MovingtoAZ (real estate, homes, appraisal)

[sansonj]

The site that I have found useful is http://www.KINGofHUD.com/ for great bargains. These guys are on top of their A game. You must do things thier way. There is no messing with these guys. They do business the old fashion way- face to face. How refreshing. They will not send you one single home via email, fax, or snail mail. They say you buy a house in person, so it does not good to become a shopper when you want to be a buyer. This is the kind of guys I needed to push me along. I give them a 10 out of 10. Once again for Phoenix metro real estate there is only one company for me http://www.AZPlatinumRealty.com which is KING of HUD, INC.

[sansonj]

Each city has it's own issues. However, with the right realtor (r) you will find a dream home and community to live in. Like I said before, I would not use anybody else but http://www.AZPlatinumRealty.com/ look them up and give them a call. I liked Marc Montgomery there, but all of their realtors are fun (and I mean fun), and professional. This is a good group of Realtors. FYI: there has not been a better time to buy in Arizona than right now. It is a buyers' market getting ready to switch back to being a sellers' market.

[zonababe]

Originally Posted by sansonj

Each city has it's own issues. However, with the right realtor (r) you will find a dream home and community to live in. Like I said before, I would not use anybody else but http://www.AZPlatinumRealty.com/ look them up and give them a call. I liked Marc Montgomery there, but all of their realtors are fun (and I mean fun), and professional. This is a good group of Realtors. FYI: there has not been a better time to buy in Arizona than right now. It is a buyers' market getting ready to switch back to being a sellers' market.

How is the buyer's market getting ready to switch back to a seller's market? I predict the real estate prices will keep dropping as there is a glut of homes on the market.

[adogslife]

I am anxious to hear about this "sellers market" as well zonababe. Lets see, ARMLS reports an average of 48,000 listings currently on the market in Maricopa County, average sales are about 5000 properties a month, that gives us about 9 to 10 months inventory........This does not take in to account the new homes inventory, which is about 4700 units, which adds another 10% to the current inventory. A number of new home builders have diminished their framing crews 75%, does that sound like a looming change in the real estate market?

California is languishing in their real estate market, their PMI ratings are off the chart (default risk measurement), and their sellers have played a big role in our recent real estate activities. Likewise, I am a realtor, but I could not tell a client to "buy now" before the market turns!!!........What am I missing sansonj?

[Bossanovawitcha]

I'm an AZ native who has also lived in Pleasanton, Manteca, Atwater, and Irvine, CA along with Las Vegas, NV.

I'm relocating to Dallas (Plano) or Washington (Bothell), and have been trolling message boards for both cities.

Its funny, because reading the forums there are people that simply come online to make "I HATE IT IT SUX" posts. A very small % of these are constructive. Not every city matches a person's likes/dislikes. However, the MAJORITY of these posters would probably be unhappy and bitter about EVERY place they lived. Just my thoughts.

So, I hopped over to my native metro area's forum, to find the same thing. I wasn't surprised, since its the same in every city's forum.

So, if you're reading these forums as information discovery for potential relocation, take them with a grain of salt. Or an entire salt shaker - no matter which major metro area you are reading about.

Just like any big metro area, Phoenix metro has its + and -. However, your living experience depends almost wholly on where you live.

We lived in Summerlin in Las Vegas, which was nice. However, Phoenix metro's 'good' areas blow Summerlin and Vegas away simply because they are like Summerlin x10 in size.

Nothing compares to Pleasanton or Irvine CA - if you can afford million dollar housing. Just amazing weather, amenities, nearby attraction and scenery.

Phoenix is a booming area with sprawl comparable to Dallas/Ft Worth or the LA Basin. There is just so much open space to fill, so instead of building up, the trend has always been to build out. The long term affect this has on social and environmental welfare is up for debate - but new area usually means nice housing, nice restaurants and shopping, and nicer schools. Gilbert / Chandler are pretty affordable for the lifestyle you can enjoy. Yes, its a 'pizza oven' for 3-4 months. May / June / October are not bad at all. 100* dry is nothing when it cools down at night. I've been in 83* humid Atlanta weather that I found more intolerable than 100* AZ heat. For 6 months, Phoenix has arguably the best weather on the planet, if you like warm, sunny picturesque days.

