Single-family houses made up 51 of the 57 sales in Evergreen over the 90 days ending September 30, 2026.
The real trade-off here isn't snow versus scenery. It's price versus upkeep.
Evergreen works if you want a single-family mountain house within driving distance of Denver and can take on wildfire mitigation, a well and septic system, and winter driving. Houses are expensive but typically close below asking, so the price is high yet negotiable. If you need a cheaper or lower-maintenance home, the attached-home market here is too small to count on, and a metro suburb may fit your needs better.
You are weighing a move to Evergreen and deciding whether a mountain house with a Denver drive is worth its price and upkeep compared with staying closer to the metro.
The first trade-off is entry price versus negotiating room. Evergreen is expensive. The median house sells for close to $1 million, and detached-house prices set the baseline cost of living here. Buyers do have some room to negotiate, mostly on homes that have been sitting. The full figures are in the at-a-glance list below.
Plan your budget around single-family prices, because cheaper attached options are not something you can reliably count on finding here. Supply of single-family homes sat at 3.2 months, compared to 4.1 months for all homes combined.
The roughly six non-house sales in that window are well under 30, so treat their figures with caution. The supply gap still tells you three things: those listings move more slowly, your choices are narrow, and a lower-priced attached home here may take longer to resell.
Even after a double-digit annual rise, the typical house closed about 2.3% under asking. At the median price, that works out to roughly $22,500 below list.
Waiting for a better deal has not paid off. With prices rising, waiting a year has recently cost buyers more than they saved by negotiating. That discount is also an average, not a promise on any specific home.
A median of 33 days on the market gives you time to schedule the well, septic and wildfire checks covered below before deadlines close in. If you're selling, price for a month on the market rather than expecting a weekend bidding war.
The catch: one in ten houses still sold over asking. A well-priced, move-in-ready home won't wait 33 days, so the negotiating room applies mostly to listings that have already sat.
You are paying for a foothills location, outdoor access and space between properties, and each comes with a limit that adds to the true cost of ownership.
The core appeal is a foothills town connected to Denver by I-70 and Evergreen Parkway (CO-74). That keeps metro jobs and the airport within a daily or weekly drive. The Downtown Evergreen community organization describes the trip as a roughly 30- to 40-minute drive from downtown Denver via I-70 to CO-74. The Evergreen Parkway portion from I-70 is 9.2 miles.
That drive depends on I-70, which carries weekend mountain traffic and winter closures. Drive your commute to Denver at rush hour, ideally on a snow day, before shortlisting homes.
The lake at the center of town is a year-round amenity. In colder months, Evergreen Lake freezes into an outdoor skating surface operated by the Evergreen Park & Recreation District. Nearby areas like Alderfer/Three Sisters Park add open space for residents.
The amenities that draw residents also draw visitors. Visit the lake area and downtown on a summer weekend to see the traffic and parking firsthand.
Many homes here sit on wooded, sloped lots set back from neighbors. That privacy is a meaningful part of what the purchase price buys.
More land means more defensible-space clearing, and often a long or steep driveway. Ask whether the road is county-maintained or private. Request any road-maintenance agreement, HOA dues and covenants before you get attached to a property.
Standard ranking pages skip the ongoing costs of owning a mountain house, and those costs decide whether a specific house fits your budget. Water, wastewater and fire risk all need active management, and each becomes a check to run before you write an offer.
Evergreen sits in forested foothills where wildfire is a planning factor, not a remote possibility. The Colorado State Forest Service publishes a free online viewer, the Wildfire Risk Public Viewer, that shows wildfire risk for any address. Reports indicate much of the area falls within Class 3 to Class 4 on the Fire Intensity Scale. Evergreen Fire/Rescue operates a Wildland Division that provides defensible space information, home assessments and a slash chipping program to help residents reduce their risk.
Insurance availability and price can vary widely by property based on these risk factors. Look up the address in that viewer before you go under contract. Get a homeowners insurance quote during the inspection period, not after closing.
