 5 New Town Homes overlooking the Denver Skyline with views, finishes, and floorplans that everyone will love.

These townhomes were inspired by the vision of integrating the best of old and new in the heart of the historic Highlands neighborhood.   With a special focus on design for the future homeowners of Tejon34 and the LoHi neighborhood this project's Developer/Architect met with local community groups in a year long design process gathering the best ideas for design, function, and building architecture.  The result... one of the coolest development projects in the entire Highlands Neighborhood (or any other).  The homes share a common courtyard for gathering and entertaining, breathtaking views from rooftop retreats, and a conscious focus on sustainable design.  Modern and expertly designed these Townhomes should not be missed.

Visit www.tejon34.com for more details!

2480 W. Caithness - LOHI's HOT NEW FLATS!

Distinctly designed, decorated beautifully, and in a terrific location these new flats in LoHi are in a one hot condo conversion project.   The developer took not only an eye for design, but one for green living with many sustainable design features.  With wide plank floors, granite countertops, under mount sinks and natural stone accents the finishes at 2480 W. Caithness are stunning.   From One Bedroom with office to two bedroom residences these LoHi flats have something for every buyer.

Contact anyone at New Era Realty today and schedule a tour of these and other exciting LoHi Downtown Denver condo and loft offerings.   These three exciting new projects are a must see and a great reason to come learn why the LoHi neighborhood has been the favorite of Denver condo and Denver loft homeowners.

The finishing touches to the decor are done, the stools are lined up waiting for patrons... who knows there might even be beer in the taps.

The new Ale House at Amato's (web site isn't live yet but you can track them on Twitter) in the LoHi neighborhood is getting ready to drop the yellow construction tape and open it's doors for all the local LoHi Denver loft, Denver condo, and Denver home residents.  This is the Breckenridge Brewery's newest location and owners say "We want to keep the north Denver theme" which they look to have done.  They are scheduled to open March 2011 so any day now the taps will be serving up their famous flavors of ales, pilsners and stouts.

Just steps from Lola, Vita, Little Man Ice Cream, and LoHi Steak Bar the Lower Highlands neighborhood continues to be one of the most popular location for Denver real estate.  The Lower Highlands sits right next to Riverfront Park and the access points to Downtown Denver via pedestrian and bike paths and bridges.  Of course, many find that everything they could want in a neighborhood to call home they have right in the Lower Highlands.  With great dining, wine bars, coffee houses, shops and more LoHi is a pedestrian and bike friendly neighborhood with all the benefits of downtown Denver and of a growing and hip neighborhood.  in fact, it's one of the reasons our New Era Realty office is in LoHi and we are only steps away from these great restaurant locations.

The Denver LoHi neighborhood also offers something for every Downtown Denver real estate style.  From historic bungalow or Denver square homes to new and modern Denver townhomes, condos and lofts this neighborhood is a mix of old and new.  Some of our clients enjoy the mid level high rise Denver condo offerings and others have found great Denver homes with yards and more square footage.  And of course all of these Denver residences enjoy the great location and surrounding restaurants.

So we bid welcome to our new neighbors at the Ale House at Amato's and encourage you to contact any of us at New Era Realty for a tour of the great Denver real estate options in LoHi.  We can even take you on a tour of our local favorite spots by bike.

Cheers!  We will see you at the opening!

On St. Patrick's Day it seemed only fitting to talk about Green Living in the Denver condo and Denver loft market.  No, not the color green but instead sustainable living in Downtown Denver.

For many of our clients the choice of living downtown is about living responsibly.  Downtown Denver condos and lofts offer bike, pedestrian, and public transportation alternatives that can keep your gasoline and automobile usage at an all time low.  You can even choose to live in a building such as SPIRE where their Denver condo option comes with no parking spaces included with the price... you just add in one if you need it.

Of course there are a number of other factors that weigh into how Downtown Denver condo and loft living is more green.  While everyone talks about reducing their carbon footprint or carbon emissions city dwellers are doing it simply by their choice of living downtown.  In this article from the New York Times titled "The Lorax Was Wrong: Skyscrapers Are Green" environmental economists found many green/sustainable benefits for downtown residents...

