sublimeone
Footballguy
Thinking about moving there. Those of you from the area, what are the pro's and con's? What areas would you recommend for a young family? Other than the obvious, what kind of recreation do Arizonians enjoy?
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Phoenix (or AZ in general) (1 Viewer)
- Thread starter sublimeone
- Start date
whoknew
Footballguy
Zow
Footballguy
Moved here from minnesota and love it. Obvious pro is the weather. Low cost of living too and tons of day opportunities to different climates. Also all four sports teams and venues are very good values in terms of costs and accessibilities.
Cons to me are that summers in the low elevation areas do get very hot (120) and there isn't a ton of culture here (politically a very religious right leaning area on social issues). Education isn't terribly great either if you have kids.
So far I have lived in the three main cities in Mohave county - northwest area of the state
near vegas. Also lived in the Tempe/mesa/scottsdale area for a couple years.
Cons to me are that summers in the low elevation areas do get very hot (120) and there isn't a ton of culture here (politically a very religious right leaning area on social issues). Education isn't terribly great either if you have kids.
So far I have lived in the three main cities in Mohave county - northwest area of the state
near vegas. Also lived in the Tempe/mesa/scottsdale area for a couple years.
skol asylum
Footballguy
Chandler or Gilbert are the areas you should look at IMO. I live in Chandler and like it.
My neighbor just put his house up for sale if you want to live across the street from me.
My neighbor just put his house up for sale if you want to live across the street from me.
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Cjw_55106
Footballguy
Is that really a con to the average person? Im not giving an opinion either way, Im just asking if he really has an effect on 99% of the population.
skol asylum
Footballguy
Zow
Footballguy
Yeah for a young family it's really hard to beat these cities. Have several friends with young families who live in Gilbert and they really seem to like it. Education is much better than average for the state, very safe, very new homes. A bit cookie-cutter in terms of white suburbia.
skol asylum
Footballguy
Brony
Footballguy
Zow
Footballguy
Eh, if you either live a lifestyle where it's possible that you could ever be charged with a crime or if you are affected by the erosion of civil lights by law enforcement, you're not going to appreciate it here. Frankly, if you either smoke marijuana recreationally or may have a drink and drive a vehicle it's probably best to just stay out of Arizona because the prosecution of those two crimes specifically are disproportionately harsh compared to the rest of the country.
Of course, I may be able to refer you to the best criminal defense attorney in the state if it comes to that...
skol asylum
Footballguy
You might find some heated ones somewhere.
Zow
Footballguy
Eh, I disagree. Nobody from here will use them but many pools are heated and kids from the midwest leaving the cold for our 70s will probably have no qualms jumping into a heated pool.
sbonomo
Footballguy
This x2...i have a house for sale right in the heart of Chandler next to a grade school and middle school if interested
.....all kidding aside thought, phx offers a great balance of affordability along with offering many activities. I have houses in Scottsdale and Chandler. If i were to move back (San Fran) i would definately go back to the east valley. I am completely over Scottsdale. The downside is the lack of culture/diversity, very "red neck" type of feel (although this seems to be changing) and the summers.
George Jefferson Airplane
Footballguy
Con: Woz will likely want to cornhole
Zow
Footballguy
In terms of recreation, there's plenty of outdoor stuff. For me personally, the golf here is amazing and the softball culture here is really big. So those are really my two forms of recreation. Otherwise the hiking here is great, plenty of desert area for camping and off-roading, you're a short drive from lakes (I live in Lake Havasu City so boating and water sports are big here), there are casinos, and the pro sports options really are possibly the best when you consider price, convenience, and stadium quality (for example the Diamondbacks are considered the best "value" place to see a game in all of MLB). There are plenty of good restaurants in the Phoenix metro area (especially Mexican and New Mexican) and the nightlife is probably better than average (especially in Scottsdale and Tempe).
George Jefferson Airplane
Footballguy
Pro: You get to see the whole Coyote/Roadrunner battle unfold
skol asylum
Footballguy
Con: black widows and bark scorpions
George Jefferson Airplane
Footballguy
Pro: wealthy widows and scorpion tramp stamps
Spanky24
Footballguy
Wife and I lived in Yuma, AZ for 3 years (Do NOT even consider moving there) and Chandler, AZ for almost 2 years.
We hated it. Summers are crazy hot where you never want to leave the house. Winters are awesome as there are lots of things to do outside, we did a bunch of hiking and lots of golf! But you have to get out of the city to actually enjoy things because the snowbirds make life just unbearable. They overtake the towns in the winter months and are just the rudest people we have ever had to deal with.
Whenever people ask us what was the best part of living in Arizona our answer is simple....San Diego was just a short drive away.
