checking out colorado (Denver, Colorado Springs: apartments, rentals, job market)

[tweetybird123]

In about three months I have to move, and currently I live in Virginia. It is me, my two year old, and my husband, we are an African American family. The apartments here are very expensive, but there is no work in the town that I live in, most people here commute to D.c., but that is too expensive for me. Since there are no big businesses here the only thing is cashier or waitress for the most part. I originally posted in NJ, but basically from the posts that I recieved it sounded like there I would get the same deal as here. So the other place I was considering was Colorado. So, here are just a few questions that I have about Colorado.
1. For a One-two bedroom around what would I be looking at? I don't want to pay no more than 700/mo.
2. How is it job wise? I do administrative/clerical work and my husband does construction/landscaping
3. How is the public transportation? We only have one car, so both of us need to be able to get around. Here just to go around the corner takes two hours and that's horrible.

Any insight or comments would be appreciated

[brightdoglover]

I will leave it to more local people, but from what I've read in this forum, construction/landscaping is going down the tubes all over Colorado (the economic picture). I think Colorado Springs or Denver would be the only places to possibly consider, especially regarding public transport and a larger economy. As for the rentals, your range sounds unlikely there, but I'll look for answers from people who know more about the state. (I read and post here out of a long-time interest, frequent visits, and possible retirement).
Offhand, I think maybe a Southern city might make more sense, where there is more work and more going on, and costs are lower. Dallas? Houston? Too hot for me, but I do think a lot of places are just as expensive as your current area. Best wishes.

[tweetybird123]

I've been hearing alot about Texas lately, that is something that I will check into.

[CapHillboy]

If your only criteria are low rent, public transit, and job availability, you should probably post your question on the General US forum, cast as a sort of "Is there an area that meets these criteria?" CO would be doable, based on the first two criteria, at least (and depending on what part of the state you move to).

To get the bad news out of the way first: The job market here is getting grimmer by the week, though our unemployment rate (at 6.1%) is below the national average. Construction work, as brightdoglover pointed out, is also very weak here, just as it is in most places around the country. Even the Western Slope, which was booming as a result of oil and gas demand, has slowed with weakened demand, I've been told. And, finally, as everyone on this forum will tell you, it would not be a good idea in this economy to move here without a job lined up before hand.

For public transportation in CO cities, here's a link so you can see what's available.
APTA: Colorado Transit Links

I'm familiar only with RTD, which covers Denver and six other surrounding counties. You can do a search of the Denver forum for what people have to say about it. I use a few lines from time to time and the bus service seems just fine to me.

As for rents, you should probably check craigslist once you've narrowed down your list of towns (CO is a pretty big state compared to VA). I did a cursory check and Denver and the Springs, at least, have apts in your range. For Denver, you can also try the online listings in the Denver Post/Rocky Mountain News and Westword. Other town newspapers probably also have additional listings.

Hope this helps and good luck in your search!