Ouray | Ouray County

Ouray is known as the "Switzerland of America" and the "Outdoor Recreation Capital of Colorado." Real estate in Ouray allows adventure seekers to own a single-family home, duplex, condo, townhouse, villa, cabin, prefabricated house, or a mobile home trailer at an affordable price. It's the ideal basecamp for mountain living, raising a family, working, and spending as much time as possible enjoying the majesty of the Rocky Mountains.

Ouray has a population of about 1,000 residents. Main Street of Ouray is designated as a National Historic District. Most of the buildings in downtown Ouray date to the late 1800s, including the Beaumont Hotel and Ouray City Hall/Walsh Library, which are listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The Ouray County Courthouse, Wright's Opera House, Western Hotel, St. Elmo Hotel, and St. Joseph's Miners' Hospital are part of the historic district.

The surroundings streets offer well-established single-family homes that have been well-kept or beautifully remodeled or restored with current amenities. A mid-20th-Century three-bedroom, one-bathroom home with about 1,300 square feet of living space is available for under $800,000. Newer homes or refresh remodels that are similar in size readily exceed $1 million. A modern luxury residence with six bedrooms and more than 4,000 square feet of living space near the center of town is available for approximately $2.4 million.

If you're looking for a very comfortable family home to live in full-time, use as a vacation home, or earn extra income with a short-term rental or Airbnb possibility, consider a multi-level three-bedroom home in Ouray's north end. The multiple levels allow for two separate condos or one complete, 2,400-square-foot home. The downstairs has a walkout basement with two bedrooms and a large game room, while the upper level has one large bedroom and an open living space with lots of natural light and tall windows. The house has many recent upgrades and a two-car garage for under $950,000.

South of town are a few undeveloped lots where you can build your dream home. Enjoy phenomenal views over the city, right down Main Street to the amphitheater and Twin Peaks. The nearly 7,500-square-foot lot is ready to go with all utilities installed for $240,000. If you'd rather build in Ouray's quiet northeast side, you can snag a nearly 7,000-square-foot lot close to Cascade Park and walking distance to everything in town for under $120,000. It's the ideal spot to build a trophy home like no other.

Neighborhood highlights:

Ouray was once a famous mining town with more than 30 active mines. The city is named after Chief Ouray of the Utes, a Native American tribe. A beautiful part of Colorado, the drive along the Uncompahgre River and over Red Mountain Pass is referred to as the "Million Dollar Highway."

Ouray County's hot springs don't have a strong sulfur smell commonly associated with other hot springs. Ouray is along a sizeable geological lift, and the pressure and heat from this activity resulted in a series of clean, odorless hot springs without that noted rotten egg smell.

Bill Fries, aka C.W. McCall, was elected mayor of Ouray in 1986, serving for six years. McCall rose to fame in the 1970s for his popular novelty song "Convoy," which glorified the trucker/CB radio craze of the time.