from california to colorado (Denver, Colorado Springs: transplants, real estate, apartments)

[brystireid]

my husband and i, along with our three young children, are considering relocating from southern california to colorado springs. our main reasons being, high housing costs, poor education system, traffic, extreme heat, etc., etc.,. would anyone be able to give us some up sides and down sides to relocating. my husband and i were both born and raised in southern california. we realize that colorado will be different...but will it be a huge shock for us...as in culture shock? any info or thoughts would be great.
thanks
brysti

[corndog]

I am in the same boat with my wife. We are moving from the city of Orange, Ca. next week to Aurora and then within a year buy a house. Culture shock from people we know who live there and have lived here prior is a maybe dependent on where in the state of Colorado you choose to live. If a spot in a small town or city is your destination and you are from Riverside, Orange or Los Angeles Counties, then yes I am sure it would be!

Aurora has about 300,000 people, plus Denver has nearly 600,000 people, so for us it isn't too much of a stretch. We are in our early thirties and are citing all the same issues and complaints about California that you are. I think our biggest thing we'll all have to get used to is the weather. COLD, very COLD winters that stretch sometimes into the late spring!

But, not to forget is that everyone who we have spoken to have either expressed jealousy or regret they couldn't be as brave to take a chance!

We say, Go for it! I left my career, a risky move in my line of work (Law Enforcement) to seek it out there! In my line of business, there is no guarantee to get my job back, but the thought of life there has us fizzing at the mouth to just say, ***** it and go for it!

Hope this helps!

[brystireid]

thanks so much for the info. we have been looking to move to the colorado springs area but the suburbs of denver are still not out for us. we know we couldn't do a small town since both of us have been raised in orange county.
regarding the snow...is it terrible or enjoyable? i know that it can last a long time but is driving an issue and shoveling snow, etc? thanks for your encouragement!

[Mike from back east]

This has been a mild winter in Colorado Springs. Biggest snow was 5-6 inches, in December, and a few others of 1-2 inches each. It melts out quickly here. We had a few nights in December of -15 but that didn't last long. I rarely wore a coat this winter, except at night.

Pay no attention to those TV images of semi-trucks that are jack-knifed on I-70 up near Eisenhower Tunnel, or Vail, etc. Those scenes are up in the High Country and for all intents and purposes may as well be another country. Along I-25, aka The Front Range, we border on the high plains and our climate is very different from the high country. Yes, up in the high country they get massive snows and it lasts for months. Here, at "only" 6500feet elevation, and being on the edge of the great plains, it's another climate altogether. Fear not, come see.


s/mike

[corndog]

Mike from the East is correct with his assessment of the weather. From every one we have spoken with here, the weather is good.

As far as moving from Southern California goes, well my wife and I just finally did it. We drove the I-15 from California, through the states of Nevada, Arizona, and Utah and the drive was very scenic. I-70 was very beautiful as well. It snowed on us briefly as we went over the summit on I-70, which is around 10,600 feet! But for almost all of the trip, I didn't need to shed my California clothes for warmer close!

So far, the weather and the area we settled in (Southern Aurora) is quite beautiful. The people are friendlier, the cost of Gasoline is averaged at $2.73 a gallon, restaurant food is noticeable cheaper, everything is actually cheaper here especially the homes! I recently saw a new housing tract with $700,000+ homes available and immediately I got pissed off thinking that OC caught up with us. But these homes were between 4500-6000 square foot homes with plush everything. I soon felt better.

Schools from what the locals have said are excellent! The area we settled in is unique in that it looks a little like Southern OC, and there is a tremendous amount of people who are from Southern California here. Infact, I here the locals all the time ask why there are so many of us moving here. Well, the answer you explained is the simplest answer overall.

Think about doing this seriously, but if you can try and come visit it prior, we did not have that luxury. Like I said, we are from OC. In fact we grew up in Huntington Beach and if we like it here then I am sure you will too!

[COflower]

brystireid --

Native of Colorado Springs here (except for 2 1/2 years in Grand Junction, CO and 2 1/2 years in the Denver Metro area). Been in C Springs for 35 of my 37 years.

Colorado Springs is an excellent town to raise children. It's definately a family friendly place and the schools on the northern end of town (District 11 and District 20 although D20 is better of the two) along with District 12 in the very southwest and much higher priced area are pretty good.

Just like any city of over 100,000 there will be issues with traffic (lots of construction going on on I-25 to widen it). But it's tolerable.

But over all, I think most people will find that with the transplants we have in C Springs, other than it being a slower lifestyle than say some parts of California, obvious places like Dallas, Phoenix or Chicago, there really isn't that much "culture shock" having visited D and P but not Chicago. With the high amount of military, we are a pretty homogenized environment.

We still get big acts in here (don't know if this is your speed) but a few years back we even had Sting here. Shows come to town. There's a definate air of casual here (as is through the state) in that even at high starred restaurants often welcome people in blue jeans.

