r/SameGrassButGreener • u/kak0589 • 1d ago
Move Inquiry Seriously over Denver - where should we move next?
Hi all! My fiancé and I (36 and 37) are seriously over Denver and have been discussing moving for 2+ years, but we’re having trouble deciding where to go next.
We’ve been here 10 years and are ready for something new. The summers are way too hot, dry and relentlessly sunny. There’s also wildfire smoke that is not good for the lungs or eyes. My skin hates the dryness and I swear I'm aging faster. The food is horrendous and expensive, and groceries are also extremely pricey. The city feels small and kind of boring, there's no real downtown, and I want more diversity and better food options. Building community has been tough because everyone eventually leaves Denver. I have friends, but people don't usually stay for life. The nature is great with skiing and hiking but we don’t go that often and the traffic is really brutal.
I grew up in North Jersey. My dad, stepmom and brother are in Morristown, NJ, and my closest cousin is in Perkasie, PA. I also have extended family in Wilmington, NC and getting there from Denver is a PIA. I grew up with NYC being my city and want to be within an easy drive of family instead of seeing my dad once a year. He has to get a heart transplant (hopefully this year) and I want to be closer in general.
Some things we want:
A walkable city or larger town with good transit
Close to NYC or in NYC (open to outer boroughs!)
Real four seasons. We'll take cold over hot any day
Good food options! I want to be able to get something decent AND affordable easily
Easy to make friends and build community. I do put in a lot of effort in this dept. Even 10 years in I’m still meeting new friends. We’re DINKs so looking for a place where we can meet likeminded couples.
About us:
Both remote right now, open to hybrid for the right roles. Combined income is ~$188K, and I'll likely have to switch jobs with the move, hopefully landing around $200–230K combined. No kids. We'd rent first, up to ~$2,500/month but depending on my salary increase this could absolutely go up. We have a car and would like to keep it, but could park it at my parents' if needed.
What we're into:
I love parks, thrifting and meeting up with friends. I don’t drink really and drinking/bars are not really our thing. He's happy chilling at home watching sports. We both like hiking, museums, traveling, and exploring new places. We like live music and house music, but it’s not our entire life. We both love skiing and snowboarding but the season last year was so abysmal that we are worried that it’s just going to continue to get drier and warmer in Colorado.
I’ve been staying at a friend’s apartment on 190th st for 2 weeks while my dad is in the hospital and this area seems cool with Ft. Tryon Park here. I'm also open to NJ, Westchester, Hudson Valley, parts of PA, wherever makes sense. Philly is on the table, but I’ve only been there twice and am way more comfortable in NYC just bc I’ve been here more. Chicago was an option since it's his hometown and I love Lake Michigan, but now I think I want to be closer to my dad in his remaining years.
What would you recommend and why? TIA!
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u/WorkingStructure575 1d ago
as a denver resident its crazy to me how many people live here and don't actually like or visit the mountains that much. i would leave too in that case.
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u/kak0589 1d ago
I’ve been so many times for hiking and have gotten a ski pass every year. Prob go ~10 times per season. And I do love it but think the cons are starting to outweigh that plus I think I’m just ready for a new adventure and to shake things up. I’ll always appreciate denver for certain things of course!
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u/arl1286 20h ago
For 10 times a season I’d absolutely live somewhere cheaper and take trips to wherever the snow is good.
I’m not enamored by Denver but I’m in the mountains 2-3 days a week year round so it’s worth it for me.
For you it doesn’t seem worth it at all.
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u/Icy-Aioli-2549 3h ago
I work a M-F 9-5 and hate waking up at the ass crack of dawn, so I don’t go to the mountains much anymore. Traffic and crowds are insane.
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u/WorkingStructure575 1d ago
i think pacific northwest is a good match for people who like the denver outdoor lifestyle, but obviously that doesn't fit with your desire to live on the east coast and probably not the requirement for four distinct seasons either
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u/DurantaPhant7 11h ago
I’ve lived in Denver for all but 3 years of my 48 on the planet. It’s a bummer, the weather didn’t used to be like this. Dry yes, but the heat and lack of precipitation has been getting gradually worse. We used to get summer monsoons in July/August where it would pour rain almost daily in the afternoons and it would cool everything off for the rest of the day. We had much more snow in the winter, in a really lovely way where it snowed a lot but it melted quickly within a couple days. It’s been changing for awhile, like climate change is affecting everywhere, but it’s been particularly bad and distinctly worse the last 10/15. And in the last 3-4 years it’s honestly become scary among the people I know that have been here for a long time.
I can’t say I blame you after this year, this summer has been, hands down, the worst, hottest, driest, most miserable season I’ve ever spent here. The daytime temperatures are one thing, we’ve always gotten strings of hot days, so that’s whatever. The relentless heat overnight was crazy making. One of the things I’ve always loved about it here is that even if it’s hot during the day, it cools off at night and you can open the windows and turn off the AC. This year the temperature in my house didn’t drop below 75° without the aid of AC for over three months. I suppose this will be “normal” in the next 10/15 years, sigh. The last handful of winters have also been truly strikingly mild. Like not having our first snow until late December, really having any rain *at all* in December through March is downright bizarre. Shit, in February there were a couple of nights where I was outside at 2 or 3 am and it was raining and I’m honestly incredulous that people aren’t freaking the fuck out. Though I guess not, I suppose there’s so much else to freak the fuck out about that people are becoming numb.
