Starting to Doubt my Desire to Move to Colorado (Colorado Springs: real estate, property taxes)

[Rocky8Bear]

After reading numerous posts on this board, I am starting to have doubts about my Dream of moving to Colorado. My wife and I love winter weather (& hate the hot, humid summers of the south) and the mountains. We have visited Colorado for the last 7 years and love it when we visit. I must confess, I am a Christian Conservative. I don't try to shove my views down others' throats but I also expect the same from people with other views. It appears from this board that there is no tolerance from either side (maybe it is just nationwide). Here is what I am looking for in a town/city: 1)Job- I am an auditor & my wife is a part-time pharmacist, 2) good church home, 3) low taxes-small government, 4)old historic home near an old down-town ($175k-$275K), 5) close to outdoor mountain attractions, 6) acceptance of a white family with Asian children. Maybe I should shift my focus to Wyoming or Montana. Any feedback would be greatly appreciated.- Thank you.

[ditto]

Maybe consider Colorado Springs? Seems like a fairly religious place...

[Mike from back east]

Truth is, there seems plenty of tolerance in CO. The expressions on the CO forum are nothing like the mutual intolerance voiced in some other forums on this website.

I think you'd do fine most anywhere in CO, but especially in COL SPGS.
1)Job - I am an auditor & my wife is a part-time pharmacist.
A: I'm sure that COL SPGS with a half million people has such jobs.

2) good church home
A: COL SPGS has churches of all faiths here, some quite large.

3) low taxes-small government.
A: Pretty much true statewide.

4) old historic home near an old down-town ($175k-$275K)
A: Try the Old North End of COL SPGS. You won't get truly "historic" homes in that price range anywhere; you can get old & charming.

5) close to outdoor mountain attractions
A: COL SPGS is right at the mountains, even have some stuff in-town, like Garden of the Gods.

6) acceptance of a white family with Asian children.
A: COL SPGS is very accepting of people, especially with our diverse military population, and with plenty of adopted children.

[vegaspilgrim]

How on earth would Wyoming or Montana be better for you based on your situation? I don't understand the logic behind that reasoning one bit. I agree with Mike, Colorado Springs seems like a good fit for you.

[jazzlover]

Originally Posted by Rocky8Bear

After reading numerous posts on this board, I am starting to have doubts about my Dream of moving to Colorado. My wife and I love winter weather (& hate the hot, humid summers of the south) and the mountains. We have visited Colorado for the last 7 years and love it when we visit. I must confess, I am a Christian Conservative. I don't try to shove my views down others' throats but I also expect the same from people with other views. It appears from this board that there is no tolerance from either side (maybe it is just nationwide). Here is what I am looking for in a town/city: 1)Job- I am an auditor & my wife is a part-time pharmacist, 2) good church home, 3) low taxes-small government, 4)old historic home near an old down-town ($175k-$275K), 5) close to outdoor mountain attractions, 6) acceptance of a white family with Asian children. Maybe I should shift my focus to Wyoming or Montana. Any feedback would be greatly appreciated.- Thank you.

If you are persistent and selective enough, you could probably find a town that would satisfy 1, 5, and 6. Satisfying #4 is possible, but increasingly difficult in Colorado's (still) overpriced real estate market. All across the country, politicians are trying to figure out how to prop up real estate values. They need to let them correct--then property may actually become affordable again for many folks--especially in overvalued Colorado. For #3, as for low taxes and small government--well, Colorado is a middling state on taxation--and probably will stay that way. Residential property taxes are low, but sales taxes and fuel taxes are relatively high. Colorado income tax is so-so. It is what it is.

As for #2, I'm not sure what you mean. People need to get this right--whether they like it or not: There are a lot of good Christian folks in Colorado--including a fair number of "evangelical" and/or "conservative Christians," but, that said, Colorado--in fact, NONE of the Rocky Mountain states--are the "Bible Belt." Never were, aren't now, won't be. Utah, and parts of Idaho to a lesser extent, are the the only relatively "religion-dominated" states in the region, and that--of course--by the LDS faith. The rest of the Rocky Mountain states are pretty much "secular," with the practice (or not) of religion pretty much a personal choice. If you are expecting everyone be of like mind as you (whatever one's persuasion might be one way or another) you are unlikely to find that anywhere in Rocky Mountain West. This region has always been an eclectic mix of folks, and will continue to be.

