South NJ to South AZ. Questions about AZ and its differences from NJ!! (Tucson: motel, house) - Arizona - Page 2 - City-Data Forum

threeps · 01-28-2010, 12:33 PM

Good points. Never thought about being our so far that we wouldn't have cell service. Okay, so obviously we don't want to be so far in the middle of no-where that we won't have things like electric and cell service and what-not. Isn't there an in between? There must be small towns along the interstates that have their own post office, trash pick up and cell service that is about 30 minutes from a hospital and that has a rural feel. I don't want to be a "pioneer" (definately not with 3 kids) but I don't want to live in the fast pace life of the city. Small town life is for us. I think that any thing that is at least 10 acres will be fine but it MUST be dividable because my parents are going to buy the land and then subdivide to me and my husband for cheap. This way we can be close to each other but still have enough distance between us if you know what I mean. I'm sure once I get out there I will see what you all mean. I have lived in South Jersey my ENTIRE life. I have only moved 2x. Once when I was 2 and my parents divorced (and it was only 2 blocks over) and once when I got married and moved out. This is a little scary but we have to do it if we want to provide a decent life for our children. I make a little over 50k a year with my inheritance and my husband has been unemployeed for over a year. We can't afford to live in NJ anymore. It is just too expensive to live here on one income. I can sell my house here for $250k, pay off my very small mortgage, purchase land (from my parents subdividable lot) and a nice sized modular home and still have about $50k left to save. We are falling more and more behind every month and if it weren't for my parents helping us out while my husband has be laid off, we would have already lost our home. This move is nessicary for us. My parents have traveled all over the US in their RV and they LOVE AZ and they park it there for a few months every year durring their travels. This is why I chose Arizona......so that I can move but still have my parents for part of the year. I didn't just throw a dart at a map or anything. I'm just trying to find the right place for us. I appologize if I'm asking silly questions, but like I said, I've never lived anywhere else. The only place I have been that isn't on the east coast is WY (in-laws live there) so please be patient with me. What towns are north of Tucson but south of Pheonix that we might want to check out? As far as climate goes, this is the area we were looking to go. I was also wondering what ppl do for fun there. Here we go to the beach and the boardwalk all summer and then are bored out of our minds all winter because everything closes for the season. Thanks for all of your comments!

123.DieselBenz · 01-28-2010, 05:51 PM

Rattlesnake go hide in the winter . . . and in the summer they prefer the night . . . but are out in the day some times, keep the area around your home where the kids play cleared, they are less likely to favor no cover.

Out here (were 80 SE of Tucson) wells are 400' - 600' deep, about $25 a foot to drill, then you need the pump and "other stuff" . . . we have cell service in most areas, hospital is 30 mi North in Willcox, even though I would rather drive 50 mi South and cross the Border from Douglas for my medical care . . .

Not any trouble from illegals . . . up here they are just passing through, and only looking for water, food, and or a ride . . .

Land is cheap too . . . just find your favorite realtor site, and type in zip 85625 with 10+ acres land . . . take your pick!

SouthernBelleInUtah · 01-28-2010, 07:06 PM

So the well is $10,000-$15,000 before getting the 'stuff" to actually pump water. Ouch!

crazyme4878 · 01-28-2010, 07:20 PM

I'm not too familiar with the land between Phoenix and Tucson, but it all looked like waste land from driving through a few times. How about Benson? Lord Balfor (sorry, I'm spelling your 'name' wrong!) raves about it, so look him up and check out his posts. It is a small town with ammendities, great weather, not right next to the border, I think 40 minutes on the interstate to Tucson... I think Lord Balfor has stated that land prices are decent. Plus it is only 30 minutes to Sierra Vista and Fort Huachuca where your husband may be able to find a job. Not sure what he does but there are a lot of government-contract jobs in various fields.But I stand by my teaching statement. The sister of the previous poster had early childhood training because California requires it. Every state requires you to obtain their own state-teaching certificate, even if you are certified in every other state.

