New Job in Greeley need advice (Fort Collins, Loveland: housing, income, hospital)

[NovaTen]

Hi everyone- my husband just accepted a position in Greeley at UNC and we will be moving some time at the start of the new year. He may have to go ahead of me until our house sells. My question is should we look for housing in Greeley? I have read so many negative things on these boards about gangs, crime etc...plus we loved Loveland and it didn't seem too far for him to drive to work. Any suggestions on areas in either Loveland or Greeley- upper 100,000's to low 200,000's is our range.

I will be looking for a teaching position and realize I may have to sub in the spring. Any thoughts on the school districts or schools in Loveland, Greeley or Fort Collins. I'm a Literacy/Reading Specialist in an Elementary School.

We can't wait to move to CO just hoping our house will sell soon! It went on the market yesterday.

Thanks in advance for everyone's help!

[golfgod]

We spent a few days up there in October, looked in Greeley, Ft. Collins and Loveland. We bought a home in Loveland, although we're still in TX. We found it to be more to our liking, smaller than Ft. C. good library, theatre and we found a home walking distance to two golf courses.

Somehow being east of I25 just didn't seem very "mountainee" to us.

golfgod

[OutOfSoCal]

kind of offtopic BUT what dept will hubby be in. My brother works at UNC is the psyche Dept.

[NovaTen]

golf god- that is what we thought- we loved Loveland since it was near the mountains and all the town had to offer!

[mdp_az]

My wife worked at the hospital in Greeley and we chose to live in southeastern Fort Collins. Her commute wasn't too bad, usually 30-35 minutes and a little longer when it snowed. We LOVED Ft. Collins and her commute was worth it for us to live there. Loveland would also be a great option, and would save a few minutes on the commute. Windsor is another area worth checking out.

Greeley does have some nice neighborhoods, but if you can tolerate a moderate commute you'll find much nicer communities in FC, Loveland, and Windsor...and they also won't stink as bad or as often!

[jazzlover]

Greeley does have some bad areas, but it also has some nice neighborhoods. It is warmer in summer and more humid (relatively) than Fort Collins or Loveland. I have rarely found the "stink" around Greeley that objectionable, but I used to work in ag, and that's what it smells like sometimes--a farming area. Would it be my top pick as place to live in Colorado? Probably not, but if my job was there, that's probably where I would live.

One general comment: It seems that a lot, if not the majority, of the people who post on this forum are still intoxicated by cheap gasoline. They dismiss 40, 50, or 100-mile roundtrip commutes as perfectly acceptable. People need to think--are those commutes going to be acceptable or even possible when gasoline is $5, $6, or more per gallon, and fuel prices are rising way faster than their incomes? That is the future of this country. The sooner people get the arms around that the less profound economic pain there will be. People are going to HAVE to live near where they work, or be able to telecommute, period.

[mdp_az]

Originally Posted by jazzlover

One general comment: It seems that a lot, if not the majority, of the people who post on this forum are still intoxicated by cheap gasoline. They dismiss 40, 50, or 100-mile roundtrip commutes as perfectly acceptable. People need to think--are those commutes going to be acceptable or even possible when gasoline is $5, $6, or more per gallon, and fuel prices are rising way faster than their incomes? That is the future of this country. The sooner people get the arms around that the less profound economic pain there will be. People are going to HAVE to live near where they work, or be able to telecommute, period.

You raise a great point here. We were there in 2001-02 when gas was much cheaper than today. However, we still didn't like how much gas we were using (regardless of the cost) and traded an SUV to get a much more efficient and smaller car for my wife's commute. There's no way I'd consider a commute from FC to Greeley in a gas-guzzling SUV now!

[NovaTen]

thanks for all the replies- it helps since this is such a big move for us. I agree with the cost of fuel is rising we need to more aware of these long distances. Luckily both of us have small cars- no SUV.
We had two showings on our house today!!

[Tom Emmerling]

I think Windsor would be the better choice for you. There are many back roads to take to Greeley and the traffic is not bad. Hwy 34 between Loveland and Greeley is getting more and more busy. Severance would also be a good choice. Also if you get a teaching job in Loveland or Fort Collins the drive from Windsor would not be bad at all. It is also a good town with a good school and still has that small town feeling. Good luck with selling your house!!!!

[NovaTen]

Thanks Tom we'll look into Windsor! I guess we both wanted to be closer to the mountains and be able to see them more- that's why we were thinking Loveland. It certainly wouldn't hurt checking out other areas and seeing what they have to offer.