We hated it. Summers are crazy hot where you never want to leave the house. Winters are awesome as there are lots of things to do outside, we did a bunch of hiking and lots of golf! But you have to get out of the city to actually enjoy things because the snowbirds make life just unbearable. They overtake the towns in the winter months and are just the rudest people we have ever had to deal with.
Whenever people ask us what was the best part of living in Arizona our answer is simple....San Diego was just a short drive away.
sbonomo
Footballguy
Wow, that may be a bit harshe. Where did you move from and subsequently too? I will admit the AZ certaintly has downfalls but there are many redeeming qualities that make it bearable.
fightingillini
Footballguy
I didn't know that my parents are the rudest people around.......they come in from Chicago for the winter.
Zow
Footballguy
1. Agree to not move to Yuma. Unless you're a Marine and you have to.
2. Definitely haven't had the same experience you have with snow birds. I hate driving on the same roads with them and I try to avoid any political talk, but otherwise they seem just happy to be here. I am in snow bird central in LHC and BHC.
3. Southern California is close and that's nice.
4. Regarding the heat, yeah, it's rough for a few months, but the high desert in a short drive and, otherwise, you just jump into a pool with a drink.
fightingillini
Footballguy
In the summer, it's really brutal from say 11am until about 5pm. So you can do things in the early morning when the temp is in the high 80s/90s......otherwise you have to wait until the late afternoon/early evening when the temp finally falls below 100.
Otherwise, the weather in Phoenix is fantastic, especially in early spring or late fall.
sbonomo
Footballguy
having grown up in phx a few things to note about the weather. Unless you work outside you just stay indoors during the hottest part of the day. Most homes come with covered parking so you cool your car down on the way to work. most employers offer covered parking so samething for the ride home. in the summer you find a water sport to do during the day (boating, pool, etc) or you stay inside. there is rarely humidity so even though it is 90-100 at 10:00 it is not as hot as you think. there will be 110+ days, just stay inside or go to a movie.
Parrothead
Footballguy
scorpions and killer bees...
My main cons of Phoenix are: summer weather and political climate. Another con could be the reliance of the Phoenix economy on real estate - which causes Phoenix to be a boom/bust town. There are not many large companies with headquarters in Phoenix, so there is a substantial dearth of professional jobs compared to other large cities in the USA.
The pros of Phoenix are numerous - and despite Woz's assertion above, I believe there is plenty of culture in Phoenix. Weather (except summer) and quality of life are the main attractions, but there are plenty of things to do in AZ - sports (all 4 major sports), live music (including small venues and stadium concerts), art museums, theater, symphony, hiking, camping, biking, shopping, etc. Phoenix has as much of those cultural items as any city besides the top 5 or so in the USA.
Anywhere in Phoenix metro except west or south Phoenix is good for families. I live in central Phoenix and love it. Even Scottsdale has plenty of young families - specifically the McCormick Ranch neighborhood is very popular. I haven't lived outside Phoenix metro and wouldn't want to either.
For the guy visiting Phoenix looking for another tourist destination - try the Musical Instrument Museum. It's one of a kind and, imo, a world class museum - and both adults and kids enjoy it.
The pros of Phoenix are numerous - and despite Woz's assertion above, I believe there is plenty of culture in Phoenix. Weather (except summer) and quality of life are the main attractions, but there are plenty of things to do in AZ - sports (all 4 major sports), live music (including small venues and stadium concerts), art museums, theater, symphony, hiking, camping, biking, shopping, etc. Phoenix has as much of those cultural items as any city besides the top 5 or so in the USA.
Anywhere in Phoenix metro except west or south Phoenix is good for families. I live in central Phoenix and love it. Even Scottsdale has plenty of young families - specifically the McCormick Ranch neighborhood is very popular. I haven't lived outside Phoenix metro and wouldn't want to either.
For the guy visiting Phoenix looking for another tourist destination - try the Musical Instrument Museum. It's one of a kind and, imo, a world class museum - and both adults and kids enjoy it.
DA RAIDERS
Footballguy
put me in the "couldn't stand living there" camp. i lived in chandler for 2+ years. may thru sept are waaaaay too hot. uber redneck attitude mixed with those trying to hard to be orange county. X: freeways and roads are CONSTANTLY under construction. the most common rider to auto insurance is windshield repair.
there are good parts, but i would never live there again.
there are good parts, but i would never live there again.
fightingillini
Footballguy
That place is REALLY cool. My kids loved the section where they could play the instruments, especially my son loved banging the Indonesian gong. Pretty amazing at all the different music depending on where you are in the world.
sublimeone
Footballguy
Thanks for feedback fellas
sublimeone
Footballguy
This is one of the biggest draws for me. A friend of mine lives in Gilbert, in a 4-bed 2000 sq ft house she bought for 240k... property taxes are 1500/year. In the suburb of Chicago I'm from a similarly sized house would go for upwards of 325k and property taxes would be in the neighborhood of 8-10k. Since I'm self-employed I could seemingly give myself a 30% raise in purchasing power just by moving.
higgins
Footballguy
This answer will differ from most of the previous posters since they're talking about the Phoenix area specifically.
