cross country move (Denver, Colorado Springs, Arvada: apartment, to rent, house)

[emgalvin1]

Hi-
I'm pretty new to the forums, though I've been reading threads for about 3 months to try to get a feel for the area. My boyfriend, his brother, and I are moving to Denver from South Carolina in October. We won't be able to come out there and look around before we move, which is why I'm trying to do as much research as possible. We're in our 20's, work in the restaurant business, love the outdoors, and want to be no more than 30 min from mountain activities such as snowboarding, hiking, biking, and camping. We want to rent a 2-3 br apartment or house for around $1000/month. Being as our move is about 5 months away, I'm not sure when the appropriate time would be to start zeroing in on specific places. Any suggestions?

Thanks,
Erin

[EscapeCalifornia]

Do you all have jobs lined up? Why Denver? I don't think $1000/mo that close to the mountains is going to cut it. Why can't you check the city out in person before moving?

[emgalvin1]

No, we don't have jobs b/c most restaurants won't hire 5 months out. What price range do you think would be more realistic? To be honest, there really isn't a particular reason for Denver, other than his parents used to live in Colorado Springs and loved it, but I thought that'd be too expensive for us. We're ready for a change and I've never lived outside of SC. I figure there's only a couple times in your life when you don't have any obligations or tie-downs so I want to take advantage of that and try something new. We're going to have $10,000 between us for the move. The reason we can't check out the city before moving is we can't take the time off of work in the summer, and that would set us back probably 2 or 3 grand, plus the travel expenses.

Thank you for your help. Any other suggestions? The cities that I have been looking at (just because I've seen cheap housing and have heard good things about them on the forum) are Thornton, Littleton, Highlands Ranch, Golden, and Arvada. Any insight on these places or others?

Thanks again.

[emgalvin1]

If we can't get anything lined up for jobs, though, we have all worked for Chili's for about 5 years and can transfer if need be.

[EscapeCalifornia]

Denver is generally more expensive than Colorado Springs.

$10,000 is a decent amount, but if none of you have jobs, it'll go pretty quick. In case you hadn't heard, the economy isn't so good right now and getting hired anywhere is tough. Do you all own paid-off cars?

If you can't check out the city before you move, you're not ready to move.

[emgalvin1]

Yes, I have heard the economy is bad. And I said that jobs will be lined up as the time gets closer. I'm not asking if I'm ready to move, I know that I'm not...which is why I'm trying to get prepared. I realize that we need to have jobs, but it's hard to start looking when I don't have a specific location to start looking in. Do you think CS would be a better fit than Denver?

[EscapeCalifornia]

Originally Posted by emgalvin1

Yes, I have heard the economy is bad. And I said that jobs will be lined up as the time gets closer. I'm not asking if I'm ready to move, I know that I'm not...which is why I'm trying to get prepared. I realize that we need to have jobs, but it's hard to start looking when I don't have a specific location to start looking in. Do you think CS would be a better fit than Denver?

Denver is usually a better fit for people in their 20's but it's more expensive and a little farther from the mountains. There's more to do in Denver than Colorado Springs. Please don't be one of those people that moves to Denver to ski/snowboard. That's about like people moving to LA to be a movie star or a surfer bum.

[emgalvin1]

Thanks for your input, I really appreciate it.

[vegaspilgrim]

Originally Posted by EscapeCalifornia

Denver is usually a better fit for people in their 20's but it's more expensive and a little farther from the mountains. There's more to do in Denver than Colorado Springs. Please don't be one of those people that moves to Denver to ski/snowboard. That's about like people moving to LA to be a movie star or a surfer bum.

Or as one poster here once said-- moving to Denver for the skiing is like moving to San Bernardino for the beach. At least LA literally borders the beach in parts. The center of Denver is about 15-25 minutes drive time from the base of the foothills, plus another 30-45 minutes beyond that to get to the high country. The closest ski area to Denver is Loveland. Nowhere in Denver is a 30 minute drive to Loveland.

[emgalvin1]

Originally Posted by vegaspilgrim

Or as one poster here once said-- moving to Denver for the skiing is like moving to San Bernardino for the beach. At least LA literally borders the beach in parts. The center of Denver is about 15-25 minutes drive time from the base of the foothills, plus another 30-45 minutes beyond that to get to the high country. The closest ski area to Denver is Loveland. Nowhere in Denver is a 30 minute drive to Loveland.

Interesting. I wasn't aware of that. We're def not moving solely for the snow sports, but I will admit that it does play a role... If people don't move there for those reasons, then why? We aren't snow bums, but I don't think anything's wrong with that if that's what makes you happy. What would you consider to be a "good" reason for moving to Denver?