Moving to Phoenix from DC and worried. Help me please! (Glendale: environment, real estate)

[nikkimcjagger]

I am moving in less than 2 weeks from DC to Phoenix, but I have lived my entire life in DC. I am moving to apply to ASU graduate school for next fall and pay in-state tuition. I have a job lined up for the first year. I am leaving DC to get away from an x-boyfriend and some bad memories. But, besides the program at ASU, I feel like Phoenix is not so interesting. I do love the sun though. I am 30 years old and need to be around friends. I am leaving my whole family behind on the east coast. I am going to feel lonely. Any advice on how to meet interesting people and make friends. Also, what is a fun neighborhood to live in? Please help me feel less nervous about this move!

[Azrider]

Welcome to the site nikki, and welcome to AZ! Since you will be going to ASU, Tempe or Scottsdale would be my first pics on a neighboorhood. Both cities have great night scenes, if your into that. Mill avenue in Tempe has about 30 or 40 bars and restaurants, and most of the people from ASU campus hang out there. That would be a great place to meet people. Scottsdale also has a good nightlife, but the clubs are a little more spread out. Check out Camelback and Scottsdale roads.

As far as the neighboorhoods go, Tempe has more crime than Scottsdale, and is less expensive. Scottsdale is very nice, lower crime, but is on the pricey side. If Scottsdale and Tempe are not your thing, then Chandler or Glendale are my next choice. There are many good neighboorhoods, with low crime.

I would suggest taking a trip here for a week, bring some friends, and just check it all out. Maybe doing it twice to get a feel for it. There is much to see and do here, but bear in mind, this is a young city, it is sprawling at an amazing pace, and if your into the downtown big city scene you wont find that here. Its all very suburban. The people are friendly (most) and the desert scenery is sweet.

I moved here in just the same manner that you did. I moved from Ohio and left all family and friends there. Ive been here for 5 years now, and I still love it. Just make sure you like heat, 110 degrees, and sun. We have much of it.

I would recommend also checking out phoenix.about.com. It is a very informative site about phoenix, and has forums, pictures, and many links for your questions concerning phoenix.

[irwin]

Originally Posted by nikkimcjagger

I am moving in less than 2 weeks from DC to Phoenix, but I have lived my entire life in DC. I am moving to apply to ASU graduate school for next fall and pay in-state tuition. I have a job lined up for the first year. I am leaving DC to get away from an x-boyfriend and some bad memories. But, besides the program at ASU, I feel like Phoenix is not so interesting. I do love the sun though. I am 30 years old and need to be around friends. I am leaving my whole family behind on the east coast. I am going to feel lonely. Any advice on how to meet interesting people and make friends. Also, what is a fun neighborhood to live in? Please help me feel less nervous about this move!

Nikki-

I was in your exact situation about a year ago (and I mean almost exact). I had lived in Washington for about 5 years and moved here to Arizona to go to grad school at ASU. I thought it would be a good change, it was sunny, and the program was pretty highly ranked for what I am interested in. Also, I had heard that it was easy to get in-state tuition from ASU as long as you stayed here a year.

After being here a year I can tell you I can’t wait to leave. I do not like it here at all. Some people obviously like it, but it is not my kinda place. I miss living in a city (this place is not a city) and I miss being able to walk to my local deli, coffee house, pub, etc. That feeling is almost non-existent here. This place is basically a giant sprawling suburb and knowing some people in real estate here, that is not going to change anytime soon.

Also, the weather this summer has killed me. It is hot and don’t believe all this “dry heat” nonsense. When it is 115 outside, it is miserable. Now, D.C. could get nasty during August, but the difference here is that it is constant. At least in Washington the heat seemed to come in spurts; here it is just constantly hot (over 100). That being said, the winter is nice here, but I miss the fall and spring in Washington. You don’t get that here at all.

Finally, and I hope this doesn’t sound too snotty, but the people here are just different. My peer group in Washington were all educated, driven professionals that had a worldly view. Here, people are just more “content” with things. That is something I am not used to. Also, some of the things people find “cool” here are just comical. I have never seen so many meatheads wearing wife beater undershirts cruising around in their crotch rocket motorcycles. It reminds me of something straight out of New Jersey.

Look, it is not all bad and I hate to sound so negative, but I just thought I would throw it out there. Since you are from Washington, unless you like Fairfax or Loudon County you probably are not going to like it here. But, if you’re set on it here, I would suggest Mill Avenue or Old Town Scottsdale. I live close to Mill and it is okay, but it’s about ¼ the size of Adams Morgan and a lot less fun. Anyway, I’m happy to help you out or answer any questions you got. One more thing, it’s a lot harder to get in-state tuition then they make it out to be!

[Nicole]

There's tons of people to meet out here, and at ASU I'm sure you'll meet quite a few. Are you looking to get a house or an apartment?

[AussieGirl]

Originally Posted by nikkimcjagger

I am moving in less than 2 weeks from DC to Phoenix, but I have lived my entire life in DC. I am moving to apply to ASU graduate school for next fall and pay in-state tuition. I have a job lined up for the first year. I am leaving DC to get away from an x-boyfriend and some bad memories. But, besides the program at ASU, I feel like Phoenix is not so interesting. I do love the sun though. I am 30 years old and need to be around friends. I am leaving my whole family behind on the east coast. I am going to feel lonely. Any advice on how to meet interesting people and make friends. Also, what is a fun neighborhood to live in? Please help me feel less nervous about this move!

