Good idea?

How are the schools?

Best neighborhoods?

Are my High Cap Mags REALLY banned?

What's the best thing about it?

What's the worst?  (don't say traffic, because I'm moving from NoVA)

Pretty much this. And there's no issue with your mags - it's literally not enforced unless you commit a crime with one.

I got a job offer. CS is where it's at.

Good idea?

Been in the area for 15 years, it has been good for me and my family

How are the schools?

Some are good, some are not so good. D20 / D38 have a pretty good rep I think.

Best neighborhoods?

North and Northeast side of town IMHO. Broadmoor is nice, but very spendy and very close to Fort Carson.

Are my High Cap Mags REALLY banned?

No, only SALES of high cap mags is banned. Ownership is fine. All the ones you owned prior to June 2013 are totally fine. And LE does not seem to be enforcing the sales bans. Magazine "rebuild" kits are always available.

What's the best thing about it?

Natural beauty.

What's the worst?  (don't say traffic, because I'm moving from NoVA)

Lack of access to public ranges, East - West mobility is a disaster, Social conservatives dominate the political landscape.

I want land and a house with out-buildings.

The wife wants suburbia and kids running around on sidewalks with a Starbuck's down the street.

Is there a compromise, or must I use my powers of influence and mind control.

There's a few discussions about land, water and other items related to living outside the urban areas.  
. To give you a short answer. No, Yes maybe. Highly doubt it will happen.

Unless you're rolling in $$$ and prepared to drive your kids everywhere until they're old enough to get a DL. That's 16 in CO.

Land containing out buildings doesn't mean there will be amenities, like potable water, reliable internet, any where close to a decent grocery store. The last 2 you will pay dearly for with the wife & kids.

Everyone wants to live on a large lot of land. It's doable, it's possible. It's also running big bucks.

. Be WARNED a lot of those ranchettes. Have HOA's, Covenants AND limits to what you can or cannot do on them.

Rent a home for 6 - 12 months get a lay of the land, then see what happens. Why get locked in to a purchase one might regret later on.

One other reason to rent, Your Wife. You get the nod to buy in semi rural nowhere. 6 months later the spouse still has no friends, no one for the kids to play with, no place to eat, shop, browse.
Believe me, It's easier to have peace during your getting settled period, than find an empty home after work.  Because your spouse couldn't acclimate to the new life style.
Winning the battle doesn't mean you've won the war.

Best of Luck with your relocation

Good idea?
We love it here


How are the schools?

As said above depends. AFAIK district 12, 20, 49 are good. We are in 49

Best neighborhoods?
Generally up north, but briargate is straight up suburbia, you can get some land in black forest but big $$$

Are my High Cap Mags REALLY banned?
No one cares

What's the best thing about it?
I live in suburbia as the wife likes it (out east by Peterson afb - marksheffel road. I'd prefer to be up in the mountains but they are a close drive and in the summer and fall I can just get away for a few days and hike back into some serious wilderness and back country
Where I go elk hunting is 2 1/2 hours from the house, I park my truck and hike back in (no roads) and never see anyone. I love it.


What's the worst?  (don't say traffic, because I'm moving from NoVA)

Having worked in no VA before I here ya nothing like that. Denver is bad so I try not to go up there. I'd say the worst is vehcile registration fees and co springs sales tax suck. Real estate is reasonable in the springs. Pay for my profession is just ok I could make more money elsewhere but I love it here.

On my phone so excuse typos

If you want land and close to Starbucks, look near Falcon.

Anything between Meridian Rd and Elbert Rd.

All I can think of is Eric Cartman singing "In the Ghetto".  

That was my first thought.

What about Rockrimmon?

Rockrimmon is in town, on the NW side.  It's nice, I guess.  Nicer than my neighborhood, anyway.  

As mentioned, Falcon might be worth looking into if you want something closer to the country, yet still close to a Starbucks.

Rockrimmon is suburbia. Nice part of town, but no acreage in that area at all.

PPAR is the Pikes Peak Assoc. of Realtors MLS website.  Pretty useful website for house hunting.

I'd live in Larkspur if had to work in Co Spgs. There are "subdivisions" that will strike a balance between your more-rural wants and your wife's more suburban wants.

Something like this: https://www.ziprealty.com/property/801-QUARTZ-MOUNTAIN-RD-LARKSPUR-CO-80118/13352560/detail

Generally speaking, VA schools are considered some of the best in US, but we greatly prefer the school that the kids are in now to the schools in VA. (and we were in the highest-rated elementary school district in VA) Part of that comes from being in Douglas Co, where we have full-blown school choice.

I love CO and would have a *really* hard time moving back to VA... best part is the outdoors/recreation

Mags? pfffttt. Bring (and buy) whatever you want.

Traffic... irrelevant.

Give me a shout when you come to visit.

Still waiting to hear back from the prospective employer.

I appreciate all the insights.  

What district/High School in Douglas Co. do you prefer?

Good luck with the job offer.  We welcome anyone who doesn't vote D.  I'm sure you've heard this, but just in case...  It's getting expensive and expect sticker shock unless you're moving from somewhere like Kali or NY.

We're in the Rock Canyon High School district, but that would be pretty far north for you.

With school choice, we *can* send the kids to whatever school we want in the county, space permitting and subject to a lottery in some cases.

Good read here: http://www.nationalreview.com/article/358627/most-interesting-school-district-america-frederick-m-hess-max-c-eden

he won't be shocked... NoVa is more expensive than most of NY and CA

After seeing your link for a $800K homestead. it must be.   Are home  prices in the OP's area that strong to buy in that range?

If i could afford something even 1/2 that price, CO would not be the place i'd be relocating in.

NoVA is way more expensive.

How quickly can you get here? It's an election year and one of our senators needs help moving out of the Mom's Basement of government and on to the beautiful adult life of private-sector employment. (Not that Gardner is free beer and sunshine either, but an R who needs frequent boots in the ass is still better than a D who, when he was a special appointment in 2008 was handpicked by Obama himself)

The way the law reads: whatever magazines are fine as long as you owned them prior to 7-1-13, and magazines bought 7-1-13 onwards are limited to 15 rounds with the usual LE/MIL/FFL exceptions. The way the law is actually enforced is...well, it isn't. Not a single charge in almost three years, even after a few pretty blatant violations. While I'd hate to suggest that someone might violate the law, I think I'm the only person left in Colorado who has not taken possession of any standard-capacity magazines at all since the law changed.

I would say brace for RE sticker shock but coming from NOVA maybe not.

Vehicle emissions screening is a pain in the ass, but that's the only inspection we have for passenger cars here and is not required statewide.

I second the suggestion to rent for six months or a year before buying. Denver has a badly-overheated rental market but I don't know what Castle Rock or Colorado Springs are like.

I moved here in 1999. Even if this place has changed and not much to my liking I still like it here.

I've only lived in the Springs for 6 years but I think it depends what you like to do, where you are coming from, and what you are used to. Crime can be a thing, but not bad compared to big cities. Downtown area can get feisty with all the soldiers and airmen around. Traffic can suck on occasion but generally not terrible.
The average home price is now probably close to 260,000. The real estate market is hot right now, it's a sellers market.

Didn't get it.  Job vanished.  Damn...

Damn that sucks. Keep looking!

hunting this year

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