I feel like Denver metro Colorado isn't a good place to invest in my future

[JohnN]

Patrick, I pretty much agree with you. Overpriced, congested urban areas are not an appealing lifestyle.

[Norrov]

Originally Posted by patch62383

Hello everyone my name is Patrick. I'm a Colorado native and I do love this state. I just want to speak my mind about my feelings of where Denver is going. While I can't say I'm right about everything I can say that I think my opinion is valid and my thoughts aren't totally crazy. I currently live in Aurora and have for 9 years which is OK except the school district is absolutely horrible and traffic has almost doubled or tripled within the last 5 years, Denver traffic is absolutely insane IMHO. I need to move because me my wife and are out growing my little 1400 square foot house. While I have a lot of equity in my house but I feel like I can't comfortably afford to move up and into a better school district and a bigger house. I do make decent money but I don't see the benefits of buying a 450,000+ house with a 150,000,170,000 down payment because I refuse to be house poor and I'd rather put the money into retirement and my wife and I want her to stay home to raise our kiddos. I might **** a lot of people off but I think Colorado is going to become the next California which if you like that cool but I myself I just don't want to be around it. My idea is why stay here??? When I can move somewhere else like Wichita Kansas and buy a mansion for 175,000 and move to the suburbs of Wichita and put my kids in some of the best schools in the country. I union and I do commercial light industrial hvac work and would make about 2 dollars an hour less than I do here but with better retirement and health care. I guess I'm asking this because I want some feedback because I don't want to make a bad decision and move to a place I'd hate although I don't expect you to tell me what you do I just want an opinion and maybe if someone else is thinking about this or if you think I'm totally bat **** crazy. Any input is appreciated thanks again everyone

Wichita, KS? Yikes. I’d choose KC/Amarillo/Lubbock over that place.
Do yourself a favor and check out Rapid City, SD if you enjoy the outdoors and smaller cities.

For as big as Denver is I don’t feel like commuting here is bad at all compared to cities like San Antonio, Austin, Portland, etc. I’d rather be housepoor.

Best of luck buddy!

[Ankhharu]

Originally Posted by Beanerdawg

I never understood the point of these threads?

Sounds like message boards aren't really for you then. The purpose of forums like this are to discuss ideas, opinions, and the like.

[WhatTheFox]

I realize this is an old thread (and the OP has probably moved out) but after reading through the entire thread I can't help but comment on the civil and decent behavior of most posts. One city/metro/region/state cannot fit to everyone's liking and one should prioritize their needs over trying to stick it out just because their city keeps making all the top ten lists or whatever.

Post a similar "I am leaving because it isn't working for me" thread in say Seattle or Austin forums and watch what happens. It would feel nothing short of breaking up with a narcissist.

In short this thread felt like a conversation between adults. Kudos to everyone!

[TattedCOdude]

Originally Posted by Norrov

Wichita, KS? Yikes. I’d choose KC/Amarillo/Lubbock over that place.
Do yourself a favor and check out Rapid City, SD if you enjoy the outdoors and smaller cities.

For as big as Denver is I don’t feel like commuting here is bad at all compared to cities like San Antonio, Austin, Portland, etc. I’d rather be housepoor.

Best of luck buddy!

Grew up in the Black Hills and could not agree more although I'd head up the road about 50 miles to Spearfish. The Black Hills region is very similar to here only on a much smaller scale and not a high desert. It has gotten busier in the years since I left but still very chill and the people are nice. Western S.D. isn't for everyone, but if outdoorsy activities and a little longer winters doesn't bother you, it's a viable candidate. I love going back to visit and would really consider retiring there but wifey does not like snow. Spring and Summertime in the B.H. is quite outstanding.

[phalanx]

Originally Posted by Arrby

The argument about being house poor is a matter of personal comfort level, so no one can say you are wrong. I have not had a house payment since I was 40 years old and it is very liberating.
Even if you want to move to Kansas there are other choices than Wichita. I could even put it stronger than that.
I disagree that Kansas finances are all that bad, but certainly they could be better. Personally, I would be more concerned about any given Kansas community than the state.
There are still many places in Colorado with more affordable housing than Denver Metro. Most of them, in fact.
Life is way too short to live it in someplace you hate.

What a great post. The point you put out about not having a house payment being liberating is the most overlooked piece of advice you could give someone.

Ever since I was able to get rid of my house payment, I immediately became happier, and there is no city in the world that's worth having to put every dollar of your paycheck into for 30 years to live in paycheck to paycheck imho. Often people don't figure this out to later in life.