Living in Green Valley AZ (Phoenix, Tucson: buying a home, buying, calculator)

[The_Rover]

Hello Everyone,

My parents are looking to move from Central FL to Green Valley AZ before 2024. I'd really appreciate getting the lowdown on living in GV these days. May I get a few details cost like monthly electric bills (looking a 2 bedroom town home). Do you pay a small premium for things like groceries and such compared to Tucson? Is traffic heavy or is it reasonable? Decent doctors nearby, that don't treat you like a number, and are likely to accept new patients with Medicare? I know they'll have to go into Tucson for procedures and such which is fine. I guess the nearby ER closed down?

Last but important. Regarding the old 1 and 2 bedroom townhomes that make up many of the communities in GV. What can you tell me about them pros and cons wise? Do these units eventually need (full or partial roof rebuilds)? Re-coating only takes you so far. Plumbing / pipes in early late 70s to 80s homes? Unfortunately, they'll have to buy into the expensive GVR - they're not active. Add this to the already over inflated housing costs.

P.S. I lived in NW Tucson for a number of years and moved away in about 2 years ago. Didn't visit GV very often but liked the comparative calmness.

[Du Ma]

Wrong sub forum

Also, Green Valley is full of retirees and snowbirds. It’s not a good place for young families

[AnywhereElse]

OP: Ask the mod to move this to the AZ forum for you. I know there is someone up there that is retired and lives in Green Valley, who posts fairly often.

You can look for a "cost of living" calculator, as there are several if you "google" and put the current city vs the city one wants to move to, and it will give you a cost comparison. I would use at least 2 of the sources and compare one to the other.

In the 1990s we lived in Marana, just north of Tucson, when it was more "rural", but I wonder if it might be something to consider.

[My2cents55]

Originally Posted by The_Rover

Hello Everyone,

My parents are looking to move from Central FL to Green Valley AZ before 2024. I'd really appreciate getting the lowdown on living in GV these days. May I get a few details cost like monthly electric bills (looking a 2 bedroom town home). Do you pay a small premium for things like groceries and such compared to Tucson? Is traffic heavy or is it reasonable? Decent doctors nearby, that don't treat you like a number, and are likely to accept new patients with Medicare? I know they'll have to go into Tucson for procedures and such which is fine. I guess the nearby ER closed down?

Last but important. Regarding the old 1 and 2 bedroom townhomes that make up many of the communities in GV. What can you tell me about them pros and cons wise? Do these units eventually need (full or partial roof rebuilds)? Re-coating only takes you so far. Plumbing / pipes in early late 70s to 80s homes? Unfortunately, they'll have to buy into the expensive GVR - they're not active. Add this to the already over inflated housing costs.

P.S. I lived in NW Tucson for a number of years and moved away in about 2 years ago. Didn't visit GV very often but liked the comparative calmness.

Perhaps you might want to post here. http://www.city-data.com/forum/arizona/

[Caladan]

We don't live in GV, but do live in Tubac, which is about 20 miles to the south. But as we have few amenities in Tubac, we spend a lot of time in GV/Sahuarita (and Tucson). I can't address all of your questions, but here are a few comments on some of your concerns.

GV/Sahuarita has a large Walmart and three large grocery stores. We do not feel that GV/Sa residents pay a premium for groceries. GV/Sa has at least two hardware stores, a number of restaurants, auto shops, and a small hospital. Your parents won't have to go to Tucson unless they just want to, or by some chance need a medical specialty that is not available in GV. Both my wife and I do all of our healthcare in the area, with the exception of her eye surgery that was done in Tucson. The medical professionals that we have dealt with seem just fine. It is after all a fairly "laid-back" area. Not sure if the hospital off of Sahuarita Road has an ER, but that should be easy for you to find out yourself.

We have a fairly large 3/2/2. The electrical bill that came in yesterday was $223. Gas was $19. Obviously gas goes up and electricity goes down in the Winter.

To our eyes, traffic in the area is quite manageable. In fact, I sometimes marvel at how easy it is to get around GV/Sa. Even getting up and down the interstate between Nogales and Tucson is quite (or quiet, if you are from Florida) easy.

If your parents are not interested in GVR, then perhaps they should consider buying a home in the area that does not require GVR membership.

[jlawrence01]

Originally Posted by The_Rover

Hello Everyone,

My parents are looking to move from Central FL to Green Valley AZ before 2024. I'd really appreciate getting the lowdown on living in GV these days. May I get a few details cost like monthly electric bills (looking a 2 bedroom town home). Do you pay a small premium for things like groceries and such compared to Tucson? Is traffic heavy or is it reasonable? Decent doctors nearby, that don't treat you like a number, and are likely to accept new patients with Medicare? I know they'll have to go into Tucson for procedures and such which is fine. I guess the nearby ER closed down?

Last but important. Regarding the old 1 and 2 bedroom townhomes that make up many of the communities in GV. What can you tell me about them pros and cons wise? Do these units eventually need (full or partial roof rebuilds)? Re-coating only takes you so far. Plumbing / pipes in early late 70s to 80s homes? Unfortunately, they'll have to buy into the expensive GVR - they're not active. Add this to the already over inflated housing costs.
.

1) Electric bills vary by the size of the home and the efficiency of the HVAC system and the number of days that you run the air conditioner each year. We pay about $75 monthly for electric, $25 for gas and $55 for water and sewer.

2) You pay a premium for groceries in Green Valley as there are no discount groceries like Villa's or Food City or Aldi. Since we travel to Phoenix every two months, we do our major stock up trips in Mesa at Aldi and Winco Foods and some of the ethnic markets.

3) Where exactly do you live where the doctors are like Marcus Welby? I haven't seen that in 40 years. There are a lot of good doctors in Green Valley. However, you need to establish a relationship with them upon entering the community. If you try to do that when the snowbirds arrive, you will wait weeks for an appointment. We have a permanent population of 25K that triples in the winter and many of the snowbirds put a huge stress on the doctors that we do have. You will need to plan to travel to Tucson for many procedures but the nearest ER in seven miles north in Sahuarita.

The Green Valley Hospital was a complete disaster as it was developed by land developers who took no time to establish relationships with doctors in the local area deciding to bring in practices from Phoenix. They did nearly everything wrong and did not even have local investors or involvement.

4) As for the condition of the properties, MOST older properties have been well maintained and have updated physical plants.

5) If you do not want to join GVR, there are at least 25 HOAs that are not part of the recreation program. I consider GVR to be one of the most affordable programs and the people who use it are among the healthiest in the area.

This post should have been posted in the Tucson portion of the forum as that is where most of the people in the area follow.

[The_Rover]

Originally Posted by AnywhereElse

OP: Ask the mod to move this to the AZ forum for you. I know there is someone up there that is retired and lives in Green Valley, who posts fairly often.

You can look for a "cost of living" calculator, as there are several if you "google" and put the current city vs the city one wants to move to, and it will give you a cost comparison. I would use at least 2 of the sources and compare one to the other.

In the 1990s we lived in Marana, just north of Tucson, when it was more "rural", but I wonder if it might be something to consider.

Thank you for the advise regarding where to post. Regarding Marana. Like most anywhere, it has since been built up. However, you're still kind of far from, say the action, in downtown Tucson.