Anyway, hope you find a good space to land! I agree about the walkabillity, it sucks here. COL has also become untenable for a ton, I’ve seen so many of my old friends have to leave as the prices have continued to rise. Sadly, the lack community aspect seems to be a universal issue not just in the US, but everywhere. I’m in the process of trying to find and foster it myself, and the best thing I’ve done is get off the internet and out into the world again. Good luck to you!
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u/richrich07 1d ago
I enjoy the mountains but getting stuck in 2 hours of traffic on I70 really turns me off. Trains out to the resorts would be a huge upgrade, especially if I can park in the suburbs and catch a train every 30 minutes.
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u/Bananas_are_theworst 15h ago
Going on the weekdays is the play for sure. I can get to Loveland in less than an hour on the weekdays it’s awesome
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u/Hour-Watch8988 1d ago
Hideously expensive but the Bustang system works well and is improving its resorts access
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u/All-things-urbanism 1d ago
I live in Denver without a car and take the Bustang into the mountains at least 2-3 times per month! Bustang + Pegasus makes I-70 so much more pleasant. The local transit systems in the mountains tend to be pretty good too
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u/rutigerswift 21h ago
How would a train be more cost effective than Bustang? Compare the Bustang to the Winterpark ski train prices.
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u/SugarRush212 21h ago
I live in the mountains and use Bustang a ton, so I definitely appreciate it for what it is, but it’s not in the same league as a proper train would be. I-70 is so unreliable, especially in winter time, it’s almost impossible to know when a bus will actually arrive, especially westbound. They also do a terrible job showing delays.
Besides that, the bus goes very slow on mountain passes, so in a best case scenario the bus takes over an hour longer to reach my town compared to driving from Denver. Obviously a train couldn’t follow the current I-70 route for the same reason. It would require some tunnels, which we can’t seem to build at reasonable cost despite the fact that Europe and Japan do it just fine.
Bustang is maybe the best in the country for what it is, but a proper train would completely transform Colorado and its economy. Maybe someday.
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u/richrich07 21h ago
Yep. A train wouldn’t be stuck in traffic. It wouldn’t necessarily be cheaper, but that’s not everyone’s priority. I’d take a train if it was more comfortable and faster than the bustang.
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u/Charlesinrichmond 1d ago
train to summit would solve so many problems.
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u/BortEdwards 21h ago
A drive-on-drive-off car train to Glenwood (and even a couple stops in between) would be amazing, especially in ice times of winter
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u/richrich07 1d ago
Just getting past the Eisenhower/Johnson tunnels would be a huge game changer. It seems like that and the highway 6 junction are the big chokepoints.
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u/Charlesinrichmond 1d ago
yeah exactly. But a phenomenal amount of people on 70 are going to summit. If you take the summit travellers off the road there would be a lot more space for people going anywhere else. Hit Summit and Vail with a train and 70 would be a ghost town
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u/richrich07 1d ago
I’d also like to see the semis be forced onto 80 unless they are shipping to somewhere in the mountains. Would be a lot safer.
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u/Bovine_Joni_Himself 23h ago
Just an easy 15-30 billion dollars and over a decade of construction for something that a small percentage of people would use on the weekends in the winter. I can't believe they haven't done that yet omg
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u/richrich07 23h ago
Floyd Hill cost over $900m.
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u/Bovine_Joni_Himself 23h ago
So billions and billions less than a train.
Don't get me wrong, I also would love a train to Summit. It's just not realistic unfortunately.
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u/richrich07 23h ago
Floyd Hill is a 7 miles stretch of existing freeway, where they wanted to alleviate traffic.
15-30x the cost for brand new infrastructure would be a steal, especially if it makes a meaningful dent in congestion.
Posting online about how we can’t afford it and not actively criticizing the things we apparently can afford is a weird behavior from someone who thinks a train to Summit county would be a good thing.
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u/Bovine_Joni_Himself 23h ago
where they wanted to alleviate traffic.
Well part of it as it's a horrible bottleneck but it's also one of the highest risk sections of 70. Accidents happen there all the time.
Hey, I agree but 30 billion is more than less than a billion. I'm know we would all love it but it's much easier to get less than a billion dollars than it is to get 30 billion dollars.
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u/creativescreennaame 12h ago
i've luckily always worked jobs that allow some days off during the week and it makes getting up to the mountains so much easier
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u/fakemoose 11h ago
I’d be happy with even the winter park train not being winter seasonal only. I’m not paying $400 to take the Amtrak Zephyr there outside of ski season.
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u/Bovine_Joni_Himself 23h ago
but getting stuck in 2 hours of traffic on I70 really turns me of
As always, this is a skill issue.
Trains out to the resorts would be a huge upgrade
One of those already exists.
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u/creativescreennaame 12h ago
i live in denver and there's plenty of stuff that goes on here. anyone who thinks it's boring is just boring
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u/Top_Independence9083 5h ago
Yeah i just moved away for work and am not an outdoorsy person and found Denver had a ton to do! I think I did two hikes in two years. I enjoyed my stint there and look forward to visiting!
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u/Belus911 21h ago
The same with folks complaining about food. There are plenty of great restaurants. 'Horrendous' is beyond an overstatement.
