Help us target a neighborhood to buy a home (Denver: transplants, real estate)

[rschlegel]

We recently retired and are considering relocating to Colorado Springs. WE once lived in the Denver area 20 years ago for a short time. We are looking to spend $330-370k for a single home with a mountain view in a safe, quiet neighborhood near a wooded park with scenic walking trails. We don't need good schools or proximity to jobs, other than for a good home investment and resale. The northwest quadrant looks most interesting on the map. A friend recommended buying a home in the northern side of town, where crime is lower. Is that true, or just the southeast quadrant, near the airport where crime is highest? Where should we target our home search?

[otowi]

Your options are not limited to north if that doesn't suit you; west side, downtown, far east side, etc., - you have a lot of options. The northeast has probably been the hottest area of growth and part of that is simple logistics of where land is available for expansion. There are some economically depressed areas around the southeast but things vary even block by block. There are some high end properties southwest, northwest, downtown, etc. Security/Widefield/Fountain tends to be good for resale also due to proximity to military bases and slightly more accessible price point.

Mountain views tend to be better a bit further east - closer to the mountains you want to make sure you see it in person because sometimes you can be too close to get the view you want. Garden of the Gods area has amazing views on West side. You do need to be a little cautious about some of the northwest (and some further south also) side being subject to foundation problems - old mines under the ground there, settling issues, etc., are possible there. Also need to consider fire mitigation carefully in some areas like Black Forest, west side foothills areas, etc. There are a lot of really nice parks with trails in numerous places around the city. North-ish end Cottonwood Creek, Smith Creek, Fox Run, Foothills trail/Garden of the Gods, Santa Fe trail, etc., all quickly come to mind.

[Vision67]

OP: Make sure you educate yourself wrt soils. Do a search in this forum to find the strings, e.g. https://www.city-data.com/forum/colo...ings-area.html

[TCHP]

I'll echo a bit of what otowi said in that views of the mountains are found further east whereas views from the mountains will be found further west.

Violent crime is general low throughout the area with the south-east area having the highest concentration. Opportunity crime is everywhere and petty thefts may actually be a bit higher (opinion, no data to support this) in northern parts of the city because of people forgetting to lock car, garage, or home doors.

Social and political conservatism will be higher the further north you go, but still will not be of the in your face variety. However, home prices will also be higher in these areas as well as the tend to be the newest and in highest demand with good schools. Items to consider if resale is a concern. Central and west areas also carry good resale value but also are considerably more liberal politically and socially.

Wooded parks with variety of trails will be predominately central and west side or far north in Black Forest area. Monument Valley (central), Ute Valley (north-west), and the various Cheyenne Canon trails (south-west) being most wooded behind the actual Black Forest area. One exception being the area around Palmer Park, which is a large wild-land interface in the east-central part of the city.

Many real estate agents are transplants and may not be aware of soils, subsidence, and foundation issues through out the city. Ask them to find out and make them follow up.

A combination of all these may be Crystal Park. A private community on the south-west side, actually a Manitou mail code, that is on the side of the mountains, conservative, low crime (its gated) with woods all around thus either views of mountains or views of the city. With a club house and pool, community events and ice skating in the winter, a neat place for kids and grand-kids to visit. Resale would be decent. Price point may be a bit high for your range, water is always a concern (they aren't on city utilities) and at risk for wildfire as there is only one way in/out of the whole development.

[abcdefg567]

I would not limit myself to the far northern edge of town, especially with a sub $400k budget. There's much more of the city to explore and possibly more ideal areas for your other desires.

Some of the home search sites have crime map overlays to use while you search. Realtor, maybe Trulia. They look pretty accurate based on my ancedotal experiences.

NW is a nice area. North of Garden of the Gods Rd mainly, but I think it's Pleasant Valley that's nice too and maybe cheaper. Foundation would be a concern of mine, so get that checked by a company if you proceeded. I'd have them come out and measure the home slope even if there's no cracks.

