The Colorado Springs Guide

A 48 day series · Leah Behr and Brandon Behr

The 2026 Colorado Springs guide series

Twenty five guides to Colorado Springs and El Paso County, publishing Aug 6, 2026 through Sep 22, 2026. Each one answers a question people actually ask, using figures that carry a named source and a date.

25
Guides in the series
22
Published so far
13 / 12
By Leah / by Brandon

Leah writes the thirteen about living here: which neighborhood fits, where the school boundaries actually fall, what a walkable block looks like in a city that scores 36 out of 100. Brandon writes the twelve about the transaction: what your tax bill really says, who pays what at closing, whether that basement was ever permitted, what the fall market is doing. Guides that have not published yet show their date instead of a link.

22 of 25 are published. The most recent is Flood Zones in El Paso County and What Flood Insurance Costs, by Brandon Behr on Sep 16, 2026.

Author
Topic
Aug 62026

Colorado Springs Neighborhoods: The Complete Guide

There is no official list of Colorado Springs neighborhoods. Here are the nine working submarkets, what each costs, and who each one does not suit.

LiveLeah BehrNeighborhoods
Aug 72026

Briargate: The Complete Guide

Briargate covers roughly 7,500 acres and three different maps carry the name. What the boundaries actually are, what it costs, and who it suits.

LiveLeah BehrNeighborhoods
Aug 102026

Is Colorado Springs Losing People? What the Migration Data Says

Colorado lost 12,100 residents to other states last year while El Paso County added 4,684. What the Census and state demographer data actually show.

LiveBrandon BehrMarket data
Aug 112026

The Walkable Colorado Springs

Walk Score rates Colorado Springs 36 out of 100. One block of West Colorado Avenue rates 92. The four areas here that actually walk.

LiveLeah BehrLifestyle
Aug 182026

Best Neighborhoods for Families in Colorado Springs, and the School Districts Behind Them

Three El Paso County districts were Accredited with Distinction for 2025 and the list changed from 2024. How to check the boundary for one address.

LiveLeah BehrSchools
Aug 192026

VA Loans and Buying Near Fort Carson

An E-5 with dependents at Fort Carson draws $2,358 a month in BAH for 2026. What a VA loan actually covers, and the property standards that stop contracts.

LiveBrandon BehrMilitary and VA
Aug 202026

Colorado Springs With Kids

The zoo, Garden of the Gods, a nature center, a fountain and the library. What the ticketed attractions actually cost in 2026 and what is free.

LiveLeah BehrLifestyle
Aug 212026

What Is My Colorado Springs Home Worth?

The same Colorado Springs house can carry four official values at once, more than $60,000 apart. What each one measures and which to trust.

LiveBrandon BehrMarket data
Aug 252026

Buying a Home in Colorado Springs: Start Here

The median El Paso County home closed at $460,000 after 52 days in July 2026. The actual steps to buy here, in order, with the local deadlines.

LiveLeah BehrBuying
Aug 262026

Was That Finished Basement Ever Permitted?

Go to pprbd.org, open Permit Search, enter the address. Free and public. What an unpermitted basement does and does not mean for a Colorado Springs deal.

LiveBrandon BehrPermits and property
Aug 272026

Which Colorado Springs Neighborhood for Which Base

Fort Carson Gate 4 closes to inbound traffic at 1 p.m. Pick the gate, then the neighborhood. Where to live for Carson, Peterson, Schriever and the Academy.

LiveLeah BehrMilitary and VA
Aug 282026

Two Property Tax Exemptions El Paso County Homeowners Miss

What Colorado's senior and disabled veteran property tax exemptions are worth on a Colorado Springs house, the 2026 deadlines, and how to file.

LiveBrandon BehrTaxes
Sep 12026

Selling Your Colorado Springs Home: Start Here

The steps to sell a house in El Paso County, in order, with the local rules national guides miss: septic transfer inspection, disclosure, closing costs.

LiveLeah BehrSelling
Sep 22026

Can You Build an ADU in Colorado Springs?

What Colorado Springs allows for accessory dwelling units in 2026: size caps, owner occupancy, permits, and the utility charge most posts skip.

LiveBrandon BehrPermits and property
Sep 32026

Military Noise in Colorado Springs, by Neighborhood

Which Colorado Springs areas hear Fort Carson artillery, airport traffic and Academy flights, what DNL 65 means, and how to check an address.