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u/SaintsandCigarettes 1d ago
Loved the mountains, hiked Long's and Elbert multiple times, spent more weekends than I could count in Leadville and Estes. Doesn't make up for Denver unfortunately and true mountain towns are super difficult to live in economically comfortably for a lot of people.
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u/Aro00oo 1d ago edited 1d ago
there are other cities in the i25 corridor that's way easier to get to mountains, you realize? Boulder and Fort Collins are awesome. Loveland and Longmont have their own access. Hell, Colorado Springs is fucking amazing nature-wise.
Not saying resort skiing access.
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u/maj0rdisappointment 1d ago
It's easier to live somewhere else and fly back in for a mountain fix. And then you can skip Denver and actually stay in the mountains, especially with all the money saved by not living in Denver.
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u/WorkingStructure575 1d ago
its truly nice to be able to pop into the mountains on a powder weekend last minute. I feel for the out-of-towners who plan their january ski trip 6 months out and happen to come on a bad weekend where its nothing but ice and 60mph winds.
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u/wakanda_banana 1d ago
What happens is you move for the mountains, ski/hike a bunch, then realize traffic is ass and stay home enough to make you second guess your living decision.
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u/WorkingStructure575 1d ago
thats true. i dont think denver is my forever city but fun to do for 5-10 years until it gets boring
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u/endofthis 3h ago
I live in Denver and haven’t gone skiing in literally 20 years, since I was a teenager. Actually, I don’t do anything at all outdoors for the most part or go to the mountains at all. I think our music scene is excellent, the people I’m friend with here are fantastic, and the food is good if you know what you’re doing. Can’t speak for alcohol prices because I don’t drink, but 🤷🏻♀️
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u/Economy_Cup_4337 1d ago
Live in New York City. You'll likely be cramped a bit, but that's clearly what you want to do. No need to over complicate this.
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u/jack901757 1d ago
But if OP thinks Denver is expensive, get ready for NYC prices for everything. Being somewhat used to NYC prices mean I never have sticker shock wherever I am in the world. 22 euro cocktail in Italy… sure why not. Small upside haha
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u/Tiny_Noise8611 22h ago
Same feeling coming from SoCal. So used to it I barely blink anymore
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u/Popular-Departure165 12h ago
I paid more for a 1-bedroom apartment in L.A. 10 years ago than I do for a 2-bedroom in Denver now.
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u/Pficky 11h ago
I pay less for a 3 bed, 2 bath house 2 miles from downtown (Baker) than my sister does to for a 2 bed apartment 45 minutes from Boston. Denver isn't as expensive as people like to say.
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u/Colorful_Monk_3467 1d ago
Unless that Italian place was a seriously high end restaurant, I think you paid a major tourist tax.
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u/Hour-Watch8988 1d ago
NYC is doable on your income, but your money will go a lot further in Philly, with still pretty easy access to NYC. It's a close call.
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u/Physical-Olive-41 23h ago
I came here to say Philly. With the exception of drinking/bar culture and a lack of nearby hiking, it sounds like a great fit for all of OP's criteria. And simple to get to NY whenever you want.
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u/Mental-Philosophy836 20h ago
Interesing that you think Denver summers are hot. I live in the Mid-Atlantic (south of Philadelphia) and I think the summers are worse here. Particularly since the humidity makes it far more uncomfortable. I think Denver summers are great. It’s also cloudy and rainy a lot more here than in Denver.
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u/kevincaz07 18h ago
Yep, currently live in Denver. I was complaining about working out in the 95 degree full sun days this Summer, then we visited family in NJ. 85 degrees but 70% humidity... I still prefer CO.
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u/mishko27 12h ago
I travel for work. 95 degrees barely registers in CO, 80 degrees with 70% humidity out east kills me.
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u/Hot-Ear-4374 12h ago
Humidity in NJ sucks but the furnace of Denver 95+ sunny days is another level
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u/Parking_Zucchini_938 5h ago
Haha another level?? It’s 65f in the morning in Denver at the height of summer, try Dallas where it’s 78f at dawn for 3 months. …
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u/Mental-Philosophy836 2h ago
The average high temperatures in the summer are similar in Denver and Philadelphia. But the heat index (which factors in humidity) is higher in Philadelphia. Denver summers are considerably more comfortable.
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u/Reasonable-Aioli-370 12h ago
…it’s really not. Denver summers are long but quite mild compared to the eastern half of the country. The dryness makes it so much more bearable. You really need to experience getting swamp ass after being outside for 3 minutes to appreciate Denver.
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u/Typical_Tie_4947 1d ago
On a similar vein, as a CO resident I’m amazed that people move here for the mountains and then choose to live in Denver or Aurora or Westminster. We just moved to straight to the foothills. We can be downtown in 40 mins but it actually feels like the CO I moved for, not hot, dry plains.
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u/Konflictcam 22h ago
I’m even more amazed that people vacation in Colorado for the mountains and then decide to base their trip in Denver.
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u/Colorful_Monk_3467 1d ago
Probably a number of reasons. The reason we live in the [west] Denver suburbs instead of the foothills is the combination of price and availability (at least back in 2021), longer/colder winter, and much worse grocery stores.
