Financial Assistance

Contact your local Military and Family Readiness Center to create a budget prior to your permanent change of station. Once you arrive at Buckley Space Force Base, financial guidance is offered to those adjusting to the local economy, experiencing money management difficulties or for those who wish to take control of and plan for their financial well-being.

The Personal Financial Management Program at the M&FRC will help you to prepare a personalized spending plan. Information and assistance are also available in areas such as military pay and allowances, consumer fraud, savings, TSP, insurance, car buying, credit card management, retirement planning and more.  

Call us at 720-847-6681 for more information or to make an appointment.

As you calculate your budget for your move to the Denver-Aurora, make adjustments for possible cost of living changes. One commonly used budgeting guideline is the 50/30/20 rule, which allocates 50% of your after-tax income for needs, 30% for wants, and 20% for savings, retirement, and debt repayment. The "wants" category can include discretionary expenses such as dining out, attending concerts, enjoying outdoor activities, and pursuing hobbies in the Denver-Aurora area.

Housing

The 2026 overall cost of living index for the Denver-Aurora area is 15% higher than the national average. The median home cost in Aurora is $518,000 and $566,000. Across the state, median rent averages $1,555 to $1,605 per month.

Car Insurance Requirements

Colorado law mandates that auto insurance policies provide the following:

• Bodily injury liability coverage covers you if you cause an accident in which someone else is hurt or killed. Colorado requires limits of $25,000 per person for bodily injury and $50,000 per accident for bodily injury commonly expressed as "25/50.”
• Property damage liability coverage covers you when you damage someone else’s property. Usually it’s someone else’s car, but it could apply to buildings, utility poles, garage doors and other physical property. Colorado requires a limit of $15,000 per occurrence.
• Uninsured/Underinsured motorist coverage covers medical and other expenses when you are hit by a driver without adequate auto insurance. In Colorado, insurers are required to offer UM/UIM in the same amount as the bodily injury liability limits you select. UM/UIM can be waived only if it’s rejected in writing. You may select limits starting at $25,000/$50,000 same as Colorado's minimum liability limits on up to the same amount of liability coverage you purchase on your own policy. Most people choose to carry UM/UIM because it can cover your economic damages, such as medical bills, as well as some non-economic damages should the person who hit you be uninsured or underinsured. Colorado’s State Legislature passed a law effective Jan. 1, 2008, requiring an expansion of UM/UIM.
• Medical payments coverage helps pay reasonable accident-related medical expenses for you and your passengers in your insured vehicle, regardless of who caused the crash, up to the policy limit. Colorado law requires auto insurers to include $5,000 in Medical Payments coverage unless you reject it. You may decline MedPay or choose a different coverage amount, but you must reject it in writing or through the same method used to purchase the policy, such as online or by phone. If you do not reject it, the coverage and premium will be added to your policy. Colorado law also requires insurers to reserve the first $5,000 of MedPay benefits for 30 days to help pay trauma-related medical bills first.

Check with your auto insurance carrier for specific requirements. Be aware that Colorado car insurance premiums may be calculated on several factors including your credit score.