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Hey all! By this point relocation questions are probably bothersome to some so let me apologize in advance, but do appreciate the help!
Anyhow, my wife and I are looking to relocate to suburbs outside of Phoenix. Maybe you can point us in the direction of what best fits us. Namely we've been looking at mostly Scottsdale, Tempe, Chandler, and Gilbert. We're trying to stay about 15-40 minutes outside of Phoenix. I'm also open to other/better suggestions too since you're all natives with much more insight than myself. We're open to the west valley as well, but haven't done as much research on it.
Let me tell you a little about us, our lifestyle, and budget. We're a young couple (25) looking to relocate from New Jersey and start a family in a safe and beautiful area. Traveling to work won't be a concern for myself since I work from home, but eventually my wife would like to open a bakery/pastry shop. Any thoughts on how successful this venture could or would be in the above mentioned areas? I got some feedback in the "city vs city" sub-forum that in Scottsdale or Tempe it has a chance of doing well. We're looking for an area with more of a desert feel close to hiking and outdoors recreation. We both enjoy hiking with our dog, good food, a casual laid back atmosphere, and offroading/exploring in our Jeep. Our budget is up to 210k, but moreso looking to stay in the neighborhood of 150-190k.
Any insight you can all offer will be greatly appreciated! Thanks everyone! Hope to be a neighbor in Az. soon!
when you say "15-40 minutes outside of Phoenix", I'm wondering if you're comparing Phx to NYC (Manhattan)....out here, it all looks the same, whether it's Phx, Scotts, or what have you?....density is about the same, traffic about the same, houses, business, it's all the same - just about....you can't tell when you leave one burg and enter the next one, usually....(you'll need to come out and see for yourself!)....of course, there is downtown Phx which is a bit denser, but it's just a small area....just get used to relatively low density, fast-moving traffic, very spread out sprawl.....
but sounds like you'll want to be somewhere away from central Phx anyway because of the desert, hiking, jeeping thing....there are many choices out here in this metro area of 4+M people.....your home budget is do-able, but you may end up in a typical tract home, but you may be able to find an area that will stay decent....many developments on the edge of the urban fringe will, I fear, be in trouble in a few years because of increasing # of rentals in those spots and too many similar subdivisions.....check neighborhood pride, % of rentals, weird neighbors?, flight paths, convenience, builder rep, quality of life stuff.....
there's hiking in town and just outside of town in most directions....jeeping is better a ways from town in all directions, so you'll have to drive anyway for that....
when you say "15-40 minutes outside of Phoenix", I'm wondering if you're comparing Phx to NYC (Manhattan)....out here, it all looks the same, whether it's Phx, Scotts, or what have you?....density is about the same, traffic about the same, houses, business, it's all the same - just about....you can't tell when you leave one burg and enter the next one, usually....(you'll need to come out and see for yourself!)....of course, there is downtown Phx which is a bit denser, but it's just a small area....just get used to relatively low density, fast-moving traffic, very spread out sprawl.....
but sounds like you'll want to be somewhere away from central Phx anyway because of the desert, hiking, jeeping thing....there are many choices out here in this metro area of 4+M people.....your home budget is do-able, but you may end up in a typical tract home, but you may be able to find an area that will stay decent....many developments on the edge of the urban fringe will, I fear, be in trouble in a few years because of increasing # of rentals in those spots and too many similar subdivisions.....check neighborhood pride, % of rentals, weird neighbors?, flight paths, convenience, builder rep, quality of life stuff.....
there's hiking in town and just outside of town in most directions....jeeping is better a ways from town in all directions, so you'll have to drive anyway for that....
others will comment on area suggestions....
Thanks for the informative reply!
What I meant by 15-40 outside of phoenix (was supposed to say 15-30 ) I meant more that I want to avoid the urban feel as much as possible while still having the ammenities of the metro area close by. We do plan to come out early April to speak with a realtor and check things out for ourselves. We just want to get some kind of itinerary/plan on where we should focus to look when heading out.
Any thoughts on particular areas that may stay decent like you've mentioned? We are looking for a MUCH lower density area than NJ with more sprawl. Sounds like the area would be right up our alley!
You cannot "avoid the urban feel" and stay within 15-30 minutes of Phoenix, unless the reference point to "Phoenix" is the outer city limit to the north, I suppose. Then, depending on what you mean by "amenities" they may be yet further away than that. I won't even speculate on where your wife's potential bakery business would be best placed, but that area might not be it. The less dense, more "desert" areas of Scottsdale are not so likely to be in your budget. Tempe's a very nice place to live, I've been there for decades, but it doesn't sound exactly like what you are looking for.
Have you ever been here before? Your post doesn't say so. Plan for as much time as you can to look around different parts of the Valley, not necessarily with a realtor until you narrow things down more, to get more of a feel for whether this will work for you. Even then, I would not recommend moving too fast to buy something, as you don't want to get stuck in an area and then find another you like much better.
Of the four cities you mentioned, Scottsdale, Tempe, Chandler, and Gilbert, Gilbert will have the lowest price for a home. It's also a great place to live. There is a lot of information in the forum about Gilbert.