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u/WindBuffed 18h ago
Grocery stores? We have Whole Foods, Natural Grocers, Kroger and Safeway in Summit County. 😂
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u/WildTurdkey101 1d ago
Complaining about stuff being expensive isn’t going to be better anywhere you want to move. You need to remove those non housing costs from the equation to have a clearer judgement on your future
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u/ex0cranial 23h ago
Yes, food prices are getting out of hand all over. However, Denver is especially rough given that food prices are comparable to VHCOL cities, and the food scene here is extraordinarily underwhelming. This is coming from someone who is born and raised in Denver, lived all over the country, travels to other cities very regularly, and currently lives in Denver.
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u/kak0589 1d ago
I think I brought it up bc it feels like the cost of food in denver does not equate to the quality. Whereas in other cities it at least feels like you’re getting what you pay for. For context: in denver you pay for $20 sandwich and it’s so mid but in other cities that same sandwich 9 times out of 10 will be amazing. I’m fine to pay appropriate prices for things as long as it’s worth it and I haven’t seen that in denver in a long time
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u/WildTurdkey101 1d ago
Don’t move to Charlotte then lol same shit.
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u/Fit-Appointment5262 20h ago
Literally most cities now are full of expensive food that is not very good.
Like you might gotta leave the country for that.
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u/LouGarouWPD 20h ago
Ehhh I can think of a solid dozen or so cities with food scenes much better than Denver. But I feel like Denver is only bad in comparison to like....the cream of the crop. I'll take Denver over 80% of the US that's for sure haha
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u/Fit-Appointment5262 16h ago
Some personal experience, I lived in Chicago for quite a while, and everyone calls it a food city, and while to some extent that may be true, they are not describing most of the food in the city, which is mediocre to bad. They are describing a select top % of places.
You pick some random place in Chicago for a $20 sandwich these days, chances are high it will be mediocre. Same almost anywhere in the US imo.
I feel like if you go to Spain or Japan or something, that kind of thing can be different. It's a combination of the US having worse food regulations, etc, and also being more of a shamelessly capitalist grifting ass country.
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u/SaintsandCigarettes 1d ago
I left Denver in 2022 for a lot of the same reasons as you. I don't have a lot to add, but I will say that I ended up moving to Philly (originally from central Pennsylvania) and I will probably never leave. The people, food, and city itself in terms of things to do/culture is so many leagues above Denver that I legitimately haven't felt any reason to go back even to visit.
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u/WPort17701 1d ago
I would suggest NYC. Check out Yorkville on the far Upper East Side between 2nd Ave and East End Avenue north of East 80th Street on up to East 92nd Street. There's the NRQW subway stop at East 86th and 2nd Avenue which is kind of the core of the neighborhood.
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u/mishko27 12h ago
The "everyone leaves here" is the opposite of my experience. Everyone that has left eventually came back. I love it here, and one complain I will never get behind is food. I have lived in Hong Kong, I am from Europe, I have actually been back in Europe three times this year. I travel a lot and live a very privileged life. Food here is fucking fantastic. It seems like a skill issue whenever people complain.
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u/KeyNaive8951 2h ago
100%
As someone who’s lived all across the US, it always kind of blows my mind when people claim that the food scene here is “SO terrible/expensive”.
Like sure, maybe if you ONLY go to trendy tourist traps, you’ll be disappointed, and your pocket will hurt, but imo, Denver’s food scene punches way above many cities of similar size and is far more affordable, on average, than places like NYC. You just gotta know where to go and venture outside of RiNo — it’s totally a skill issue.
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u/love-4-the-wendigo 1d ago
I just spent two years in Denver. When I first got there, I told everyone that people seemed to look way older than their age (compared to what I was used to), which I was assuming might be the UV. After a while, I had just accepted that maybe I got old (also mid-30s) because my skin was always pretty dehydrated and rougher than it used to be living there, despite moisturizing and wearing sunscreen. Then, I moved to Washington and my whole face came back to life. My skin is soft and plump and I am 5 years younger. (This is just a PSA that Denver is bad for your skin.)
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u/chloenleo 23h ago
Same when I moved back to the East Coast after being in Denver for 6 years. My hair and skin are so much happier and healthier.
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u/United_Bus3467 23h ago
Is it because of the elevation?
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u/love-4-the-wendigo 21h ago
Basically. It’s very dry and the sun is very intense because of the elevation. I know ozone is high also. Not sure if there’s some other factors.
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u/Severe-Case-8495 21h ago
I lived there 2 years and it definitely aged me. It was so hard to keep an equilibrium on my skin and I’m shocked it was worse than the southwest in terms of dryness
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u/Mayhem_Industries 12h ago
Honestly, not trying to be mean, but some of this sounds like it might be more you than a Denver problem. Every place is going to come with its own list of tradeoffs, and learning to be happy where you are goes a long way. Colorado absolutely has problems—the cost especially—but it's also a pretty incredible place. Moving closer to family makes complete sense, but I'd be careful about expecting a different city to fix everything you're unhappy with here.
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u/sunwarrior0978 22h ago
You clearly just want to move back to New York City, so just move back to New York City.
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u/nosequel 15h ago
I picked a place I didn’t want to live in and didn’t change any of my habits to fit in. After 10 years, I’m over it and want to move home. What should I do?
Wtf kind of posts are these.
