Pueblo West-good place for young family? (Colorado Springs, Canon City: real estate market, foreclosed, houses)

[ruddin583]

Hello,

Can anyone please provide feedback if Pueblo West is a good place to raise a young family? My wife and I are thinking of relocating there this summer. It seems like the elementary schools are good and housing is nice and affordable.

Do you think the housing in this area will start to appreciate within the next 5-10 years?(my initial search on Zillow showed a lot of empty lots and houses that have lost value).
Will we be able to make friends with other young families or is it mostly retirees that live in Pueblo West? How is the I-25 commute to Colorado Springs and Canon City along highway 50? Any other information/opinions on the area would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!

[Josseppie]

Pueblo West is your typical suburb. I grew up there and its nice. The commutes are easy and I think housing will go up.

[Mike from back east]

Calling McGowdog....

He lives there and will tell you about it next time he's online here.

[McGowdog]

I think the schools are pretty good for the area and that would include the District 60 schools of Pueblo vs the district 70 schools of county schools in the areas of the Mesa east of Pueblo, Colorado City and Rye south of town, and Pueblo West.

There are a lot of empty homes in PW, some of them perhaps being spec homes, but I've recently seen military folks and others buy up these vacant and/or foreclosed homes, fix them up and live in them. There's still good inventory in Pueblo West, but homes are turning more quickly now.

It's not just retired folks. Some folks just like a bit of isolation, quite, and of course space or land. Pueblo West, the Mesa, and Rye are much more conservative than Pueblo.

The reservoir is out here too. Pueblo West is strategically located if you want to head north to CoSprings or west to Cañon City.

[lurtsman]

I think it is a good place for raising a family. I've been out there a few times and it has enough of a city to introduce kids to being around other people. The weather is pretty great, which is excellent when you want them to spend time outdoors and be healthy. The value on houses is excellent. If you're going to be holding it for 10+ years, the real estate market should turn up by then. At these prices and interest rates, it makes sense just to buy and live it a house even if it did not go up in value. The plot sizes out there are very nice as well, so if you want room for them to run on your property, you can certainly get it.