What I like about Phoenix as opposed to Texas is the geography. The desert has a beauty all its own. The weather in Phoenix is much less harsh than Texas in the winter. No natural disasters, either. Arizona is an INCREDIBLY beautiful state. Desert sunsets are awe-inspiring. The Grand Canyon is priceless. The White Mountains, home to the world's largest ponderosa pine trees, is incredibly beautiful - especially in the summer when its 110* in Phoenix. Flagstaff, Tucson, and the mountain country (both North and East) are just 2-3 hours away. Vegas, San Diego, Rocky Point, Mexico, and Orange County are only 4-5 hours away by car (or $49 cheap 1 hour flights). Plus, everyone needs to see Sedona's Red Rock country and the Grand Canyon before they die. Amazing and surreal.

In the summer, when its a 'pizza oven' in Phoenix, that you stay inside your house, nearby mall, or movie theater (restaurants and movie theaters are extremely popular). On the weekends, you can get to high country to escape the heat anyway, or head to San Diego.

(continued)

[Bossanovawitcha]

Gilbert is a great area. Some great 'non-traditional' restaurants have started popping up. The 'old west' downtown of Gilbert now has four of the best restaurants in the Valley (and all inexpensive eats) - Oregano's, Joe's BBQ, Flancer's Cafe, and Lulu's Taco Shop (for a REAL taco experience). Freeway traffic is nothing like Dallas, Atlanta, or California. For the money, Gilbert/Chandler is a safe bet as far as real estate goes. I'd avoid fringe cities with infrastructure issues such as Queen Creek or Surprise, unless you're looking long, long term or can't afford Gilbert/Chandler. Scottsdale is extremely upscale, but way, way, way overpriced. Old Town Scottsdale has a lot of charm and isn't outrageously priced like North Scottsdale (Resortsville, USA).

Golf in the Valley of the Sun is unbeatable. My favorite course is Dinosaur Mountain in Gold Canyon, with elevation and desert wildlife. Last time I was there, we ran across a bobcat and deer, along with the usual jackrabbits. One of the few + of the summer are the summer golf prices. You can play incredible resort courses that are $200-$300 in the winter for $20-$50.

[Bossanovawitcha]

Negatives - downtown Phoenix is improving, but there is still a 'giant suburb' feel to Phoenix. No real, true social epicenter. I prefer Mill Avenue near ASU as a social artery. Public transportation sucks here. If you do not own a car, don't bother living in Phoenix metro. The dust - in the summer during the 'monsoon season'. Everyone has different allergies, and for me the dust is brutal. I don't really have any problem with 'non-native plants' in Phoenix. It isn't the allergy haven for plant allergies it once was, but Tucson still is, and you can live farther out of town to avoid the plant allergies (Gold Canyon, Anthem, Casa Grande) if its a problem. But get used to dusting your house often. During July/August, there are a few dust storms that come in with the 'stormy season' that are annoying. But all in all, we're talking about 2 months of crappy weather, another 1-2 months of very hot weather, then 2 months of nice hot weather, and 6 months of heavenly weather (again - if you like 75* and sunny days - some people don't).

Another negative - the job market here, especially the high tech market, lags behind other major metros. That is rapidly changing, but I'm in IT and most of the datacenter jobs are in places like Dallas, Chicago, Seattle, Bay Area, Atlanta. Salaries here are lower for most jobs, except for sales or service jobs (AZ is obviously a big tourism / resort town, along with being a big 'development' area, which is the #1 industry). Job growth has been excellent the past few years, so hopefully that will continue.