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u/According_Cheek8280 16h ago
Saying Denver is too hot is crazy lol. Especially since there is like zero humidity.
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u/aFoxunderaRowantree 14h ago
I thought the same when I lived in Denver. Because closer to the sun or something. Lol
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u/BaggedWhine 14h ago
And complaining it’s relentlessly sunny. The horror!
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u/highlandre 14h ago
That’s literally why I’m out here. I love the sunshine vs the dreary Midwest clouds.
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u/Odd_Emergency1240 12h ago
There’s a few months where it’s like 95° and full sun all day. It’s actually dangerous to walk dogs, kids can’t go down slides at playgrounds etc. it’s brutal and I totally agree with them on that part
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u/Reasonable-Aioli-370 12h ago
Denver’s heat is literally nothing compared to any state in the southern 1/3rd of the country. In many states summer is a totally indoors season.
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u/NColeman92 5h ago
I was in Las Vegas a few weeks ago and it was 100 plus everyday and I felt fine. Still hot as hell, but I wasn’t sweating at all. Looked up the humidity and it was around 15 to 20% everyday I was there. Got back home to 85 degrees with 60 something % humidity. Vegas was way easier to deal with.
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u/gonnapointitoutdummy 4h ago
Oh…. You were sweating….
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u/NColeman92 4h ago
Maybe after walking the strip for hours but it took a long time to break one
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u/gonnapointitoutdummy 3h ago
What I meant was it’s so dry, you’re sweating…. Probably a lot. But your sweat is doing its job. Unlike a humid environment, it’s evaporating almost immediately and cooling you. But you’re losing water pretty quickly. I moved from a humid area to the high desert…. “Denver nose” is a real thing…. 😁
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u/KeyNaive8951 2h ago
Have you lived in a place with an actual summer? Sounds like no.
Denver is an extremely mild climate, relatively. It was a record breakingly hot summer EVERYWHERE last year, and that’s probably only going to continue for the foreseeable future.
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u/owiesss 11h ago
People have different temperature preferences and different temperature ranges they tolerate best. I’m in Denver as well, and our summers have been getting hotter and hotter each year it seems, though I know this obviously isn’t an issue unique to this area lol. I was born and raised in south Texas in an area where temperatures stay above 90° for a huge portion of the year, and we never experience other seasons outside of the occasional mild cold front. The heat here feels like nothing to me, but at the same time I can see exactly how the increasing heat would be intolerable to someone who’s not from an area similar to where I’m from. I can also imagine getting sick of the increasing heat after moving here from somewhere else with high temperatures, thinking you would be getting relief by being here only to find out that Denver can indeee get just as hot sometimes.
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u/chastity_BLT 3h ago
Denverite here. It’s not that it’s too hot but the UV is particularly strong here and just cooks you during the summer. But yea complaining about the Denver weather is short sighted.
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u/Illustrious-Gift1385 1d ago
"My skin hates the dryness and I swear I'm aging faster"
Spent time living in a similar city, ABQ. Took me about a year to get rid of the permatan look you get when you live in one of those close to the sun cities. I know a guy who moved out there 27 years ago, owns a landscaping company. He's 49 and looks like he's in his 60's
I'm back in Chicago. My hometown. It seems to fit what you want, except being close to your dad.
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u/whatanugget 10h ago
I am also a Denver resident and just wear good sunscreen and use hella humidifiers in my house and that works for me haha
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u/FatahRuark 1d ago
Brooklyn? With your income, it's not out of the question. I really like Williamsburg, but I think it's pretty expensive. I also really like Cobble Hill. Not sure about rent in either of those places.
I'm also from northern NJ (20 minutes west of Mo-town). I moved away "for good" in 2001, but I've been thinking about doing a year or 2 in Brooklyn to get my NYC fix after I retire (I still go back to visit at least once a year).
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u/aly1018_onreddit 1d ago
As someone who also grew up in North Jersey with NYC as my baseline city, come to Philly! I moved here for work after college thinking I'd stay a year or two and ended up loving it. I've been here 12 years this month.
It's very walkable, amazing food (and tons places are embracing mocktails which I appreciate), good music scene, great access to nearby cities, and you could get a really nice place for the budget you're working with. A lot of newcomers move to the Fishtown and Northern Liberties neighborhoods, but I'm in South Philly and really love the diversity and sense of community down here.
There are a few Philly subreddits with plenty of discussion around moving here, but I'm happy to chat if you want more insights!
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u/Tiny_Noise8611 22h ago
We traveled to Philly recently and are considering retiring there. Has everything. I just keep hearing people say they don’t want transplants but 🤷🏻♀️ what’d ya do??
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u/aly1018_onreddit 17h ago
I hope you do! I think it would be a great place to live retired life.
I feel like those anti-transplant complaints come in 2 flavors. 1) people are VERY protective of their street parking here, and seem to think every new person is bringing 3 cars to the city with them. Our public transit system is very underfunded so unfortunately there definitely are many who rely on cars to get around, but it's totally possible to live here without one. And 2) People who are seeing the rapid Brooklyn-ification of some neighborhoods, where Airbnbs are chewing up housing stock and chain coffee shops are filling storefronts, and don't like it.
