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The Neighborhood: Martin Acres

Martin Acres is a community that traces the roots of its current housing stock to the mid-1950s, following the wake of the Boulder Turnpike, a catalyst for rapid growth in what had been a sleepy college community. The area known as Martin Acres actually includes Martin Acres proper, which travels south to Hanover Avenue; a portion of Highland Park, which stretches west across Broadway, and the William Martin Homestead. Although the neighborhood is dotted with many brick ranches, many built in the 1950s, as well as tri-levels built in the early 1960s, it still includes the original Martin Farm House, a landmark built in 1875. William Martin’s heirs were among the first to subdivide the family farm, a trend that swept the country post-World War II, when the Interstate system and new highways anchored communities the way that railroads and ports had done in the past.

Martin Acres is bordered by three busy streets in Boulder. Local Boulder REALTOR, David Lorraine said along with the Baseline neighborhood, Martin Acres, is the most affordable area of Boulder. Martin Acres, completely built out with more than 1,300 homes, is bordered by three busy thoroughfares – U.S. 36, Table Mesa Drive and South Broadway Street.

For a long time, it was known as a college rental community, because students could afford to rent the small homes in Martin Acres, which may not be quite as convenient to CU as the Baseline neighborhood, but is still an easy bike ride to classes.

Increasingly, it is drawing first-time home buyers, who are priced out of most of the rest of Boulder, Stangl said. Lorraine said it while Boulder has not has been as hit hard by the foreclosure crisis as the rest of metro Denver, Martin Acres probably has had more homes returned to the banks and short sales than other parts of Boulder. Because of its price point, some people who stretched to buy, may not be able to hold on as easily as someone who bought a mansion in Boulder, he said.

Last year, the median price of a home sold in Martin Acres rose by 4.8 percent to $393,000, according to research by Lorraine. That tops the 2.27 percent drop, overall, for the City of Boulder, where the median price was still $525,000.

As Lorraine wrote on his blog, BoulderDigs.com, in September: “Are you sitting down? If not you should be…The worst year for Martin Acres since 1999 was in 2003, when the median price dropped by a whopping 1.8%.”

Martin Acres is a neighborhood that is friendly to owner-occupants, some who have raised families and lived their for decades, as well as first-time buyers who are priced out of much of the rest of the city, and CU students and young families renting.

The Real Estate Broker: David Lorraine

David Lorraine, from 8z Real Estate, is such a big fan of Martin Acres that he plans to move there. He currently rents a house at the edge of the neighborhood and is actively involved with the community and association.

Learn more about Martin Acres along with news and real estate info at MartinAcresPulse.com