Should I Move From Seattle to Colorado? (Denver, Colorado Springs: apartment, rent)

[deniseld]

Hi all,
My mother and I live outside Seattle in a community that isn't diverse when it comes to ethnic or lifestyle backgrounds. We love being a 1/2 hour away from Seattle for access to arts & entertainment however everything here has the feeling of "been there, done that" for us.


We both have SAD (seasonal affective disorder) and need to move somewhere with better weather. We don't mind snow but humidity in the summer is definitely not desirable.


We pay $900 for a 2 bedroom apartment and are hoping for comparable rent prices where we move, if possible.


We're considering CA, OR and even CO.


I have spent countless hours on the internet reading posts and feel overwhelmed, to say the least.


Any insight is greatly appreciated!

[odie91]

Art and entertainment in Seattle is probably better than Denver. I've lived in both, and personally find the weather in Denver much more comfortable than Seattle (including the winter).

Originally Posted by deniseld

Hi all,
My mother and I live outside Seattle in a community that isn't diverse when it comes to ethnic or lifestyle backgrounds. We love being a 1/2 hour away from Seattle for access to arts & entertainment however everything here has the feeling of "been there, done that" for us.


We both have SAD (seasonal affective disorder) and need to move somewhere with better weather. We don't mind snow but humidity in the summer is definitely not desirable.


We pay $900 for a 2 bedroom apartment and are hoping for comparable rent prices where we move, if possible.


We're considering CA, OR and even CO.


I have spent countless hours on the internet reading posts and feel overwhelmed, to say the least.


Any insight is greatly appreciated!

[deniseld]

Originally Posted by odie91

Art and entertainment in Seattle is probably better than Denver. I've lived in both, and personally find the weather in Denver much more comfortable than Seattle (including the winter).

Thanks for your feedback! What about Colorado Springs? The thing about CO is the beauty of the land that appeals to me. I've heard mixed things about Denver.

[Mike from back east]

Denise: IIRC, the SAD is usually due to a lack of sunlight, and if you move to the Front Range of COLO (aka the I-25 corridor) you will have about 300 days of the year that are a majority of either total sunshine or puffy clouds scooting by. It's not too often that we have a totally cloud-covered day.

There a lot to recommend both the Denver area and COLO SPGS, but for arts and entertainment and diversity you'd want to be in/around the Denver Metro Area.

Denver is actually about 20 miles from the mountains while COLO SPGS sits at the base of Pikes Peak with great views from much of the city.

Rents are cheaper in COLO SPGS.

I live on the far north end of COLO SPGS and can usually get into downtown Denver (aka LODO) in 90 minutes. In 60 minutes I can be in the southern suburbs of Denver and parked in the lot at Nordstrom's in the Park Center mall in the town known as Lone Tree. I can be in the Denver airport in 75 minutes, or 25 minutes to the COLO SPGS airport.

These days having a job is key to living anywhere, so do tell us a bit about the work you need to find here and we can advise you.

[jazzlover]

I had some relatives (now deceased) that lived in Seattle. I would have to agree that, culturally, there is a lot more going there than anywhere in Colorado. While I would certainly prefer Colorado's overall climate over Seattle's, there are some big tradeoffs that you would make, no matter where you relocated in Colorado. With the relative absence of humidity and a nearby ocean, Colorado is both semi-arid to very arid, with drastic variations in temperatures from day-to-day and season to season. Both day-to-day weather and year-to-year climate is very variable and unpredictable--a function of Colorado's inland location far from oceans and the state's highly varied topography. A lot of Colorado is very thunderstorm-prone in summer, with violent thunderstorms that produce serious hail a relatively regular occurrence along the Front Range in "Hail Alley." Much of the area of the Front Range is also quite windy, especially in winter and spring. If you don't tolerate wind well, Colorado's Front Range (which is where most of the people, culture, and jobs are) is not for you. Winter can be brown and dry or snowy and cold at Colorado's lower elevations. The Front Range and Eastern Plains can go weeks or months in winter without snowfall, and then get hammered with a severe winter storm, sometimes coupled with high winds and severe blizzard conditions. Frequently, those occur in March, rather than in the dead of winter. Snowfall can occur at Colorado's lower elevations anytime from September to early June, and can occur in any month in the high mountains. At the other end of the spectrum, severe drought occurs with regularity in Colorado. Compared to Seattle's relatively benign and predictable climate and weather, Colorado is none of that.

Though Denver metro is the most "diverse" place in Colorado ethnically, it is not very "diverse" compared to many other areas. Diversity in Colorado means mostly Anglo, with a substantial Hispanic population. There are relatively few blacks, Asians, etc. outside of the metro areas. Census data can show you that. Some areas of Colorado are fairly tolerant of "alternative" lifestyles, some are not.

Finally, like everywhere else these days, Colorado is a poor place to relocate to if you need to work and do not have a job in hand before you relocate.

[80skeys]

Originally Posted by deniseld

,
We both have SAD (seasonal affective disorder) and need to move somewhere with better weather.

Did you acquire SAD due to living in Seattle, or did you already have it before moving there?

We don't mind snow but humidity in the summer is definitely not desirable.

Colorado is one of the driest states in the country. Arid climate.

[odie91]

Springs will be even less than Denver, in terms of art and entertainment.

Originally Posted by deniseld

Thanks for your feedback! What about Colorado Springs? The thing about CO is the beauty of the land that appeals to me. I've heard mixed things about Denver.

[brightdoglover]

I don't think one "aquires" SAD. People have a tendency for it (or not) and will notice its effects if in a climate that triggers it. I personally seem to have a similar effect from humidity.

[StealthRabbit]

Originally Posted by deniseld

Hi all,
...isn't diverse when it comes to ethnic or lifestyle backgrounds. We love being a 1/2 hour away from Seattle for access to arts & entertainment however everything here has the feeling of "been there, done that" for us.


We both have SAD (seasonal affective disorder) and need to move somewhere with better weather. ....
We're considering CA, OR and even CO.

Gonna have to recommend CA if ethnic diversity and culture + sunshine and NO HUMIDITY.


No knowing what you are specifically looking for in Ethnic and entertainment I would have recommended New Orleans or Miami. I find Seattle to be pretty well equipped for stuff to do. OREGON is less racially mixed and has equally rotten weather (Portland). (but you can live under a bridge there for free, lots of folks do it.... river view, with no property taxes)

CA will be a challenge on a budget (Very high tax burden also).

Colorado is definitely 'Dulls-ville' in comparison to Seattle

[80skeys]

Originally Posted by StealthRabbit

Colorado is definitely 'Dulls-ville' in comparison to Seattle

a word straight out of the classic movie "The Apartment"