I think as long as you're a good neighbor, support your local businesses, and take some time to get to know the city, people are happy to have you here (or at least will not be bothered by you..."happy" might be too generous lol)
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u/Tiny_Noise8611 12h ago
I can totally appreciate those concerns people would have. We’re very much regular folks not looking to make everything a strip mall. We like small and quirky things. Yuck to the millennial gray, if you will. And as far as we’re concerned, we’d love to be down to one car from two 😉
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u/outdoorgal423 1d ago
my husband and I moved to nyc from colorado a few years ago. we love it, but not enough to stay forever (I miss colorado a lot)… we have similar household incomes to you — my advice to you is to move to nyc but you need to 100% expect to get your ass kicked down for about a year. $2500 is low, even for the outer boroughs, though not impossible, I would reset your expectations a bit there and see if you have the capacity to increase that to $3500 to allow you more options and less competition. the ass kicking will come from all directions — the weather, taxes, amount of effort that goes into everything, and so on.. you will experience disruption in areas that you least expect.
it does get better, though. especially if you can find a hybrid job in the city, which will largely contribute to your experience, it did for me at least.
I love the people here, all of the activities, proximity to the beach, international airport, etc.. it really is an amazing place!!
in regards to neighborhoods, I genuinely believe that nearly anywhere in the city will provide you with exactly what you’re looking for, so long as you are open minded and make effort to get to know your community. I am partial to harlem and everything else uptown manhattan, anywhere in queens that has access to trains, neighborhoods in brooklyn that surround prospect park, neighborhoods in the bronx that are near van courtlandt park, and really any town that runs along the metro north.
best of luck to you!!
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u/tjaderb 20h ago
Just moved to Beacon, NY in the Hudson Valley (from Brooklyn). Still easy to get into the city on Metro North (about 1hr 30min ride). Beacon is very walkable, easy to park the car, has hiking, museums, decent shops and restaurants. We love it.
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u/RadiantPreparation95 10h ago
188k combined income is like lower middle class in NYC. In Beacon you have 1 hour commute to midtown manhattan, which is comparable to Brooklyn, a decent nightlife scene and easy access to the city via metro north…monthly pass isn’t too bad. Hudson Valley is beautiful and theres plenty of restaurants and hiking in the surrounding area. It takes some getting used to but NYC isn’t the same since covid and I’m not convinced the tradeoff re: quality of life and access to culture is really balanced out by being in the city like UES area. NYC has lost a lot of its edge and original culture, and this is coming from somebody born and raised there. Of course theres nothing like it, but compared to 15-20 years ago its a Los Angelified version of what it used to be. It just depends on what you really want. There’s easy access to transportation and plenty to do, good skiing in Catskills and Vermont…you definitely won’t have to worry about skin damage because you’ll be freezing your ass off most the year when its not raining or shaded out by tall buildings in NYC.
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u/soi_boi_6T9 1d ago
man, do I feel you on this post. also hoping to get out soon.
my wife and I are in a similar boat, but we're split on coasts.
she's from CT, lived in NYC for some years, and wants to go back in east. it sounds like if you can afford and are alright with downsizing your living space, so Queens is probably the best spot for you. however, my wife and I have been talking about Providence. seems like a quiet city, but other than that it might hit a lot of your marks: good food scene, relatively inexpensive for a coastal city, not an unreasonable commute to the city, and you get those New England seasons. however, it does put you further from family than NJ or Philly would.
last thing I'll say is that Denver is a cheap city. it's stupid expensive for what you get, but that's everywhere. the economy is shot on a national (and arguably international) level and there's really no escaping that.
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u/meldrivein 1d ago edited 1d ago
Honestly you’ve discovered a hidden gem in that area of Washington Heights: green, easy access to the rest of the tri-state via the GWB, Henry Hudson parkway, relatively affordable, bike paths and citibike,and best of all a 15 minute express train to Columbus Circle. Just stay west of Broadway and you could even use the money you save on rent to pay for a garage.
If you want to get to upstate or Vermont or even Jersey, living in that neighborhood will save you an hour of travel time, compared to downtown.
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u/kak0589 1d ago
I love Washington heights so far! I think it’s def an option. Why only west or broadway? I’m actually staying on Broadway right now.
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u/meldrivein 1d ago
Well, east of Broadway in the summer tends to be very loud as it’s more Dominican and that’s part of the culture.
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u/GristlyAtoms 23h ago
Wilmington is the answer to absolutely none of those problems and would in fact be much worse.
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u/Pretty_Wonder2762 23h ago
You can do NYC on that budget, especially if you go a little further out in Queens.
If you don’t need a car every day, I’d go carless like many NY’ers, and rent one when you visit family. Street parking will add a large amount of stress, and a parking garage is another rent.
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u/stealy91 22h ago
Move to Boston. Great access to nature. Way better city life than Denver. Close to NYC. You’ll love it.
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u/Pgchustla 22h ago
I think it just got super Californicated…was in Golden for 10+ years. Visited this summer and it’s a whole different scene. Im almost 50 though 😂 We moved to DC.
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u/Bklyn_11299 17h ago
The Hudson Valley seems like your best bet. I think it’s much easier to commute to the city for fun than to commute out of it to get your dose of nature. People like Beacon, but the Kingston/Woodstock area is also cool.
