The Denver neighborhood where many people come to buy their first home

Denver's Ruby Hill neighborhood still has fairly affordable real estate prices and one of the best parks in the metro area.

Author: Allison Sylte

Published: 10:42 AM MST February 15, 2019

Updated: 11:38 AM MST February 15, 2019

KUSA – Ignore the multiple music festivals that have taken hiatus’ from Denver: the Mile High City’s music scene is going strong.

And if you want proof, look no further than its newest concert venue, the Levitt Pavilion in Ruby Hill Park. The nonprofit hosts dozens of free and paid concerts each year, which acts ranging from local up-and-comers to national performers like Jimmy Eat World.

This is one draw to the Ruby Hill neighborhood, which is five miles south of downtown Denver. Known for its massive park, assortment of restaurants from all nationalities, and comparatively cheap real estate prices to the rest of the area, it deserves as much of a reputation as nearby neighborhoods like Washington Park and Baker.

The history 

Ruby Hill was once used by Native Americans as a lookout point, and even now, it affords one of the best views of downtown Denver.

When the mining boom reached Colorado in the late 1800s, miners would hang out on this same hill above the banks of the South Platte River. They didn’t strike gold, but they did find what they thought were rubies. As it turned out, the red-hued gems were actually garnets, but the name Ruby Hill stuck.

The land that’s now Ruby Hill Park was a landfill up until 1968, when the city bought it and turned it into green space.

The neighborhood itself was developed in the 1950s. As was common for the time, most of the homes are ranch-style, cookie-cutter homes, though some have been replaced with newer buildings in the years since.

The population of the neighborhood is just over 10,000 people, and its boundaries are now West Mississippi Avenue to the north, the South Platte River to the East, West Jewell Avenue to the south and South Federal Boulevard to the west.

Real estate

Most of the homes in Ruby Hill are older and ready for an update, meaning the neighborhood is attracting many people who are buying their first home, according to Usaj Realty’s website.

Real estate website Trulia shows median listing prices in the Ruby Hill neighborhood ranging from $200,000 to $250,000 – a far cry from the homes across the river in Platt Park, which are going for upwards of $500,000.

The median sales price in Denver is $379,999, according to Zillow.

Apartments in Ruby Hill are also cheaper than most other units in Denver, with rates around $1,000 a month for a one-bedroom.

Things to do 

When you think of Denver parks, it’s natural to immediately picture Washington Park, which is probably the busiest in the area.

But, Ruby Hill Park is almost as big and has as much, if not more, to do. In addition to being home to a sledding hill so famous that Sky9 flies over it every time it snows, it also has its own terrain park (it gets some help from Winter Park). In fact, this is the only free terrain park of its kind in an urban area.

During the summer, there’s also a mountain biking park, as well as a playground, volleyball and basketball courts.