Moving to CS area and hoping for some advice! (Colorado Springs: for sale, real estate)

[TeacherOfTinyHumans]

Hello everyone! My family and I are planning to move from Phoenix to Colorado Springs next summer. We are planning to sell our house in Phx and rent a home in CS, for the first year or so. We are in the process of doing our research and perusing rental homes online, and we plan to take a trip up after Christmas to look around at some areas in-person. I was wondering if you all would be willing to share with me some areas that would be safe with decent school districts, until we can get ourselves situated. I have searched on this forum and have found a few helpful posts, I just thought I'd start my own because I'm also a teacher and therefore have an interest in teaching in a district close to where we live.

So far, I have seen good things about Manitou Springs (wondering how Manitou is pronounced?) and Briargate, but those places look a bit upscale, am I correct? We are not made of money, but we would consider, say, a smaller house in a nicer area if we found one. Any other cities/neighborhoods that you would recommend would be greatly appreciated.

We are very excited to be moving to an area with a change of seasons, grass, and trees! A big change from the desert!

[otowi]

It is pronounced Man-i-too. You definitely need to spend some time there before deciding to live there - it is pretty unique and not everyone's cup of tea - you could love it or hate it. It is relatively accessible to a variety of incomes, but it depends on your standards when it comes to housing. Briargate is much more 'standard' upper-middle class suburbia.

A lot of people like D20 or parts of D11 such as around Coronado or Doherty, the two biggest school districts in town - both for work, living, and putting kids in school. Manitou is its own small school district and it might be a bit harder to find a job there just because it is small. But Coronado's area in D11 is close by.

I would not rule out areas like Widefield-Security-Fountain - slightly more affordable housing and decent schools - and some people love the Lewis Palmer School District although I think maybe in most recent years the opinion has seemed to slide a bit to more 'average/fine' than 'great'.

[TCHP]

Unfortunately, your housing dollar does not get you as much in COS as it does in PHX. However there are numerous safe neighborhoods with access to good schools. Additionally there are 14 separate and unique school districts in the COS area with all having their own unique aspects for both teachers and students. Typically, the better overall academic rated districts tend to be where the most money is at; D12 in the south-west area, D20 and D38 on the north side. However, that doesn't always translate in the best for all students and while some districts may not be as highly rated with online devices, all districts do have access to magnet, honors, and AP classes, which are all fairly well aligned throughout the state.

Manitou (pronounced Man- eh-two) has pretty good schools (are their own D14 district) and is a funky, eclectic, touristy area built into the side of the mountains that tends to lean liberal in politics. Most real estate here will have small lots with steep climbs or narrow streets. Some areas here are very upscale like Cedar Heights and Crystal Park, but overall is a mix of old, new, and moderate to high end prices.

Briargate is a solidly middle class area served by the D20 district with access to all major box and chain stores. The area tends to lean conservative politically and is near some of the large mega-churches, technology firms, and the Air Force Academy. Most prices here will be average to above average. There are also some decidedly expensive areas like Pine Creek and Wolf Ranch.

Typically its better to live closer to where you work. A cross town commute here isn't awful, but it isn't great either. So working in the opposite side of the city compared to where you live can introduce some frustrations. As such, its hard to really dial in recommendations. There are numerous good neighborhoods in a range of average to above average prices throughout the city. Briargate certainly is a good place to start your comparison. It is on the north end of the city. Other general areas similar to this would be Stetson Hills and Springs Ranch on the east side, Mountain Shadows and Rockrimmon on the west side, Lorson Ranch and The Glen on the south-east side. Central neighborhoods might be Village Seven, Vista Grande, Garden Ranch.

[wilberry]

bring money lots of money in COS you need money lots of money . I have a friend that lives in Black Forest they love the deep snow in the winter and they don'T have to Commute and they have lots of Money. Like TCHP says Briargate is great for families.

" As of November 1st, there are only 925 homes for sale IN COS With close to a 2 week supply (0.53 month) of homes for sale (even less when new builds are factored out), it is intensely competitive for buyers. "
" The median price was $383,448 which is up 14.5% from last year. The average price is up roughly 16.2% at $432,290, coming in second for the all-time high average. " .. this from the latest market condition report .
ENJOY THE SEASONS

GOOD LUCK !

[Harlin]

Glad to hear you are interested in coming here! It is a great place to live and though I'm from the South, I view COS as home.

Climate and geography: be aware that COS is still somewhat high desert but nothing like most of Arizona. I think there has been one day of pushing 100 degrees in 7 years of living here but I have seen it get down to -19. It is very dry here but we can get some good rains some years (maybe once every five years or so).

We used the same strategy when moving to here from Atlanta. We rented for close to five years and finally bought a house about a year and a half ago.

I would tell you to find a decent place to rent, costs could go anywhere from $1500-2000/month. Housing is expensive here but thankfully utilities are really cheap compared to most of the rest of the country. So it evens out in some ways.

Make sure you take good care of the place you rent and be grateful for it no matter what. The laws heavily favor landlords. They only have to give you a week to get out (on a month-to-month agreement) if they don't want to rent to you anymore.

If you are a liberal, you will probably love Manitou Springs! Personally, I like it myself. It is something of a hippy community but it is upscale somewhat (at least in prices!). Anyways, feel free to ask any questions here and I'm certain someone here will help you with it. Welcome!