ArizonaBear · 01-29-2010, 10:05 AM

Note to to the OP: you may be wise in checking out the Kingman area despite it being in NW Arizona. It sounds to me you are flat burned out on 'city life'. Too; if you need your 'party animal fix', Bullhead City/Laughlin and Lake Havasu City are only about 1 hour away and Las Vegas is 2-3 hours depending on the delays on Hoover Dam

LordBalfor · 01-29-2010, 11:36 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by crazyme4878

I'm not too familiar with the land between Phoenix and Tucson, but it all looked like waste land from driving through a few times. How about Benson? Lord Balfor (sorry, I'm spelling your 'name' wrong!) raves about it, so look him up and check out his posts. It is a small town with ammendities, great weather, not right next to the border, I think 40 minutes on the interstate to Tucson... I think Lord Balfor has stated that land prices are decent. Plus it is only 30 minutes to Sierra Vista and Fort Huachuca where your husband may be able to find a job. Not sure what he does but there are a lot of government-contract jobs in various fields.But I stand by my teaching statement. The sister of the previous poster had early childhood training because California requires it. Every state requires you to obtain their own state-teaching certificate, even if you are certified in every other state.

Crazyme4878 -

You spelled my logon name right. It's different from the historical Lord Balfour - and that's deliberate on my part.

Regarding Benson - Yeah I love the Benson area. The town of Benson is "just OK". It doesn't have a whole lot of charm - like many towns in the area, it's strictly utilitarian in appearance. It does however have most of anyone's daily needs - with a Safeway, a big new Walmart, several other stores and restaurants, a small community hospital , etc, etc, etc. It's REAL strong point though (as you touched upon) is it's handy location (about midway between Tucson and Sierra Vista) and it's terrific climate (mild winters, and very warm - but not scorching hot - summers (winter highs usually in the low-mid 60's, summer highs in the upper 80's to mid 90's)).

To the OP - we're actually about 10 minutes west of Benson, just off of I-10 (4 minutes away) and about 40 minutes east of Tucson - in the J-6 area. Prices there are probably a little higher than you can afford for the size of the parcel you are looking for (our 1-acre lot cost us about $30,000 or so). You might be able to find something in the general area of Benson that's a bit cheaper (within your budget). We looked at some cheaper property north of the City of Benson so you might consider that area. You also might find something between Benson and Sierra Vista. Lots of empty space out there but you are still a reasonable distance from "civilization".

Ken

LordBalfor · 01-29-2010, 11:37 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ArizonaBear

Note to to the OP: you may be wise in checking out the Kingman area despite it being in NW Arizona. It sounds to me you are flat burned out on 'city life'. Too; if you need your 'party animal fix', Bullhead City/Laughlin and Lake Havasu City are only about 1 hour away and Las Vegas is 2-3 hours depending on the delays on Hoover Dam

Yup. Kingman is certainly an area for them consider.

Ken

PS - It shouldn't be too much longer (I would think) and those Hoover Dam delays will go away.

123.DieselBenz · 01-29-2010, 11:39 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by SouthernBelleInUtah

So the well is $10,000-$15,000 before getting the 'stuff" to actually pump water. Ouch!

Be glad it is not 2000" deep!

Yeah you then need a pump and wires . . . pipe is needed too . . . pressure tanks . . . when we were gonna build I had budgeted $20,000 for water, with a storage tank . . . if there was left over money, that was great, but water is a handy thing to have every once in awhile!

We ended up being lazy and bought a town house on the golf course!

SouthernBelleInUtah · 01-29-2010, 11:48 AM

To the OP: according to Wiki, the land mass of AZ is over 13 times the size of NJ. I don't think you have a real conception of what "out there" means in terms of the size of uninhabited/unhabitable land in AZ. You can do a search on this forum for threads about small towns and find what you are looking for.

LordBalfor · 01-29-2010, 11:52 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by SouthernBelleInUtah

To the OP: according to Wiki, the land mass of AZ is over 13 times the size of NJ. I don't think you have a real conception of what "out there" means in terms of the size of uninhabited/unhabitable land in AZ. You can do a search on this forum for threads about small towns and find what you are looking for.

Yeah, there is huge quantities of VAST EMPTY SPACE in Arizona - or ANYWHERE out West for that matter. It is dramatically different from back East - where small towns litter the countryside. Out here, things are LONG WAY APART - with nothing much in between except for miles and mile of ... well miles and miles.

Ken