144 W Colfax Ave
144 W Colfax Ave is a 5-story building in Greater Downtown Denver with 97% of its floor area within daylight reach of a facade. This screen estimates 58 homes and scores it 85 out of 100 for office-to-residential conversion suitability.
CO-1 · Screened 2026-09-19 · Strong candidate
Where 144 W Colfax Ave is
Its block in Greater Downtown Denver, drawn from Denver's own building outlines and street centerlines.
- Already housing
- Not screened
- 144 W Colfax Ave
This building does not pencil at default assumptions, even with a modeled RESIDE Act grant.
Every floor carries 444 sq ft of windowless core — area that must be gutted, re-plumbed and sprinklered but can never be rented as an apartment. Across 4 residential floors that is 1,775 sq ft of cost carrying no revenue.
Modeled conversion metrics for 144 W Colfax Ave, 2026-09-19.
| Suitability scoreStrong candidate | 85 / 100 |
|---|---|
| Storiesfrom 63 ft aerial-survey height ÷ 12 ft floor-to-floor | 5 |
| Floor plateper floor, from the city footprint | 14,040 sq ft |
| Daylight efficiencyshare within 35 ft of a facade | 97% |
| Deepest interior pointviability threshold is 80 ft | 43 ft |
| Windowless coreper floor — renovated but never rentable | 444 sq ft |
| Estimated homesat 750 sq ft average | 58 |
| Conversion cost$360/sq ft all-in on 56,160 sq ft | $20.2M |
| Gap before grantshortfall against completed value | $6.5M |
| Modeled RESIDE grantbelow the statutory cap | $3.5M |
| BuiltDenver does not publish a construction year with this data | — |
| ZoningCivic Center | D-CV |
| Opportunity Zonenot in a 2018 designated tract | No |
The plan: window line, shape and floor rhythm
40 ft of exterior wall for each home the screen estimates — enough for two- and three-bedroom homes across the plan.
The typical floor has 573 ft of exterior wall, and across 4 residential floors the building carries 2,291 ft of it in total, divided among the 58 homes this screen estimates.
Its plate is moderately compact at 0.54: a squarish plan, with enough perimeter for a conventional double-loaded corridor. How window line and plate shape are measured.
At the model’s 750 sq ft average, the plan works out at about 14.5 homes per floor, repeated on every residential floor, since this building's outline does not change as it rises.
Why 144 W Colfax Ave scores 85 out of 100
Daylight efficiency 100, Interior depth 92, Scale 39, Finance 75 — each out of 100, then weighted.
Score components for 144 W Colfax Ave. Points are the subscore times its weight.
| Component | Subscore | Weight | Points |
|---|---|---|---|
| Daylight efficiency97% of the floor area within 35 ft of a facade, scored from 40% up to 90% | 100 | 45% | 45.0 |
| Interior depthdeepest interior point 43 ft from a facade, scored from 80 ft down to 40 ft | 92 | 25% | 23.1 |
| Scale58 estimated homes, scored from 0 up to 150 | 39 | 15% | 5.8 |
| Financeremaining gap is 15% of conversion cost, scored from 60% down to 0% | 75 | 15% | 11.2 |
Most of what it earns comes from daylight efficiency, and what holds it back most is scale, at 39 out of 100: 58 estimated homes, scored from 0 up to 150.
What the conversion would cost
$360 per square foot all-in across 56,160 sq ft of converted floor, or $20.2M in total — about $349K for each of the 58 homes.
All-in cost per square foot for 144 W Colfax Ave: base cost plus the code work a change of use triggers.
| Base conversion cost | $260/sq ft |
|---|---|
| Plumbing risers to every unit | $40/sq ft |
| Operable windows and glazing | $30/sq ft |
| Additional egress stair | $18/sq ft |
| Fire sprinklers (NFPA 13R) | $12/sq ft |
| All-in | $360/sq ft |
That cost is charged across every converted square foot, including the 1,775 sq ft of windowless core, which has to be gutted, re-plumbed and sprinklered like the rest of the building and then earns nothing. Against it the model sets a completed value of $236K a home, which for 58 homes is $13.7M.