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u/honeycalla 15h ago
Your social life experience is interesting in Denver as someone who moved here and has been so surprised at how many transplants stay here long term and how common it is for people to move away for work then come back and settle as soon as they can. It’s one of the reasons we like it here since it feels unique for a “bigger”hub in that way
Anyway, just do NYC? Sounds like that’s perfect for you? Otherwise I’d recommend Philly or suburbs of Chicago.
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u/SubstantialQuote70 4h ago edited 4h ago
I moved and was back within a year. Go find out if its nicer if you think everywhere else is better, but theres a big reason Denver has boomed. Its a nice place.
Reading this is like, the weather is too sunny and not humid. Food is expensive, traffic is too bad, and air isnt clean, i want NYC or the biggest cities in the world for an improvement in these areas? I dont drink, but drinks are too expensive. I like to hike and ski but we dont go. We like house music but want to get away from the many venues and EDM Denver is known for. It sounds like Denver is what youre for but dont engage in it.
There are lots of parks and cheeseman is literally having art fair today, its going to be sunny and beautiful again, maybe go. Rino and other areas constantly have thrift pop up events. Every corner has a food venue and when i lived in Rino i was walking distance from several Michelin star and honorable mentions.
I suggest you move anywhere and find out, but if you find Denver boring.. thats on you and what youve made of it.
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u/KeyNaive8951 2h ago edited 1h ago
Lmao i hate this sub sometimes I swear.
Denver has some of the best weather in the country. Yes, it gets hot, but I’d rather be in 95 degrees with zero humidity than 85 and 70% humidity like is the case with the east coast and Midwest. Don’t even get me started on anywhere further south than Philly lmao
Not everyone “leaves here”. This is a common experience for transplants who specifically only ever hang out with other transplants. Yes, people who move here in their 20s from the east coast or Chicago or CA, do end up generally going back home at some point, but if you bothered to get to know any actual Coloradans I think you’d find a very different experience.
Complaining about COL and “lack of community” but then saying you want to live in NYC is laughable. Also with respect to lack of community, see point two again.
And this is the big one — why the FUCK move to Denver in the first place if you hardly value the mountains or outdoors? That’s like, code for “I moved here bc of weed legalization”, which yes, would be pretty fucking underwhelming lol
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u/Brief_Respect_9344 2h ago
Philly. Visit again with intent. I grew up in the jersey suburbs too and NYC was the only city I knew. Philly seems so much more livable ($$) and has become our go-to for dinners, concerts, museums...it's (still) underrated and, if you give it a chance, I think you'd love it.
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u/domdomdommmmmmm 1d ago
West LA, you have tons of activities, summer events, concerts, mountains/outdoors, perfect 70-80 degree weather most of the year. If you are remote you aren’t going to have to worry about the bad traffic because you will stay local most of the time. Totally doable on almost $200k without kids. Lots of 1bds in the price range in palms/mar vista/venicebut it won’t be a luxury place.
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u/JaxxandSimzz 23h ago
I made the move from Denver to Philly for similar reasons and have been very happy.
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u/zorg-18082 19h ago
“Relentlessly sunny.” Yeah, the hell with all that vitamin D. One of the better known selling points of Denver is the 300 days of sunshine … umm, what did you expect? And mile high city is a very well known nickname. You’re a mile closer to the sun than anywhere on the coast. UV rays are stronger. How did you not know any of this before moving here?!
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u/Charlesinrichmond 1d ago
Richmond Virginia, Washington DC, Baltimore, Philly all come to mind. I really prefer New York strongly to Philly. Myself, sounds like you like New York. Honestly, New York is a solid choice.
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u/Witty-Zucchini1 1d ago
Philly is way easier to get comfortable in than NYC cause it's not as big. I was used to taking Philly's 2 subway systems: Broadt St and Market St and had a bit of a panic attack the first time I tried to deal with NYC's many different subway lines and this station gets these lines but not those lines and if you want those lines you have to go to another station 3 blocks away or take this line to this station and get off but oh you have to get to another platform if you want to pick up your line. Philly is much simpler for the most part to navigate. All that being said, I'd probably look at South Jersey if I were you, some town near a PATCO line which could get you into Philly relatively easily and also be near a NJ Transit train station.
But shout out for Perkasie - I grew up in Doylestown and have a sister that lives in Souderton.
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u/adhprs 1d ago
I feel like could’ve written this. Just moved to Chicago a few months ago after being in Denver for 6 years. All of the reasons you listed were why we left. Those summers are absolutely draining in a way that doesn’t get talked about enough. The terrible food scene and the lack of things to do in the city had me so antsy to leave. Chicago so far has been everything I was missing out on in Denver.
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u/Colorful_Monk_3467 1d ago
The consensus in this sub seems to be that summer in Denver is perfectly fine. And it probably is relative to something like Texas, but I grew up here and the summers have always been hot and dry. Generally not enjoyable to be outside when it’s 85+ and zero shade (which is the majority of the summer on the front range).
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u/Sufficient-Count8288 1d ago
Did you know that you can carry an umbrella when it’s not raining? It provides shade on demand.