[Rocky8Bear]

vegaspilgrim,

Wyoming & Montana are both mountain regions, low-tax small government, low cost of living, conservative regions, dry-cool summers, etc. The issue I would have concerning these 2 states would be "jobs". I do appreciate your input & any other advice you could provide.

[Rocky8Bear]

Jazzlover,

I appreciate your input. I'm not sure if I take your response to #2 correctly. I have no problem with a mix of people. My post states that I have a diverse family. I do get the feeling that Conservative Christians are becoming less & less welcome in Colorado. I am just trying to find out if that is the case. If that is the case, I will look elsewhere. Thanks again.

[hello-world]

colorado springs might work for you.

keep in mind that these forums are where many people go to be honest. if everyone were as honest in general, it might sound like everyone was intolerant, when in actuality, they were just letting the thoughts they have anyhow out into the open. that said, i would say that colorado can be a place with more polarized places and people, in a sense. many move here for some purpose - whereas many people in other places stick with what they have. also, it almost seems that, historically, the rocky mountains have been a net for various people that established their prefered places while traversing the continent. i think of greeley (horace greeley and the "utopia" that was attempted there), boulder (once a "countercultural" speck on the map, now a priveleged/exclusive speck), colorado springs ("focus on the family", ted haggard, air force, NORAD...conservative), trinidad (sex change birthplace), suburban-to-the-max exurbia of denver metro, ranching orientation into the mountains and into the plains, ouray ("atlas shrugged"/libertarianism), trustafarian/skier-hipster types, etc.. so people with pretty widely different opinions within their fairly uniform-but-suited-to-them communities; communties that are in close-ish proximity no less. plus, it's going through lots of changes somewhat quickly, and contains some people from places that are quite different (so worth commenting on) AND people from places quite similar (so worth responding...).

after a quick perusal, i agree with mike from back east and jazzlover, for the most part, though i would say that some of colorado DOES have a fairly bible-belt feel to it (colorado springs, for example), though i agree it's probably not the bible belt. with your seemingly conservative christian, small government leanings, i would say you just might love colorado, most likely the springs area or somewhere not far from it. perhaps even greeley, suburban denver, or ft collins if you can find work there (suburban denver or the springs being the best places to look for you, i'd guess).

[CosmicWizard]

What you read on this board does NOT accurrately mirror what it is like to actually live in Colorado. Wether you fit in or not is really up to you. Personally, I am a follower of no organized religion, yet I have quite a few so-called conservative christian friends. Conservative christian is just a label that somebody made up. Forget the labels, and relate to people on a person to person basis and you'll do just fine. Like Jazzlover says, This region has always been an eclectic mix of folks, and will continue to be. Personally, I'd be pretty bored living in a place where everyone was just like me and had all the same beliefs as my own. One of me is enough!

blessings...Franco

[hello-world]

Originally Posted by NewAgeRedneck

What you read on this board does NOT accurrately mirror what it is like to actually live in Colorado. Wether you fit in or not is really up to you. Personally, I am a follower of no organized religion, yet I have quite a few so-called conservative christian friends. Conservative christian is just a label that somebody made up. Forget the labels, and relate to people on a person to person basis and you'll do just fine. Like Jazzlover says, This region has always been an eclectic mix of folks, and will continue to be. Personally, I'd be pretty bored living in a place where everyone was just like me and had all the same beliefs as my own. One of me is enough!

blessings...Franco

with all due respect, to be honest, i think that reading the spectrum of opinions here IS pretty representative of the overall feel of the places. but you have to read many posts to get that spectrum and the average sense that's probably pretty representative. i would say the region is more a group of rather homogeneous communities, actually, but each community tends to be somewhat different from the other (with the common thread that it's mostly white/caucasian and rather middle american, for the most part), as opposed to some other places in this country where communities themselves tend to have more of a cross section of people, but are not so especially different from one another (as communities within a single portion - say 100 mile radius - of the same state). and you might not get the spectrum if you spent most of your time in close proximity to your coloradan community...or didn't look on this board at what people REALLY think, but might not say (sometimes another seemingly coloradan way). but, the board is a collection of many of these somewhat uniform communities' people all in one place on the forum, so can become a cauldron of opinion from various communities that nevertheless gives a reasonably representative feel for the place. still with me?