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Hi! So my Fiance and I have been talking about moving out of sunny Southern California for somewhere cheaper. We currently live month to month and are just hating it. Plus, we're not sun people. We are 'night owls' as we work graveyard.
So I've been looking around for information on cities in Colorado and it's just difficult with websites saying different things. So I've come to this website, where I've been reading a lot about Colorado. (We also looked at other states but Colorado seems less of a culture shock and seems like a great place to raise a family in a few years)
We know we won't be able to move until early 2016, but it's never too early to figure out where we want to move.
We're looking for a city with a Walmart Supercenter near by as we can get a transfer from our current store, and will give us a definite job when we move.
What we're really looking for is affordable housing, preferably a small house that allows cats. We want to rent for awhile before buying a house. Around $800/per month. And a somewhat safe town. We know that everywhere has crime, but we like it to be low.
Climate wise, we would love to have some snow. Not stuck in our house for days on end snow, but we do want some. We only have 2 seasons here, so we'd like to have all 4. Rain as well. Rain is awesome and we get maybe 14 days total here so I would LOVE to have more.
I know I won't get everything I want in one area, but like I said, we can't move until ~2016. So I know my 'ideal' standards are going to change.
We're looking for a city with a Walmart Supercenter near by as we can get a transfer from our current store, and will give us a definite job when we move.
What we're really looking for is affordable housing, preferably a small house that allows cats. We want to rent for awhile before buying a house. Around $800/per month. And a somewhat safe town. We know that everywhere has crime, but we like it to be low.
I hate to be a wet blanket, but $800/mo is already next-to-impossible to find in a decent area - unless you're willing to live in a small town on the Eastern Plains like, say, Brush or Fort Morgan or perhaps Pueblo or Cañon City. Housing in the major metros is pretty pricy.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Chellby
Climate wise, we would love to have some snow. Not stuck in our house for days on end snow, but we do want some. We only have 2 seasons here, so we'd like to have all 4. Rain as well. Rain is awesome and we get maybe 14 days total here so I would LOVE to have more.
I know I won't get everything I want in one area, but like I said, we can't move until ~2016. So I know my 'ideal' standards are going to change.
Colorado is a semi-arid state with most areas getting no more than about 15" of precipitation per year, and most of what we do get comes in the form of snow. Brief afternoon thunderstorms are common in parts of the state, but overall it's not a rainy place by any stretch.
I hate to be a wet blanket, but $800/mo is already next-to-impossible to find in a decent area - unless you're willing to live in a small town on the Eastern Plains like, say, Brush or Fort Morgan or perhaps Pueblo or Cañon City. Housing in the major metros is pretty pricy.
Colorado is a semi-arid state with most areas getting no more than about 15" of precipitation per year, and most of what we do get comes in the form of snow. Brief afternoon thunderstorms are common in parts of the state, but overall it's not a rainy place by any stretch.
We don't mind somewhere that's a small town. We don't need to be near the metro. I saw Pueblo and Canon City and they didn't look too bad. I saw some listings of homes/apartments that are around that price range. It's just something to start out as since I know Walmart doesn't pay that much.
To me, 15" of rain is amazing. Especially in the drought that California is having, we get nothing. I'm also currently in a valley so the storms just go right around us. So anywhere is probably more of a rainy place than here. I've just been going by the climate section of Wikipedia (which I know isn't that good of a source) and I'm loving the weather of Colorado already. Thanks for the information.
We don't mind somewhere that's a small town. We don't need to be near the metro. I saw Pueblo and Canon City and they didn't look too bad. I saw some listings of homes/apartments that are around that price range. It's just something to start out as since I know Walmart doesn't pay that much.
To me, 15" of rain is amazing. Especially in the drought that California is having, we get nothing. I'm also currently in a valley so the storms just go right around us. So anywhere is probably more of a rainy place than here. I've just been going by the climate section of Wikipedia (which I know isn't that good of a source) and I'm loving the weather of Colorado already. Thanks for the information.
Pueblo and Canon City are both nice places to live and raise children as long as your expectations of what they are is accurate. I would choose Canon City personally because it has better river and mtn access and still has a relatively blue-collar small town (non-ski-town) feel. Bothe places are nothing like the hip tn towns further up but are still not near the big city jobs and amenities. Expect lots of working class hispanic and some other immigrants in both places (I'm not stating that as a pro or a con, just a fact).
It sounds like you know those things already, which is important. Overall, they will have everything you need and can be great for kids if you live in the right sort of neighborhood. $800 is a bit low, even for Pueblo, but there should some decent options for not too much more than that. You should use padmapper for a better idea of what your housing options are given your budget. Both places will also have relatively hot summers and short winters, which is more like SoCal (but still nothing like SoCal "winters") because they're further out on the plains. But they'll also be pretty windy and dry for the same reason. We've been in a drought for several years now, and may or may not be coming out of it right now… so whatever you're looking at for weather, make sure it's current and not just historical, because what we've had since about 2009 is nothing like historical norms. (try NOAA.gov for best weather info) One thing though… if you're really NOT sun people, then CO (especially the front range) may not be for you at all. We really get a lot of sun and there are other nice, more affordable (compared to SoCal) places which would afford you a lot more shade.