"In almost every metropolitan area, we found the central city residents emitted less carbon than the suburban counterparts."

Car usages was a large factor, but so was the amount of electricity consumed and the heating costs.  In fact the study found roughly a three fold decrease in heating consumption for the downtown condo or loft resident.  As many of us look at our budgets and the steady increase of fuel costs those utility bills begin to add up to a huge savings.  And we all know that Downtown Denver condo and loft residents need their fair share of heating in the winter and cooling in the summer.

We often speak of the great benefits of Downtown Denver condo and loft living such as the great restaurants, shops, pubs, theater events, sporting events, public parks, festivals (and the list goes on and on) but it's also to recognize the great economic and sustainable living benefits as well.

So here's a toast to being Green this St. Patrick's Day!  Enjoy your day and feel free to contact any of us at New Era Realty to learn more about the many sustainable living options in the Downtown Denver condo and Downtown Denver Loft Market.

Did you notice anything different around town yesterday?  You might have seen a number of Red and White B-Cycle Bikes back in their racks across the city because yesterday was the opening day for the 2011 B-Cycle Season.

There are many reasons to love Denver condo and Denver loft living.  One of those is how pedestrian and bike friendly the city of Denver is.   With pedestrian/bike bridges connecting the many Denver condo and loft neighborhoods and the extensive bike and jogging trail system Downtown Denver scores high for active lifestyles.  Which neighborhoods are the most bike and pedestrian friendly... aka which ones best allow you to live car free?  We will let you decide but let's talk about one of our favorites... Riverfront Park!

Riverfront Park might be the leader for true car optional living in the Denver condo and real estate market.  First and foremost... it has an incredible location.  With a spot at the edge of downtown Denver and two pedestrian bridges connecting it (the 16th street Millinneum Bridge and the recently added 18th street bridge) to the city Denver condo residents in Riverfront Park have it made   Just across those bridges is where the new Union Station transit stat will offer the start of the new Denver transit and bus systems.  In fact once the light rail is extended out to DIA Riverfront Park residents will only have to walk across one bridge to begin their car free commute for airline travel.   Talk about convenience... we know many Riverfront Park condo residents who plan to never again battle with the traffic and parking hassles of Denver International Airport ever again.

Touted as the best of both worlds with access to the energy of Downtown Denver but just far enough removed for a little nest of green space Riverfront Park has consistently been a client favorite.   There are also now two pedestrian bridges going into the Highlands and over I-25 to provide easy bike commuting to the great Highlands and LoHi restaurant options.  And perhaps the final piece that may put Riverfront Park on top... it has access to the bike trails in all directions from the hub of the Denver trail system at Confluence Park.

So regardless of whether you bike, walk, or take public transportation Riverfront Park stands out with high marks in all car free categories.  To learn more about Riverfront Park condos, lofts or townhomes in any of the great buildings please contact any of us at New Era Realty.

Riverfront Park buildings include Glass House, Park Place Lofts, Riverfront Tower, Promenade Lofts, The Brownstones, The Delgany, Creekside Lofts, Creekside Flats, ONE Riverfront, The Park at ONE Riverfront, the Flour Mill Lofts, and Monarch Mills.

And if you are looking for the Riverfront Park B-Cycle station it's right next to the plaza across the street from Zengo! The Bikes are BACK!!

Many of you know that during the past year the folks from the TV show "The Designer Within" have been producing their current series at SPIRE on 891 14th Street.  This series looked at Denver condos and Denver lofts in the downtown Denver market.  Three identical Tremont Residences (large two bedroom 2 1/2 bath condominiums) were turned over to three different interior designers for them to demonstrate their creative talents.  The culmination of the show is now about to be released on PBS.  Here is the announcement....

The hit PBS interior design show is back! This season's the designer within 2010 @ SPIRE is the most exciting, dramatic, and inspiring so far.  Transforming three identical luxury homes in such a short period of time proved to be one of the biggest challenges our finalists have ever faced, but they did it, creating their own unique and stunning spaces. Of course, there can only be one winner!

