US News and World Report came out with its Best Places to Live 2009 rankings this week, and lo and behold one of our nearby Colorado cities made the list. Who knew it would be Loveland, ranked Number 7!?In 2008 the number of Americans that moved their primary residence fell to its lowest level since 1948, when the Census Bureau began tracking such data. Not a surprising statistic given a banking crisis, housing market crash, national recession and continuing uncertainty in the economy. But hey, this is America, right? Despite the above it IS still possible to find an affordable, pleasant place to live, work, retire, and/or raise a family. According to US News and World Report, our own Loveland, CO is just such a place.
Loveland fit the study's main criteria of being an affordable community, with a strong local economy, and lots of fun things to do. The population of the greater Loveland area is just over 90,000 people, making it a managable community to navigate through as far as traffic, schools, etc... And the location doesn't hurt either! Loveland is located within a 30-45 minute drive of the glorious Rocky Mountain National Park, the Boulder area, and Denver - everything is within reach. There are 27 public parks and 16 miles of recreational trails as well as 300 pieces of scuplture and two-dimensional works of art on display throughout the community through the Art in Public Places program. And Lake Loveland is a beautiful scenic recreation area.And the Loveland folks are special people too. The local Chamber of Commerce reports that there are over 50 people on a waiting list to be "stampers" for the city's Valentines remailing program. 200,000 cards are sent to the city each year around this holiday to receive a special cachet stamp. 37% of the area households have children, and crime rates are incredibly low, so it is a very safe and kid-friendly place to live with excellent schools.
Living in Loveland is affordable too. In 2008 the median price for a single family home was $205,000 while the median for a condo/townhome was only $146,000. For the first 5 months of 2009 these prices have dropped slightly to $195,000 and $144,900 for single family and attached dwellings respectively. While housing remains affordable, median household income is high at around $65,300. Many major employers are within easy driving distance to Fort Collins, Longmont, Denver, and points in between.For more information about Loveland visit the Loveland Chamber of Commerce or the City of Loveland. Many of the associates at Colorado Landmark know the Loveland area well, so if you are interested in more information please contact us.
This article written by:Pam Metzger
Director of Relocation and Business Development
Colorado Landmark, Realtors
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