Getting your player ready...
How much time do you have left to plan down-sizing or re-sizing out of your older place, into a low-maintenance ranch patio home? Not as much time as you may think, says builder Ward Ritter of Chartered Homes, who roared through 40 ranch sales at Latitude at Vista Ridge in 2012 – a pace that will clean him out of sites in the master-planned community east of Boulder by the time the calendar flips to 2014.
The first of those sites that’ll disappear are the ones that back to Vista Ridge’s scenic Colorado National Golf Club, set against a backdrop of the snowcapped Indian Peaks and summits north in Rocky Mountain National Park. Ritter had 25 of those golf lots at the start of last year; but they’ve gone like foot-longs at the Stock Show, and this week there were just 11 left, from (home included) $303,000. Buyers range from people who have never built a home before (“They’re excited to be doing this,” Ritter says); to ones that have built six or seven places, who choose from Chartered’s range of ranch plans and modify them extensively – moving a dining room wall six inches to fit a hutch, or super-sizing a master suite or family space. The five buyers that signed last month (a huge number for the holidays) included two from Florida moving to be near Colorado kids/grandkids; two from Boulder Turnpike towns; and one from southern Colorado. All of them make their choices from what Chartered’s R.D. Baker says is absolutely the lowest price-per-foot cost of any ranch community in the Denver-Boulder area; starting at $245,000 for homes that come with an attached garage (option for a full-width 3-car on some plans), and that have finished space in the basement that buyers use for guest suites, rec areas and home theaters, not to count extra storage for accumulated stuff they’re not parting with. What HAS changed since the moment those current residents signed on is the market – MUCH faster sales of older homes, and very little builder inventory left. “It’s a great time to be a seller, but you have to remember that it takes us from six to eight months to build a home, depending on the plan and options” says Kimberly Karsell, who’ll be on site with Baker today to show you Latitude’s furnished model, the lots on the 10th /11th fairways, other lots, and a rare ranch that’ll deliver right now at $260,402. They’ll also tell you about Latitude’s very low HOA fee (only $128/month) for two pools, trails over to the clubhouse (they really get used, residents say), other amenities, plus landscape maintenance and snow removal. To reach, take I-25 north from 120th, 7 miles to Highway 7 (first exit past E470); then west two miles to Vista Ridge’s entry at Mountain View; or from Boulder, take Baseline east 13 miles. WHERE: Latitude at Vista Ridge, low-maintenance ranch patio plans by Chartered Homes, golf course & amenities; 11 sites left that back to fairway & mountain view; lock-n-leave lifestyle; no age restriction; 3-car garage option, finished basement standard, willing to customize. 1913 Windemere Ln., Erie; Hwy 7 at Mountain View Blvd (Vista Ridge entry nearest I-25). Take I-25 north one exit past E470 to Hwy 7, west 2 mi. to Mountain View; or from Boulder take Baseline east to Mountain View PRICE: From $245,000, on golf lots from very low $300s WHEN: Today & Monday, 10 a.m. until 6 p.m.
