Moving to Colorado on PCS Orders: A Military Family’s Home Buying Timeline

By Prerna Kapoor, CLHMS | REAL Brokerage | July 19, 2026

I’ve had more calls this summer from military families with PCS orders to Colorado Springs than any other kind of buyer. That’s not an accident, May through August is peak PCS season, and Fort Carson, Peterson Space Force Base, Schriever Space Force Base, and the Air Force Academy all sit in or near a city where the market has actually loosened up a little this year. If you just got orders, here’s the timeline I walk my military clients through, and a few things that catch people off guard.

The Clock Starts at 90 Days, Not When You Land

Most families have somewhere between 60 and 90 days from orders to report date, and that window has to cover financing, the search, an offer, appraisal, and closing. That’s tighter than it sounds once you factor in a job, kids, and everything else a move drags along with it.

Here’s the part people don’t plan for well: house-hunting leave. It’s officially Permissive TDY, capped at 10 days, and it doesn’t come with travel or per diem reimbursement, but it also doesn’t eat into your regular 30 days of annual leave. The families who use it best don’t try to find, offer, inspect, and close all in that same trip. They use the 10 days to find the house, write the offer, and get the inspection and appraisal moving, then come back for closing day using regular PCS leave a few weeks later. Trying to cram closing into the same trip is where I see people rush into decisions they regret.

One more thing worth doing in the first 30 days after orders drop, whether or not you’ve picked a house yet: call your transportation office about your household goods shipment. Peak season lead times for scheduling a mover can stretch to 6 to 8 weeks, so this isn’t something to leave for later.

Renting vs. Buying on a Three-Year Set of Orders

This is the question I get asked most, and there isn’t one right answer for every family. If you’re fairly confident you’ll be here three years or more, buying usually pencils out once you account for BAH covering a mortgage payment instead of rent, plus whatever equity builds. If your timeline is uncertain, or you think there’s a real chance of orders changing early, renting for the first six months while you learn the area isn’t a bad move at all. I’ve had clients do both, and neither one is the “wrong” choice.

Colorado Springs BAH rates rose about 5.4% for 2026, which has helped, but rates vary a lot by rank and dependency status, so I always tell people to run their own number on the Department of Defense’s official BAH lookup before assuming what will or won’t work.

Location matters more here than in a lot of markets, because commute times to Fort Carson versus Peterson versus Schriever can be genuinely different depending on which side of town you’re on. I walk this through with every military client before we even start touring, since it changes which neighborhoods make sense.

The Tax Rule Most PCS Families Never Hear About

If you already own a home somewhere else and you’re PCSing here, or PCSing away from Colorado later, there’s a tax provision worth knowing about. Normally, to exclude gain on the sale of your home from capital gains tax, you need to have owned and lived in it for 2 of the last 5 years. For military members (and Foreign Service and intelligence community members) on qualified extended duty, that 5-year window can be suspended for up to 10 years, as long as your duty station is at least 50 miles from the home or you’re required to live in government quarters.

In plain terms: your years overseas or at a different duty station don’t count against you the way they would for a civilian seller. You can still exclude up to $250,000 in gain if you’re single, or $500,000 married filing jointly, even if you haven’t lived in the house recently. The full rules are in IRS Publication 523, and I’d talk to a tax professional about your specific situation, but it’s worth knowing this exists before you assume you’ve missed your window.

What Colorado Springs Actually Looks Like Right Now

As of mid-2026, the median home price in Colorado Springs sits around $450,000, and homes are taking roughly 43 to 45 days to sell, compared to closer to 51 days a year ago. Inventory has been holding around a 3.3-month supply. None of that means it’s easy, but it does mean buyers have more room to negotiate than they did during the frenzy of a couple years back, which matters a lot when you’re working within a fixed PCS timeline and can’t afford to lose three bidding wars in a row.

If you’re financing with a VA loan, I’ve written a full breakdown of how that works in Colorado in my VA loan guide, and if you want the bigger picture on financing options generally, the Colorado Buyer Financing Playbook is a good place to start before you talk to a lender.

Quick answers

How long is house-hunting leave for a PCS move?
Permissive TDY for house hunting is capped at 10 days. It’s not paid travel or per diem, but it doesn’t count against your regular annual leave.

Should I rent or buy if I only have three years of orders?
There’s no universal answer. If you’re confident you’ll be here three-plus years, buying often makes sense financially. If your timeline feels uncertain, renting for a few months while you learn the area is a completely reasonable choice.

Does PCSing affect the capital gains exclusion when I sell a home?
If you’re on qualified extended duty at least 50 miles from the home (or living in government quarters), the usual 5-year ownership and use test can be suspended for up to 10 years. Check IRS Publication 523 and talk to a tax professional about your situation.

If you’ve got PCS orders to Colorado Springs, Fort Carson, Peterson, or Schriever, I’m always happy to walk through your specific timeline, no pressure, no pitch. I’ve done this with enough military families now to know where the process usually gets stuck, and I’d rather help you avoid that than watch you hit it.

Prerna Kapoor | REALTOR® | Luxury Home Specialist
REAL Brokerage | 720-949-5450 | info@prernakapoor.com
CLHMS • RENE • PSA • ABR | International Sterling Society Award Winner

Prerna specializes in residential real estate across Parker, Aurora, Lone Tree, Castle Pines,
Highlands Ranch, Cherry Creek, Greenwood Village, and Centennial. She speaks English, Japanese,
and Hindi.