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Originally Posted by SAM67
Yes, I picked up my car in Munich this past April. It was a great experience - my wife and I drove around southern Germany and Austria for about 5 days.
To recap, I ordered the car exactly the way I wanted it back in January 2008 and requested a pick-up date in early April. I negotiated the price up from European delivery invoice, which is lower than regular US invoice and way below US MSRP. I estimate that I saved about $3,500 over the best price I found for a regular US delivery. Of course I spent at least that much for my trip but it was worth it -- I got a car and a trip. It's really more about the experience of driving your car in Europe than saving money. This may not be a big deal to you since you live in Europe already. Another thing to keep in mind -- you have to wait 6-8 weeks to get the car back after you drop it off. Long wait.
Traffic can be bad during rush hour but overall it's manageable. I'm originally from the Washington DC area, so Denver is much better in comparison. I'm guessing it's better than Chicago too. Denver is smaller and less populated than either.
Daily parking can cost up to $12 per day in the Downtown area. Monthly is $170 - $235 around my building. But parking is usually free outside of the downtown area.
Colfax and I-70 is near Golden, which is an older town with a "mainstreet" area but a lot of new housing as well. You would probably need a car. Driving time is about 20 minutes to downtown.
There's a newer residential/retail development called Belmar that might be worth a look: http://www.belmarcolorado.com/index_flash.php
Belmar is roughly halfway between the Colfax/I-70 area and downtown (10-15 minutes away with light traffic). It was designed to be "pedestrian friendly" with lots of shopping and restaurants but it's located in a residential area. Maybe someone who lives there can comment?
Regarding transportation, we have a decent bus system. Denver Metro voters approved an expansion our light-rail train system, which will include a new line that will go between downtown and the Golden area -- but it won't be done until 2013.
There are plenty of grocery stores and shopping areas pretty much everywhere in the metro area. Downtown has some nice shopping areas too but not the "big box" places like K-Mart, Target, Home Depot, etc.
You and your wife will just need to visit Denver to see all of the options for yourself!
- Scott |
+1 on the Bel Mar suggestion. I have some friends that live there and they love it. There's also a ton of new condos going up downtown, if your wife is still interested in living in the city. Coming from Europe, I suspect you'll enjoy living in the city more than the suburbs.
I'm also a real estate agent in my spare time. If you need some help finding a place, I'd be happy to show you around.