looking for small town in southwest, south central, maybe northwest CO (Denver: appointed, real estate market)

[jm24]

My husband and I are in our mid-50s and looking to retire in a year. The city (currently in Memphis) has been great for work / careers, but there's not much else we need city life for once we retire. Therefore, jobs, schools, nightlife, etc. are not important at this point in our lives.

We've been to CO many times over the years to ski (Breckenridge, Copper,...) and for business (Denver, Greeley), and have enjoyed every bit of it, but are interested in small town life in the southwestern, south central, and maybe northwestern part of the state. We will be traveling to CO a couple of times later this year to spend time scouting out possible sites and could use your suggestions.

What IS important to us: a town with population under 5,000 (certainly under 10,000), affordable housing (max. 2,000 sq. ft for <$300,000); a long, cold winter is fine, but don't want to be snowed in for days at a time.

What is NOT important to us: big city life, a tourist site, a ski area (though we might drive over to the city or a ski slope for a long weekend occasionally).

Will likely fly into Denver, Durango, or CO Springs and take our time driving out from there. Would appreciate if anyone can point us to a few towns that you think might fit the bill based on the limited amt. of info I've provided.

[CosmicWizard]

Check out Paonia!

[jazzlover]

Originally Posted by jm24

My husband and I are in our mid-50s and looking to retire in a year. The city (currently in Memphis) has been great for work / careers, but there's not much else we need city life for once we retire. Therefore, jobs, schools, nightlife, etc. are not important at this point in our lives.

We've been to CO many times over the years to ski (Breckenridge, Copper,...) and for business (Denver, Greeley), and have enjoyed every bit of it, but are interested in small town life in the southwestern, south central, and maybe northwestern part of the state. We will be traveling to CO a couple of times later this year to spend time scouting out possible sites and could use your suggestions.

What IS important to us: a town with population under 5,000 (certainly under 10,000), affordable housing (max. 2,000 sq. ft for <$300,000); a long, cold winter is fine, but don't want to be snowed in for days at a time.

What is NOT important to us: big city life, a tourist site, a ski area (though we might drive over to the city or a ski slope for a long weekend occasionally).

Will likely fly into Denver, Durango, or CO Springs and take our time driving out from there. Would appreciate if anyone can point us to a few towns that you think might fit the bill based on the limited amt. of info I've provided.

You can query umpteen other posts that I have made on this subject. A few highlights: 2,000 sq. ft. for less than $300K limits you pretty severely. I think it criminal that it is the case, but until the Colorado real estate bubble finally deflates (which I personally don't think is far off), "affordable" and rural mountain areas in Colorado are not synonymous.

Next thing. A lot of people are under the impression that rural Colorado living costs are below the national and state averages. Not true. Some services are less, but food, fuel, and utilities are generally as high or higher than Colorado's metro areas. Fuel is getting to be an absolute killer, especially in small towns where it is necessary to travel for even basic shopping, specialized services, or medical needs. My personal opinion is that $5-$6/gal. fuel (coming soon, I think) will make living in many of Colorado's more isolated towns pretty problematic for retirees.

Which brings me to my next point--medical services. There are a fair number of small towns in Colorado with very limited medical services. If you have specialized medical needs, it very well may mean traveling to Denver, Colorado Springs, or Salt Lake City for that type of treatment. I've had to do it, and most people I know in rural Colorado have had to do it at one time or another. I knew several rural Colorado residents who have had to reluctantly relocate to the Front Range because of medical needs.

I have lived all over Colorado and also in Wyoming for my whole life. Rural Colorado can be a great place, but it is no "paradise" like some tourist-want-to-be-residents think.

You might think about some towns in the San Luis Valley--still reasonably priced IF you don't have to rely on the local economy for a living. Also, the same applies to Walsenburg and Trinidad. In both areas, one must be prepared to deal with the predominantly Hispanic population. I have never had issue with it, but some people do. I would forget northwestern Colorado, and even a good chunk of west-central Colorado. I think it will be a "sacrifice zone" (already starting) for energy development. Also, much of northwest Colorado's mountain country is in the lodgepole pine forest belt, and virtually all forest experts now expect Colorado's lodgepole forests to be dead from the mountain pine beetle within five years--with the attendant visual blight and catastrophic fires that the die-off will precipitate.

