Yuma, AZ

[Phil1:6]

I love Yuma! Married with three children and have lived here three years. I don't do clubs, but I do like to take trips to San Diego or Phoenix...which are both within 3 hour away. Alot of people drive or fly cheap up to Las Vegas, too. I have not had a single problem living near the border. The only negative I dealt with is the winter visitors...either their super sweet or just rude(not much in between). I think it is wierd how many of the winter visitors have tans and live like they are teenagers. But, I think, just b/c you are older...doesn't mean you have to stop "living". I go to a great church, Stoneridge Church. I have also met MANY wonderful people that it will be hard to say good-bye to. I do get tired of the restaurant selections, but I believe that Yuma will soon have almost everything. They have Chili's, Applebees, TX Roadhouse, Outback, Olive Garden...the norm. They even got some trendy fast food places...like "In and Out". I wish they had a Chic-fil-A, but I'm sure that will come. Beautiful fields and mountains...but awesome sunsets. My body acclimated to the heat for the most part. The dry heat is way more bearable than humidity...like Florida(where I'm from). A great private school is Southwestern Christian. The education they are getting is top notch!

[Bikerchick_KF]

I love yuma too!! It's waaaay better than Tucson or Phoenix!

here's my thread on Yuma! http://www.city-data.com/forum/arizo...love-yuma.html

[mkm7602479]

Yuma, like any place. is what you make of it. If you want to be miserable, you will; if you want to be happy, you will. That being said, here is my list of plusses and minuses to living here:

Positives:
The weather is sunny nearly every day. When it is cloudy or raining, my kids and I do something "special" since it's such a rare occasion.
Because of the weather, you don't need to spend a whole lot budgeting for clothes -- you wear the same thing pretty much year-round!
People here are for the most part pretty down to earth and friendly. You get the occasional rude person, but I'm sure there are rude people everywhere.
It's a great place for families. There are some beautiful parks with well-maintained equipment for kids. There are lots of different athletic and recreational opportunities offered here. Even a USA Swimming club team which my daughter belongs to!
If you're really bored, and the weather is nice, the mall can be fun. If that's too boring, San Diego isn't too far away.
It's mostly a low cost of living here. The housing is (was) expensive, but our insanely low homeowners insurance rates make up for that.

Negatives:
It's ridiculously hot here in the summer. For those not here that say, "Yeah, but it's a dry heat"... well, I usually want to suggest they stick their heads in their ovens and see how they like dry heat. But I tend to get crabby when it's 120 degrees outside.
Yes, a swimming pool is great, but it is THAT hot that we don't even get in the pool until after 4 or 5 p.m.
The traffic can get messy here in the winters and the restaurants tend to be more crowded then also. But the weather is so nice then, might as well barbeque in the backyard anyway!
If you don't know Spanish (like me), that can be intimidating when you first get here. I've heard it can be a hindrance to getting a job, but I don't know that firsthand as I stay home with my kiddos.
The sales tax is HIGH.
The schools are not good. (But the positive: there is a huge homeschooling community here and the state of AZ is very lax about it's homeschooling laws. They even offer a curriculum to those wanting to stay at home so that you get materials for free and teach your kids at home. Homeschooling is not everybody's thing, but it's an option.)

We've been here for 7 years now and are just now looking at moving on. We're ready to be near family again and move to a more humid climate for my husband and son's health problems. I know, go figure -- most people move to dry climates for that! But, if it weren't for that and the family factor, we wouldn't mind hanging out in Yuma a little longer.

-M

[Greenjellybean]

I lived in Yuma from the ages of 9-15 and have been back several times since. Like any place there are pluses and minuses, and the 12 years that I have not lived there have allowed me to reflect.

Pluses:

* There are numerous lakes and reservoirs around the area which allow for some relief during the almost unbearable summers.

* The Colorado River runs through Yuma and I have very fond memories of playing and swimming there as a kid and teen (even though it is kind of dirty).

* The sand dunes can be fun to go to and camp at, especially if you have dune buggies, etc.

* Canal systems and such: some of my most fond memories of being a kid come from catching toads, crawdads, and minnows in the canals around Yuma. We would go fishing too in all of the bodies of water previously mentioned.

* 2.5 hours away from San Diego. We owned our own boogie boards and used them in San Diego about one long weekend a month.

* Mexican food to die for! I live in Utah now, good luck finding much decent Mexican food around here.

* Lute's Casino...Lute burger.

Minuses:

* Ridiculously hot! Open the door and you immediately start pouring sweat. We had a pool in our back yard and I remember that on days that were about 120 degrees the pool water was nearly like bath water. It only cools down about 4 degrees at night. My father worked construction and I remember him saying, "we can't dig the foundation too deep, we are only about 5 feet from hell!"

* Snow birds everywhere... in the winter. My dad had a bumper sticker that said "I love snowbirds, I have three of them in the freezer."

* Not a whole lot to do aside from outdoor activities.

* Not a whole lot of jobs, doesn't help if you can't speak Spanish.

* The worst part for me: I am caucasian and as a kid I was not used to the latino kids not wanting to play with me and asking me: "who's better, Mexicans or white people." I will say nothing further than they called me "gringa salada" and this was not at all pleasant for me and left a bad taste in my mouth for quite a while.


When I was younger I wanted nothing more than to get out of Yuma. Now that I am older, I have some fond memories. I do not care to move back, nor do I care to stay in Utah. But hey, "it's a great big world with lots of places to run to."

[SouthernBelleInUtah]

This thread dates from early 2006 and much of the info is now outdated. Thread closed.