Considering a move to Denver from ATL! Help us!

[billiken]

It sounds like you'd like it here, with the main problem being that you'll be rocked by housing costs. Seriously, $200k is a rough budget to work with here for a SFH around 2,000 sqft, you won't be able to be too picky. However, if you don't plan on having kids, things might be a bit easier. You can opt for a smaller house in an area with not so great schools.

Plus sides for you: People are friendly here, since there's so many transplants. There's a huge beer scene and a good chunk of the population doesn't care what you're smoking. The mountains give this area plenty of natural beauty. I've found people here to be more relaxed and less focused on their career than where I've worked before.

Downsides: Moderately priced food scene is kinda bleh IMO (there are some good options if you've got $$ to spend), the housing is not what I consider affordable. The housing prices are probably lower than Portland though, so you could view that as a plus.

Politically, I find this state pretty unique. It's more libertarian than anywhere else I've lived, and is known to be a pretty big swing state now for national elections. I have the pleasure of traveling all over the state and my general observation is that people lean more conservative overall, with the exception of Denver up through Boulder.

[oping00]

Originally Posted by alisonofagun

Hey everyone!

I've been browsing the Denver forum and have read a lot of great insight, both positive and negative. I'm trying to take both with a grain of salt, AND I know that only visiting can really fill in the blanks for me. But the boss is gone from work today and I'm distracted so I figured you could give me some more input that's a little more personalized.

I'm a 31-year-old newlywed currently residing in Stone Mountain, GA. My husband is 32. We both grew up in Atlanta and are anxious to get the hell out of here. ....

Why so eager to move out of Atlanta?

[Ramblin']

Nice to see this-- I'm planning a move to the Denver area from Chattanooga with my girlfriend and our small army of kitties next year.

I've been to Denver twice, both on short trips. I still have tons of research to do on that area, so I won't add my opinion just yet. On the issue of Portland, however, I do have some input. I lived in Eugene, OR for a touch, and drove to Portland 3-4 times a month for quite a while (Eugene was a bit dull after 8 pm). The beer and combustible culture in the Pacific NW is obviously strong; those stereotypes hold true. Everything is very cool and very hip-- but sometimes that gets to be too much. I don't know, to me the city seems to be one swollen, breathing mass of creativity that can sometimes be complicated to understand, and as a transplant from the South, I got a lot of weird looks for not understanding the ways of the city of roses. So, to summarize: Portland is fun, but holy culture shock, batman.

[whoisjongalt]

I was just in Portland for the first time and loved it. It is a lot like Denver but it seemed a little cheaper than Denver. I actually liked their downtown better. It had more diverse businesses. Here its almost all bars, restaurants and nightclubs or offices. The mid-century neighborhoods I am familiar with here like Arapahoe Acres are pretty expensive (like 1500 sq ft for 350K) but you might find something that isn't restored in another area that is closer to your budget.

While Denver has a reputation for being liberal, I'd say it leans libertarian. Boulder, on the other hand, is definitely liberal in that rich ex-hippie sort of way.

[brown_dog_us]

Hey! The family moved from ATL in August (Roswell), so maybe I can give you a bit of help. It looks like you already have some good ideas and some great advice.

Originally Posted by alisonofagun

Zach is a big-time homebrewer and has won a slew of awards for his beer. We joined a homebrew club here but all the people in it are socially awkward. After 3 years of attending meetings we still haven't made any actual friends--they ONLY want to talk about beer ALL the time. Well, it is a home brew club. I have brewed for 20+ years, have won awards, and have been a member of a few HBC's. The beer culture here is light years ahead of ATL. I don't brew all that much out here because the breweries are so interesting. They constantly rotate their taps with special beers, have food trucks, and maybe a band. Really fun.

We both love to cook and eat out, and try new recipes and foods frequently. We like going to farmer's markets and food trucks. Great food here in Boulder. btw, I live in Boulder, but it's not that far from Denver. I think the restaraunt scene has some great places, but a lot of 'meh'. The good news is there are enough good places. Bad news, not so much ethnic food. I miss pho and latin american food. There are tons of small farmers markets, but nothing remotely like the Dekalb Farmer's Market. Also, there is tons of good healthy veggies, but they are about double the price.

I am not a huge drinker but I do like to smoke...things...that are legal in Colorado. I have only smelled it twice. I think people here still keep to themselves with this habit.

We have a super cool midcentury modern house that will be hard to leave. It was only $90k so our mortgage payment is miniscule. Housing here is very pricey. Do you love Stone Mountain. Let's be honest, it doesn't have the best reputation. Yep, I know there are some good areas. I was in real estate for most of my life in ATL. If you like it, then I would think about Aurora. Very similar. If not, start a specific thread and the great posters on here can help you. Oh, and your house will be soooo much smaller. Seriously, we went from 5000 sqft and a three car garage to 2000 sqft and no garage! Honestly, simpler is better, but it was still a shock.

We have a few close friends but not a ton, ....We don't dislike kids, we're just...not interested in being around them for the most part. ... we'd just prefer to not be assaulted with God stuff all the time... If you want more friends then you need to be more open. People here are WAY more liberal than ATL, but it's more of a progressive or libertarian liberal. People here tend not to talk politics or religion as much though.


The things we hate about Atlanta are plentiful but include: the traffic, the heat, the people (Southern hospitality means being nice to your face and not behind your back), the crime, and how spread-out everything is. If a friend doesn't live within a mile or so, we'll probably never see them. Conservative people and religion. WAY less traffic. My wife and I think it's cute when our neighbors complain about traffic. It gets hot here in the summer but it's a dry heat and cools down at night. We love the absence of humidity. It's beautiful here, but obviously it's a different kind of beauty. Crime seems way lower. Same amount of car break ins, but way less muggings.

One last thing, Denver isn't as big as ATL or as spread out. Boulder is about as far from downtown Denver as Roswell is from ATL. People here think it's crazy to commute from Boulder to Denver, but in ATL that would be a short commute.

[Claire S.]

Originally Posted by brown_dog_us

I miss pho and latin american food.

Pho is all over metro Denver now, but I am not sure if it has made it up to Boulder. The best locations are concentrated in SW Denver and Aurora.

As far as Latin American food, Denver has tons of Mexican food, but you have to really search for other options.