Is Security-Widefield a good place to buy near Fort Carson?
By Kyle Melvin · NMLS #1486450 · REV Mortgage · Licensed in Colorado ·
Short answer
Security-Widefield is the older, closer alternative to Fountain: unincorporated El Paso County directly north of Fountain and minutes from Gate 20, with 1960s–1980s ranch and split-level homes on larger lots than the new tracts, and the lowest price band in the metro. The trade for the price and the lot is age — roofs, furnaces, electrical and peeling paint are the VA appraiser's routine findings here — but the established areas carry no metro-district levy, which makes the tax bill lower than a new Fountain subdivision at the same price. It rewards a buyer who gets an inspection and does the math.
- Commute
- Gate 20, 5–10 min; Peterson via Powers or Academy Blvd, 15–25 min; downtown 15–20 min
- Housing stock
- 1960s–1980s ranches and split-levels on quarter-acre lots; 1990s–2000s infill; some newer tracts on the east edge
- Price band
- Lowest in the metro with Fountain; below southeast Colorado Springs
Security-Widefield is not a city — it is a pair of unincorporated neighborhoods in El Paso County, built in the 1960s and 1970s along Highway 85/87 between Colorado Springs and Fountain, directly outside Fort Carson's Gate 20. It was built for the post and it still serves the post: a large share of the housing is owned by soldiers, veterans and the investors who rent to them.
Who lives here and why
The buyers are soldiers who want the shortest possible drive to Gate 20 at the lowest price in the metro, and who would rather have a 1970s ranch on a quarter-acre than a new tract home on a tenth. Widefield District 3 serves the area. The housing is ranches and split-levels with basements — finished or not — mature trees, and a mix of owner-occupants and long-term rentals. It is plainer than Fountain's new subdivisions and closer to the gate, and the older parts of it are the cheapest way into a detached house near Fort Carson. Newer tracts on the east edge toward Powers Boulevard are a different product at a different price.
The commute
Five to ten minutes to Gate 20 from most of the area, which is about as short as a Carson commute gets. Peterson is fifteen to twenty-five minutes via Powers or Academy Boulevard, downtown Colorado Springs is fifteen to twenty, and the Academy is a long drive north. The Fort Carson guide covers the metro by installation.
Housing stock and what the appraiser sees
This is the part of the metro where the Minimum Property Requirements come up most. Roofs on 1960s–1980s homes are often at end of life and hail-aged on top of it; the appraiser notes condition and remaining life. Furnaces, water heaters and electrical panels of the same age draw conditions when they are unsafe or not working. Any home built before 1978 brings the lead-based paint rule — chipping or peeling paint has to be corrected before closing — and that is most of the area. Foundations on Front Range clay show slab and wall cracking; an engineer's letter resolves most of it. Basements should be checked for moisture. Radon is common. A large share of the stock has been a rental for years, and deferred maintenance is the norm on former rentals; the appraisal page covers how conditions get negotiated, and here an inspection is worth more than in any new subdivision. What the area does not have, in its established parts, is a metro district: the tax bill is county, school and fire district, which is why an older Security-Widefield home at the same price as a new Fountain home usually carries a lower payment.
The loan angle
Security-Widefield prices are the lowest in the metro, so a full-entitlement VA loan reaches a detached house with room to spare under Fort Carson BAH — the BAH-to-payment calculator with the real, lower tax rate shows the difference. A soldier with a VA loan still open at the last station is in the second-tier calculation, which at these prices nearly always clears without a down payment. Repair conditions from the appraisal can be negotiated to the seller or escrowed where VA allows, and a house that needs more than cosmetic work is a candidate for the VA renovation option described in the fixer-upper answer. At the next PCS, these houses rent to the next rotation reliably. Colorado's disabled-veteran exemption is on the Colorado benefits page.
Around Fort Carson
Local details
- Schools
- Widefield School District 3 (verify boundaries)
- Taxes and fees
- No metro district in the established areas; few HOAs; El Paso County; newer east-edge tracts may differ
- Watch for
- Roofs at end of life; older furnaces and electrical; pre-1978 paint; slab and foundation movement; radon; former-rental condition
- BAH here
- Official rate by grade →
What schools serve Security-Widefield?
Security-Widefield is served by Widefield School District 3. Attendance zones change; confirm the assigned school for a specific address with the district.
| School | Grades | Note |
|---|---|---|
| Widefield Elementary School of the Arts | K-5 | French, Pinello, Sunrise, Webster and Talbott serve the other Security-Widefield zones; Grand Mountain is PK-8 |
| Watson Junior High School | 6-8 | Sproul and Janitell junior highs serve neighboring zones |
| Mesa Ridge High School | 9-12 | Widefield High serves the older Security side |
Performance data: the state's official school report card. This site does not publish third-party ratings; they change yearly and are not the district's own numbers.
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