Fort Collins vs. Loveland (Denver, Colorado Springs: relocate, income, rental)

[sillygal]

Hi, looking to relocate to the Fort Collins/Loveland area can someone tell me what the quality of life is like there......Not too much worried about the weather. I am really into bicycling and I was impressed with the bikelanes and greenways. Loved the downtown there. Just curious as to employment, and neighborhoods I need to stay away from. Is the high altitude a problem in exercising outdoors? Also, would it be safe to bike on the streets there, I saw alot of college students riding.......thanks, K
Any good "bible" teaching churches in the area?

[xxman777]

If you are not used to the high altitude then exercising at the higher elevations will take a little getting used to. However after a few weeks then you shouldn't have any problem. Lots of people in Colorado exercise (thinest state in the union) so its not a problem, just takes some time getting used to it.

Quality of life in FTC is great. Lots of fun little coffee shops and boutiques a walkable downtown and great accessability. There are good schools, very little crime and low pollution. I never lived in FTC so I can't comment on specific neighborhoods but I do know the north side is a little lower income. I beleive there is more crime there and the schools aren't as good but it still isn't a very dangerous place.

FTC is still a very small city so you will get some of the negatives of a small town, but it is pretty progressive so you get a lot of positives of a large city as well.

[sillygal]

Hi, I am confused! Why are the rents, and housing so different in these areas, they are right next to one another but yet the housing/rentals are so far apart? More popular areas?

Here Ft. Collins, is a college town and the rents seem cheaper than Longmont. Then Longmont is expensive, and has alot of modular homes for housing.......Loveland is small, has a lake but yet rents and housing is a little cheaper. I don't understand. They all seem like nice cities, but does Longmont have alot more to offer or something?

Then on the rental market side, I noticed downtown Denver, and Colorado Springs are fairly cheap compared to all of them? Why is this? anyone know?

[starling]

My husband is considering taking a position with a company in Ft. Collins. I checked realtor.com and found quite a few homes in our price range in both cities. The biggest difference seems to be that Loveland has several lakes throughout the city and of course Ft. Collins has the university and old town area (which is pricey for what it is). Does Loveland have mosquitoes with all those lakes? I realize the front range is windy alot of the time, especially in the winter (we lived in COS for 5 years!), but is Ft. Collins more windy than Loveland or the other way around? How do the school systems differ? We are looking at a house on Loveland Lake, near Loveland H.S. Is this a good area? I had a friend who lived on the north side of Ft. Collins and she did not like it. She thought if she had lived in the old town area she might have liked it better. I also had a friend who worked in Boulder and lived in Loveland. His biggest complaint was the wind. Any problems commuting to Ft. Collins from Loveland? THANK YOU FOR YOUR RESPONSE.

[concoulor3]

Lake Loveland is a nice area, only residents of the Lake can have motorized watercraft on the lake. Mosquitoes would be the same in Ft. Cln vs. Loveland. We live in South Loveland and the winds are forceful around December (we stopped putting up X-mas lights becuase of it) but you can't beat our views. Ft. Clns is a nice place to live. Loveland is more conservative and christian. So it depends on your state of mind. However, Loveland is also very progressive in the Art community. Commute time depends on location but about 30min. I'm not a realtor, but we are moving (not because of wind, people or misquitoes). I would be happy to give you some info. Our house equates to Lake prices. (No Commission!)

[2bindenver]

the mosquitoe population is kept down due to the lack of humidity, do we have West Nile cases, yes. I think your chances of having a car accident are greater than getting West Nile.

We have ticks too. It is best to prepare for the worst, wear pants, sunscreen, hat, water, bug repellent...if you are out and out enjoying the outdoors.

[ymscott]

What? The mosquite population is kepy down by the lack of humidity? I've never heard that. Lack of standing water, yes, but not humidity. The wind actually helps keeping you from getting bit.

Some areas have "mosquite control" that goes around, monitors and sometimes attempts to disrupt the mosquito populations (not sure about Larimer county, but you see these guys in Boulder county).

Honsetly the mosquitos seem worse where there's tall grass, not especially near the lakes.

[Christian11]

Hi!

We have been to Fort Collins (The Fort) back in May 2006 and we plan to move to the area in 2007. We liked Fort Collins a lot, but we are kind of undecided when it comes to choosing a specific location.

We like newer homes (1999 and newer) and our price range is around $170k - $180k, as we are a young couple and cannot 'live la vida loca' like the rich and elitist liberal folk in Boulder. Now we saw some homes priced around that at The Fort and some in Loveland.

I hear Loveland is sort of a big "dorm", where lot of people live and then work at The Fort. Is that true? How bad is traffic from Loveland to the Fort (daily commute hours -> 8am- 5pm type thing)?

Also, is Loveland safer than the Fort?

How about snow clearing fo the streets, is it done properly in Loveland and the Fort? How is traffic at the Fort overall??

I hear meth is bad out west, so I am wondering if Meth is mostly a Greely problem or if it is bad in Northern CO in general?

Oh, what about bums in the Fort? I saw lots of bums in Boulder, but how about at the Fort??

If you had to choose, would you pick Loveland of The Fort to live in?

Thanks for answering my many questions.... we need some info badly!

Chris.

[Christian11]

I forgot to add to my questions:

Do you need a AWD (All-Wheel Drive) vehicle in that area?? I saw like a million Subarus in town, so I am wondering.

Also, you never hear much about Loveland in terms of being Conservative or Liberal?

Is Loveland as well-kept (nice areas/newer construction) as the Fort?

Thanks for the added-on asnwers to my questions!

Chris

[where_to_move]

Happy Thanksgiving Christian11
Please search the threads on CO b/c I have asked a lot of these questions already. I have been looking to live in either one now & if you search the threads you will find a lot of answers. these forums are very helpful...however, they tend to be more beneficial if you asked q's after searching threads...
Good luck!