One nice thing about C Springs is we are very sheltered from a lot of the winter cold fronts that come through here via the Palmer Ridge which lays north of C Springs about 20 minutes. We still can get some cold but we get a lot of sunshine. People will golf year round here. It can be 20° and snowing one day and 40° and sunny and the snow has melted by 10:00. Hehe, this isn't unheard of either - in December 1992, on Christmas Eve it was in the 70s. We've had a few since. But when the occasional blizzard comes along it's kind of fun.

We are close to many recreational opportunities. C Springs has very little water but we aren't far from fishing, boating, hiking (lots of hiking and mtn biking opportunities within minutes). Skiing is no more than two horus away and other winter fun.

What C Springs can't offer in terms of bigger city ammenities, Denver is a quick drive. Of course if anyone in your family is into professional sports, Denver has it. They carry a lot of the concerts that don't make their way south and the arts communities in both C Springs and Denver are thriving.

As I type this (a bit after 5:30 am) it's already 49° at my house. Love this weather!

Anyhow. If you have any specifics, ask away.

[choyak]

I have very good recollections of the Springs also. My sister lives there for 5 years now (We are originally from Wisconsin) and I have visited 4 times in the summer. The feeling of the altitude basically goes away pretty quickly, and when I returned home (OC Cali), I felt that I was swimming in the thick air. My sister lives in the northwest side, I think it is Stetson Hills. I also noticed alot less insect problems there (less ants roaches etc). I wonder if the altitude causes this. Since I an conservative, where I live now (OC) or the Springs would suit me fine. I have not really contemplated moving there yet, I enjoy it here for now since my 'commute' is like 8 miles on Beach blvd (no freeways). I also have noticed the area seemed to be devoid of trees, not like Wisconsin, more like here minus palm trees. I am also nuts since I just bought a 4-plex there, east side (Palmer Park and Peterson Rd???) If we get the 9.5 richter here and I do not die, I have a place to live!!! Anyway I would enjoy living in the Springs

Haha My area code is 714, my parents is 715, and my sisters is 719. Is this coincidental??? hehehe

[derkatzenmann]

We used to live in Evergreen, in the mountains about 30 minutes west of Denver, and also in Parker which is approximately 30 minutes southeast of Denver. Mountain living equates to June, July, and winter; very short summers and a long cold winter with lots of snow and single digit temperatures. Personally, I loved it, seeing lots of elk, etc., as I drove down to work in Arvada. Parker had warmer weather and alot more ammenties. Winter can also be brutal down on the plains in the Denver area, that's just a fact of life if you live in Colorado. Winter seems especially long and depressing when the Broncos have a losing season.

The better suburbs of Denver are in Golden, Arvada, Highlands Ranch, Cherry Creek, Parker, and the Denver Tech Center area which is south of town off of I-25. Aurora was going downhill when we left there, I would not suggest that area. Real estate prices have really esclated since we lived there, be prepared to spend at least 350K or more to get into a nice suburb outside Denver. Colorado Springs offers a much better quality of life, in my opinion, and real estate prices are much more reasonable than the Denver area, especially if you get out east of town. Schools are better and its a more laid-back lifestyle there. There are also a ton of parks, walking and hiking trails, etc., in CO Springs.

Hope this information helps. Good luck!!

[Enigma]

Hello all I am also looking to moving to Colorado Springs from southern CA. Right now I live in east county San Diego, im 20 soon to be 21, and Im tired of CA and all the crap associated with it.

I would like to know if there is one place that I should avoid when looking for a job and an apartment? Like is northen CO Springs kinda getto, or is the whole city nice? I really like how you guys say CO Springs is laid-back, Im totaly into that. I get alot of greef form my family because I drive the speed limit and Im never in a hurry. (And no I don't smoke weed thats just my personality )

I also love the outdoors. Camping hiking, motocycles, bikes, and so on. One thing I have always wanted to do was go snowmobiling. Does CO Springs get enough snow to do that? Also do any lakes every get warm enough to ski and wakeboard in?

Thanks for any help.

[Mike from back east]

Enigma: I haven't been here long enough to know if there is anything close to a ghetto or bad part of town. The north-east side where we live, right across from the USAF Academy, is a very nice area. The real money is down near Cheyenne Mountain in the so-called Broadmoor area. I've seen almost nothing that I'd describe as a bad neighborhood. Some of the working class neighborhoods may have an occasional unkempt house or two, but nothing to get worried about. Maybe some long-time residents can chip in here if I've missed something.

We didn't have enough snow here last winter to hardly even merit having a 4x4 much less get out the snowmobile, but next winter could be a real corker, you never know. Generally, I'd say snowmobiling is out in this area, you have to go west into the mountains to get that, but that is only an hour's drive at the most.

There are tons of great new apartments on the north and east sides, maybe more, I'm not too familiar with the south and west sides of town. If you get up this way, look around where Austin Bluffs Blvd and Stetson Hills meet, and work north from there. These are close in and will let you live near where you work in most cases. There is a lot to choose from up here. The northeast side around the Briargate/Pine Creek area (I-25, exit 151) is mostly new and pretty, with good views of the mountains, but there is so much here to pick from that I don't envy someone trying to pick out something.

Good luck and stay in touch with the list.

s/mike