What would have to be true
A $6.5M gap before any grant, $3.0M after the modeled one. The smallest single change that would close it: average unit size 16% down.
The shortfall before any grant is $6.5M. Closing it from the value side means each of the 58 homes finishing at $349K rather than the $236K the model assumes — 48% more. Closing it from the cost side means getting all-in cost down from $360 to $244 per square foot.
A modeled RESIDE grant of $3.5M moves that threshold to $289K a home. That is still above the $236K assumed, leaving $3.0M uncovered, which is why the grant does not unlock this one.
Nor do all four levers have to move. For 144 W Colfax Ave, one alone would close the gap at:
Single-assumption flip points for 144 W Colfax Ave, each holding the other three at their defaults.
| Average unit sizethe binding constraint — the least this building would need | 16% downto 631 sq ft |
|---|---|
| Circulation efficiency | 19% upto 95% |
| Conversion cost per square foot | 21% downto $206/sq ft |
| Completed value per home | 22% upto $289K |
All four are sliders in the survey, where 144 W Colfax Ave re-scores against your own numbers.
How it compares in Greater Downtown Denver
144 W Colfax Ave ranks 52nd of the 214 buildings screened here, against a median score of 72.
Its floor plate is better lit than 87% of them, and shallower than 78% of them at its deepest interior point. On size it is the 195th largest by estimated homes. The full survey of all 214 buildings ranks and maps every one of them, and the list by address links each to its own page.
Within Civic Center and the D-CV zone
5th of 23 in Civic Center, 1st of 4 zoned D-CV — the comparison that shares its rules, rents and streets.
Denver places 23 of the screened buildings in Civic Center. 144 W Colfax Ave ranks 5th of them against a median score of 67. 10 score 70 or more, their median deepest interior point is 62 ft from a facade against this building’s 43 ft, and together they would hold an estimated 5,064 homes. The group’s top scorer is 1314 N Elati St, at 92.
4 of the screened buildings are zoned D-CV. 144 W Colfax Ave ranks 1st of them against a median score of 56, the top score in the group. 2 score 70 or more, their median deepest interior point is 74 ft from a facade against this building’s 43 ft, and together they would hold an estimated 1,085 homes.
Its nearest match in size: 600 16th St
The screened building closest to 144 W Colfax Ave in converted floor area is 600 16th St: 55,343 sq ft over 6 stories, against 56,160 sq ft over 5 here.
144 W Colfax Ave scores 85 to its 74, and with the size held roughly equal most of that lead comes from interior depth: 92 out of 100 here, 73 there (deepest interior point 51 ft from a facade, scored from 80 ft down to 40 ft). On the money they sit in the same place: each falls short even with the modeled grant. The two stand about 1,900 ft apart.
Would it qualify for a RESIDE Act grant?
The model awards 144 W Colfax Ave $3.5M, on the assumption it qualifies. Whether it does, no published dataset can say.
That figure assumes the building meets the Act’s vacant-and-abandoned test, which turns on code-enforcement and receivership records no city publishes.
It does not sit in a 2018 designated Opportunity Zone, so it would not draw that Section 201 priority.
Other buildings screened near 144 W Colfax Ave
The 4 closest the screen also covers, from 430 ft away. They are the colored outlines on the plan at the top of this page.
- 201 W Colfax Ave16 stories · 58% daylit · 487 estimated homes · scores 38/100 (Marginal)about 430 ft away
- 1437 N Bannock St16 stories · 89% daylit · 496 estimated homes · scores 78/100 (Strong candidate)about 450 ft away
- 101 W Colfax Ave14 stories · 66% daylit · 406 estimated homes · scores 35/100 (Marginal)about 580 ft away
- 1359 Court Pl15 stories · 87% daylit · 138 estimated homes · scores 90/100 (Strong candidate)about 720 ft away
A screen, not a feasibility study, from outlines and heights rather than plans: the method and how to correct a figure. If you know this building’s interior, you know what this model cannot see.