IS Arizona really bad as everyone says???? (Phoenix, Tucson: transplants, house)

[nova]

Don't forget about the METH out here. this has something to do with the attitudes also.
You'll always find someone disgruntled, every where you live. Arizona has alot of nice senery, when you get past the heat. There is alot to do out here if you look for it. It just depends on what you like and where you go.

[steve22]

I've found that the attitude and overall friendliness of a place typically mirrors the average intellectual level of a city's populace. Stupid people, on the whole, aren't normally very polite, engaging, or friendly, and they don't make for very good conversation.

One of the downfalls of Phoenix is that there is a pretty high percentage of rednecks and/or immigrants here and, at the risk of sounding like an elitist jerk, those types of folks are not very educated. It's a pretty unsophisticated crowd here compared to people you'll find in traditional culturally & educationally more diverse metropolitan locales back east, like Chicago, Boston, Philly, D.C., or New York. Or western cities like San Fran, Seattle, Denver, or even L.A. Not saying it's everyone; certainly, there are a lot of people to whom that generalization doesn't apply. But it's enough of them that it creates a certain second-class vibe.

There's that aspect of it, and then throw in the oppressive heat, which does make people ornery. It's also very spread out, with people tending to spend lots of time isolated from each other in their cars, in air-conditioned buildings, etc. No one walks anywhere, and there's a conspicuous absence of commercial districts where large numbers of people live close to one another and congregate.

So it's not just that it's populated by not-particularly friendly people, it's also that it's designed in a manner that's not conducive to much interpersonal interaction. So when they do interact, usually it's because they're angry at one another. The incidence of freeway shootings is clear evidence of that.

[BlackShoe]

Am a bit befudled as to why Flagstaff is considerd to be such a desirable place to live.It is very expensive,it gets 80-100 inches of snow each year,and the crime rate is extremely high,including violent offenses.Rape and assault numbers are above the national average,the burglary rate is high,and the theft figures are sky high.Part of the stats may be due somewhat to NAU,but not all.Am I missing something as to the joys of this mountain city?

[irwin]

I haven’t spent much time up there, but I have to be honest I wasn’t all that impressed with Flagstaff either. Compared to mountain towns in Colorado, California, Oregon, and Washington, Flagstaff is kinda a dump.

Some Arizona locals I know sing the praises of the place, but I simply wasn’t that impressed. Sedona is MUCH nicer and isn’t full of all the chains like Flagstaff.

[freeopinions]

Originally Posted by irwin

Sedona is MUCH nicer and isn’t full of all the chains like Flagstaff.

But Sedona is a tourist/resort town, and has a large art community. Translation: it's expensive, and prices are going up.

[jenlyn]

I live in AZ now..We just took a trip to the Denver area to check it out and we loved it. So different from the Phoenix area that you cant even compare. We cant wait to move. We are going to wait until Spring, hopefully the market wont be as dreadful...Steve22..you were right..Denver is great! So much to do..didnt even know where to start. Im going to take advantage of our last winter here in AZ..then we are off! Gotta go buy my snowsuit now!!

[irwin]

Originally Posted by freeopinions

But Sedona is a tourist/resort town, and has a large art community. Translation: it's expensive, and prices are going up.

Uhh…it’s expensive because it’s desirable!

That’s the way economics works. Places where people like to live are expensive! Places like Gary, Indiana are cheap!

That is what I have learned from moving out here. You get what you pay for and moving for “cheaper” housing generally is going to give you a less desirable place to live….hence Phoenix!

[SpeedyAZ]

That is what I have learned from moving out here. You get what you pay for and moving for “cheaper” housing generally is going to give you a less desirable place to live….hence Phoenix!

Are median home prices are above the national average (US $210,000 vs Phoenix $245,000) so I agree with you. Check your facts before you post...

[jbear182]

There are parts of the state that are just awesome - from a physical standpoint. Stay away from metro phoenix. I cant think of a worse place to live - except maybe vegas (nv AND nm).

[steve22]

Originally Posted by SpeedyAZ

Are median home prices are above the national average (US $210,000 vs Phoenix $245,000) so I agree with you. Check your facts before you post...

Home prices are above the national average now because of the huge real estate feeding frenzy which started 2 years ago and drove housing costs through the roof. That bubble has now burst, and things are coming back down to where they should be when adjusted for actual, reasonable appreciation gains over that time span. Phoenix, compared to most comparably-sized major U.S. cities, still is a much cheaper place from a real estate perspective. You could never attract people to this place if home prices approached what they are in Denver, San Francisco, etc., not without drastically increasing average salaries across the region and dramatically improving the city's downtown and other facilities. People simply won't pay that kind of money to live in second-rate area, which is why the market's suddenly hit a brick wall here. Housing prices reached a point where the average single person living on the average Valley income (somewhere around $35,000) has been priced out of the entry-level housing price range. And younger professionals with higher incomes aren't interested in paying the kind of money it now costs to live in a nicer, bigger place close to downtown for Phoenix's mediocre brand of city lifestyle they'd get in return. When those things happen, the market has to come down, and it is.

In short, don't think that Phoenix's recently hot real estate market reflects its desirability as a place to live. It simply was the next "boom town" for business owners and real estate investors to take advantage of while prices were low & tax incentives high, and now that this market's tapped out, that swarm of locusts is moving on to the next hot spot (see: Albuquerque, NM and Austin, TX), while leaving the rest of the suckers who bought in here for the long run to watch their home values plummet and their interest rates rise, along with skyrocketing gas & energy prices and a looming water crisis.

The rule of stocks, real estate, really anything in business is buy low, sell high. It makes no sense to invest in a place where the market is already maxed out. Phoenix was ripe for the picking, and now it's been picked over.