Denver vs Austin (Fort Collins, Estes Park: sales, real estate, how much)

[Mike78613]

I lived in Colo Spgs for about 12 years. Left it back in 1996. I am here in the Austin, TX area since. We miss Colorado. I love and miss the weather, mountains and 4 seasons. Since now we have a family and looking to relocate to Denver area. How does it compare? Anyone know? Home cost, job, bills vs pay (cost of living).

I just know that it has changed so much in time. Even when I visited back in 2002 I was driving down I-25 from colo spgs and got to denver. I never felt like I even left the colo spgs. lol


Thanks for any feedback

[Rachel127]

Hello all,
I am a 22yr old college grad and I am trying to decide where to move. I currently live in Phoenix, Az and I am sick to death of the hot,dry,brown,dusty,unchanging weather. I am originally from the east coast and I miss having a change of seasons and greenery. I have heard from people that both Denver and Austin have lots of job and cultural and entertainment opportunities and I would like to hear from some people who live in these cities. So overall, I am looking to move to a city with the following:
1. Affordable rents, I would like to find at least a 1 bed apt for under $850.
2. Plenty of nightlife, Im young, I like to go out and have fun.
3. At least 3 seasons, I miss the spring and fall, and I woudn't mind some snow either.

Some concerns about these cities:
Denver: how much snow do they actually get? weather data said its only like 55 in per year, but I thought they got way more snow than that.
Also, how green is denver, I realize that Austin is probaly greener but does Denver have killer humidity in the summer like Austin?
What is the housing tax like in Co, Tx has astronomical housing taxes.

Austin:Bad housing taxes
Super humid
Really hot in the summer

If anyone could offer any input it would be greatly appreciated

[tgkelly]

I am from Colorado, north of Denver, and would highly recommend it. CO at least. I am not much of a big city person, but as of cities Denver is alot cleaner than most. We do get alot of snow, but the state and city does a really good job keeping the roads clear. I use to live in Kansas where the humidity was horrible, always sweaty and dirty feeling, CO is totally different, on the flip side you depend on lotion! Summers can be very hot, NOT like Texas. Hot because you are closer to the sun, but very little humidity!
Hmmm, taxes, its hard to compare apples to apples, but taxes can be high in different parts of CO, lets see on our property tax we pay 1100 annual on our house that appraised at 160K, so I dont know...
CO in general is very green, very beautiful with the mountains and wildflowers. the great thing about living anywhere on the front range in CO (close to Denver) is that you are always very close to the mountains! Its nice to get away once in awhile.
Hint: for more affordable homes look North of Denver!
CO is a good choice!

[Rachel127]

Thanks! it seems like taxes are less in Co. on a $175k townhome in Tx, taxes would run about 3800-4000 per year, astronomical! Does anyone have any pictures of denver and the surrounding areas especially in summer? I have been having trouble finding pics, I looked on Photobucket.com but mostly they are of people in denver, not the actual city. Thanks so much!

[mrgoodwx]

Rachel127...interesting post to me, since my wife and I (retired) are considering moving from Albuquerque to either the Denver area or the Austin area. Our 22 year old son will graduate from college this year, and is considering moving to the same general area we move to. We like the region around Fort Collins...and since we are retired, we might even consider Estes Park, a place we've really enjoyed over numerous trips the past 25+ years. As far as Austin, we are going to check out the area from Dripping Springs to Wimberley, but we really don't know if we can handle the heat and humidity of summer. "Good climate" is very much a matter of personal taste, but, in our opinion, Denver summers are very nice (up near 90 in the afternoon, about 60 at night, but low humidity). As far as costs, we were surprised at how affordable homes are in Fort Collins, and the real estate mess is probably going to bring them down even more. On the other hand, costs of houses in Austin are more likely to remain where they are over the next year. Real estate taxes are much higher in Texas, as you know. It seems you can count on $2.50 to $3.00 per $100 evaluation. We found nice houses in Fort Collins (around $250k) with property taxes of about $1500 to $2000 per year. Of course, Texas has no state income tax, but Colorado's isn't bad. I believe it's 4.6% of the same income that would be federally taxed. For someone 22 years old who wants to have fun, I think you can find plenty of that in either location.

[tfox]

Originally Posted by Rachel127

Denver: how much snow do they actually get? weather data said its only like 55 in per year, but I thought they got way more snow than that.
Also, how green is denver, I realize that Austin is probaly greener but does Denver have killer humidity in the summer like Austin?
What is the housing tax like in Co, Tx has astronomical housing taxes.

Your snow stats are about right on average (55") -- we can get heavy snowfalls, though, but snow events tend to be quite spaced out between periods of dry weather.

Denver is artificially green due to landscaping, but the landscape is quite brown until you're well into the mountains. I suppose it might look lush compared to Phoenix. In older parts of the city, with large, mature trees, the city can feel a lot greener than it really is, at least in warmer months.

Denver has very little humidity. It would be on par with Phoenix, just cooler.

Housing taxes in Colorado vary greatly depending on where you actually live, but they tend to be low overall. In the Denver metro area, the city of Denver itself has the lowest property taxes.

Here's a quote from the city's web site:
"Thus, if the actual value of a home is $150,000, this figure would be multiplied by the assessment rate of 7.96% for an assessed value of $11,940. This assessed value would then be multiplied by the mill levy of 66.897 (.066897) for a property tax bill of $798.75."

[nelumbo]

Eastern colorado is much less green and much drier than the east coast. The plains to the east of the mountains (Denver is on the plains, not in the mountains) are brown and dry except for a few months in the spring (if it rains in the spring). Areas with irrigation are the only places that are reliably green into the late summer and fall; trees are also present near water features or irrigated areas on the plains.


There are many ways to do statistics on tax data - this site
The Tax Foundation - State and Local Tax Burdens Compared to Other U.S. States, 1970-2007
combines local and state taxes for comparison. Colorado ranks near the middle of the pack. Depending on which locality you are in, sales tax can be rather high, and many municipalities tax items such as food.

[ditto]

IMO, you'd have to be borderline nuts to deal with the extreme heat in Austin. That just about ruins everything.

[Rachel127]

Austin is still cooler than Phoenix though, I know Austin has humidity, but if you have ever visited Phoenix in July during monsoon season, you realized that short of hell, nothing can compare. In monsoon season it commoly gets to be 115-119 and HUMID like 85% HUMID its awful!

[steveco.]

I have heard that in phoenix too. Also heard that if people work outside during the summer (yikes) that they actually have to keep their tools in a bucket of water, otherwise they are to hot to handle lol