Built in 1908: Inside a Downtown Colorado Springs Historic Home

The price on this one just dropped $10,000. It's a 3 bed, 1 bath, 1,430 square foot home in the heart of downtown Colorado Springs — originally built in 1908. And it surprised me more than once on the walkthrough.

What the Renovations Actually Did

A lot of historic homes get listed with "original character" as a selling point — which sometimes means nothing has been updated in 40 years. This one is different. The owners put real work into the interior without stripping away what makes it worth caring about.

The updates include new tile work, fresh vinyl flooring in the main living areas, and brand new carpeting throughout. The color palette is warm, and the lighting opens the space up in a way that reads larger than 1,430 square feet. It's the kind of renovation that respects the bones of the house rather than fighting them.

About That Nook — The Sleeping Porch

I noticed it right away: a small enclosed nook off the main living area leading to the backyard. I mentioned it in the video — it's what most people in that era would have called a sleeping porch or tuberculosis porch, and it tells you exactly what year this house was built.

In the early 1900s, Colorado Springs was actually a destination for tuberculosis patients. The dry, high-altitude air was believed to aid recovery, and the city became home to numerous sanitariums. Architects of that era began designing homes with small, ventilated rooms or exterior porches where patients — or family members with respiratory illness — could sleep in fresh air year-round. You see them constantly in homes built between about 1895 and 1930 in the downtown area.

Today, that space functions as a transitional room between the interior and the large backyard — which was genuinely bigger than I expected for a downtown lot.

The Surprise Upstairs

I'll be honest — I wasn't expecting an upstairs. The exterior read as a single-story bungalow. But there is a full second level with a loft area and meaningful storage throughout. That loft could work as a home office, a guest room, a playroom, or a reading space — it's flexible in the way that smaller bonus rooms tend to be.

The storage situation upstairs is better than most homes twice its size. That's a consistent feature of homes built in this era — they were designed for practical household use, and the builders understood that people needed places to put things.

On the Price and Downtown Inventory

I get asked about this a lot: why are downtown Colorado Springs homes priced the way they are? $440,000 for 3 bedrooms and 1 bath feels steep on paper. Here's the honest answer.

Downtown Colorado Springs has very limited inventory of true historic properties — homes built before 1930 with original architectural character. When a renovated example comes to market, it competes with high demand from buyers who specifically want that experience: walkability, proximity to the dining and arts district, mature trees, and a neighborhood that has its own identity. That combination commands a premium, and it has for years.

If $440,000 for 1,430 square feet doesn't fit your budget or your needs, there are real options in Colorado Springs. You'll get more square footage in Fountain, Cimarron Hills, or parts of Security-Widefield. You'll get newer construction in Banning Lewis Ranch or Stetson Hills. Downtown and Old Colorado City are premium-priced neighborhoods, and buying there is a specific choice — not the only choice.

But if you want a home with history, character, and a story behind every room, the downtown inventory is worth watching closely. These homes don't come up often.