Considering a Move from Austin to Denver (Lone Tree, Center: for sale, apartments)

[onthemove15]

Hi folks this is my first ever post but I was wondering if I could get some assistance. I live in Austin now and I must say I can't stand it. Austin is a perfect city for people who refuse to admit that they are no longer in college and might I add its hot as all get out. 40 days of over 100 degrees!!! Austin also has no culture and is essentially a college town on steroids and by that I mean, no zoo, no museums and no professional sports teams and really nothing to do unless you consider binge drinking something worth doing everyday. And that whole live music capital of the world is totally over blown.

Its time for a move and I think Denver would be a good option. I have a friend who lives in Capital Hill and another friend in City Park/Colfax.

I live in a 875 sq/ft apt right now and my rent is 1150 and I am probably about 3 miles from downtown Austin. What are some good neighborhoods in Denver, and overall what are people's impressions of Denver. I work for a consulting firm so I can live wherever in the US I want and so I wont need to look for a job. But whats the cost of living like out there and what are some things to do in Denver. Thank you for all your help!

[80skeys]

I agree with you about Austin. I lived there for two years and wasn't impressed. Denver is a much more interesting and pleasant place, although you're not going to find more "culture" than what you have in Austin. You'll find a city with more of an "older, established" feel and still a bit of an "old West" outdoors mentality.

[wedmiston]

Ironically, my wife and I are looking at both Austin and Denver for ourselves and I have been doing extensive research into all sorts of metrics that confirm differences.

I looked at COL specifically, and here is what I found - No question Denver is higher on most sites that measure it. Denver came in at 106.4 compared to Austin at 93.4 (index of 100). We were just in Denver a few weeks ago (I lived there for four years back in the mid-90's and it has really expanded it's arts options and museums - was pretty impressed just driving around downtown at all the changes).

Go to http://www.wolframalpha.com/ and type in COL denver to get cost of living data, then again for Austin.

Ready for all the snow? 60 inches annually. We are concerned about the heat as well but feel as we approach retirement (15 years away) heat would be preferable to snow. Is it killer oppressive?

Elaborate a bit more about Austin. We are ages 45 and 53 so well beyond college. We would not be living in or near the city. Having said that, how would you characterize downtown for people our age, meaning, options other than college bars for entertainment? Austin was just highlighted as the top city where boomers and retirees are going, so doesn't that say something positive about it from where we would be coming from?

80skeys - how long has it been since you were there? Things have really changed - many more arts and cultural options than in 1996 when I moved (and I lived right downtown in LoDo).

[80skeys]

Originally Posted by wedmiston

80skeys - how long has it been since you were there? Things have really changed - many more arts and cultural options than in 1996 when I moved (and I lived right downtown in LoDo).

We just moved last year from Colorado. I'm not saying Denver is completely lacking in arts and culture, but in my opinion it's "fair to middlin" on those efforts.

[Luvs2Trvl]

Denver is going to be about 7-8% higher cost of living than Austin. We do have all the sports teams you could possibly want, lots of recreational activities (in town and in the mountains) and it sounds like more cultural attractions than what you currently have. Denver has a performing arts complex downtown that hosts traveling productions, concerts, symphony,etc.. We also have a pretty good number of smaller venues all over the city/greater metro area that host concerts and comedians. After living here since 1989, I finally went to the Denver Art Museum last year to see King Tut and it was a nice place to visit. There's lots of restaurants downtown and now they have tons of pedicab drivers and even horse drawn carriage rides. 16th street is a "pedestrian" street with shopping and free shuttles up and down the street. It is pretty fun to grab something to eat and then walk over to Coors field for a baseball game and Avalanche Hockey is nice at the Pepsi Center which is also next door to Elitch's Amusement/Water Park. They have light rail with stops throughout the downtown area and even south all the way down to Lone Tree, eventually it will go further north and even east to the airport.

Our zoo isn't too shabby and they've actually been putting a lot of money into it and re-doing several of the major exhibits (new elephant enclosure coming sometime soon). The zoo is surrounded by City Park and is also right next door to the Nature and Science Museum which can sometimes get a little old after several visits but they have an Imax theater and usually get some good traveling exhibits from time to time. We also have an aquarium downtown closer to I-25. Sometimes I like to go to the Denver Botanical Gardens to take photos and they also have traveling statue exhibits that come through the gardens and during the summer they have outdoor concerts like a lot of places around here. Around Labor Day we have "Taste of Colorado" which has become a massive food fest where they block off several streets in front of the city and county building and capital bldg. They sell tickets for "tastes" of food vendors from around the city, they have concerts, arts and crafts for sale and even carnival rides and it's become almost hard to walk around it's so busy.

I've actually been feeling kind of bored around here lately (out in the south suburbs) and all these things are reminding me of all the things to do here. There really is a lot more. As for neighborhoods I would probably ask your friend that lives in Capitol Hill for more info. I would say Capitol Hill, Cheesman Park/Wash Park, Bonnie Brae (though that's closer to University of Denver). Or maybe find a cool loft in the downtown area. I took some photography classes just west of Union Station (off Little Raven Street) and I LOVED walking around that area. They have a bunch of new lofts and apartments and restaurants and a really nice park (Commons Park) and just lots of people outside enjoying the area. Might be pricey in that area though but such a cool vibe and you are close to everything downtown.

[davebarnes]

Originally Posted by wedmiston

Ready for all the snow? 60 inches annually

Not an issue.
60/12 = 5 inches per snowstorm.
5 inches / 3 days of sunshine = dry roads

5 feet of snow in Denver is not the same as 5 feet in Chicago or Minneapolis.

As someone who grew up in the Northeast, I can tell that Denver winters are very mild.

[Autodidact]

There is plenty to do in Denver for all types and interests, but I think the biggest difference you will find is outside the city...the outdoors. Denver is one of those cities with ready access to wilderness, hiking, skiing, kayaking, mountain biking, etc. etc. If you like that kind of stuff, you will probably like living in Denver.

[Luvs2Trvl]

I forgot the weather...Every once in awhile we'll get some decent snowfall/blizzard condition but really the vast majority of the winter is really mild. Most of the time when it does snow, it's melted by the afternoon or next day. As for the summer, it's been in the 90's for what seems like 4-6 weeks almost and I'm getting a little tired of it. Finally seems to be a bit more overcast the last few days with a little rain.

Most people that move here probably think they will never need an Air Conditioner but I beg to differ. Almost all last summer we were able to just open our windows but this summer it's been pretty hot and I've had the AC running a lot lately. In general though, we really have pretty good weather here.

[mrman78]

I'm considering a move from Houston to Denver. I'd prefer Seattle, but I have more job leads in Denver and have friends there. To me, it's a no-brainer. Yes, Denver is a smaller city, but I love the outdoors and Houston is a nightmare for that. Even when the weather is decent, there isn't really anywhere to go that is decent! Anyway, Austin and Houston are fairly similar weather-wise, pretty different otherwise. If weather is your main concern, I think Denver is a good choice. My friend (who also moved from Houston) says the winters aren't bad at all, and he had lived his whole life in Texas (Austin and Houston) before the move. I've been trying to get out of Houston since the recession began, so honestly wherever I find a job is where I am going!

[80skeys]

Originally Posted by mrman78

I think Denver is a good choice. My friend (who also moved from Houston) says the winters aren't bad at all, and he had lived his whole life in Texas (Austin and Houston) before the move.

Denver is a good choice. The thing that makes Denver winters tolerable is the plentiful sunshine. If it weren't for that, it would be a dreary several months.