It’s happening. We know many people still can’t imagine it but an increasing number of downtown clients are asking the question… “do I want to give up my car”.
It is a newer question for Denver. Don’t get me wrong… there have been folks living in Downtown Denver without a car for many many years. Many work, live and play downtown and the added cost of a car simply wasn’t a benefit. But while cities like New York, Chicago, Boston and San Francisco are thought of as car optional, Denver doesn’t even make the top 10. Here are the top 10 walkable cities from walkscore.
- San Francisco, CA
- New York, NY
- Boston, MA
- Chicago, IL
- Philadelphia, PA
- Seattle, WA
- Washington D.C.
- Long Beach, CA
- Los Angeles, CA
- Portland, OR
How can Denver not show up in the top 10 walkable cities when SPIRE, located right in the heart of Downtown Denver, scores a perfect 100 out of 100 as a walkers paradise. I suppose it’s because while Denver is fast growing into a car optional friendly city in the Downtown we still have a number of areas in Denver that need to improve. The new DIA to Denver light rail lines and other planned enhancements around Union Station are steps in the right direction. So we accept that not all of Denver is suited for car optional living the Downtown area certainly is.
And that’s exactly the conclusion many of our clients are arriving at. SPIRE really kicked off this trend when it allowed folks to buy a residence without a parking space. With parking spaces averaging roughly $35K at SPIRE (they were $40K at Glass House for a second space) it is a significant way to reduce the purchase price of your condominium. SPIRE offers the sale of scooter parking spaces for a fraction of the cost and contracted with Connect by Hertz so a car sharing program would be in the base of the building to make the car optional lifestyle even easier.
Calculating the cost of paying for the parking space in the mortgage, a car payment, car insurance, gas, maintenance, and whatever else you can think of a number of folks came to the conclusion that they could save a LOT of money without a car and parking space. Some took the money they saved in not adding in a parking space simply as a savings. Others found that they could buy a little more square footage. Either way, the savings is significant.
What about the downside of buying a condo without a parking spot? The biggest concern would be the resale down the road. With the majority of people in Denver still living with a car your resale would have to appeal to a specific audience. There might be a secondary market for parking spaces but that still makes for a less simple transaction. A great deal might depend on how long someone planned to hold on to their home. As Denver continues to develop it’s public transportation network (remember DIA to Denver should be here by 2016) and with the growing trend of car share programs, bike share programs, and sustainable living the audience that prefers a car optional residence should continue to grow. Denver also has many parking garages where someone who absolutely needed to add a car at a later date might not be able to park in their own building but, just like New York, could keep a car close by.
It seems like there are many benefits to the car optional choice. The first and most apparent being the huge financial savings opportunity. As Denver continues to grow and develop will this become the preferred option. We will keep watching and let you know.
Please contact New Era Realty to learn more about SPIRE, or any of the many wonderful Denver loft and condominium offerings at 303.991.9878 or 800.392.1950.
303.991.9878 or 800.392.1950 or you can
Guild Mortgage Company