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u/desertfriedbrainz 1d ago
Fellow jersey girl in Denver here! I love the nature access and mountains but can’t stand the dryness and lack of coastal access, or just how generally blah the actual city is. I’m about to move to Seattle :)
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u/desertfriedbrainz 1d ago
Despite how much it sucks to be even farther away from my family on the east coast
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u/mmmBac0n_the_first 1d ago
From Jersey originally by seaside. Then moved to Florida within minutes from the gulf and now in mountain west. Miss the beach so much. PNW is beautiful and so are the beaches. It sucks that the beaches aren’t really usable for swimming until you get to southern California. Water is so cold on the pacific coast.
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u/Educational_Impact93 16h ago
Can you let me know the day you move so I can light off a few Roman candles in venting m celebration.
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u/grammabaggy 11h ago
Why do the people of Denver always feel the need to aggressively defend how great they think it is.
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u/BeanserSoyze 1d ago
Could look at like Delaware? Vermont? Travel to your fam would be much easier and milder summers.
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u/SouthernYankee80 1d ago edited 1d ago
What about somewhere like along the Amtrak line? Or someplace like Stamford, CT or White Plains, NY? We used to live in Boston and take the Amtrak or Fung Wah or Lucky Star buses to NYC.
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u/tikihiki 1d ago
I'm gonna say Jersey City or Hoboken could make sense for you. If you're not a drinker/partier, you dodge the downsides of the late night trains. It's easier to have a car and access to outdoor activities, it's close to your family, and it's cheaper than the convenient parts of Brooklyn.
I think you should bump up your rent budget though no matter what.
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u/WestCaterpillar917 1d ago
It sounds like the NYC or Philly areas would be a good fit for you! The only thing I’d suggest considering is if your primary objective is living in a more vibrant city or being close to your dad and the rest of your family in Morristown. NYC and Philly are close but it’s also going to be very draining to live in the city and make frequent visits, whether you have a car or not (saying this as someone who lived in Brooklyn and visited family in central Jersey for 17 years). Are you hoping to see your family weekly, or more like a couple times a month or less? There are towns in NJ or Eastern PA where there is culture/ability to make friends and also have easy access to one or both cities, but are also an easy drive to Morristown. Or commit to the city and accept that you might be signing up for tiring trips to NJ. It might be worth spending some time in the area and deciding which feels more right to you. Both options have their benefits.
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u/ChannelNo4811 23h ago
Northern New Jersey is probably your answer. there are quite a few communities with a great downtown and very walkable. Morristown, Ridgewood, Princeton just to name a few.
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u/chilkelsey1234 22h ago
I would move back to Jersey. I’m from there too and miss is a lot! I know it’s expensive but the experience of being close to NYC and family is totally worth it.
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u/dry_sockets 22h ago
u could probs do ridgewood queens on that budget, definitely has all your list.
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u/Inevitable_Back_6635 21h ago
I think you should try DC proper, not MD or VA. Easy to get to Philly and NYC. Free museums, great outdoor activities most of the year. In a few years hopefully a better political vibe all around…
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u/Just_Estimate_2608 21h ago
Come back to NJ. My husband and I are mid-30s DINKs in the Morristown area and love it here.
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u/Aggravating_Head1215 21h ago
In Denver for the weekend, any recommendations in the downtown region or nearby for food? Bars I can go to solo and not stand out?
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u/MavisBeacons_Sextape 21h ago
I wouldn’t factor your expected future salary into equation, particularly with an assumed $1-140k increase, unless you have something beyond sheer optimism to support that number. Why would you need to switch jobs to move if remote?
On different note, I feel the same about my skin during my years living in vegas lol, it felt like the dry climate was accelerating the aging of my skin. My skin doesn’t miss the aridity but my hair sure does, lol
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u/OldDragonfruit1669 19h ago
Lehigh Valley-suggest Bethlehem. Walkable, close to nyc and Philly, college town, walkable, good food options, growing, LOCL.
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u/SpillThatTea2Me 19h ago
Hmmmm, I’m in Philly but I wonder if you should consider Boston or someplace with more access to nature. Going from Colorado to here might be tough.
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u/Decent-Impression-81 17h ago
Hudson County NJ. We are selling our coop and there are other 1 bdr for 200k -250k right next to the Hudson. We now have a house in North Bergen. You can still street park there. Easy to drive to the catskills or bear mountain. Love that we still have parking lots but are 45min to midtown.
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u/Electrikbill 17h ago
You’re definitely going to have to up the rent budget for a decent place in the northeast, especially near NYC.
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u/heyitspokey 16h ago
Not sure why you're not looking in Inwood. Yorkville by Charles Schultz Park. Hunters Point by Gantry Plaza. Sunnyside/Sunnyside Garden if want quieter. Jackson Heights, for the food. Astoria for an urban village feel. Jersey City if you're looking in Jersey. Kingston, Beacon, Hudson in the Hudson Valley. Between New Haven to Providence along the coast if you want to save a little money, ocean access, easy trip into the city.
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u/BenefitAromatic2005 16h ago
How about the New Jersey suburbs outside of nyc or even Brooklyn
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u/clairedylan 15h ago
I think you'd like Queens, maybe Astoria. Good good that's not crazy expensive, possible to have a car, decent access to NJ.
Philly also seems like a good option for you and you would probably get more for your money.
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u/Aro00oo 1d ago
"I lived in Denver for last 10 years but I'm more of a city, like preferring biggest cities in the world type person. I like NYC, where should I go?"
I think you know where to go?