Pete Bellande: Neighborsly Home Group
What area(s) do you service?
Carbondale - Aspen Area / Denver
How did you get into real estate and what do you love about it?
My mom was an agent when I was a kid. She gave me a love of homes, a nose for value and a passion for serving people. I love how each day is different, the amazing people I get to meet and the cool homes I get to list and market.
What made you want to live in your current area?
I've been drawn to the Crystal River Valley outside Carbondale, CO for over a decade now. It's easily one of the prettiest places in the state and I love the local community here.
What makes living in your area so special?
I live in a canyon with natural hot springs a mile down the road where I can hear the river from my home. The neighbors are friendly and walking the dog provides jaw dropping views -all of this fifteen minutes from my favorite mountain town in Colorado.
A workday spent running around the neighborhood: what's your first stop and last stop?
Carbondale -smoothie at Dos Gringos and picking up local greens along with good conversation at the Redstone General Store; Denver -coffee at Fluid Coffee Bar and happy hour at Pon Pon.
Best restaurant/bar? Favorite spot for coffee?
Carbondale -Silo is the best kept local's secret for breakfast/lunch, Betula in Aspen is one of the best culinary experiences anywhere and Bonfire is one of the few really good Colorado mountain town roasters. In the ever changing Denver scene, I'm sticking with two classics: City 'O City is the kind of vegetarian place that will please any carnivore and Bastien's is exactly the kind of old school steakhouse your grandparents got engaged at -minus the ashtrays.
A day in the life: how are you spending a day off in your neighborhood/area?
In the winter I'll head up to one of the Aspen mountains -Aspen Highlands is easily my favorite with some of the best steep terrain in the state. During the summer, it's pretty hard to keep me out of the water so you can find me on one of our local rivers kayaking, rowing my raft or paddle boarding. Sometimes I also love a self-guided art gallery tour in Aspen.
What's your favorite hidden gem?
Propaganda Pie in Redstone, CO has great Detroit style pizza and riverside views. Depending on the night Denver's Mercury Cafe has jazz, open mic nights, always great food and an upstairs music venue that is easily one of the city's best.
What is your favorite piece of your area's culture?
KDNK (88.1 FM) is our local listener supported radio in Carbondale. Strings and Wood Productions and Mountain to Sound in Denver curate some of the best underground live singer/songwriter shows in Denver.
Tell us a fun fact about you!
I do stand up comedy / storytelling down in Denver and also up here in the mountains from time to time.
Contact Pete by email at pbellande@gmail.com, follow him on Instagram at @pbellande , or check out his website at www.neighborsly.com