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Here's the deal, I currently live in Colorado Springs, CO. I'm working as a law enforcement officer and make decent money relative to the cost of living here. My income can support my significant other, two dogs and myself, pay for 2 nice late model cars and a 2000 sq ft 3 bed/2 bath/2 car garage house on 1/4 acre in an ok neighborhood. I'm interested in leaving Colorado Springs, primarily for the following reasons:
-Population boom (mainly due to military bases)
-Crime increase, especially on the south end of town
-Long, cold winters (starts in October in doesn't end until about early May).
-Lackluster housing options. I was searching for a new home in Colorado Springs and you either have to pay $250k+ to get a decent house with some land without living in the wasteland known as "out east." On top of that, most of the houses seem to be designed for huge families.
-Brown everywhere for much of the year outside of the mountains.
-High vehicle taxes/registration fees, permits for everything.
-The big city syndrome is developing, less friendly people, more class separation.
The things Colorado Springs has going for them:
-Low property taxes; I'm paying $700/yr on my house that is assessed at $140k. Low income taxes.
-Stable economy, which is due to the military bases.
-Although crime rates have gone up, there's not many areas that you would be afraid to drive through.
-Mountains and views for miles. I love the nature perks of Colorado.
-Close to Denver; even though you only need to go for very few things, it's nice having a huge city nearby that you can go to for ANYTHING.
-Summer, albeit short, is wonderful here. Doesn't get over 100 degrees too often, and the summer nights are nice when they stay over 60.
So, on my wish list is somewhere that stays warm for longer than 3 months out of the year. The "four seasons" that everyone talks about here is a lie- we have winter for 7 months, spring for about a month, summer for 3 months and fall for about a month. I would prefer a little snow in the winter, but not snow for 7 months. Actually pretty much the exact opposite would be nice, summer for 7 months and winter for 3.
It is highly desireable to have some kind of view or natural landmark, whether it's a mountain range, a coastline or even just some good sized hills.
I want to purchase a home that has a little bit of land (at least an acre) and enough room to live in it. I would prefer a home with larger rooms and less separation. This would have to be attainable on a single-income cop's salary.
As far as people go in this next town, I think I would like a smaller city(Colorado Springs and surrounding areas is about 600,000), perhaps around 100,000-200,000, as I like the size of Pueblo, CO. I am a white male, and I don't want to be a minority, but I don't want to live in a city full of biggotry, i.e., I don't want to live in Baltimore, but I also don't want to live in a city that you don't see any type of diversity either.
Cities I have visited and liked are: Pueblo, CO, Waco, TX, outside of Austin, TX, Biloxi, MS.
Cities that look good on paper and I would like to check out are: College Station, TX, Scottsdale, AZ, Chattanooga, TN, outside of Dallas, TX, St. George, UT, never been to California (are there any reasonable smaller cities there?), Medford, OR
I know the requirements are tough, but please help me find my dream locale!
You might check out Greensboro or Winston Salem, NC.
It's a beautiful area with a fairly low cost of living. Both cities are on your larger end of the scale in terms of population, but don't have the congestion you're trying to avoid. I did a quick look on Trulia and pulled up 57 listings in the metro area within your price range that have one acre or more of land. The area has a nice four season climate with pretty much three months of each season. It's a quick drive into the foothills/mountains (Blue Ridge), especially from Winston Salem.
The only though that comes to my mind, is that I knew a young woman who moved from Pueblo Colorado to Tulsa Oklahoma, and says she absolutely loves it. One of the reasons was that she was sick all the time in Pueblo, because of the bad air there, and feels a lot healthier in Tulsa.
If you are going to check out Chattanooga I think you might want to look into Knoxville too.
They are similar in a lot of ways, and Chattanooga has the advantage of proximity to larger cities, but I think you'll have a better chance of seeing some snow in Knox.
Chattanooga seems more family oriented, the university in Knoxville gives it a little bit of a different vibe from Chattanooga. If TN appeals to you I think it would be worth checking out both cities.
I hear you...we are moving from here for many of the same reasons. I like the view of the mountains here but it's really the only thing I like. I find this area to be highly stressful to live and drive in.
We are heading to Venice, Florida. Look on Zillow for the amazing bargains you can find in North Port, Fl too.
I know it will be hot in the summer but I figure it's just the opposite of living in the cold (use the AC instead of the heater)
North Carolina might be a nice area for you to check out too...there is so much more to do on the East cost that fits my lifestyle.
Some other nice towns are Boise, Idaho, Medford, Oregon, Charleston, SC.
Good luck with your new home...
