The Poudre River Trail extends more than 20 miles between Timnath and Greeley.
After all these years, Greeley is no longer the ugly stepsister of northern Colorado communities where people complain about certain odors and a lack of anything to do so why would anyone want to live here?
Surprise! Greeley is now one of the most sought-after places to buy a home and settle in for the long haul because unlike Cinderella, the city won’t go back to what it was after midnight.
What’s changed? Why are more potential homebuyers – even millennials – looking to buy a home in Greeley?
Three factors are at work, according to local Realtors.
• Affordability
• Ability to work from anywhere
• A revitalized city center and diverse cultural offerings
Let’s start with the primary reason Greeley is experiencing an influx of homebuyers from near and far: The ability (for now anyway) to purchase a home for close to $100,000 less than just about anywhere else in northern Colorado.
Buying in Greeley is a no-brainer when the median price of a home here hovers around $350,000, while the median price in Fort Collins is $495,000, $430,000 in Loveland-Berthoud, $639,000 in Estes Park and $1.5 million in Boulder.
But what about the smaller communities, like Windsor, Severance, Timnath and Eaton? Good question. According to Realtor.com, Windsor’s median price is $459,900 while Severance is $431,000, Timnath comes in at $515,000, Johnstown is $419,000, and Eaton is just slightly higher than Greeley at $373,000.
Greeley’s looking pretty good, right?
Couple the affordability factor with the pandemic-friendly ability to work from anywhere and you have lots of metro folks and out-of-staters looking at Greeley as a desirable place to purchase a home, according to Andrew Rottner, a Redfin senior agent serving the northern Front Range.
“After COVD, many people don’t need to be as close to a Denver metro office as before. They’re looking to relocate where there is less congestion,” he said.
Bev West, broker/owner of West Realty/Metro Brokers, noted that homebuyers now include younger families, who before would eschew the city, and those moving here from California, Texas and Nebraska.
“It comes down to affordability and job opportunities,” she said, noting that Greeley is a relatively short commute to Loveland and Fort Collins.
There’s one other factor attracting new residents to Greeley, West said: Word is getting out that there is in fact plenty to do in Greeley and she credits the city’s Greeley Unexpected campaign for accomplishing just that.
So what is there to do? Greeley now has a variety of trendy restaurants, brew pubs and distilleries, galleries, summer concerts, Arts Picnic and Monster Day along with the UNC/Greeley Jazz Festival, the Blues Jam, Greeley Independence Stampede, and soon University of Northern Colorado football games coached by former Bronco Ed McCaffrey.
And remember, Greeley is just a hop, skip and jump (albeit sometimes a slow-motion hop, skip and jump) to Denver, Fort Collins and Loveland and points between.
Now who says there’s nothing to do in Greeley?
By Luanne Kadlub, At Home Colorado
