Pros and Cons of living near Leon?

You can get from MGA to Leon for about $75 to $100.  That's for a private driver or shuttle. Your hotel will have a service or at the very least a connection that can send a car for you. There are several other services  that can do this as well. Your hostel or hotel can provide this info.
As for pros and cons,
the weather in Leon is hot! Get ready for this especially in the month of April.

Thanks for the help lazytrader.  Now you don't know where the expats live in leon or outside leon.  I would like to live a little north of Leon.  You seem like a man with connections.  I am on a small budget and would like to live near leon but not in leon.  I hear Leon is a university town.  So maybe a house with lots of rooms I can rent to students.  Tell me what you know or think.  Don't worry you can not break my resolve.

Hello Schoonertiki and welcome to Expat.com

A new thread has been created as from your post on the Nicaragua Forum so as to help you get better response.

Regards
Kenjee
Expat.com team

All the students live in Leon. There is a small community called Fatima located just outside the city. It's a really nice area and has a park u can exercise in.  It's busy in the park from 5am till about 6:30.  Fatima is pretty expensive by nica standards but the houses are designed like back in the states.
Students don't really live in this area and houses there are from $700-1100 for rent there. You can rent in a less afluent area such as Guadelupe and have a pretty big spread.
Why not choose matagalpa? Nice area and the weather is awesome.

You can get to leon for cheaper than that. Take the express bus from managua but that depends on how many bags you have.  Leon is kinda slow as it is i wouldnt suggest you live putside of the city the action is there. The students would want to get to know you before they trust you to move in. Hes right Fatima is were most expats live. I personally found a doctor that invest  in reno homes that are up to our standards and my rent was $400 a month.

She's right, you can get to Leon for cheaper than that using the bus. However as you said that you will be moving here I'm assuming you will have more than one bag and possibly several.  Unless you speak fluent Spanish, then by all means go for it!
This will be your first time and first experience here in Nicaragua so try to make it a smooth one. Your driver that works for a local hotel or hostel will be able to speak some English and be able to assist you with your bags.  Spend the extra money for peace of mind and security in that you will be taken from point a to b.  There are plenty of other areas to cut your budget once you arrive.  You don't want to risk sitting next to a person transporting a chicken!

Well, April is coming up and it is Semana Santa, the busiest time of year.  I and my wife, from Calif/Colorado, have a great little ocean front hotel in Las Penitas-Leon, just 20 minutes west of Leon on the Pacific Ocean.  playaroca.com
That is the #1 thing about Leon, the largest city next to Managua and be so close to the beach.
The high tourist crowds of down south are not quite here yet, but Nicaragua is getting so popular that being a hidden jewel is getting tougher.  Leon has modern markets as well as outdoor markets.  It has movie theaters with latest movies and in English or sub titles cheap and can get most every thing you would normally need.  Being only 70 or so miles north of Managua, it's not too far to get that extra thing only Managua has.

You can get an air conditioned minibus from in front of the University of Nicaragua or behind Israel Lewintes Market to Leon for $1.90. I know of a taxi that will bring you to Leon from the Managua airport for $50. I live  in Leon. A 3 bedroom/2 bath runs $400 a month. Don't use the taxistas approaching you at the airport or you will be paying for their waiting time. Catch a taxi on the move with only the driver in it. I know of rooms with Wifi, shared kitchen and tv room renting for as little as $60 a month. Located near the Pali store in Guadalupe bario.

Some advice. Do not buy property until you have been here at least a year. Get residency before you buy. Don't rent to anyone again for at least a year until you are familiar with the people here. Do not drive until you get accustomed to driving here. Get into an accident as a tourist, they will take your passport until things are settled. And with an injury sufficient to send someone to the hospital the driver will spend 2 days in jail regardless of fault. Don't rush into anything. If you rent rooms to locals you are in business and required to have the proper visa and approvals. You cannot do that on a tourist , Pension or  Rentista Visa. On buying real estate there are no guarantees. Purely Caveat Emptor.

You cam private message me for taxi phone numbers reasonably priced hotels and restaurants. I am not in business in any way so have no agenda when giving advice.

Oh, might want to get a Yellow Fever vaccination before you leave North America, typhoid, paratyphoid and cholera would be good preventatives as well.