I thought I'd start with a simple Hello! post and say something like, "This is my first post blah blah blah". The truth is no one cares to read how this is your first post. People want to read something with substance and not just a” hey, how are you today” blog post. So, since this isn't my first rodeo lets start off running...
Home Rentals in Colorado Springs, CO for the Military members of Fort Carson, Peterson AFB, Schriever AFB, and Cheyenne Mountain Air Station.
Today I am working at the Housing office on Fort Carson. I volunteer to work there because it allows me to serve the military community without looking for a return and I get to assist incoming soldiers looking for a place to live. There are the occasional home buyers that come through but most (90%) of the soldiers want a rental house or apartment. This gives me a chance to talk "shop" with the joes and find out how life is going in the Army and it helps me keep a pulse on the rental market for the Springs area.
I have found that the past three years has changed the rental market here. We used to have plenty of rentals to go around but today it has become harder and harder for soldiers and airmen to find a quick rental. I believe the reason for this is the massive change in the PCSing (PCS: Permanent Change of Station) patterns of the services as well as the change in personnel at the posts and bases. Today soldiers are PCSing here directly from Iraq or Afghanistan. What this means is units were re-deploying soldiers to their new duty stations directly from the war zones. This left uncertainty for spouses who chose to not buy homes in the area. Also with the high OPTEMPO (operational tempo - the pace at which the units move, work, and deploy) people are deploying, returning, deploying, training, returning, and so forth. Its crazy. Sometimes you don't know if you are coming or going.
This pace has made some military members indecisive on buying. When you don't buy a house and apartments are full....viola, the rental homes start disappearing. I find myself telling incoming service members to drive around town looking for those "For Rent" signs you can buy at Home Depot and looking on Craigslist. That doesn't mean there are not ANY rentals in town it simply means that there is a certain range of homes that are limited in quantity. The 3 bed - 2 bath, close to base, renting between $900 and $1100 is what everyone PCSing in is looking for. And lets not even talk about pets. Having two Labs or a cat really drops the numbers.
All that wonderful blogging to simply say if you are PCSing to Colorado Springs be sure to get on other sites before you arrive. There are houses available but you have to be looking and grab the good ones quick. Here are a few to be sure and hit (I have "linked" them appropriately so you can just click the title):
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