Another Texan Running From a Red State (Denver, Colorado Springs: how much, houses)

[robertgoodman]

Originally Posted by denverian

CO will remain purple until we see Democratic voter registrations significantly outnumber Republican. Until that changes, it will remain more centrist.

Or vice-versa. But yeah as long voter registration in either party is not large enough to mitigate the independents that change their mind (some lean republican, some lean democrat, and the rest go either way) we won't be going solidly red or blue any time soon. The republicans gained a small edge in registration over the democrats due to the enthusiasm going into this election, but it just as easily could shift back in another two years, and it's nowhere near enough of an edge to mitigate the independents who are still deciding things in this state.

[sammy87]

So you are coming from Austin which is very liberal and you want to be around more people like you? I thought blue state people are all about tolerance...cant tolerate people not like you?

[Schumacher713]

Originally Posted by denverian

Well, El Paso County is a political nut factory... we all know that. But still, Colorado is nothing like Tex-ass and the political freak show they put on state-wide.

You have us pegged well. It is about to get worse with who we just put into office.

[TedH71]

Grew up and lived in Austin for over 25 years. Austin IS liberal compared to the rest of Texas. I've met KKK members in east Texas, proud rich oil land owners in Houston, conservative hispanics in San Antonio, conservative cowboys (the real deal...not the ones that tend to dress up and call themselves cowboys) in west and north Texas.....I've been pretty much all over Texas and Austin IS liberal in comparison.

In any case, my wife has relatives in Colorado and they all tell us Denver is now not a good town to live in due to gangs moving in and cost of living is high there. I've visited some parts of Colorado..rural areas and not so rural areas...water is an issue.

May I suggest Portland, Oregon? It's a truly nice med sized town. I ate at the Portland City Grill (can't post the website here but they're really good) which is a really nice restaurant that is on the top floors of a tower and you'll see the snow capped mountains. Portland does not get hot enough to require A/C except for 3-4 weeks in the middle of the summer. Does not always get cold enough for snow either. Only downfall is they do get more rain but everything IS green! Quite different than Austin. My best friend and his wife have lived there for over 6 years now. I, even, was able to go swimming in the winter time on the beach in the ocean. I don't recommend it in the wintertime, BTW! I really wasn't considering Portland til I visited there for a few days. I consider Portland a liberal version of Austin but with more greenery and water. Worth a fly over and a weekend stay, IMHO.

[EricNorthman]

Originally Posted by sammy87

So you are coming from Austin which is very liberal and you want to be around more people like you? I thought blue state people are all about tolerance...cant tolerate people not like you?

It is not that simple. I live in Austin currently. Well, a suburb in Travis County. It's liberal here but the state is not. Statewide elections tend to all go to republicans. The republican party in Texas is extreme. I am a gay male and the Texas republican party platform states they will do anything to keep gays from marrying, endorse reparative therapy, and more based on their interpretation of the bible.

http://www.texasgop.org/wp-content/u...form-Final.pdf

It is not being unwilling to tolerate others who differ from you but being unwilling to live in a place where those in charge of the state actively work against my equal rights.

[denverian]

Originally Posted by TedH71

In any case, my wife has relatives in Colorado and they all tell us Denver is now not a good town to live in due to gangs moving in and cost of living is high there. I've visited some parts of Colorado..rural areas and not so rural areas...water is an issue.

.

lol! Yeah, there are gangs driving into town with U-hauls, just moving in.

Like any major city, there is gang activity. But it's pretty underground and limited, and not as bad as many other cities. I live in Denver and have never had any issue with gangs.

Cost of living... you have a point. We moved here from L.A., so it was cheaper for us here. Coming from Texas, it would seem expensive.

[MiaMia411]

Originally Posted by EricNorthman

It is not that simple. I live in Austin currently. Well, a suburb in Travis County. It's liberal here but the state is not. Statewide elections tend to all go to republicans. The republican party in Texas is extreme. I am a gay male and the Texas republican party platform states they will do anything to keep gays from marrying, endorse reparative therapy, and more based on their interpretation of the bible.

http://www.texasgop.org/wp-content/u...form-Final.pdf

It is not being unwilling to tolerate others who differ from you but being unwilling to live in a place where those in charge of the state actively work against my equal rights.

