Pueblo West and Pueblo question (Denver, Colorado Springs: sale, low crime, broker)

[Ready2Retire]

Thank you so much Crackerjack for all the great information! I've also read all your other posts about Durango and the surrounding areas, and that area sounds more to our liking. We like to be outdoors, cooler weather and a diverse population. The only prohibiting factor for us though might be if the costs of houses are too high for us. Our daughter just moved from Phoenix to Tucson. We visited her twice in Phoenix and that was enough. At 5:00 in the morning, under her shaded porch having our morning coffee...it was 108 degrees. The crime was horrible, the traffic was horrible, I nearly died from the heat when she took us to the Botanical Garden. Durango sounds wonderful and we are certainly going to check it out. We are moderate conservatives and find that most problems come from the extreme right or left, not only in politics but any situation.

You are just a great resource, as is this site, and we certainly are thankful we have a place to go for information and advice. Hope to see you around Durango...watch for us...two middle-aged retired folks in a little MINI Cooper....sans Bush sticker...

[johnlvs2run]

Originally Posted by Ready2Retire

At 5:00 in the morning, under her shaded porch having our morning coffee...it was 108 degrees.

And you were drinking hot coffee.

I have heard Durango is nice and looked up pictures through google images. It looks like some of the houses are built to live in the second story, like maybe the first story floods? Perhaps someone who has lived there can comment about this.

The prices in Durango might be too high for us too, but it's a possibility to check out. Thanks for the info about Cortez and the other places that are similar.

[Ready2Retire]

John.....it was iced coffee....

I don't know if you and your wife are interested since you already live in a very beautiful place, but we are also considering the Eugene/Springfield Oregon area and also Vancouver, WA and east of Vancouver around Battlefield. We were up there last year and I must say, Oregon and Washington are beautiful beyond words. They are building a very large VA Medical Center in Vancouver and it is really not far for us to make a trip to McChord AFB in Tacoma. From what we've read, and hopefully understand, Oregon won't tax our military retired pay (because of the year we retired), don't tax social security and don't charge sales tax. We also liked the no state tax in Washington and if we stay near Portland we can shop there with no sales tax. Property tax for those two states is something I haven't yet checked out in detail. I suppose I'll be posting some questions in the Oregon and Washington section also.

We will also check out Colorado because it is so beautiful in many places. We have bought ourselves a little Casita travel trailer and are going on a pilgrimage to find our place.

Lots of people seem to be moving the Raleigh/Durham area of NC. It is also a beautiful place, and houses there are very very reasonable but lordy it's a "fer piece" from our kiddos. They do have "sweet tea" though.

[Crackerjack]

You are welcome Ready2Retire and Johnlvs2run. They have lots of two, three and even four story homes there. I don't recall any homes built like they do down in Louisiana for storm surge or flooding. There are a lot of Victorian homes in the city proper then out on the hills are large homes. There are also many styles from stucco homes to log homes as well as lots of condos. A testament to all the variety of people there. What is nice about the people in Durango is that even though many there are liberal, they are accepting of others. Conservatives are elected as well as liberals and they work side by side. They vote for who really is the best at the job and not down party lines like so many cities do whether conservative or liberal. For example, they have a Republican sheriff who has been there for years because he is good at his job and both liberals and conservatives vote for him, etc. I only wish Washington DC would take notes and do the same!
Ready2Retire, I know the Carolinas are beautiful but there are so many issues to consider, one is the tremendous humidity; the mosquitoes and hurricanes are some more. I do think it is pretty scenery too though. I knew someone from Asheville and he moved his family from there saying the pollution was terrible, causing acid rains and ruining the brick buildings and such. He didn't feel well there and since has moved to Colorado. He is doing good but he also credits the fact that since it is cooler in Colorado, he is able to get out more and do a lot more biking. My family has a lot of veterans in it and so I know bases are important so I can understand that. I know some veterans in Durango, and they have quite a lot of them; they go there to retire. There is Kirtland AFB down in ABQ. It is about 180 miles or so. Yes the Phoenix heat is getting to me too. It has been 105 plus and just unbearable with all the increased humidity from the monsoonal flow and all the grass and trees they planted around here (that are non-native) need tons of water to stay alive and that equals even more humidity. So in all honesty, if global warming is right, Phoenix is in BIG trouble! Good Luck wherever your Mini Cooper takes you! Good Luck to you too Johnlvs2run. I notice you live in California, I think the most beautiful states I know are Colorado, Washington, Oregon and Northern California.

[johnlvs2run]

Thanks, Cracker and good luck to you too.

I agree, as long as the temps keep going up then Phoenix is in for it. Not that it isn't hot there already. The global warming is one thing making me hesitant about Colorado as I've noticed the temps in many of the cities there have been 10 degrees warmer at night all summer as compared to the averages. For example lows of 67 where the average is 57 etc.

Another thing I am very interested in is to avoid any area that has fluoridation of the water. They pushed that through here in Santa Maria, with yes meaning no and no meaning yes on the ballots and it's basically mandatory in California now. It is too much being forced to drink stuff in the water we don't want and that was the final straw in my deciding to move from here.

From my understanding all cities over 100,000 nationally are supposed to have the fluoride in the water now, so I am interested to be in a smaller town or else living in the country with a well. There is no point to moving and then being in a same situation as here. I know we all have different things we are looking for and it's great we can come here and share about the different locations.

