Everyone is moving to CO!

In terms of tech jobs, the industry is doing well here; however, had I taken a job with a local company I would expect to take a ~20% paycut from what I was making in CA. Versus the W Coast, gas and state taxes are less but rent is similar. Food is more expensive and largely sanitized for the midwestern palate. As others have noted you have to factor in things like proximity to outdoor stuff which translates to gas/time savings along with less tangible quality of life things.

On the upside there's supposed to be a Trader Joe's in Boulder, as early as mid-2013, which will help cut into the Whole Foods virtual monopoly. There is respectable Vietnamese food in Broomfield and Denver and I found a good pupusa shack in Louisville.

Can't speak to Denver, but Boulder is one of the most bike friendly places I have encountered (have lived/ridden previously in the Bay Area, LA and Wasatch Front).

Southern Sun, The Rio for Mexican, and if you want to take her out for a nice dinner Tapas at the Med (these are all in Boulder). In Golden Woodys is a good pizza/salad bar option and it's right next to bentgate. Welcome and good luck =)

As far as the pay scale I'm not sure where in PA you're from but moving from Chicago to here the pay was a huge drop but cost of living is significantly cheaper. Depending on your field of work there is no real union strength out here as compared to the midwest/east coast.

I used to live The People's Republic and would bike to work year round. Many times the bike path would be plowed before the roads were, definitely bike friendly! It has been a few years, though, so YMMV.

Might be worth a look in Golden for housing; could be cheaper than Boulder and you'd have quicker access for many of the ski resorts and CCC. Something to consider if you're going to be a weekend warrior. Course, you would be further from RMNP and all the great Boulder area climbs. Lots of tradeoffs. Just feel it out, you'll find the right place. Nothing is permanent, anyways.

NickinCO wrote:Southern Sun, The Rio for Mexican, and if you want to take her out for a nice dinner Tapas at the Med (these are all in Boulder). In Golden Woodys is a good pizza/salad bar option and it's right next to bentgate. Welcome and good luck =) As far as the pay scale I'm not sure where in PA you're from but moving from Chicago to here the pay was a huge drop but cost of living is significantly cheaper. Depending on your field of work there is no real union strength out here as compared to the midwest/east coast.

Mid west wankers and Ass hat east coasters are the reason places like Boulder smell like feet and vagina.

Don't move to Boulder, or colorado in general. The place is utter crap. Be a man and move to UT, WY or MT. Seriously, you'll be happier. Boulder and Denver suck ass in a big way. Move to SLC if you want good weather, climbing, skiing and cycling.

Randy W. wrote: Mid west wankers and Ass hat east coasters are the reason places like Boulder smell like feet and vagina. Don't move to Boulder, or colorado in general. The place is utter crap. Be a man and move to UT, WY or MT. Seriously, you'll be happier. Boulder and Denver suck ass in a big way. Move to SLC if you want good weather, climbing, skiing and cycling.

It's possible his choice of state involves the desire for personal freedoms and progressive culture, aka not UT WY or MT. Although there certainly is a lot more open, barren space in those three...

point proven there are obviously assholes everywhere

I guess I'm just looking for a lower asshole density without sacrificing too many amenities.

Chufftard, I'm gonna come live live with you. I'll bring a case of beer and a pellet gun, we could have fun.

Wade J. wrote:I guess I'm just looking for a lower asshole density without sacrificing too many amenities. Chufftard, I'm gonna come live live with you. I'll bring a case of beer and a pellet gun, we could have fun.

Wade, coming from the east coast you're going to feel the infringement of hard assholeism even more in CO. The problem in CO and CA for that matter, is that people move from west to east, and on their pilgramage obtain a holier then thou personallity. When they arrive the level of asshole is different and more passive. At least out east, everyone is pissed and they show it! Honestly, their are better places to live than colorado.

Randy W. wrote: Wade, coming from the east coast you're going to feel the infringement of hard assholeism even more in CO. The problem in CO and CA for that matter, is that people move from west to east, and on their pilgramage obtain a holier then thou personallity. When they arrive the level of asshole is different and more passive. At least out east, everyone is pissed and they show it! Honestly, their are better places to live than colorado.

classic and spot on except for the earlier SLC comment, that place suks dont ever move there. The Mormons ruined all the good rock, snow, beer and personal freedom within 20 minutes of downtown. Its a living hell.

Thanks again everyone, we had a great trip. You guys had some awesome input.

Went to pinche tacos for lunch. Twice. I would have went more but my gf wanted to experience things other than tacos.