Im sorry to hear that, i dont pick a side since both sides have an extreme BUT i wish you did have the rights you seek and this is coming from a non liberal person . Wish you the best of luck in your search , i moved from NJ you should look into the east coast, they are more excepting and open minded then down here.

[Schumacher713]

Originally Posted by TedH71

In any case, my wife has relatives in Colorado and they all tell us Denver is now not a good town to live in due to gangs moving in and cost of living is high there. I've visited some parts of Colorado..rural areas and not so rural areas...water is an issue.

I have never heard that Denver cost of living is high? I am just curious how so? You have a state income tax of 4.63, but your property/school taxes are super cheap compared to Texas. I figured that is close to a wash. The housing prices are certain less than Houston in the price range I was looking at. I peaked at your apartment rental prices when I was on zillow. They were almost 500 less a month for a comparable location. Our rental prices have doubled over the past few years due to a housing shortage. Housing prices in the city have also almost doubled over the past six years or so. That just leaves food, alcohol, and fuel prices. How much more could they be? 10-15%?

I don't pay attention to the calculators on forbes or whatever site. They compare the median cost of living which includes people way out in the suburbs and bad areas. You have to compare apples to apples. I know I am going to get hammered on the state taxes though You only live once and I am not getting any younger. I hope I will be out late next summer.

[JohnnyDenver]

The gang issue here is not as bad as other cities, given the influx of new residents and the per capita population. It was worse in the early - mid 90's when Crips and Blood sets where moving in from Phoenix and Los Angeles and establishing "turf" areas.

The areas which there was a gang concentration, have been broken down in several respects. There will always be a gang fraction present, but I believe from my criminal law practice (and being a former metro police officer), that the worse days of "organized street gangs" are behind us. I see less gang members in the Denver County Courthouse (where there was always many present), than I do in the Arapahoe County Courthouse from arrests in Aurora (south of Colfax).

[Colorado Rambler]

Originally Posted by Schumacher713

I have never heard that Denver cost of living is high? I am just curious how so? You have a state income tax of 4.63, but your property/school taxes are super cheap compared to Texas. I figured that is close to a wash. The housing prices are certain less than Houston in the price range I was looking at. I peaked at your apartment rental prices when I was on zillow. They were almost 500 less a month for a comparable location. Our rental prices have doubled over the past few years due to a housing shortage. Housing prices in the city have also almost doubled over the past six years or so. That just leaves food, alcohol, and fuel prices. How much more could they be? 10-15%?

I don't pay attention to the calculators on forbes or whatever site. They compare the median cost of living which includes people way out in the suburbs and bad areas. You have to compare apples to apples. I know I am going to get hammered on the state taxes though You only live once and I am not getting any younger. I hope I will be out late next summer.

What you are not factoring in is that wages in Colorado tend to be lower since the entire world seems to want to live here and employers take advantage of this by cutting salaries. Colorado Springs especially is notorious for this and now the same is true of the Denver area and the rest of Colorado.

As for red/blue/purple, my feeling is that Colorado may swing back and forth to some extent, but it will remain purple with a red or blue tint, no matter what. As a progressive living in rural Colorado, I view the state's political affiliations with a jaundiced eye. You have the highly conservative population of Colorado Springs and rural Colorado vs. liberal Boulder and more middle of the road Denver and points north. I'm a native Coloradan who has lived all over this state from Colorado Springs to Boulder to Denver to tiny Nucla near the state line with Utah. Colorado Springs is filled with nut jobs and the town's newspaper, the Gazette Telegraph, could be lifted straight out of Mein Kampf. Boulder is so PC that I'm afraid to as much as sneeze on the Pearl Street Mall. Nucla passed a law requiring every household to have at least one gun and is infamous for its annual prairie dog shoot. Denver is more moderate, but the wages are low and the rents are high. Colorado is not going to become a liberal refuge any time soon.

As for moving from Austin to Denver to escape the congestion, that's laughable at best. I've visited Austin more than once, and if OP thinks Austin is congested she ain't seen nothing yet. I agree with those who have suggested that OP should look into the PNW instead.