Dont know where to move, Help!!! (Denver, Boulder: ski resorts, rental, houses)

[shawzey22]

I currently live in upstate New York where I have lived my whole life and looking to move to Colorado because I have always wanted to live there. I am a single 20 year old male and am very outdoorsy. I love to hunt, ski, fishing, hike, and snowmobile when I can. I am looking to rent so I can find a job, but eventually when I get all settled in and get a decent job I will be looking for houses. I was wondering what the best place in Colorado for me to live would be. Ideally I would like to live about 30-40 min away from the city incase my commute for my job is there and be somewhere in or close to the mountains. Looking to get a job in construction or a trade like plumbing or electric.

[6.7traveler]

Are you set on Colorado? Have you checked out other western states? Montana, Idaho, Wyoming? I would get a job first wherever you can. Have a few friends doing well for themselves in Helena, MT. You could possibly look into North Dakota for work (you don't happen to know how to weld do you? Or have a cdl?), then you'd have more money to play and explore western mountainous regions on your time off. I have several friends up there (albeit with more experience than you) clearing well over 100k with one being an electrician foreman. You don't want to be broke staring at mountains in the far distance. Colorado is a tough place to eat for a construction/trades worker unless possibly you live on the front range which I know nothing about, other than there is way too many people there for my tastes. Be prepared for 10-15 dollars an hour unless your real good. That probably won't get you the lifestyle you have in mind for colorado. A few tips to be less miserable in the construction/trades industry

1. Learn to weld (certifications) and go to an oil and gas boomtown.
2. Get your CDL
3. Convince a local electrician to take you on as a helper and train you. (Good Luck with that)
4. Convince a local plumber to take you on as helper and train you. (Slightly easier than ^)
5. Avoid all other trades.
6. Find some sort of niche and start a speciality sub contractor business.

Of course, this is just my opinion and of course many people do well for themselves in all areas of construction (especially if you can own/operate the business on a small scale). I have lived and worked all over the western U.S. and IMO there are a lot easier of places to get (and afford) the mountain lifestyle than Colorado on a working man's wages. You may have luck contacting small local SERVICE plumbing companies. A lot of service plumbers are getting older and do need help, but service plumbing is a lot more down and dirty than you might of had in mind. Tight, dirty crawl spaces, and plenty of bodily excrement and fluids (hence why a lot of young kids these days don't want to do it). YMMV of course, good luck.

[6.7traveler]

One more thing, myself as well as several friends have had very good luck using a truck camper or travel trailer or some sort of RV to help with the transitions into western towns. Rent is expensive and you don't want to sign a lease without a job. Outside of big metro areas, many places out west have lots of forest service land or BLM land that you can camp on for a very reasonably fee or even free in some areas. Especially if you have a truck camper you can covert park them in a lot of places. Or if you want power and all the hookups you can usually find a campground nearby that will do monthly rates of ~$400 -$750. Then in a month or two if you find a better paying job an hour or more away in a place you actually like better, you are free to go. I have a friend who is a single guy and lives in his truck camper full time in Prescott, AZ and camps on national forest land or on his friends property around the area full time. He works every day and seems to have a pretty nice life, that he would not have if he was trying to pay rent there. I have got to live in and work in MANY areas that I would not have otherwise been able to afford had I not had my trailer to live in.

[Mike from back east]

Shawzey, all those outdoor sports are here, in COLO and other states like WY, MT, ID, UT, etc.

Do some more homework on rental prices for various cities by using padmapper.com but beware that there are tons of scammers plying craigslist; don't let them sucker you.

Most jobs here are in the Denver metro area. The western edge out near Golden is closest to the mountains but still within commuting distance of most of Denver. If you find work on the eastern edge of Denver out near the main airport then live on that side.

It's expensive in COLO now, especially most of Denver and Boulder, you'll need a nest egg and you may have to move without a job.

Craigslist can be a starting point for job listings, or you can call plumbing and electric companies and talk to whoever does their hiring.

Where the better hunting, fishing, skiing and hiking are found are not the sort of places where you'll find a lot of jobs, save maybe the ski bum lifestyle in the ski resorts. If that interests you, use our search tool with the search term SKI BUM and you'll get a ton of info. Don't be afraid to call the HR people at Vail, etc and ask them about work; most housing up there is pricey and often shared with other ski town workers, but at age 20 it can be the adventure of a lifetime.

[Colorado Rambler]

Originally Posted by 6.7traveler

One more thing, myself as well as several friends have had very good luck using a truck camper or travel trailer or some sort of RV to help with the transitions into western towns. Rent is expensive and you don't want to sign a lease without a job. Outside of big metro areas, many places out west have lots of forest service land or BLM land that you can camp on for a very reasonably fee or even free in some areas. Especially if you have a truck camper you can covert park them in a lot of places. Or if you want power and all the hookups you can usually find a campground nearby that will do monthly rates of ~$400 -$750. Then in a month or two if you find a better paying job an hour or more away in a place you actually like better, you are free to go. I have a friend who is a single guy and lives in his truck camper full time in Prescott, AZ and camps on national forest land or on his friends property around the area full time. He works every day and seems to have a pretty nice life, that he would not have if he was trying to pay rent there. I have got to live in and work in MANY areas that I would not have otherwise been able to afford had I not had my trailer to live in.

I think this is excellent advise, especially with the spiraling rents in many CO towns. I have a friend who moved up here from Oklahoma along with her BF. They made the trip in one of those small camper trucks, and they parked the camper on public lands outside of town at night. In the morning they drove their camper truck into town to job hunt and then save up the money to get a VERY nice place once they both found employment.

[motoracer51]

Originally Posted by shawzey22

I currently live in upstate New York where I have lived my whole life and looking to move to Colorado because I have always wanted to live there. I am a single 20 year old male and am very outdoorsy. I love to hunt, ski, fishing, hike, and snowmobile when I can. I am looking to rent so I can find a job, but eventually when I get all settled in and get a decent job I will be looking for houses. I was wondering what the best place in Colorado for me to live would be. Ideally I would like to live about 30-40 min away from the city incase my commute for my job is there and be somewhere in or close to the mountains. Looking to get a job in construction or a trade like plumbing or electric.

Grand Junction is pretty awesome for all that stuff. What is your profession/vocation?

Just be forewarned, this area is very conservative. If you have any liberal leanings, you might feel, well, out of place.