View Full Version : Relocation to arizona all comments welcome
The wife and I are planning to relocate to arizona in the next 12-18 months.
I would appreciate any input on good places to live ( or avoid for that matter) jobs are not an issue as we both are head hunted regularly to work in the region.
I understand the big markets so to speak are phoenix metro and tuscon. I am also open to any other area except in addition to escaping the yoke of oppression of New York my wife wants minimal to no winter and I am fine with that, so flagstaff and the northern high elevations are out.
I understand sierra vista is an option as well. I welcome any guidance you can provide.
sevenhelmet
03-18-15, 18:46
I'm not from Arizona, but congratulations! I hope it works out well for you. It's nice to see people moving to free states.
Sierra Vista is the asshole of the state IMO. Tucson isn't much better. If you're looking to be in the middle of things and in a nice area, Chandler and Gilbert are pretty good. There's also the higher income/cost areas like Scottsdale and Ahwatukee. All 4 are in the metro area. Or you could push out a bit to Surprise or Queen Creek and find some houses on a little bit of land.
Sierra Vista should only be an option if you want to live on the border, and have military base privileges for shopping. As for Tucson, I know people who loved living there, but I think things have changed for the worst in the past few years. Increasing crime and border roll overs (vans full of people crossing the border for free medical, citizenship for their babies, etc) have made it less desirable. Not my direct experience, just that of a co worker who quit a six figure job to live some place better. The airport is limited, too. Often times it was quicker for me to fly to Phoenix and drive the 2ish hours from Sky Harbor than try to arrive/depart Tucson. Phoenix on the other hand has a major airport (if that matters). Traffic can be a nightmare if you commute during normal working hours but the rest of the time I can cross the city in 30 minutes or less. Scottsdale for sure if you can afford it, but as mentioned Gilbert and Chandler are nice places. Those three and parts of central Phoenix (near Camelback west of Scottsdale) would be on my short list if I were relocating there.
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Thanks folks. I have been getting opinions from a bunch of other forums and most are saying the same things. I do get differing opinions on things of course. Please continue to give me any further info you have. Our last trip out we did meet up with some friends who relocated to scottsdale and it was rather nice, but you have to wonder about a community where the porche dealership is bigger than my hometown ford Chevy and dodge dealership combined!
Scottsdale sucks. I used to work up that way. I avoid going there at all costs. Abusive photo radar, etc. But I guess if you worked there, living there might make sense.
If you and your spouse can work and live on the same side of town, that's ideal. I go against rush hour both ways, and I watch suckers from the West Valley sit in traffic on their way into and of Phoenix every day. And if there's a wreck, forget it. Parking lot traffic.
congrats, do you have room for one more? :cool:
Doc Safari
03-20-15, 11:08
Sierra Vista is the asshole of the state IMO.
I would really like to hear the reasoning behind this. Sierra Vista is one of the towns I'm planning to visit in the next 12-18 months as a potential retirement location.
I thought Sierra Vista was where many of the Tucson Sector Boarder Patrol guys lived.
donlapalma
03-20-15, 13:43
OP, what kind of daily lifestyle would you and your wife like to live? What's your typical weekend activities? What's important to you? I've lived here for about 8 years now and I've learned that there are different facets to the Phoenix Metro area.
...Abusive photo radar, etc....
I thought AZ did away with the photo radar since people (especially the snow birds with out of state plates )weren't responding to the mail notifications.
My cousin moved back to the Mid-West after moving to AZ and staying there for 5 years. He claimed he couldn't take the illegal alien problem. Don't recall what area he was in but he had lots of issues with illegals apparently.
This is only one data point and one individual, but something to consider.
Moved to AZ for a while when I was doing the 'gun biz' thing. Lived in Gilbert, worked in Mesa. Brought plenty of money as I figured Phoenix would suck it down, and it did!
We got very sick of looking at brown and blue, and left for GA. Been 15 years since I've been there, no regrets.
Our hope is to live within ten miles of where we would work. Trying to
Limit the commute. Each of us get about ten offers a week to relocate and New York has simply made it too painful to stay.
I want to live in a nice peaceful low crime are but do not need a trendy address.
We tend to be pretty subdued people our idea of a typical weekend now is to get up late on Saturday have breakfast and then cruise around town maybe a little shopping and dinner out. Sundays are pretty much my shooting day.
thirteen/autumns
03-21-15, 19:37
I want to live in a nice peaceful low crime are but do not need a trendy address.
We tend to be pretty subdued people our idea of a typical weekend now is to get up late on Saturday have breakfast and then cruise around town maybe a little shopping and dinner out. Sundays are pretty much my shooting day.
North Phoenix… IE north of the 101. ;) Low crime, higher-end housing, close to shopping, safe area to walk and ride bikes, close to hiking trails and mountains, close enough to national forests for recreational fun.
