Thinking of relocating from Oregon (Phoenix, Scottsdale: rent, how much, houses)

[laz3john]

Hello all,
We are thinking of moving to the Phoenix area. I have a nine year old so a good school district is a consideration. I have heard that the north end of the family is more family friendly but not totally sure what that means. I can work pretty much anywhere. Any advice? We will of course rent for six months and then decide.

[observer53]

"north end of the family"? I assume you meant to refer to some location, so you need to let us know. There are lots of "family friendly" areas in the Valley.

[Jkgourmet]

And if you've never lived here before, I'd suggest renting for a full year, or at the very least, make sure you've lived through an entire summer prior to buying. You'd be surprised how many people find it intolerable.

[Captain Bill]

Scottsdale, Tempe, Chandler and Gilbert all have good schools.

• Scottsdale has more expensive housing
• Tempe has a large college population, but also regular residents, and is less expensive than Scottsdale
• Chandler is a family oriented city and less expensive housing than Tempe
• Gilbert is a family oriented city with less expensive housing than Chandler.

[maverick974]

Originally Posted by laz3john

Hello all,
We are thinking of moving to the Phoenix area. I have a nine year old so a good school district is a consideration. I have heard that the north end of the family is more family friendly but not totally sure what that means. I can work pretty much anywhere. Any advice? We will of course rent for six months and then decide.

I just moved from the Oregon coast last June after 22 years of living there. I moved from Florence to be exact.
I've been trying to move from Oregon for the last 4 years and I finally got the house sold and came down.
In those 4 years, I visited the Phoenix area regularly but never during summer unfortunately. I was excited about the move but wondering how I would tolerate the heat. When I got here, the first week there was several days that got to 118. Then not long after that were record dust storms that I'm sure you heard about on the news. Then came the monsoons. Lighting and thunderstorms.
Frankly, I was thinking "is that what people complain about?" I came thru the severe weather with flying colors and now, as I sit out on my patio in 80 degree weather, checking out the weather in Oregon, I thank my lucky stars that I am in a place more suited to me and my lifestyle.
I live in the far east valley so I'm not yet familiar with the west side but I can say that I'm far happier here than Oregon. I thought I'd miss a lot of things about Oregon but so far, not so much.....
If you would like any more information from me, just shoot me a PM. I'd be happy to give you more of my perspective on things.

[S. Chris Webb]

Deer Valley and Peoria Unified School districts hold many of the best schools in the State, and are in some very nice, scenic areas (North Peoria/North Glendle/far NW PHX). Paradise Valley also boasts excellent schools, and even more pretty, but is quite expensive to live. Where you will be working and how much you want to pay for housing should also help you determine where you will live. Do rent for at least six months, and get to know this vast Valley (that has 27-30 municipalities to choose from) before deciding on buying in a certain city/area. Research each individual school, as they may also vary within a school district. Almost every city has it's good and bad areas, so best to figure that out for yourself by living here for a while. Best of luck to you.

[LBTRS]

We moved here from Oregon in 2008 and have never looked back. I like the weather here MUCH better than the weather in Oregon. We live in Goodyear and have two kids in school and are happy here. Schools are not the best in the valley but we are not unhappy with them at all.

[Discovery1]

I noticed quite a few people from the PNW here in Goodyear.

[wibbit]

We moved here from CA last year. We've moved every year (DC area, Indianapolis, Chicago Area, Green Bay, Michigan, and Louisiana). Like you, we can usually live pretty much anywhere. So, I did what I always do and checked out school reviews. We settled on Cave Creek and LOVE it. The school rankings just came out and CCUSD93 is 4th in state (the top three were further south, near Tuscun). Deer Valley had great scores, too.
I'm a mountain-lover. I've got to have "texture" to the land. Cave Creek/Carefree has it! We rented for a year and just bought a house last month near our rental.
On the downside, it is more expensive than other areas in the valley. Also, my husband's coworkers didn't encourage us to live "all the way up there." But, he was used to LONG commutes (LA traffic!). This one is only 35 minutes. Another con is the lack of diversity. I had gotten used to LA. It was a bit of a culture shock for me at first.
But, for us, the perks are worth it. It's totally safe, very small-town feel, and very cowboy-quirky. There isn't much grass unless you are in a subdivision with small lots or in one of the $1million+ houses. But, the wildlife, cacti, and mountains are pretty amazing.