Summary -

Positives -
* Can easily find great places to raise kids. Lots and lots of great families in the right parts of town.
* Weather for the most part is excellent (if you like sun). Phoenix is not a 'hellhole' people make it out to be. Unless you live on the Pacific Ocean, you're not going to have perfect weather, period. Phoenix has much better weather than almost anywhere else - again, if you like the sun. No natural disasters that affect the Phoenix area (wildfire risk in the high country). No rusty cars, beautiful clear skies most of the time. Getting a pool (if you don't have young kids or are willing to accept the risk - we weren't) makes a difference in the summer heat, if you want to still go outside.
* Diverse, natural beauty unsurpassed by any state except maybe California.
* Roads are easy to navigate, everything is new, almost all roads go N/S/E/W.
* Lots of things to do, like any bigger city. Nice zoo, nice parks, professional and college sports.
* Good schools in good areas.
* Great golf, good recreational activities, especially in the fall, winter, and spring when you can get out to hike, bike, explore. Or, camping is EASY to find in the hot summers when you need to get away.
* Crime in Gilbert is among the lowest in the country.

Negatives -
* Extremely hot and dusty in the summers. 90* at 11:00 PM at night. Wearing shorts and sandals year round is great, but 90* in the middle of the night is pretty warm (even if its dry) - no escape unless you leave the city.
* Air / water quality (get a water cooler and fill up jugs at Water 'N Ice
* Lack of public transportation - no car = you're toast
* Losing identity as a charming, Southwest 'smaller' big city. Its a megametro area now, and still growing like mad.
* Crime in some areas has risen - which is a growing pain of any major metro area that has had a lot of prosperity. The nicer, safer areas are well - nice and safe.
* Housing prices are stabilizing - make SURE you buy in a good area long term, if you move here. Gilbert, Chandler, Tempe, Ahwahtukee, Northeast Mesa, Peoria, Cave Creek, Paradise Valley, Anthem, and now maybe speculating on Glendale are safest bets. Scottsdale is extremely nice but overpriced. Buying in fringe areas you have to be willing to risk seeing your home price dip as the investors have all fled after picking the bones of the real estate market here. Not to worry - this is a developer's market, and with so many people moving in, long term its just a blip. But it could be years before the market recovers.

[Bossanovawitcha]

Hope this helps people moving here, or planning on moving here. I'm a native who has lived all over the Southwest, so I'm not afraid to be honest about negatives here. Every place in the world has them. Arizona is a fine place to live. Most people from out of state that move to the right area ABSOLUTELY LOVE Arizona. There's a reason for that.

As for me, I'm off to either Washington or Texas (job transfer). I wouldn't hesitate to live in AZ again in the future. Like many, I'd LOVE to live in California, on the coast, but there is no way my little family of 5 can afford that. Someday, I hope to have a home in the Valley for the winter, and a home in the cool climes for the summers.

I have my 4BR house for sale here in Gilbert, if anybody is in the market. A lot of nice upgrades in the home, and we're looking for around $330k, but pretty flexible on price. E-mail alan.bruce@gmail.com for pics.

http://phoenix.craigslist.org/rfs/235840526.html

Good luck to all current and future Arizona residents.

[dragonkeeper]

Don't want to "pop your bubble" but bad people have messed this state up and if you still come here and work for the sheriff dept. please make sure you write up the crime reports right. My neighbor who broke in our house and tried to rape me may get off because of the way the report was written. We are moving out of Arizona not soon enough.

Originally Posted by jobklb

I am moving possibly to the Phoenix, AZ area from southen IL. I do have some family in Phoenix. I may have a job at the Maricopa Sheriff Dept. I am interested in any advice or help. I have a 9 year old son whom will live with me. I am a 30 year old male. Any advice on rent, school condition, where to avoid, etc... would be greatly appreciated! Thanx! mail me at jpbklb@hotmail if you'd like.

[Steve-o]

Ill sum up Arizona the best I can... here goes:

Spring: Nice.

Summer: Brutally hot, dont expect to get out much.

Fall: Nice.

Winter: Nice in daylight, cold at night.

Phoenix: Nice spots and good spots. Id steer clear and try Goodyear, Chandler, Surprise, Scottsdale, Carefree.

Scottsdale: phony. Wanna-be Beverly Hills (explains it all!!!!!). Money. Looks.

Tuscon: Liberal. Mexican. Crime. Nice areas too.

LOL, people, there are nice spots and good spots in every city in the nation.