Looking to Relocate to AZ, but not sure where (Scottsdale: crime rates, house)

[momontherise]

Originally Posted by MotleyCrew

There are quite a few great spot here in AZ. We spent almost two years driving from N. CA to AZ exploring the state. We landed in N. Peoria up in a community called Vistancia. It was the city we were looking for. Lots of new shopping developments coming our way and some have recently been completed.
You really need to make a trip and drive to the different areas. This forum is fantastic for suggestions of where to live. Some of us love the west side and many love the east. Both have their good spots. The amount you want to spend on a home will also be a factor in your search.

Thank you so much. I am really trying to make a list of places to visit and to begin looking. I am research as many places as possible and getting a feel for what area may be the best fit for us. As for buying a house, we don;t want to spend anymore than 200,000.

[momontherise]

Originally Posted by Just.Believe

I've lived here my whole and my husband and I want to move away. The number one reason is the heat. If you like to sweat year round then you'll be okay Seriously, I literally cry every year at the end of May. That's when it starts to really heat up. Here it is the end of November and I can't go to the store without breaking a sweat (probably has a little to do with my active toddler). But still. It gets hotter and hotter every year. NEVER I repeat NEVER leave anything in your car that you don't want to melt. CD cases get warped in the summers. Back in the day of cassette tapes--ruined, unusable. That's if you leave it in the sun though.

More and more people are moving here and the city is just growing beyond belief. We want somewhere that we can raise a family and have 4 seasons. (Also, not to sound racist, because I'm totally not, there are parts of town that people don't speak english and billboards are in other languages) Even in the nicer parts of town it's still there, not so much the bilboards. I'm sure that's everywhere, but probably more so in AZ.

Come visit in the middle of July and then make a decision.

Thank you for the reply. I HATE winters. I HATE cold. I HATE snow. I get HORRIBLE winter blues and I need sun. I love heat. I must admit, I don;t know anything about Az heat and we know that we have to find out. My asthma is worse during the change of seasons (summer to fall and winter to spring) so the 4-season thing is not for me.

Also, I am not too concerned with the non-English speaking issues as again, I live in NY and there is a VERY large spanish-speaking population. In addition, I teach English and ESL.

Again, I know we need to visit, but I need to narrow it down a bit.

Kristina

[desertpine1]

May I suggest CordesLakes,Az. It is less than an hour North of Phoenix, straight up the interstate. easy commute. I lived there the last 8 years with my husband in our 3 b.r. home we had built. We planned to stay there forever, until sadly he passed away at the age of 40. They have beautiful, CLEAN, CLEAR, AIR, unlike the Phoenix area, which is equiv. of L.A.! Four seasons. In the summer you only run the air half a day. Surrounded by mountains. Only 2,000 and growing. Very friendly community. 1/2 hour from shopping, less than that from schools. Multiracial. Wonderful place to raise children. Moderator cut: Advertising I have lived in Az 20 yrs. Relocated from Wis. I have lived from Tucson, (south) to Prescott, (North) and Phoenix in between. Phoenix,Maricopa county is HOT and getting HOTTER every year! In October it was still in the upper 90's! Significantly cooler in Cordes lakes. a beautiful place to live and raise children. Lots of familys moving in there now, and building homes there. Used to be retirees, but that is rapidly changing. Sincerely, Robyn/desertpine1

[sierraAZ]

Originally Posted by sheena

I hadn't been to NYC in 19 years and from the looks of it last week, it looked a lot cleaner than Phoenix.

Apparently it has changed a lot. I was there for the first and only time 5 years ago. Had heard from people the area around Times Square is bad. Nothing like that IMO... Even Hell's kitchen didn't look that scary to me. Of course, I wouldn't walk in certain parts of Harlem, but that's to be expected.

[sheena]

Originally Posted by momontherise

I work in the Bronx by factories and marsh land and 3 highways- it may be cleaner, but not by much. LOL.

Kristina

I haven't been to the Bronx in about 21 years so I can't compare. I was born in Throggs Neck.

[sheena]

Originally Posted by sierraAZ

Apparently it has changed a lot. I was there for the first and only time 5 years ago. Had heard from people the area around Times Square is bad. Nothing like that IMO... Even Hell's kitchen didn't look that scary to me. Of course, I wouldn't walk in certain parts of Harlem, but that's to be expected.

I remembered it disgusting but it sure looked good to me now.

[momontherise]

Originally Posted by desertpine1

May I suggest CordesLakes,Az. It is less than an hour North of Phoenix, straight up the interstate. easy commute. I lived there the last 8 years with my husband in our 3 b.r. home we had built. We planned to stay there forever, until sadly he passed away at the age of 40. They have beautiful, CLEAN, CLEAR, AIR, unlike the Phoenix area, which is equiv. of L.A.! Four seasons. In the summer you only run the air half a day. Surrounded by mountains. Only 2,000 and growing. Very friendly community. 1/2 hour from shopping, less than that from schools. Multiracial. Wonderful place to raise children. Moderator cut: Advertising I have lived in Az 20 yrs. Relocated from Wis. I have lived from Tucson, (south) to Prescott, (North) and Phoenix in between. Phoenix,Maricopa county is HOT and getting HOTTER every year! In October it was still in the upper 90's! Significantly cooler in Cordes lakes. a beautiful place to live and raise children. Lots of familys moving in there now, and building homes there. Used to be retirees, but that is rapidly changing. Sincerely, Robyn/desertpine1

Thank you. I will be looking into CordesLakes- sounds nice. My husband and I are visiting Az in Feb. We are staying with friends who live in Maricopa County, but I wanted to know other places to check out. We will be there for about 1 week 3 days.

Thank you again.

[momontherise]

Originally Posted by sheena

I remembered it disgusting but it sure looked good to me now.

Originally Posted by sierraAZ

Apparently it has changed a lot. I was there for the first and only time 5 years ago. Had heard from people the area around Times Square is bad. Nothing like that IMO... Even Hell's kitchen didn't look that scary to me. Of course, I wouldn't walk in certain parts of Harlem, but that's to be expected.

Times Square is very different. It has been cleaned up a lot. Harlem too. In fact, most people think that Harlem is horrible, but some of my best friends live there and I hang out there a lot. I had to go to Oneonta NY (the boondies- 3.5 hours north) to get mugged. 18 years in the Bronx/Harlem/Manhattan area and I had never had so much as a scare. LOL

[BUSTERDOUGLAS]

Better think twice about moving to Arizona, this is a right to work state and you can be terminated for just about any reason with no recourse, the school system here has been voted very poorly, matter of fact Arizona was voted the dumbest, (yes the dumbest state) in the U.S., of course there are many factors involved with that decision, one of which is they spend one of the lowest dollar amounts per child in the U.S. Az is a poor state, however the wealthy landowners contol all that goes on here including lining politicians pockets. The violence especially where you thought about moving is high, violent crime is rampant here and spreading to the smaller communities. My wife and I are very sad we moved here, where we thought this would be a good place to raise a family..............IT'S NOT !!! Bunch of illegal gangsters, rednecks, meth addicts everywhere, corruption, unkempt, uneducated hayseeds. Don't let any one talk you into moving here until you check it out for yourself. I speak the truth, many people feel the same.

[MotleyCrew]

What part of AZ are you tired of Busterdouglas? Your discription does not sound like my city. I have seen few "rednecks" no gansters and crime here is not all that bad.