Help!! Ticky-tacky houses all in a row! (Phoenix, Tucson: real estate, rent)

[ready2go]

Why not Saguarodave? It's what I have here in Wisconsin. I just don't want the cold winters.

[Bickie]

My sister moved to Phoenix 4 years ago. She has a lovely home, but she hates it there. She says she is going to sell her home in a couple of years. Sometimes owning a house isn't such a good deal when you take everything else into consideration. The heat, the cost of health insurance ( and she works for a doctor at a hospital) , the lack of cultural diversity, the low salaries ( AZ is a right-to-work-state) and the gang activity. But as they say, to each his own.

[sheena]

Originally Posted by saguarodave

"Why can't I find a house within 20 minutes of downtown (where I work) that's 'reasonable' (read "inexpensive") and has a large yard and beautiful views?" Sigh

Beautiful views of what? Not being funny I just like to know what you want to see.

[sheena]

Originally Posted by ready2go

I need some help. Recently took a second trip down to Phoenix area with the thought of relocating and did a home($185-$275k) search. My realtor was fantastic and drove me around for an entire day looking at homes from Apache Junction, Queen Creek and Maricopa. Terrific guy.

At the end of it I was pretty depressed. House after house built in endless rows as far as the eye could see on tiny little walled-in lots with little to no vegetation. These are "developments", not neighborhoods!! I wanted to move out west for some clean air, some elbow-room and views... not to see 20 roofs and the top 20 feet of the Superstition Mountains from my back yard.

Is there any place around the Phoenix area within allowable commuting distance that doesn't feature this graveyard development style? For less than a million bucks? I love the area but not this rampant, soulless development. Where is the old west?

I don't think you are gonna get any elbow room in a new developement for 275,000.

Did you say you are moving west for clean air Not Phoenix.......
I love Phoenix but clean air is not found in Phoenix. I'm from NY so I know what pollution is.

[LVGAZ]

Look in the older parts of Gilbert - that are built 18-20 yrs ago when it all started for us here - there is still elbow room between homes if you stay north of warner - south of baseline -
east of gilbert rd and west of higley
there is val vista lakes community, finley park, sonoma ranch, - we have a rv gate and wide space next to our home and we are only 1500 sq ft with a pool - 265000k - and prices are still reasonable , trees, and community parks
When you go to the newer areas of PHX or the older towns that have the farmers selling to the developers - they are building the tracts, patios homes, and whatever in the minimal amount of space -

[silverbear]

Originally Posted by ready2go

I need some help. Recently took a second trip down to Phoenix area with the thought of relocating and did a home($185-$275k) search. My realtor was fantastic and drove me around for an entire day looking at homes from Apache Junction, Queen Creek and Maricopa. Terrific guy.

At the end of it I was pretty depressed. House after house built in endless rows as far as the eye could see on tiny little walled-in lots with little to no vegetation. These are "developments", not neighborhoods!! I wanted to move out west for some clean air, some elbow-room and views... not to see 20 roofs and the top 20 feet of the Superstition Mountains from my back yard.

Is there any place around the Phoenix area within allowable commuting distance that doesn't feature this graveyard development style? For less than a million bucks? I love the area but not this rampant, soulless development. Where is the old west?

Your realtor took you to the wrong areas. He or she may have had your price range in mind, but not your architectural preferences. If you are looking for more distinctive, individualized housing, the solution is not to look in the outermost suburbs, but instead to come closer to the heart of the area. New developments in the outer suburbs you mention always resemble the rowhouses common in eastern cities such as Philadelphia and Baltimore. They have little individual identity and are crammed onto undersized lots, leaving no sense of separation among neighbors.

If you want to see houses that are more distinct from one another, with better ratios of lot size to house size, you'll want to find another realtor who will show you appropriate neighborhoods in established areas of Phoenix, Tempe, Glendale, Scottsdale, etc. The areas will feature not only more individualized homes, but also more mature landscaping to provide some privacy and a bit of a cooling effect in the summer heat.

The complicating factor will be your price range, which is low for the most desirable areas. You may be able to find a small but nice house with a carport in an established area, or you might want to buy a condominium and trade up to a more full-featured house in a few years.

Although it may seem counterintuitve, the general rule is the newer the house and the farther from downtown, the more likely the house is going to be crammed into a small space with dozens of lookalikes. There are exceptions, of course, but those are generally for homes zoned as horse properties, farms, etc. Those are relatively rare and generally pretty expensive.

[ready2go]

Sheena,

I didn't say "beautiful" views... just not views of a wall and my neighbor's roofline in the backyard and nothing but row after row of the same house in the front "yard".

Why move out west for that? I can get that anyplace.

[sablebaby]

Originally Posted by silverbear

Your realtor took you to the wrong areas. He or she may have had your price range in mind, but not your architectural preferences. If you are looking for more distinctive, individualized housing, the solution is not to look in the outermost suburbs, but instead to come closer to the heart of the area. New developments in the outer suburbs you mention always resemble the rowhouses common in eastern cities such as Philadelphia and Baltimore. They have little individual identity and are crammed onto undersized lots, leaving no sense of separation among neighbors.

If you want to see houses that are more distinct from one another, with better ratios of lot size to house size, you'll want to find another realtor who will show you appropriate neighborhoods in established areas of Phoenix, Tempe, Glendale, Scottsdale, etc.

The complicating factor will be your price range, which is low for the most desirable areas. You may be able to find a small but nice house with a carport in an established area, or you might want to buy a condominium and trade up to a more full-featured house in a few years.

Although it may seem counterintuitve, the general rule is the newer the house and the farther from downtown, the more likely the house is going to be crammed into a small space with dozens of lookalikes. There are exceptions, of course, but those are generally for homes zoned as horse properties, farms, etc. Those are relatively rare and generally pretty expensive.

I just believe that those outside type areas are way out the price range. A possibly better option would be a nice mobile home on a little piece of land (bigger than the average size lot).

[ready2go]

Silver Bear,

You're right. The price range is the limiting factor and my realtor indicated once we started seeing houses that the home area and style would be limited.

While I can afford a home in those areas I'm looking at what I'm getting for my money and it's coming up short. Maybe I'm just cheap... and deaf

[sheena]

Originally Posted by ready2go

Sheena,

I didn't say "beautiful" views... just not views of a wall and my neighbor's roofline in the backyard and nothing but row after row of the same house in the front "yard".

Why move out west for that? I can get that anyplace.

Oh, ok gotcha. I thought I was missing something. The west is the place for go for weather and for some transplants cheaper than where they came from. It's a trade off from cold and snow.