[Crackerjack]

I agree Johnlvs2run, I share your concerns too. That is one reason I am moving to Durango because they have a large number of environmentalists there and most there are pro-active in having a healthy city. They passed, for example, a law banning bright lights at night so people can see the stars. They don't use fluoride. It is a very health oriented city and many pro bikers live there and there are a lot of runners, skiers, joggers, etc. that live there. They have great health food stores too. It is a great city for health. Durango is almost 7,000 feet above sea level so it stays really nice weather wise. They are having monsoons now and it stays cloudy and rains and that keeps the temps up until it moves out and then the cool air returns. I have done a lot of research on areas and been to way too many places to mention but I decided Durango was the one for me. Another place running a close second is Silver City, New Mexico but it is relatively small, so not much on careers there, but a great place to retire. Red River, New Mexico is another great place, but really small. I love up in Washington and Oregon too but the volcanoes and earthquakes are quite scary. Durango has real solid ground with no earthquakes or tornadoes, volcanoes, hurricanes and such. There can be forest fires in thick forests but I wouldn't live in that anyway. Floods are rare too and they don't allow houses to be built in flood plains. So all in all, Durango ranked number one for me.

[kinnikinnik]

Originally Posted by Ready2Retire

Thank you for the post John. I've been looking at houses on the Internet for the last year. I am so sick of doing that. We'd both like to be around a military base if we can, but sometimes that's just not possible. We get a lot of our services there.

If you prefer to be near a military base - would you consider Cheyenne, Wyoming? I know it's not Colorado - but my uncle, who is also retired military, really likes it there. Cheyenne has a population of about 55,000 people. It's the state capitol of Wyoming. It's the home of F.E. Warren Air Force Base, and my uncle says they have a good VA hospital there. There is also a lot of land around Cheyenne - areas with larger lots - and so forth. All the areas of Cheyenne that I've seen at least look fair, and most times look nice - not like junk heaps. The city's located in a hilly area of the high plains, close to the mountains. The climate is not a desert, but it isn't anywhere close to being humid either.

http://www.city-data.com/city/Cheyenne-Wyoming.html

Good Luck and Best Wishes!

[Ready2Retire]

Thank you very much kinnikinnik for your very thoughtful suggestions. I'm sure Wyoming is very beautiful and we'll certainly keep that in mind. Our hearts will always be in the Florida Panhandle around Fort Walton Beach where we're from, but that can be a heart breaking place to stay if you get wiped out by a hurricane as we have. We have a lot of exploring to do in our beautiful country, Colorado, Oregon, Washington, California and, of course, the beautiful and humid south. I still have plenty of fire-ant killer left over, a big alligator trap and mosquito spray. What more can I say.....

[Raynruss]

We have lived here in Pueblo West for over 10 years. I am a Colorado native and my wife is from California and Oregon. We are moving [moderator CUT]to Oregon to be near family and I can tell you that Pueblo West is nearly crime free, the nights are cool (the elevation is higher than Pueblo and the evening breezes are cool and refreshing). We live on over 1/2 of an acre ON the golf course and it isn't uncommon to play in January or February. Our street is awesome, great neighbors (mostly retirees), beautiful stucco homes with red tiled roofs, and neatly manicured and landscaped homes. All of our neighbors look out for one another and we truely hate to be leaving our neighborhood. I'm not sure where the previous post was refering to (unless it was the town of Pueblo... not Pueblo West). Don't live in Pueblo if you are looking for elbow room. Pueblo west has it, but most of the elbow room is in the prairie and you will not feel like you are in an oasis for sure. Stay around the golf course if you like trees, grass, wildlife and birds and price appreciation for your realestate investment.

[gcoolidge]

Housing costs in the entire Pueblo area are very attractive. As others have stated, you can get a lot for your money in Pueblo West. I have a friend who was complaining about the escalating cost of land in Pueblo West - he had to pay $50,000 for a 5 acre lot. Pueblo West covers an extremely large area, though, and there are some areas that will appeal to you if you want a more traditional neighborhood and some that will appeal to you if you want to build a 2000' metal building in your 5 acre back yard; it's a mixed bag. I have another friend who is moving out of Pueblo West because his area is getting a bit junky; he told me that last weekend, there were two (actually, I think he said three) eighteen-wheelers parked on the street behind him. He's selling and moving to Canon City. Not all neighborhoods in Pueblo West are like this, though: some are 1/4 acre lots with houses built close together.

Pueblo West is not a city, and has fewer regulations than say, the City of Pueblo. This appeals to some, not to others - it's a little more wide-open out there. They don't have their own Police Department, but the Pueblo County Sheriff department does a pretty good job of keeping it safe. They do have their own fire department. All construction is regulated by the Regional Building Department; you may run into a bad builder, but current electrical, plumbing, and mechanical standards are adhered to throughout Pueblo County. Pueblo West has an adequate water supply. In a drought year, there may be restrictions on how often you can water your lawn.

It's a bit windier and a bit dustier in most areas of Pueblo West than within the City of Pueblo. There are some similar wide-open spaces east of the City, but that are a lot greener, less dusty and windy (as you move east of Pueblo, you start getting into agricultural area).

The City of Pueblo has about two-thirds of Pueblo County's population, but there is an extremely strong sense of community in the entire region. Most folks just consider themselves from Pueblo, whether they live in the City or not. I've never been anywhere where there were so many people who simply do not want to live anywhere else.

There's a lot of variety within the City limits, too. Plenty of homes in the million dollar range, and plenty under $100,000. Schools are rated a little better in District 70 (the outlying district) than in District 60 (the central district). There's a real convenience to living within the City, though: I live at the edge of the City limits, but it's never more than a ten-minute drive to downtown, where I work.

Really nice climate in most of the County - less snow, warmer winter days than in most other areas of Colorado. Good hospitals, lots of community events, great local restaurants, 45 minute drive to the Colorado Springs Airport, from Pueblo or Pueblo West. Very friendly and diverse area.