A big thanks to all our TV sponsors so far, including Denver Magazine, the Kempe Foundation, architects RNL, and Bedrock Landscaping, for supporting the show. If you would also like to reach an affluent, highly educated PBS audience, become a TV or Podcast sponsor. Please take a look at the attached rate card. We will even make your spot for you, free of charge!

Set your DVR now - the designer within 2010 @ SPIRE premieres on April 10th on Rocky Mountain PBS, continuing the following Sunday the 17th, with the grand finale on Sunday the 24th.

Of course, in addition to the show you can also contact any of us at New Era Realty and schedule a tour of the SPIRE building and these three Denver condo residences so you can see the great design creations yourself.  SPIRE offers not only beautiful Denver condo floorplans and attractive pricing.... the amenities and common areas are incredible.  SPIRE includes...

• Two pools
• Two spas
• Outdoor fire pit
• Fitness Center
• Yoga Floor
• Multiple lounge areas
• Sports Lounge
• Movie Theater Room
• 24 hour staffed front desk
• 3rd floor dog park

So set your DVR's to record "The Designer Within" and make sure to give us a call to tour SPIRE for yourself.  Here is a link to their YouTube station for a some clips.

http://www.youtube.com/user/thedesignerwithin

This is a tough question we have heard from many of our clients... and one without an easy answer.

We know that we love the Highlands neighborhood.  Located with close proximity to Riverfront Park, Downtown, and Sloans Lake the Highlands offers easy access to the best of Denver Condo and Loft Living.  And if we look at Denver restaurants the Highlands (including LoHi and West Highlands) offers some of Denver greatest dining and entertainment options both old and new.  So when folks try to decide between a Denver condo, Denver loft, or Denver home in the Highlands and wrestle with a decision between the two it is certainly tough to choose.  Either way, both neighborhoods stack up for some of the best Denver Real Estate options.

Many first learned about the Highlands because of the great historic 32nd and Lowell Highlands Square with such great Restaurants as Bang, Sushi Hai, Coral Room, and more.  This area of the Highlands is also close to the great Tennyson Street Culture District which offers the First Friday Art Walks and a number of great galleries, restaurants, wine bars, and more.  With a short bike ride to Sloan's Lake it also offers easy green space access where you can enjoy a walk around the lake waters.

LoHi has been the newer and faster growing area of the Highlands.  Here many new restaurants such as Root Down, LoHi Steak Bar, Lola, and Vita among many others began creating a hotspot for enjoying great meals, drinks and places to sit on outdoor patios in our beautiful Denver weather (not today of course).  LoHi has easy access to Riverfront Park which means you are right next to the great green space of Commons Park and easy access to the Denver trail system and the Cherry Creek trail.  It also means easy access to Downtown Denver via the many pedestrian bridges that connect our city.

Which one is better... well that might just boil down to finding the perfect house instead because wherever you are in the Highlands you are never far from all of the great items mentioned above.  Both also offer different types of Denver real estate including historic Denver Square or other classic homes with private yards, cool Denver modern townhomes and homes, or mid rise Denver condos and lofts.

To learn more about the Highlands real estate, LoHi real estate, or West Highlands real estate please contact any of us at New Era Realty.

If you have been following our blog for awhile you know that all of us at New Era Realty have been working with SPIRE buyers since the very beginning.  With knowledge of the buildings pricing and square footage we have helped many downtown Denver condo homeowners find the best SPIRE residence and the best value.  One way we do that is by staying updated on the developer unit specific price incentives which often target a few specific floor plans or price points.

This weekend SPIRE is holding another pricing event with a 72 hour sale.  During the SPIRE sale we can expect to see some residences priced to move quickly, we just have to find out which ones.  So if you have been reading about SPIRE or hearing everyone talking about it this weekend is a great opportunity to let New Era Realty take you on a tour of the building.  Within the Denver condo and loft marketplace SPIRE has been one of the most popular buildings with the developer reporting over 200 of the SPIRE condo residences already sold.

SPIRE offers a great location and multiple amenities including...