Many homes outside the town core run on a private well and septic system rather than district water and sewer. That shifts water supply and wastewater upkeep directly to you. Jefferson County Public Health has a rule for any property served by a septic system older than five years. Before the sale closes, the owner must have the system inspected by a county-certified Use Permit Inspector and obtain a Use Permit.
A failed septic system or weak well can be a major repair. Some Colorado household-use well permits also restrict or bar outdoor lawn watering. Before you're in contract:
At an elevation of 7,162 feet, winter shapes daily life here. Steep driveways, hill roads and local plowing schedules that differ from the metro are part of the package.
A driveway that's easy in July can be a hazard in January. Check driveway grade and winter sun exposure, and find out who plows and how quickly before you commit to an address.
Evergreen has a compact commercial core. Larger shopping trips and some specialty services may mean a drive toward the metro.
Time matters as much as distance once winter roads are involved. Time the drive to groceries, the pharmacy, urgent care and the hospital. Confirm internet and cell coverage at the specific address.
Jeffco Public Schools is the district covering most of Evergreen. Boundaries can shift, so check the specific address in the Jeffco Public Schools school locator rather than assuming a home is zoned to a particular building.
The area has no city police department. The Jefferson County Sheriff's Office provides law enforcement for unincorporated Evergreen. It publishes crime data through its official 'Reports & Transparency' page, including an interactive Community Crime Map. Neither the Sheriff's Office nor the Colorado Bureau of Investigation publishes an Evergreen-only figure, so use the map to check the specific area.
Four practical questions decide it.
If your budget can't reach a single-family house near the median, read the single-family section first, because the alternatives here are thin. If you need to buy fast, or want to know how long you can take to negotiate, the sections on rising prices and days on market show how much room you have.
If you'll drive to Denver often, read the commute and winter driving sections, and be honest about mountain roads in winter. If you aren't ready to own a private well and septic system and handle ongoing wildfire mitigation, read those sections before touring. Ask upfront whether a home is on district water and sewer.
If you want a single-family house with room to negotiate, start with Evergreen houses that have already passed the median days on market. If you want a lower entry price than a detached house, start with the small pool of Evergreen's non-single-family listings. Keep metro alternatives as a backup, because that pool is small.
If you want the most predictable drive to Denver, start with homes closest to the Evergreen Parkway and I-70 interchange, because every extra mile of mountain road adds winter risk. If you want less owner-managed water and wastewater upkeep, start with homes served by a water and sanitation district rather than a private well and septic system. To compare your options, explore buying a home in Evergreen to see current listings area by area.
Average annual snowfall is 83 inches, based on NOAA 1991-2020 climate normals for the Evergreen station. Plan for regular snow from late fall through early spring.
Home prices are high. The single-family median price per square foot was $364 in the 90 days ending September 30, 2026.
The answer changes with each recorded sale. Check the Jefferson County assessor and recorder public sale records for the most expensive recorded home sale.
No. Evergreen is an unincorporated community and census-designated place governed by Jefferson County, Colorado. At the 2020 census, it had a population of 9,307. Because there is no city government, county agencies and special districts provide local services.
A bill depends on the parcel's tax area. Each tax area's total mill levy adds county, school district and special district levies together. For 2025, special district levies include 11.3649 mills for the Evergreen Fire Protection District and 6.1290 mills for the Evergreen Park & Recreation District. Confirm a property's precise total by its schedule number with the Jefferson County Assessor or Treasurer.
Yes. The Evergreen Park & Recreation District runs an 'Evergreen Lake Summer Activities' season with boating and paddleboard rentals.
Fishing is permitted under Colorado's official fishing regulations. The stretch of Bear Creek from the base of the Evergreen Lake dam downstream is limited to artificial flies and lures only. Rainbow trout and cutbow caught there must be returned to the water immediately.
Evergreen was a filming location for the 2009 film 'Ink,' according to the Colorado Office of Film, TV & Media. More recently, the holiday film 'Mocha and Mistletoe' was filmed on location in Evergreen in December 2024.
We believe in working differently, client representation is our priority and self-measure. Our commitment towards representing our clients interest guides and fuels our every effort and process. Heather Graham & Sean Endsley 303-895-4663 | [email protected]