Commuting to Denver post COVID (Palmer Lake, Monument: for sale, new home, restaurants)

[2bindenver]

Castle Rock. Parker. Though suburbs, both have rural areas. None of these have a terrible gap commute.

[amattaro]

If you have young kids, recommend D38. Our elementary schools have not waivered in being open full time this year. Suggest along 83 over down near 25.

[otowi]

My friend has kids in D38 and is very frustrated with them - says they're an old boy network not adaptive to kids' differing needs and unprepared to handle their growth, and she is looking to get her kids out of there. Of course, every district some will love and some will not. But for commute to Denver yeah anything you can do to get yourself part way there is probably a good idea.

[Bliss2424]

Originally Posted by 2bindenver

Castle Rock. Parker. Though suburbs, both have rural areas. None of these have a terrible gap commute.

Castle Rock and Parker would make more sense for proximity, but we have driven through them and I am not thrilled with the proximity to neighbors from what I have seen. Coming from the Midwest, I have never had a yard smaller than .25 acres (which felt small). It seemed that most of the homes in those areas were so close to the back of the neighbors house that I might be able to jump from one deck to the other. I do not understand the appeal of this kind of living. Especially considering that the price tag in the Denver metro is maybe 15-20% higher than Colorado Springs. Am I missing something? We feel constrained by our budget in Castle Rock and Parker. We would like to stay under $650,000 for a 3+ bdrm 2+ ba 2500+ sqft home and I am not sure that is possible anymore.

We currently live in Evergreen which is a 40 minute commute. It is beautiful up here but since the Pandemic, the prices up here have sky rocketed and we are likely priced out of the market now. The other issue living in the foothills is the risk of fire. We have had shockingly little snow this winter. Sadly, it doesnt bode well for fire risk this summer. But we have enjoyed our brief time here.

[Count David]

Originally Posted by Bliss2424

Castle Rock and Parker would make more sense for proximity, but we have driven through them and I am not thrilled with the proximity to neighbors from what I have seen. Coming from the Midwest, I have never had a yard smaller than .25 acres (which felt small). It seemed that most of the homes in those areas were so close to the back of the neighbors house that I might be able to jump from one deck to the other. I do not understand the appeal of this kind of living. Especially considering that the price tag in the Denver metro is maybe 15-20% higher than Colorado Springs. Am I missing something? We feel constrained by our budget in Castle Rock and Parker. We would like to stay under $650,000 for a 3+ bdrm 2+ ba 2500+ sqft home and I am not sure that is possible anymore.

We currently live in Evergreen which is a 40 minute commute. It is beautiful up here but since the Pandemic, the prices up here have sky rocketed and we are likely priced out of the market now. The other issue living in the foothills is the risk of fire. We have had shockingly little snow this winter. Sadly, it doesnt bode well for fire risk this summer. But we have enjoyed our brief time here.

You're not missing anything. I do the gap drive often enough to know what it's like, and honestly, yeah, I wouldn't want to do it every day (unless I was being paid to commute), but it is certainly doable IMO, especially if coming from the far north side of the Springs or Monument etc.

So given what you want in a home, you either HAVE to move to the Springs (which itself has slim pickings), OR change your idea of a house and just live closer to work.

[Bliss2424]

Originally Posted by Mike from back east

Rockrimmon is good. West of I-25 which means you may be too close to the foothills to get great mountain views. There are areas up there subject to mine subsidence and there are maps that show what areas are prone to that issue.

Thank you for the info and link. That is really interesting. We will keep it in mind as we look.

[Bliss2424]

Originally Posted by Count David

You're not missing anything. I do the gap drive often enough to know what it's like, and honestly, yeah, I wouldn't want to do it every day (unless I was being paid to commute), but it is certainly doable IMO, especially if coming from the far north side of the Springs or Monument etc.

So given what you want in a home, you either HAVE to move to the Springs (which itself has slim pickings), OR change your idea of a house and just live closer to work.

Thanks for the confirmation. That is what I had suspected.

[COcheesehead]

Palmer Lake, Monument, Salida, Roxborough may be options. Palmer Lake/Monument in particular is a hidden gem. On the edge of Pike National Forest and some good restaurants.

[Count David]

Originally Posted by COcheesehead

Palmer Lake, Monument, Salida, Roxborough may be options. Palmer Lake/Monument in particular is a hidden gem. On the edge of Pike National Forest and some good restaurants.

You probably mean Sedalia.

[COcheesehead]

Originally Posted by Count David

You probably mean Sedalia.

Thanks buddy. I can’t even blame that on spellcheck.