Moving from Tucson, AZ to Frederick, CO in 6 monts (Denver: sales, renting)

[Hangyourhat]

Hi,

My family and I are going to move to Frederick, CO from Tucson, AZ. I have no idea what to expect. We are a family of four. My husband is a geek and my two girls are straight A students. I'm hoping his job doesn't lay him off and the two girls can find great schools in the area. As for me, I'm not sure what to look forward to. I would like to find work in the software sales or training arena. I wonder how much of that is out there. Tucson is really tough these days as far as employment goes. And I'm scared to death that my house will be left on the market for 200 days before it finally sells for $5,000 over what I owe on it! The market in Tuscon took a terrible hit with this economy. I've heard that that's not true about Colorado though in general. House prices there have fallen but only by 3 or 5 % ---- not like in Tucson where's it's a complete disaster and there are tons of people who are upside down on their loans.

So I am worried about finding the right house, the right school, the right job. Right now I'm a business manager in the transportation industry but that's only because that's all I could find. And I have a degree in Accounting. So figure that one out! My background is in H/R, Acctg, Project Management, and Software Training. What does one do with all of that in a brand new town?

I do look forward to having more than one season in my life time. I'm hoping the winters aren't that bad. The summers here are very hard to me. 100 + degree weather is not for the faint at heart. But then again Tucson doesn't have the bug problem that I think Colorado has. Maybe it's because there isn't any water. Are the mosquitoes that numerous in the spring time?

If you were to live in Frederick, Co. , where would you buy a home in today's market? And what school would you put your kids in? And is there an awesome dance studio because I need that for one (without a 45 minute commute) and I need a gymnasium for the other.....any suggestions?

Many thanks!

[Dreaming of Hawaii]

Why are you moving to Frederick? I'm not familiar with service available or what the schools are like, but I do know that it is a very small town. Basically more of a bedroom community with people commuting to Boulder and Denver for work. If you husband's work is in Frederick, you could live in Erie or Broomfield or lots of bigger places.

[Spot]

My wife and I moved to Denver from Tucson last May. I think you are going to love it here.

I can tell you with absolute certainty that the job situation in the metro Denver/Boulder area is far, far better than what you are experiencing in Tucson. My wife is also an accountant and worked for the UofA when we were in Tucson. She found a great job here within two months of moving and is earning about 70% more here. Post your resume on Monster and the recruiters will be calling you. My wife was turning down offers. It's really that easy. There are a lot of technology companies here, so if you want to get into software sales, I can't imagine that you won't be able to find opportunities.

The schools for our daughter are leagues better than what we found in Tucson. In fact, the schools were the primary reason we decided to leave AZ. The best schools in this area are in Cherry Creek and Douglas County. If your husband is going to be working in Frederick, you may want to look at living in the Cherry Creek area. He will have a 30-45 minute commute, but the schools are well worth it.

I did my undergrad and grad school at the UofA, and after living in AZ for almost 9 years, we love it here in Denver. Almost everything we have experienced here has been an improvement by comparison. The light rail is fantastic, the downtown area is alive and fun, the parks are great, and the overall infrastructure is far better. No place is perfect, but the Denver area is the most family-friendly place I have lived in the US. About the only thing I miss from Tucson is the great Mexican food. You really can't beat the Mexican food in Southern AZ.

You can send me an email if you guys want to connect when you get here. We will be happy to show you around and we are always interested in making friends here in town.

[cowboyxjon]

Why Frederick? I recommend renting a place a bit closer to the metro area so that you can be as flexible as possible while looking for work. If you bought a house in Frederick, but were offered a software testing job in the Denver Tech Center, the result would be an awful commute (in my opinion).

I'm not much of an environmentalist and I'm not one of the rabid suburb-haters, but I can attest to living close to work. I feel like my quality of life is much higher now that I'm not commuting an hour each way to and from work. I can spend more time with my family.

[vegaspilgrim]

Originally Posted by Spot

I can tell you with absolute certainty that the job situation in the metro Denver/Boulder area is far, far better than what you are experiencing in Tucson. My wife is also an accountant and worked for the UofA when we were in Tucson. She found a great job here within two months of moving and is earning about 70% more here. Post your resume on Monster and the recruiters will be calling you. My wife was turning down offers. It's really that easy.