Here's the deal, I currently live in Colorado Springs, CO. I'm working as a law enforcement officer and make decent money relative to the cost of living here. My income can support my significant other, two dogs and myself, pay for 2 nice late model cars and a 2000 sq ft 3 bed/2 bath/2 car garage house on 1/4 acre in an ok neighborhood. I'm interested in leaving Colorado Springs, primarily for the following reasons:
-Population boom (mainly due to military bases)
-Crime increase, especially on the south end of town
-Long, cold winters (starts in October in doesn't end until about early May).
-Lackluster housing options. I was searching for a new home in Colorado Springs and you either have to pay $250k+ to get a decent house with some land without living in the wasteland known as "out east." On top of that, most of the houses seem to be designed for huge families.
-Brown everywhere for much of the year outside of the mountains.
-High vehicle taxes/registration fees, permits for everything.
-The big city syndrome is developing, less friendly people, more class separation.
The things Colorado Springs has going for them:
-Low property taxes; I'm paying $700/yr on my house that is assessed at $140k. Low income taxes.
-Stable economy, which is due to the military bases.
-Although crime rates have gone up, there's not many areas that you would be afraid to drive through.
-Mountains and views for miles. I love the nature perks of Colorado.
-Close to Denver; even though you only need to go for very few things, it's nice having a huge city nearby that you can go to for ANYTHING.
-Summer, albeit short, is wonderful here. Doesn't get over 100 degrees too often, and the summer nights are nice when they stay over 60.
So, on my wish list is somewhere that stays warm for longer than 3 months out of the year. The "four seasons" that everyone talks about here is a lie- we have winter for 7 months, spring for about a month, summer for 3 months and fall for about a month. I would prefer a little snow in the winter, but not snow for 7 months. Actually pretty much the exact opposite would be nice, summer for 7 months and winter for 3.
It is highly desireable to have some kind of view or natural landmark, whether it's a mountain range, a coastline or even just some good sized hills.
I want to purchase a home that has a little bit of land (at least an acre) and enough room to live in it. I would prefer a home with larger rooms and less separation. This would have to be attainable on a single-income cop's salary.
As far as people go in this next town, I think I would like a smaller city(Colorado Springs and surrounding areas is about 600,000), perhaps around 100,000-200,000, as I like the size of Pueblo, CO. I am a white male, and I don't want to be a minority, but I don't want to live in a city full of biggotry, i.e., I don't want to live in Baltimore, but I also don't want to live in a city that you don't see any type of diversity either.
Cities I have visited and liked are: Pueblo, CO, Waco, TX, outside of Austin, TX, Biloxi, MS.
Cities that look good on paper and I would like to check out are: College Station, TX, Scottsdale, AZ, Chattanooga, TN, outside of Dallas, TX, St. George, UT, never been to California (are there any reasonable smaller cities there?), Medford, OR
I know the requirements are tough, but please help me find my dream locale!
Thanks a ton,
Dan
I know me replying to this thread may be a little late, but if you're still in Colorado Springs this year, you've probably gotten hit with back to back snowstorms. Interesting to see where you stand now so please update.
I moved from Colorado Springs 10 years ago after living there pretty much all my life. I grew tired of the cold and snow. I miss the breathtaking view of the frontrange: Pikes Peak, all the way north and down to Cheyenne Mountain. I ended up moving to Houston Texas which gets downright HOT and miserable in the summertime.
Dallas TX is just as hot as Houston in the summertime, but it offers a cold break kind of what you're used to in Colorado but only for a much less of a time. Dallas seems to have more of a relationship to the midwest than Houston too. When i go to Dallas, i see more of the styles and things i was used to in Colorado and it felt more like home. It is much bigger than Colorado Springs though.
Austin is very hot , hell it's hot in Texas. But Austin's speed is more on par with that of Colorado Springs. Although a little bigger than the Springs, it's not as big of a jump from a medium size metro to mega size metros like in Dallas or Houston.
Pueblo Colorado is ok but I remember it being just a little bit warmer, cheaper, and a little dumpier than Colorado Springs. But they began cleaning up their act at the turn of the new millineum and Pueblo West is a pretty nice area. And plus, it's only 30 miles away from Colorado Springs. Pueblo, a fairly large area, but may not a big escape from the Cold spills that you don't like about Colorado Springs.
All in all, wherever you move, there's going to be a trade-off. AS much as i remember complaining about the cold in Colorado, there are times here in Houston where I just wish to be back in the coldness of Colorado. This year's winter has been unusually cold acoss the country and i've found myself wanting to complain again about the cold, but i catch myself each time and say, "Naw it's cool, it can stick around for a while longer! "
OP only has one post. Either he randomly landed on this cite, or given the length of his post, it is a secondary account from someone that didn't want it tied to their main. Either way, unlikely he will see replies.
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