In 2016, nearly 90,000 people made the move to Colorado. While more people flooding the state is good for tax revenues, it isn’t necessarily the best thing for natives who have been here their whole lives. Beautiful areas like Denver have now been turned into a landscape littered with new construction and towering cranes (we’ve actually been nicknamed the city of cranes). One of the biggest reasons why people are flocking to Colorado is due to the rapid economic growth. This state has the highest GDP growth of any other state in this country, which is very enticing to entrepreneurs and small business owners. Here are just some of the reasons why natives of Colorado are beginning to have some resentment towards transplants from other states.
More People Equals Less Affordable Housing
One of the biggest reasons why many natives are having a hard time with transplants is due to the rise in the price of Colorado real estate. More people moving in means a price increase in homes and rent. With fewer home options than ever before, real estate moguls are starting to increase the prices of homes and apartments. This means that a native looking for a place to rent will have a harder time finding something that both accommodates their family and is also affordable and reasonably priced for that particular area. Where you could once find cheaper housing in areas such as Highlands Ranch and Broomfield, these places are also seeing an increase in the price of housing. The rise in real estate prices is a basic case of supply and demand. With the demand for housing in Colorado greater than ever, it is easy to increase prices across the board.
Big Cities Are Even More Congested
Another bi-product of the increased amount of transplants to Colorado is more traffic and congestion. The roadways around bigger cities like Denver stay congested due to the large number of people flooding the state and the increase in construction. Many of the roadways around these major cities are undergoing upgrades and repairs due to the increase in traffic. This leads to slower commute time and a lot of frustrated natives. In addition, construction is causing detours and traffic jams. A commute that used to take 15 minutes now takes 30 plus minutes.
Big Companies Are Looking to Move to Denver
With Amazon considering to make a Denver Headquarters the population can only be expected to increase. While new business is always good for Colorado’s reputation and economy it is definitely going to have an impact on the population. Those big companies tend to have a large number of employees, which means that housing is going to be another prevalent issue. Housing prices will continue to skyrocket leading to a significant decrease in affordable housing options like previously discussed. We should also expect to see an increase in class sizes in schools in the Denver Metro area. If these big companies are transferring hundreds of employees to the Denver office, they are going to bring their families along. School systems will continue to grow and expand which can only mean that we will need more teachers, bigger buildings or bigger classes.
This isn’t to say being a transplant is a bad thing. We should be extremely prideful that we are from a state that so many people move to. Newcomers have definitely changed the state, but with it they have also brought pieces from their own homes with them, making this state a true melting pot. If you are a new resident of this state and are looking for houses in Colorado, give the team at Alaris Properties a call. Their team of real estate professionals can help you find your dream home with ease.