• Fitness Center
• Outdoor heated pools
• Two spa hot tubs
• Yoga floor
• Fire pit
• Gas bar-b-q area
• SkyClub Lounge on 42nd floor
• Multimedia theater room
• Sports Zone
• 24 hour attended front desk
• Club lounge
• Ground floor retail

And of course SPIRE's location in the heart of the downtown Denver theater district puts them in the heart of everything.  SPIRE is right next to the light rail station, a block from the 16th street mall and the Cherry Creek Bike trail, and offers Connect By Hertz in the building.

SPIRE also boasts to being a LEED® certified building and has a list of sustainable design and construction features.

The SPIRE 72 Hour Sale will be this Friday, Saturday, and Sunday so please feel free to contact any of us at New Era Realty to schedule your own private tour or to inquire about which residences are part of this sale.

If there is one topic that resurfaces year after year it's about happiness.  Books have been written on it.  Psychologists, Scientists, and Spiritualists study it.  Everything from Yoga practice to Leadership training focuses on helping people simplify their life and more importantly enjoy their life.

One of the most popular books in the past few years has been one by Elaine St. James who looked at how people simplify their lives for better living.   It's a great read and so many of the principles are what our clients talk about when they share why they love their Downtown Denver condo and loft lifestyle.

The first chapter is all about reducing clutter.  We have heard many stories from new Denver condo and Denver loft homeowners moving into Riverfront Park, the Highlands, Ball Park, or any of the great Downtown neighborhoods share their joy about letting go of their closets, and attics, and garages filled with all the things they don't use anymore.

Other ways Downtown Denver condo and loft living is about simplifying and enjoying life.

• No more maintaining a yard or a home.  Many of our Denver condo clients at SPIRE, The Four Seasons, Glass House or other great high rise buildings share their stories about how they enjoy the time they gained back by going for walks and bike rides, enjoying Denver shows and activities, or just spending time with friends and loved ones.
• No more commuting.  This Denver condo and loft homeowner benefit may be the one we hear the most.  As traffic increases and commuting times increase our Downtown Denver clients shared with us how much they love the freedom from their cars and the simple pleasure of walking, biking, or taking light rail to work through the city enjoying a cup of coffee or reading the paper.  Although we don't encourage reading the paper while biking... just doesn't sound wise.
• Everything at their fingertips.  Many Denver condo and loft residents share their love of all the great amenities of Downtown Denver at their finger tips.
  • Picking up fresh groceries from the corner market walking home.
  • Dry cleaning picked up and delivered to their building.
  • Fitness center, Hot Tubs, or Spa Services in their building or within a short walk (SPIRE, Glass House, Four Seasons, Riverfront Park)
  • Shows, Theaters, Sporting Events

The common theme within the many "Simplify your life" books, yoga practices, magazine articles and other messages is truly about time.  When we help our clients find their Downtown Denver dream home, condo and loft it is also about helping them find their dream lifestyle where they have more time to enjoy the activities they love.  With Developers building such great residences in Downtown, the growth of great new Downtown Denver neighborhood restaurants, and the wonderful improvements by the city of Denver our job is wonderful.

Learn more about the great Denver lifestyle and the many great Downtown Denver condo and loft residences by calling New Era Realty today.  SPIRE is gearing up for a big 72 hour sale this coming weekend and now is a great time to learn about attractive pricing.

It seems there has been quite a bit of buzz lately about Edward Gleaser's article in the Atlantic "How Skyscrapers can save the city".  It's making the news, on many blogs, and even Jon Stewart brought the author on to discuss.

The principles are simple.  It's better to build up than out.  Better to create density that allows for many people to live in a community with amenities and a great lifestyle than to expand horizontally.

Here is just a quick excerpt from this article..

Great cities are not static—they constantly change, and they take the world along with them. When New York and Chicago and Paris experienced great spurts of creativity and growth, they reshaped themselves to provide new structures that could house new talent and new ideas. Cities can’t force change with new buildings—as the Rust Belt’s experience clearly shows. But if change is already happening, new building can speed the process along.