Oh Nikki, I feel sorry for you coming here, and I cannot leave quick enough! It is awful here in Phoenix. Boring, high pollution, high crime, nowhere to walk, ugliness, a total lack of culture and character, anti-urban, and people keep to themselves.

I have posted my thoughts on Phoenix here...

Phoenix Is a Hell Hole Part 1

http://www.city-data.com/forum/61771-post113.html

and here...

Phoenix Is a Hell Hole Part 2

http://www.city-data.com/forum/61771-post114.html

Of course most places are what you make of it, but Phoenix is an exception to that rule for me. If people feel so strongly about that view, then lets see them make a life for themselves in Baghdad, or Mexico City etc. Of course Phoenix is better than either of those two cities, but my point is that a living environment must be both what you make of it, and comfort level. This place is hell!

[SpeedyAZ]

Of course most places are what you make of it, but Phoenix is an exception to that rule for me. If people feel so strongly about that view, then lets see them make a life for themselves in Baghdad, or Mexico City etc. Of course Phoenix is better than either of those two cities, but my point is that a living environment must be both what you make of it, and comfort level. This place is hell!

Of course that is also your opinion. I cannot believe how people rely on opinions to make life-altering decisions! [CUT]

[AussieGirl]

Originally Posted by SpeedyAZ

Of course that is also your opinion. I cannot believe how people rely on opinions to make life-altering decisions! [CUT]

[CUT]It is my opinion to loathe Phoenix based on many facts and views that I have previously posted today. If someone likes the country life quiet with people that withdraw from others, and high crime and high pollution, then Phoenix is wonderful. Phoenix is so behind the times that I have yet to see even one single recycle bin!

On the otherhand though, if someone likes cities such as San Francisco, Sydney and New York with an urban culture and friendly people and much lower crime and pollution, then Phoenix is not for them. It's as simple as that.

[steve22]

Originally Posted by SpeedyAZ

Of course that is also your opinion. I cannot believe how people rely on opinions to make life-altering decisions! [CUT]

Actually, opinions of those who live in a city are incredibly valuable to those who are faced with a move. Simply visiting a place, you don't experience potential problems an area may have that aren't necessarily evident on the surface. This is especially true of Phoenix. Since it's such a new city, there isn't much blight compared with cities in the midwest and northeast (or at least there wasn't until recently; the recent surge in gang activity has spawned a graffiti epidemic that wasn't noticeable a few years ago).

The considerable problems that this city and state have, and are going to continue to have, become more obvious to those who have lived here. I based my decision to move here on a short visit during January, without knowing anything about the crime rate, the "downtown"'s pathetic state, the utter lack of cultural attractions, the traffic, the rednecks (even worse, the Scottsdale crowd- most of whom would also qualify most other places in the country as rednecks due to their overwhelming lack of class or education, the only difference being that here they live in big houses and drive expensive cars), the immigrant problem, the imminent health care crisis, the imminent water crisis, the meth epidemic, the underfunded and terrible schools, so on and so forth.

There are just way too many problems here to enumerate, and they're getting worse. You're not going to know that side of the city from just a short visit during the nice months. I would recommend to anyone considering a move to take into account the experiences and opinions of those who have lived in the area, and value those opinions at least as much as the personal experience of visiting a location.

By the way, Aussiegirl, I thought you'd find this article entertaining and relevant. It was written in The Stranger, Seattle's equivalent of the New Times, commenting on the sorry state of Phoenix and the recent influx of refugees from this soon-to-be dust bowl to the much nicer city and moderate climes of Seattle. Here's the url:

www.thestranger.com/seattle/Content?oid=7959

[AussieGirl]

Originally Posted by steve22

By the way, Aussiegirl, I thought you'd find this article entertaining and relevant. It was written in The Stranger, Seattle's equivalent of the New Times, commenting on the sorry state of Phoenix and the recent influx of refugees from this soon-to-be dust bowl to the much nicer city and moderate climes of Seattle.

I don't think that much has changed since that article either! If I had have read that before I left, then I would still be in Seattle now! It seems that my honest opinion on Phoenix means that I lose 'reputation' point scores. I wonder why that is. Maybe people aren't free to leave an honest opinion, because I know that I haven't violated any guide lines.

[Lehi]

Everybody is entitled to their opinion. Phoenix has it's downfalls to be sure but isn't there ever an end to the beating of dead horses? No offense to anybody but sheesh! {off to check the calendar to see why this is suddenly so annoying}

Seriously, the OP was not asking for opinions about the Phoenix area. She has already made the decision to move. She said: "Any advice on how to meet interesting people and make friends. Also, what is a fun neighborhood to live in? Please help me feel less nervous about this move!" How can negative statements be helpful to this person? Are you helping her feel less nervous? I doubt it. There are plenty of threads where people can read how much Phoenix sucks. This person was asking for help.