Southwest Colorado is quite nice, but way overpriced. Also, coalbed methane development is really impacting some areas in LaPlata and Montezuma counties. Southern Colorado has its own tree problems, with beetle-kill in both Ponderosa and Douglas Fir forests, and "Sudden Aspen Decline" occurring in a lot of the quaking aspen forests. Simply and sadly stated, there is a lot of the Colorado mountains that are not going to look they have in the past few decades again in most of the current population's lifetime.

I'm sure you will get lots of gushing suggestions from your post, but I thought you should hear from someone who has been around this state for a lot longer than most, and has made it his business to study the real estate markets, environmental and climate issues, and economy of the state for a few decades now.

[jm24]

Thanks for the comments. Am not really looking for 'gushing suggestions' that I may likely still get; much prefer the truth, however harsh, though am disappointed about the cost of housing. We can afford more, but really were looking to downsize and therefore keep the cost down.

Fortunately, we don't have medical needs that would cause us to be closer to medical facilities / hospitals. And the hispanic element is not a deterrent (it's prevalent here in TN as well). But I appreciate the heads up - better to be prepared rather than unpleasantly surprised.

[Dreaming of Hawaii]

We recently purchased a brand new house in Buena Vista -- 1900 square feet, 3 bedrooms and two baths, for $285,000. We have fantastic views of Mt. Princeton. This will be our summer-time retirement home. Not to argue with jazzlover, but there currently are lots of nice homes on the market for under $300,000.

We travelled the whole state over a period of several years, and looked at a variety of different places. The Buena Vista/Salida area had the best to offer in terms of small town, views, services, and proximity to the big cities of either Colorado Springs or Denver. Typically the winters are not too bad; people say they are in a banana belt.

Other people have posted here about the craziness during tourist season. So you will get differing viewpoints, which is the whole purpose of this forum. You can email me privately if you would like to discuss further.

[jazzlover]

Originally Posted by Dreaming of Hawaii

Not to argue with jazzlover, but there currently are lots of nice homes on the market for under $300,000.

I did not say that an under $300K was impossible to find, just that it limits one choices. Relatively speaking, Salida/Buena Vista is one of the more affordable mountain areas--so long, of course, as you don't actually have to try to make a living there. (That is the dichotomy in rural mountain Colorado. Transplanting retirees complain little about the housing prices, while the people who actually have to make a living there--and have often lived there all of their lives--at a median income of less than $35,000 hardly find $250K-$300K median house prices "affordable." Economically and socially, I can't help but think that there is something a little sick and bass-ackwards about that.) There are a few homes that might fit that criteria in places like Gunnison, Pagosa Springs, La Veta and a few other towns. Durango, Ouray, Ridgway, and the like--forget it. So, I stand by my original comment.

[HappyMontrose]

Prices have come down a bit and a 2000 SqFt house for around 300K is not too hard.

Now Delta has some real Good prices... But Montrose beauty is so hard to beat..


HM

[Katarina Witt]

Originally Posted by jm24

Fortunately, we don't have medical needs that would cause us to be closer to medical facilities / hospitals. And the hispanic element is not a deterrent (it's prevalent here in TN as well). But I appreciate the heads up - better to be prepared rather than unpleasantly surprised.

If you are in your mid-50s, health problems can develop at any time. I think you'd be better off fairly close to the places jazzlover mentioned, plus Ft. Collins.

[Bob from down south]

You should check out Northsouth Colorado. Eastwest is a pretty good area too!!

[multitrak]

Originally Posted by jazzlover

Also, coalbed methane development is really impacting some areas in LaPlata and Montezuma counties.

nope, no cbm production in montezuma county. but yes in laplata county. i don't where you get your oil and gas information, but sometimes it's dead wrong. mine comes straight from the commission's mouth, the colorado oil and gas conservation commission production database that is.

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