You may like the area around Patty Jewett, Penrose Hospital, Nancy Lewis, etc. They are more mature areas with some of the wooded parks nearby. There's a ton of neighborhoods, mostly North of Constitution, in the central portion of the city that are safe and have wooded parks/trails. Cottonwood Creek and the area around East Library come to mind.

The best views are going to be further East. It's not a mature area, but it might be worth a look at the new 55+ community in Banning Lewis Ranch. It would check the safety and view portion. Pools, activities, trails.

We live East of Powers, North of Constitution. No wooded parks, but we use the Sand Creek trail, which connects to Rock Island Trail, and feeder trails that go pretty far. There's a little duck pond by Indigo Ranch. Lots of new houses going in still, but the oldest are late 1980s.
We like how close it is to shopping and amenities, but we've lived closer to the mountains and nature, and I miss some of that. It's very safe according to the map, but the neighborhoods near the busy roads are targeted for car burglary, and there's a pretty big military vibe. It's very quiet though, which was important to me.

Briargate, which is far north, does have some nice areas that may be in your budget, and may have more mature trees as they are older. It'll be safe and quiet, probably some trails, good resale. Some areas will have good shopping, but it depends on which part you live in. Good soil, and mountain views. There's a lot of ranches in the play portion with large trees, by the mall.

Palmer Lake seems like it would be nice for the retired set. It's a very beautiful area.

The only area I would not live in under most circumstances is whatever encompasses District 2, aside from Spring Creek and new developments. Generational poverty, drugs, etc. It's not all terrible, but most people who can live elsewhere, do.

[otowi]

Originally Posted by abcdefg567

The only area I would not live in under most circumstances is whatever encompasses District 2, aside from Spring Creek and new developments. Generational poverty, drugs, etc. It's not all terrible, but most people who can live elsewhere, do.

Particularly the east side of District 2, except the new developments. And I would add to that quite a bit of the Mitchell High School feeder area, personally, for the same reasons.

[orngkat]

We retired to a very quiet central area and have no regrets about the location. We considered Pleasant Valley (80904) because of the nearby trails and G of Gods but did not not like the access in and out. Considered Palmer Park and Rockrimmon but there are subsidence issues in those areas according to our realtor. At one time, most of the houses where we live had exceptional views of the mountains but trees have grown tall. Lovely view from Nancy Lewis Park or on nearby walking trails though. Monument Valley Park close by as well as Safeway, Costco, Trader Joe's etc. Houses seem to be in the $325 and up range with lots of older folks and increasingly, young professional couples.

[rschlegel]

Thanks! That's all very helpful info.

Now, regarding the weather, I heard that hail is a serious threat in the area. How great a threat is hail to your roof, solar panels in the roof, autos, etc.?

[Mike from back east]

A bad hail storm can total a car, or a deck. It beats the grit off roofing shingles to expose the substrate which then is subject to cracking in direct sunlight but it may take a couple of years for the cracks to lead to a leak. We replaced two roofs; a new house in 2005 with standard shingles which were replaced after a storm in 2007 and again in 2011. When we reshingled in 2011 we moved up to the heavy duty (50-year) shingles that claim to be hail resistant and it only cost an extra $1100 on the overall roofing job. If you buy a new house, try to specify the better shingle. Get a house with a garage and use it.

Solar panels seem to be okay as there are lots of them around COLO SPGS, hopefully someone on here has better info. The USAF Academy has a large solar area along I-25, just about exit 149 (N. Academy Blvd) which may show up in this link. If hail were an issue to solar panels this array would not have been done.

[otowi]

Originally Posted by rschlegel

Thanks! That's all very helpful info.

Now, regarding the weather, I heard that hail is a serious threat in the area. How great a threat is hail to your roof, solar panels in the roof, autos, etc.?

It's not really a matter of if, it is a matter of when - at some point you will need to replace your roof, get your car totaled, etc., by hail. Not sure about solar panels personally. I would say once every 10 years probably gets just about everybody. I had the bad luck of living in a place that got hit really hard twice in two months a few months back - roof totaled again the day after it was finished from the first round, etc. That's not typical but it does happen.