You may want to consider Tucson. The metro area population is about 1 million, so it has many of the amenities a big city would have without bigger city headaches. To me Phoenix almost seemed like a mini-LA whereas you could get anywhere in Tucson relatively quickly. Aside from that advantage, Tucson is typically cooler than Phoenix since it's at a higher elevation. Since you're self-employed the only advantages to Phoenix (imho) are nightlife/culture, pro sports, and proximity to California and nature spots like Sedona.
People typically either love or hate the southwest -- I just happened to love it. Yes, it gets hot but the advantage of that climate is that you get sunshine 100% of the year -- that alone is enough to entice me to consider moving back.
You may want to consider Tucson. The metro area population is about 1 million, so it has many of the amenities a big city would have without bigger city headaches. To me Phoenix almost seemed like a mini-LA whereas you could get anywhere in Tucson relatively quickly. Aside from that advantage, Tucson is typically cooler than Phoenix since it's at a higher elevation. Since you're self-employed the only advantages to Phoenix (imho) are nightlife/culture, pro sports, and proximity to California and nature spots like Sedona.
People typically either love or hate the southwest -- I just happened to love it. Yes, it gets hot but the advantage of that climate is that you get sunshine 100% of the year -- that alone is enough to entice me to consider moving back.
Card Trader
Footballguy
Just bought a new build in Cave Creek, it's pretty amazing in this area. I've lived all over the valley and there aren't too many bad places to live. What price range are you looking at?
We have lived in Chandler for 10 years and love it. Obviously summers are hot but the weather is great in the winter. Lots of stuff for families to do especially kids sport leagues. Nice parks, excellent schools and close to about anything you would want to do. Let me know if you have any specific questions.
Brony
Footballguy
thanks. I think I recall that mentioned in an earlier thread too. When we've been to museums near home that have dedicated hands-on instrument exhibits, my kids could give two ####s unfortunately.
Zow
Footballguy
Zow
Footballguy
For further reading on the wonderful Sheriff, I strongly recommend reading the ethics opinion which came out to discipline then Maricopa County Prosecutor Andrew Thomas. It's long and not focused directly on the Sheriff but the part about Sheriff Joe and Thomas and what they did with obtaining indictments against judges and county board members is quite possibly the most legally reprehensible thing I've seen from law enforcement.
sublimeone
Footballguy
I'm looking for something in the neighborhood of 3,000 sq ft, 5 beds, at least 3 baths and a yard.. good schools and an community with a shared swimming pool would be nice. I'm guessing I could do that for less than 350?
skol asylum
Footballguy
Ummm...depends on location.
skol asylum
Footballguy
Zillow is your friend.
tommyGunZ
Footballguy
Is your friend my college roommate? He lives in Gilbert, has a 3/2 with a pool (waterfall), putting green, and basketball hoop in his backyard, and paid mid-250s IIRC.
AZ isn't for me, but I damn sure understand the perks of living there. Cost of living is a huge bonus.
I will say I think those hyping the sports teams are going a bit overboard, especially if football is your thing. The Cardinals stadium is a hike away from Gilbert and PHX - it isn't located anywhere near downtown. Huge mistake IMO.
Card Trader
Footballguy
For reference ours is 5 bed 5 bath, good size lot and 4k sq ft. It was significantly more than 350 it really is all about where you want to live and there aren't many bad choices, if you go out to Queen Creek or the far west valley you can probably find what you're looking for. And you'll probably want your own pool, it's pretty standard here
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sublimeone
Footballguy
yeah, i guess I was shooting a little low. Looks like what I'm looking for is more in the 425ish range.
sbonomo
Footballguy
9-1 is not a mistake. For me, San Fran stadium is just as far and takes 2x as long to get too. How about the jets/giants if you live in NY...i have to believe the commute is just as far and time consuming....
tommyGunZ
Footballguy
Cards are the best team in the NFC IMO. Has nothing to do with the idiotic decision to put the stadium out in bum####. Terrible, TERRIBLE idea.
Zow
Footballguy
Dude I've gone from downtown Mesa to tailgating with a beer in my hand in under 30 minutes. Yeah, it's way out in Glendale but Phoenix really doesn't have the traffic issues as other cities because the road system is so well designed.