El Rey was awesome. They changed the name though, which was confusing but worth it.

Mountain Sun is packed. Also good, but packed. If I had known how busy it would be I would have put my name in before wondering around Neptune, which is also awesome.

It's fun to listen to climbers at the Flatirons. And scary.

We were surprised at how lively both Denver and Boulder were. Thanks to you guys, we were not surprised at how douchey Boulder can be. It still seems like the best compromise between a small town and big city and I think we'll be moving there in February. It sounds like the lady got one of the jobs she applied for, so the mission was a success.

Glad you had a good time! I saw that El Rey has a new name the other day when I drove by, but I forgot to mention it here. Boulder can be douchey for sure, but me and most of my friends just focus on enjoying our own lives (without trying to change anyone else), and honestly, it's pretty easy to do here. And there are plenty of cool people to hang with. By the time you get back it'll probably be more like winter...

A bit late but if you are still wanting to work in real estate you are coming to the right area. We have a lot of building going on here. housing prices went up 12% in the last year in the Denver area. We have a shortage of properties where many decent properties are off the market in less than a month.

It isn't all roses but you should be able to do well if you take that path.

Also I think you are selling the amount of money you make well short. I came from the midwest about 14 months ago (I know not philly) but my wife makes more in construction management here and I make way more as an engineer.

With your background you should be able to find a job pretty easily.

How about considering Golden or even Longmont. It seems more in line with what you want. The entire front range has access to the mountains not just boulder or west Denver. If those places are not appealing you should definitely find a place on Pearl St or to 29th St.

Thanks Parker! I was really surprised at the amount of development going on in both the Denver and Boulder areas. We'll be back out in the beginning of January, I'll be trying to schedule interviews for that time, so you're not too late!

Kenneth, we talked about Longmont but not Golden. Longmont would just but us too far away from where my girlfriend (Sara) would be working. I'm really disappointed because it seems like there are a lot better housing opportunities there. I think Golden just got forgotten about. We really don't know anything about the area and didn't get a chance to make it down there. I don't think we would enjoy living on Pearl very much!

Cheers

Definitely check out Golden. 20 min from Boulder (15 from Eldo!), 20 min from Denver, 10 min from CCC sport climbing and much easier/quicker access for skiing than Longmont. Plus it is a neat little town in its own right and as of now, still quite a bit cheaper than Boulder (especially if you look outside of downtown proper). The downside is longer drives to RMNP, Lumpy, etc.... But close to Golden Gate Canyon which is pretty incredible. So many options.

Welcome to Colorado!

Randy might actually have a lot of valid points about the People's Republic.

Boulder... ah Boulder.
Boulder in a nutshell: A person driving a Prius with a Coexist sticker through a red light that refuses to use turn signals, and texts while driving to buy overpriced groceries from underpaid, uninsured, and over-educated young people paying over half of their paycheck to rent.

Lyons is pretty cool, as is Loveland. Both are smaller towns.
Golden, as mentioned, is actually pretty nice but it is definitely a cookie cutter McMansion type of town.

Good luck, the mountains are great.

In the spirit of Boulder bashing, I thought I might re-post this:

Ode to Boulder

Trail-run Tantra might as well make sense
Where karma is confused with happenstance
There's a solar panel unit newly installed
Where prayer flags hang outside shopping malls
Masters degrees provide anemic speciality
For those with no practical world curiosity
Who think for them the bell will never toll
Worship the body, half-ass the soul
Like the job they work at the health food store
Stocking organics and green products galore
To soothe the conscience of a town rife with wealth
A material oasis arrogantly obsessed with health
These people you see,
They're better than thee
They've managed trust funds with a hawkish eye
And voted Democratic, they'll let you know why
With stickers on Land Rovers, Tacomas, or a Suby,
Roaming the land, celebrating the diversity
Of rich white people, over-educated and superfluous
To the frank human race, unspoiled and luminous
Infiltrating their ranks, to commune at picnics
While hypocrites mumble their Freudian slips

Tevis Blom wrote:Golden, as mentioned, is actually pretty nice but it is definitely a cookie cutter McMansion type of town.

No way! Lots of different neighborhoods with different vibes. That small downtown loft/condo thingy is pretty funny.

@ hank, yeah, Golden is pretty cool.
I have a buddy that lived in Golden, just north of Clear Creek. It was a fun neighborhood. Lots of young people who just wanted to climb and ski and enjoy life. Every time I hung out down there with his crew whether it was Morrison, S. Platte, or Clear Creek; everyone was always psyched and fun to be with.