Yet many of the world’s old and new cities have increasingly arrayed rules that prevent construction that would accommodate higher densities. Sometimes these rules have a good justification, such as preserving truly important works of architecture. Sometimes, they are mindless NIMBYism or a misguided attempt at stopping urban growth. In all cases, restricting construction ties cities to their past and limits the possibilities for their future. If cities can’t build up, then they will build out. If building in a city is frozen, then growth will happen somewhere else.

Land-use regulations may seem like urban arcana. But these rules matter because they shape our structures, and our structures shape our societies—often in unexpected ways. Consider that carbon emissions are significantly lower in big cities than in outlying suburbs, and that, as of 2007, life expectancy in New York City was 1.5 years higher than in the nation as a whole. As America struggles to regain its economic footing, we would do well to remember that dense cities are also far more productive than suburbs, and offer better-paying jobs. Globalization and new technologies seem to have only made urban proximity more valuable—young workers gain many of the skills they need in a competitive global marketplace by watching the people around them. Those tall buildings enable the human interactions that are at the heart of economic innovation, and of progress itself.

Is that happening here in Denver... sure.  Just look at the growth of Riverfront Park with the creation of Glass House, Riverfront Tower, Promenade Lofts, Park Place Lofts and more.  This neighborhood created a whole new neighborhood of density where once there were only open brown fields from abandoned rail yards.   Just look at SPIRE, ONE Lincoln, or the Four Seasons which are bringing new residents into the heart of Downtown Denver.

And of course... we can only imagine the future of the Union Station Neighborhood which has zoning allowing for high density high rise buildings.  Will there be a second Glass House in this neighborhood... only time an the market will decide.  But one thing is for sure.  As this article focuses in on the growth of other great cities the strengths of Denver shine through.  We have great transportation networks in place and in planning, a wonderful bike trail system, beautiful parks, and 300 days of sunshine.

The downtown Denver lifestyle is only getting better.  To learn more about downtown Denver condo and downtown Denver loft living please contact any of us at New Era Realty.

SPIRE, Glass House, the Four Seasons, ONE Lincoln... these high rise residential Denver condo buildings each have a very valuable component that is often overlooked... parking.

Parking spaces are going up in value in Denver.  Some buildings have the parking spaces included.  Others, like Glass House, originally offered parking spaces for $40,000.   In Glass House each residence was originally sold with one parking space automatically included.  New buyers then got a chance to add in a second space for up to $40,000 but only for those buyers who were purchasing a two bedroom.  There were fewer second spaces available than there were two bedroom residences so some of the 2 bedrooms in Glass House have two parking spaces and some have one.  In today's resale market that can mean a swing in market value of 10% or more.  It also means many buyers out there looking for a great two bedroom and some additional square footage for a lower price may find these residences the perfect fit.  That is if you only need one parking space for your Denver condo or Denver loft.

SPIRE took the parking option one step further.  SPIRE residences are priced initially with no parking space at all.  Buyer at SPIRE can then choose to add on a parking space or two, but they don't need to.  And the parking spaces are priced differently based upon what floor you are on.  Those who pick the least desirable parking spaces (those on the top floors where you have to loop and loop around and those farthest from the elevators) were priced the lowest while a premium parking space on the lowest floors next to the elevators might be more than $50,000.

With SPIRE reporting more than 200 residences sold that means many of the parking spaces have been sold as well.  Can you guess which parking spaces would sell quickest... if you guessed the least expensive ones you would be correct.  So as parking spaces begin to approach $30, $40 or even $50K buyers have to ask... can living Downtown occur without a car?

SPIRE is working to make the answer to that question "Yes".  With Connect By Hertz in the building, light rail next door, B-cycle across the street, and the 16th street mall just a block away they certainly make it a possibility.  But the question we ask our clients in addition to whether they can live without parking is to also think about resales down the road.  Once a building sells out of parking spaces the only way to add one would be if an owner sold it... and that doesn't seem to happen often based upon activity at Glass House.

Will Denver grow into a less car dependent city like Manhattan... you can answer that.  In the meantime maybe it's worth it to add in one parking space just to be safe for future resales or rental opportunities.

To learn more about Downtown Denver condo and loft options (or the parking market in Denver) please contact any of us at New Era Realty.