I live in an area north of COS which has been very excellent for raising children because it has a real small town atmosphere, good schools, lots of nature nearby and things like parks, fishing and even a little ma and pa ice cream shop right here. Also we have a wal mart super center about 5 miles away. This area is definitely higher end than an $800/mo rental budget would allow, but it's doable with a SFH starting around $1200 and some lower end family rentals (not many apts though) around $1k. It's probably not quite the right fit compared to Pueblo / Canon City, but maybe worth looking into if you need something closer to Denver and with cooler summertime temps.
Pueblo and Canon City are both nice places to live and raise children as long as your expectations of what they are is accurate. I would choose Canon City personally because it has better river and mtn access and still has a relatively blue-collar small town (non-ski-town) feel. Bothe places are nothing like the hip tn towns further up but are still not near the big city jobs and amenities. Expect lots of working class hispanic and some other immigrants in both places (I'm not stating that as a pro or a con, just a fact).
It sounds like you know those things already, which is important. Overall, they will have everything you need and can be great for kids if you live in the right sort of neighborhood. $800 is a bit low, even for Pueblo, but there should some decent options for not too much more than that. You should use padmapper for a better idea of what your housing options are given your budget. Both places will also have relatively hot summers and short winters, which is more like SoCal (but still nothing like SoCal "winters") because they're further out on the plains. But they'll also be pretty windy and dry for the same reason. We've been in a drought for several years now, and may or may not be coming out of it right now… so whatever you're looking at for weather, make sure it's current and not just historical, because what we've had since about 2009 is nothing like historical norms. (try NOAA.gov for best weather info) One thing though… if you're really NOT sun people, then CO (especially the front range) may not be for you at all. We really get a lot of sun and there are other nice, more affordable (compared to SoCal) places which would afford you a lot more shade.
I live in an area north of COS which has been very excellent for raising children because it has a real small town atmosphere, good schools, lots of nature nearby and things like parks, fishing and even a little ma and pa ice cream shop right here. Also we have a wal mart super center about 5 miles away. This area is definitely higher end than an $800/mo rental budget would allow, but it's doable with a SFH starting around $1200 and some lower end family rentals (not many apts though) around $1k. It's probably not quite the right fit compared to Pueblo / Canon City, but maybe worth looking into if you need something closer to Denver and with cooler summertime temps.
I guess I should clarify on the whole 'sun people'. We've just been overnights for so long it's strange to be in the sun, though we don't mind it. I just burn, quite a bit. c:
I've been looking at averages from wiki, so I'm hoping they're somewhat accurate, but even with the 'records' they're nothing like SoCal has been with heat. I know that we're in for a shock when even normal winters would be freezing for us, as temps almost never get lower than 40º here.
What area are you speaking of? I know once it gets closer to moving, we can fit our budget better (as by then we an pay off some debt and have some more 'housing' money) Especially with a Supercenter near by, we can easily get a job placed.
Thanks for the links! I'm definitely going to be exploring those.
Pueblo will be the cheapest city area along the front range. Canon City will be a little more and is not really a city in itself. The area where I live, north of Monument, may be another jump up in housing $$ but there are deals out there, especially if you're willing to live closer to the RR tracks, further from the highway/freeway, way up a dirt road, etc...
Pueblo will be the cheapest city area along the front range. Canon City will be a little more and is not really a city in itself. The area where I live, north of Monument, may be another jump up in housing $$ but there are deals out there, especially if you're willing to live closer to the RR tracks, further from the highway/freeway, way up a dirt road, etc...
Okay. I started looking at Canyon Springs housing and they had plenty within our price range. Even lower. Which was nice. Closer to Denver but not outrageously out of our price range. We were thinking possibly Boulder as well since they have a great school district. Like I said, we have a long time to decide what to do.
I started looking at Canyon Springs housing… Closer to Denver but not outrageously out of our price range. We were thinking possibly Boulder as well since they have a great school district.
I'm not sure what you're referring to as "Canyon Springs" or where you think it is, but "Cañon City" is not any closer to Denver than Pueblo is. Monument certainly is though, if that's what you meant. Boulder will be a lot more expensive than any of the other places we've mentioned thus far. Don't go there unless you can afford to spend a lot more on rent.
Moderator cut: link removed, linking to competitor sites is not allowed
Boulder is essentially unaffordable for those with limited income. Period.
As for climate, if you don't do well in sun, then forget Colorado. Colorado does get a lot of sunshine, but that also means that it is at about the top in the nation for UV radiation--because of Colorado's high altitudes. Colorado has one of the highest incidences of skin cancer in the US because of that. Just about anyone who has lived in Colorado for a few decades has to deal with getting skin cancers or pre-cancerous skin growths removed. I have--and so has everyone else I know who has lived in Colorado for a length of time and spent any time outdoors. It's a fact of life in high altitude areas of the Rocky Mountain West. Oh, UV is also a major cause of cataracts. Most long-time Coloradans get to deal with those when they get older, too.
You don't say where you are in Southern California, but most of the areas there that are west of the desert have equal or greater average annual precipitation than most of the Colorado Front Range cities. The precipitation just has a different seasonal distribution than here. I realize California is in the midst of a serious drought, but the same thing could (and has) happened here.
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