LiveLeah BehrMilitary and VA
Sep 42026

Short-Term Rental Rules Across El Paso County

Colorado Springs, Manitou Springs, Monument, Fountain and unincorporated El Paso County each regulate short-term rentals differently. A comparison.

LiveBrandon BehrRules and regulations
Sep 82026

Watering Rules, Turf Law and Xeriscape Rebates

What Colorado Springs watering rules allow in 2026, what SB24-005 really does, what your HOA can require, and what the rebates actually pay.

LiveLeah BehrRules and regulations
Sep 92026

Closing Costs in El Paso County: Who Pays What

Colorado has no transfer tax. A line-by-line look at El Paso County closing costs, local custom, and the county lines that surprise buyers.

LiveBrandon BehrBuying
Sep 102026

Buying in a Historic District: Old North End and Old Colorado City

What a Colorado Springs historic overlay actually regulates, what National Register listing does not, and the state tax credit most owners skip.

LiveLeah BehrPermits and property
Sep 112026

Your Fire District Sets Your Insurance Rate

How your El Paso County fire district, ISO PPC class, and distance to a station and hydrant affect your homeowners premium and your tax bill.

LiveBrandon BehrInsurance
Sep 152026

Living Near the Tracks: Train Horns and Quiet Zones

Eight El Paso County crossings have a 24-hour whistle ban. Where the tracks run, how loud the horn is by law, and how to check an address.

LiveLeah BehrLifestyle
Sep 162026

Flood Zones in El Paso County and What Flood Insurance Costs

How to read the FEMA flood map for a Colorado Springs address, what an NFIP policy costs under Risk Rating 2.0, and the free LOMA most owners miss.

LiveBrandon BehrInsurance
Sep 172026

Hard Water in Colorado Springs

What El Paso County water utilities actually publish about hardness, the one number I could verify, and whether a softener is worth it here.

Coming Sep 17Leah BehrPermits and property
Sep 182026

Luxury Homes in Colorado Springs

Where the Colorado Springs upper bracket starts, why the 2026 conforming limit sets the line, and the tax, insurance and well checks above $1 million.

Coming Sep 18Brandon BehrLuxury
Sep 222026

Colorado Springs Market Report: Fall 2026

El Paso County housing data for fall 2026: 3.3 months of supply, 50.7% of listings cutting price, and why both numbers are true. Sourced and dated.

Coming Sep 22Brandon BehrMarket data

Who writes these

Leah Behr

REALTOR® · Behr & Behr Team

Over twenty years in real estate, in Colorado Springs since 2009. She writes the neighborhood, school district, relocation and lifestyle guides, and works across D20, D11, D12 and D49.

About Leah →

Brandon Behr

REALTOR® · Behr & Behr Team

Sixteen years in the business, licensed at eighteen, business and economics at Colorado State. He writes the transaction and data guides: taxes, closing costs, permits, insurance and the market reports.

About Brandon →

About this series

Who writes the Colorado Springs guide series?

Leah Behr and Brandon Behr, both REALTORS® with the Behr & Behr Team at The Platinum Group, Realtors in Colorado Springs. Leah writes thirteen of the twenty five, covering neighborhoods, schools, lifestyle and relocation. Brandon writes twelve, covering taxes, closing costs, permits, insurance and market data.

When do the guides publish?

Between Aug 6, 2026 and Sep 22, 2026, on a Tuesday through Friday cadence. Each one goes live at midnight Mountain Time on its listed date. Anything not yet published shows its date on this page rather than a link.

What area do these guides cover?

El Paso County, Colorado. That means Colorado Springs, Fountain, Security-Widefield, Falcon, Peyton, Black Forest, Monument, Tri-Lakes, Manitou Springs, Calhan and Ellicott. Monument and the Tri-Lakes are the northern edge of it, and the series does not go past that.

How are the figures in these guides sourced?

Every number is attributed inline to a named primary source with its publication date, drawn from bodies such as the El Paso County Assessor and Treasurer, Pikes Peak Regional Building Department, Colorado Springs Utilities, the Colorado Department of Education, the Colorado General Assembly, FEMA and the Federal Railroad Administration. Where two sources disagree, both are reported. Where something could not be verified, each guide says so in its own words rather than filling the gap.