Colorado Springs Vintage Homes Blog

4 Steps to Find the Perfect Neighborhood in Colorado Springs

Relocating ? Follow these 4 steps

For a Free Colorado Springs Relocation Guide, Email Kathy Torline at KTorline@msn.com 

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1.  Check out the school district

• Especially important if you have children, but it also can affect resale value.

• Visit schools in the neighborhoods you’re considering.
• Colorado Web sites include the Colorado Department of Education and School Accountability
• National web sites you can use in your research: School Digger, Great Schools, National Center for Education Statistics,
  School Matters, School Data Direct.

2.  Find out if the neighborhood is safe

• Ask the police department for neighborhood crime statistics. Consider not only the number of crimes but also the type, such as burglaries or armed robberies. Is the trend increasing or decreasing crime?
• Also, is crime centered in only one part of the neighborhood, such as near a retail area?
• In Colorado Springs, you can find crime statistics online on the Colorado Springs Police Department web page.
• Check out the traffic patterns around the neighborhood, how busy are the streets, In Colorado Springs you can check out web cameras to show you more about traffic on some well-traveled streets and intersections.
• You can also also visit the Family Watch Dog web site which can give you information on sex offenders.
• Last but not least, are there any environment concerns in the neighborhood? Go to the EPA’s Web site where you can search by zip code.

3.  Determine if the neighborhood is economically stable

• Check with your local city economic development office to see if income and property values in the neighborhood are stable or rising.
• What is the percentage of homes to apartments? Apartments don’t necessarily diminish value, but do mean a more transient population.
• Do you see vacant businesses or homes that have been for sale for months?
• Your Realtor can give you information on the Average Days on Market for different parts of the city and how this information compares.
• Zip Skinny allows you enter in a zip code and it gives you the U.S. Census data

4.  Make personal observations

• Once you’ve narrowed your focus to two or three neighborhoods, go there and walk around. Visit on different days of the week and different times of the day.
• Are homes tidy and well maintained? Are streets quiet? How does it feel?
• Talk to the neighbors, it’s amazing the information they’ll tell you.

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Kathy (719-287-1049)   KTorline@msn.com

Tags: Colorado Department of Education, Colorado Springs crime, Colorado Springs schools, District 12 schools, District 20

This entry was posted on Wednesday, August 20th, 2008 at 5:17 am and is filed under Relocation Information. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.

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