Spend the money and live in a nice area, I live in fountain hills. Northern phx, carefree and cave creek are nice as well. **** Glendale unless you like metheads. A lot of trash in this state.
Thanks for the info. I have a neighbor who works ( maybe retired by now) as a cop in Glendale and I agree it is bad based on everything I have heard. A coworker has a condo in cave creek and we have some other friends we visited in scottsdale ( off dynamite road) and we will probably do a scouting trip early 2016
I can almost smell the freedom compared to living under the socialist yoke of New York oppression!
Thesandstonefiles
10-09-15, 18:14
Sierra Vista is the asshole of the state IMO. Tucson isn't much better. If you're looking to be in the middle of things and in a nice area, Chandler and Gilbert are pretty good. There's also the higher income/cost areas like Scottsdale and Ahwatukee. All 4 are in the metro area. Or you could push out a bit to Surprise or Queen Creek and find some houses on a little bit of land.
The wife and I moved to Gilbert a couple of months ago.
We like it but it's too cookie cutter I guess is the right word. Surprise, Cave Creek, Peoria, are all North(ish) of Phoenix but the a remote of the desert one typically thinks of when they think of AZ. It feels like we live back in Tampa here in Gilbert.
Don't get me wrong, it's nice, but we are already looking to get Morth of Phoenix. It tends to be more expensive though.
Plus it's one hour closer to Sedona and flagstaff which are two awesome places to hit up mid summer to get a break from the heat. Plus you a tad closer to the lakes which are awesome too.
It's about your tastes too. Snottsdale is very nice, lots of shopping et cetera. And since its centralized it's about the same distance from Gilbert or places North of Snottsdale. So I'd rather have the more desert scene of let's say Anthem and still be about a half an hour from Phoenix/Snottsdale.
Thesandstonefiles
10-09-15, 18:15
Thanks for the info. I have a neighbor who works ( maybe retired by now) as a cop in Glendale and I agree it is bad based on everything I have heard. A coworker has a condo in cave creek and we have some other friends we visited in scottsdale ( off dynamite road) and we will probably do a scouting trip early 2016
I can almost smell the freedom compared to living under the socialist yoke of New York oppression!
That's where we came from! Just wait until you walk into the gun shops and see suppressors and sbr's! A boner. You'll have one.
Thanks for the continued input. We plan on a scouting trip early next year. The best options for us still appear Phoenix metro based. Some head hunters are offering sign on bonuses moving expenses and pretty good wages (a bit more for me close to double her current wage for the wife) to come to Phoenix area. One of my goals ( might have mentioned before here) is to drastically improve my commute which right now is 42 miles one way. ) which with traffic in Phoenix might be an issue I understand ( that is a close and quick commute may be elusive is Phoenix )
Thesandstonefiles
10-10-15, 10:17
Uh....I don't know what field of work you're in but I'd be.....wary of head hunters. I mean you're probably fine but I've seen instances were they have inside deals with HR just to get people in the door and they get a kick back whether the employee works out or not.
My wife is jobless after three months. Big sign on bonus seemed like s great idea but the first day she got to work all of the employees were talking terribly about the place. That was the first clue. Long story short it was the worst work experience of her life and she a complaint filed against them and we are NOT the type of people to just do frivolous stuff.
So it might work out but just really try to vet the head hunter and the job. If the jobs in s big business try to vet the area you're going to be in.
Remember, this is the fifth biggest city in the US. If they need to offer huge bonuses to get people to sign that means the place sucks to work or you have serious skills.
I hope in your case it let skills! :). Good luck and let me know when you get here.
Thanks sand stone. Both the wife and I have very in demand professions and the recruitment offers we get nearly daily are for all 50 states and even some foreign countries. Before we would ever jump at a job based on initial offer alone it would be associated with on the ground recon. And some of the hunters involved recruited some of my wife's former coworkers and they give good feedback. I am in medicine with over 25 years experience and my wife works in the rehab profession with a masters degree and over 20 years experience so I am happy to say we are in the serious skills department!
Thesandstonefiles
10-10-15, 11:18
Awesome! I just don't want anyone to go through what my wife and I are going through. She only has a year and a half experience in nursing and we didn't think much about it so she took the job and....well...nightmare lol.
To be fair, I don't blame the entire company. I think it was mostly her floor.
On somewhat of an unrelated note, having been in medical and seeing it myself, I can't get over how women treat each other. All of that sisterhood BS one sees in the media. Yeah....lol.
Women can be terrible to each other over the most petty of things.
I'm guessing you've seen in too with that much experience.
Anyway, keep us updated and let me know when you get here. We will hit the range!
.... I go against rush hour both ways....
That can make a big difference in time and money.
It is not that hard to do and I can't believe how many people just accept sitting in traffic as a fact of life.
Yes sand stone women can really get wrapped around the axle over petty stuff. My wife is the sort who doesn't get involved in such things and doesn't let it get to her.
Thanks for the invite to shoot when we relocate! What part of ny did you come from?
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