Ranch Builders Inc. has converted a luxury apartment complex in southwest Denver into 240 units that start at less than $100,000. The Miralago at Marston Lake, located at 4760 S. Wadsworth Blvd., is one of the most affordable projects in the area, says Robert Trenka, the listing broker with Denver-based Trenka & Associates.

The undertaking marks Ranch Builders' "first foray into condo conversions," says Trenka. One-bedroom units range in size from 700 sf to 885 sf and are priced from $98,900 to $154,900; two-bedroom units go from 1,010 sf to 1,164 sf and range in cost from $127,900 to $160,900. To date, 98 units are under contract or sold, with about 18% of the buyers being present renters.

Miralago had been developed by Denver's Al Feld, who had triggered the luxury apartment building craze when he and Koelbel & Co. initiated the Breakers in southeast Denver nearly a decade ago. Miralago units boast wood-burning fireplaces, vaulted ceilings, sunken living rooms and walk-in closets.

Trenka says the after-tax cost is just slightly higher than rental costs, which had ranged from $750 to $1,200 per month. Many buyers, he says, have income ranges of $25,000 to $30,000 annually, putting them into a bracket where house buying isn't always feasible. The complex is about 20 minutes from Downtown Denver and relatively close to Lucent Technologies' new campus at Highlands Ranch.