Because the city is still growing, with residential and commercial building on the rise, there may be opportunities for good locations to open a bakery. The San Tan Village growth area may be a good location to scout out. That area will see a lot of growth, including touirsm, because the Mormon Temple is under construction there.
Under $150,000 for a home in Gilbert is going to put you in direct competition with many investors paying cash. Every home that comes on the market below that price (if it's priced right for it's condition)is getting 7-8 offers on the day it comes on the market. And the prices have been increasing since September 2011.
The west valley has a completely different feel, and in some of the areas there, the housing prices will be less than Gilbert.
Did anyone see where these folks are going to be working? Ultimately, that's the number one factor when determining where to live in the Phoenix metro area.
Did anyone see where these folks are going to be working? Ultimately, that's the number one factor when determining where to live in the Phoenix metro area.
he said he'll be working at home and she, later, will open up a bakery somewhere
You cannot "avoid the urban feel" and stay within 15-30 minutes of Phoenix, unless the reference point to "Phoenix" is the outer city limit to the north, I suppose. Then, depending on what you mean by "amenities" they may be yet further away than that. I won't even speculate on where your wife's potential bakery business would be best placed, but that area might not be it. The less dense, more "desert" areas of Scottsdale are not so likely to be in your budget. Tempe's a very nice place to live, I've been there for decades, but it doesn't sound exactly like what you are looking for.
Have you ever been here before? Your post doesn't say so. Plan for as much time as you can to look around different parts of the Valley, not necessarily with a realtor until you narrow things down more, to get more of a feel for whether this will work for you. Even then, I would not recommend moving too fast to buy something, as you don't want to get stuck in an area and then find another you like much better.
Thanks for more great info! We were in Phoenix metro two years ago for only 2 days, but did not get to do any exploring at all because of the brief time there.
In regards to amenities, I mainly mean a choice of restaurants, basic shopping, gym, movie theatres, etc. From doing more research south Tempe does appeal to us. We don't need to be in the middle of nowhere either. We do plan on coming out in April to explore both the east and west valley though. Our thought was to contact a realtor to show us around since we ourselves are not familiar. We do plan on renting for 6months-1year before making a home purchase.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Captain Bill
Of the four cities you mentioned, Scottsdale, Tempe, Chandler, and Gilbert, Gilbert will have the lowest price for a home. It's also a great place to live. There is a lot of information in the forum about Gilbert.
Because the city is still growing, with residential and commercial building on the rise, there may be opportunities for good locations to open a bakery. The San Tan Village growth area may be a good location to scout out. That area will see a lot of growth, including touirsm, because the Mormon Temple is under construction there.
Under $150,000 for a home in Gilbert is going to put you in direct competition with many investors paying cash. Every home that comes on the market below that price (if it's priced right for it's condition)is getting 7-8 offers on the day it comes on the market. And the prices have been increasing since September 2011.
The west valley has a completely different feel, and in some of the areas there, the housing prices will be less than Gilbert.
Thanks so much for the suggestions and info on what seems to be an up and coming area. Would we feel "strange" living in Gilbert being non-mormons?
Quote:
Originally Posted by Jkgourmet
Did anyone see where these folks are going to be working? Ultimately, that's the number one factor when determining where to live in the Phoenix metro area.
I am fortunate enough to be able to work from home so we really do have the option of moving anywhere in the country. We do however want to be in an area that could be successful to open a pastry/bakery shop for my wife.
You are going to need more than one realtor, no one covers the whole Valley. I know of a few who specialize in the south Tempe area. You'll need to find a different one for the west side.
There are thousands of non-Mormons living in Gilbert. That should not be an issue.
I might not be a lot of help here, but I'll give my opinion anyway.
I just got back from a short trip from Phoenix, well Chandler really. I'm thinking of relocating with my current company, which is located in Chandler, so I took a trip out to talk to my potential new boss and take a quick look around. I did spend a little time driving around Chandler and Gilbert though since those are the two areas highest on our list given the proximity to my work location and quality of schools (is that an oxymoron in AZ?). My initial impression is that Gilbert is where we'll be focusing our attention primarily, although we'll still look at Chandler (and possibly Ahwatukee and Queen Creek too). The reason why is that I felt like Gilbert was overall nicer than Chandler. There are parts of Chandler that feel a little more run down than Gilbert. I didn't get a chance to look all over either area so I have a very limited experience, but it was just the feeling I had.
My wife and daughter are cake decorators (theme cakes like Cake Boss or Ace of Cakes) and she's just working out the house at the moment but we've been discussing about opening a retail space to grow the business. Her business is all word of mouth so if we move she'd have to start all over so that's a small concern for us. Maybe we should go into business together in Gilbert/Chandler. :-)
Best advice is to take a trip out and give yourself enough time to drive around the greater Phoenix area to determine where you might want to live. Good luck
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) I meant more that I want to avoid the urban feel as much as possible while still having the ammenities of the metro area close by. We do plan to come out early April to speak with a realtor and check things out for ourselves. We just want to get some kind of itinerary/plan on where we should focus to look when heading out.