Better than Tucson? Probably, Tucson hardly even has an economy outside of the university and the AFB. But I can say with absolute certainty that your post here is wrong. I have a master's in accounting degree from a program ranked #6 in the nation, moved back to Denver in May and I have been looking hard every single day for a job in accounting here the last three months. A few interviews, even with the directors/controllers/VPs, but not one stinkin' job offer. The job situation in Denver might be better than Tucson, but that doesn't say much-- it's absolutely pathetic here too. Now maybe one year ago when your wife was looking for work, it was a different story.

Agree with you about the Mexican food-- Sonoran style is awesome-- although I prefer New Mexican food myself.

To the OP, I'll flat out say it, no sugar coating-- moving to Frederick, point blank, is a dumb idea. And even dumber considering that you have no idea where you might end up working-- which is probably a >50% chance it will be somewhere in the south metro area. Location, location, location. You got to find a better, more central location, at least temporarily while you look for work. Once that's known, then you can branch out and look at all the possibilities.

I hope we'll hear from the OP again... hopefully not another first and only poster.

[Spot]

Originally Posted by vegaspilgrim

Better than Tucson? Probably, Tucson hardly even has an economy outside of the university and the AFB. But I can say with absolute certainty that your post here is wrong. I have a master's in accounting degree from a program ranked #6 in the nation, moved back to Denver in May and I have been looking hard every single day for a job in accounting here the last three months. A few interviews, even with the directors/controllers/VPs, but not one stinkin' job offer. The job situation in Denver might be better than Tucson, but that doesn't say much-- it's absolutely pathetic here too. Now maybe one year ago when your wife was looking for work, it was a different story.

Agree with you about the Mexican food-- Sonoran style is awesome-- although I prefer New Mexican food myself.

To the OP, I'll flat out say it, no sugar coating-- moving to Frederick, point blank, is a dumb idea. And even dumber considering that you have no idea where you might end up working-- which is probably a >50% chance it will be somewhere in the south metro area. Location, location, location. You got to find a better, more central location, at least temporarily while you look for work. Once that's known, then you can branch out and look at all the possibilities.

I hope we'll hear from the OP again... hopefully not another first and only poster.

Naw Vegas, we just moved here in May 09. I'd agree with you that the job market everywhere is rough, but compared to Tucson Denver is employment heaven. The economy here is significantly better than anyplace in AZ to be honest. I know things are tight here for most professions, but the OP is currently living in one of the worst job markets in the United States, so I am sure she will find more opportunity here. Not to mention that Denver is a much nicer place to live overall.

[Katiana]

Frederick is (was maybe) a growing town, but it is not close to many employment centers in the metro area. I'd agree with the advice to move closer to Denver, unless you already have a job in that area.

[Katiana]

Originally Posted by vegaspilgrim

Better than Tucson? Probably, Tucson hardly even has an economy outside of the university and the AFB. But I can say with absolute certainty that your post here is wrong. I have a master's in accounting degree from a program ranked #6 in the nation, moved back to Denver in May and I have been looking hard every single day for a job in accounting here the last three months. A few interviews, even with the directors/controllers/VPs, but not one stinkin' job offer.

My niece was doing the same thing; finally landed an accounting job in COS, where she lives. Keep it up! I know it's hard.

[sunsprit]

Unless you've got employment lined up in the immediate area around Frederick, it's simply a wide spot in the road North of Denver ... and close to nothing.

When I had acreage at Hwy 52/CR 5 (at the Western edge of Weld county) ... essentially just across the I-25 corridor from the Frederick area ... it was a commute to anywhere. The only reason it worked for us was because my wife was employed in Longmont and it was the only affordable acreage/horse property around at the time. I still worked in Denve and it was at least an hour into downtown Denver at peak traffic hours ... and it can be much worse than that now, even with the 6-lane development of I-25 ... starting around 120th/I-25 in the AM southbound, and northbound starting around 3PM.

Unless you are seeking a larger piece of dryland ag property for a residence, there's no advantage to Frederick over many other metro areas of Denver, Longmont, or Fort Collins that may be closer to jobs.

[Hangyourhat]

Well, we have friends there - that's mostly why. I also have a charter school picked out for my girls. I suspect my husband will drive to Longmont and I'm hoping to land something there as well as far as work goes; but I'm reading these posts and they all make me want to move closer to Denver. My husband loves being out in the country so I doubt we move closer to town. But maybe I can find work in Longmont or Boulder?

We're still selling our home in Tucson anyway.....it's been 30 days since we've gotten it ready and put it on the market and the market is super bad here. So who knows how long this will take. I hear you guys are having a tough winter and it's only October! Yuck?