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Hi Everyone, I have searched in the past topics about Laveen and I haven't found a most recent one and I would like advice on Laveen.
I have done the Spot Check Crime on the houses we are looking at and there is a lot of crime in the past 5 months in these areas and it seems to be in a lot of areas in Laveen compared to almost nothing in Surprise, Avondale, and Goodyear.
I can't find any houses that I fall in love with as I do in Surprise and Laveen, I have found one in Avondale that is beautiful, but I LOVE that Laveen is only 6 miles from my husband's work and very close to the Tempe campus compared to the other areas we are looking at. I have a cousin that lives in Laveen and she loves it and has had no problems with crime even though the spot crime site shows crime near her. I read a lot of stuff online about people that love Laveen.
Surprise is perfect BUT the commute is turning me off from it.
What I love so far is the mountain views, cost of housing, closeness to work and school.
I just don't want to make any decisions I regret. I am viewing houses next week in Laveen, Surprise, Avondale, Buckeye, Goodyear and Litchfield park. For the size of house I want, with a good size backyard, and updates, this seems to be the area that is great for us.
I would love everyone's opinion. I have a son who is starting 11th grade and one that is starting college and most likely he will live on campus at least the first year.
Things I love to do are hike, bike ride, shop at Farmer's Markets, Whole Foods, and Trader Joes. I love the idea of riding my bike to South Mountain, please tell me if you think this is safe?
The only good thing about Laveen is it's proximity to South Mountain. Flack jackets for cycling TO South Mountain are recommended. Use Google earth and zoom around Laveen. Take a look at the cars and the like.
There are plenty of trails and miles of parkland to enjoy around the valley.
Phoenix has the best freeway system in the country a 20 mile commute is nothing compared to other parts of the country.
Nice new houses on cheap land sums up Laveen...not worth it.
Last edited by mikejjones1234; 02-22-2014 at 08:56 AM..
Laveen has plenty of newer home subdivisions that are cared for & some that aren't, I think some were hit by the housing crisis and foreclosures still sit. Just like Goodyear you'll find some too close to rural areas, closer to 59th there is a cattle farm or two. I think you might like what you see in Goodyear, you'll have plenty of outdoor room to ride near Estrella Mountain Regional Park. We don't have a Trader Joes or Whole Foods. I have to go to the Trader Joes at Arrowhead in Peoria. Whole Foods is clear over in Scottsdale or Tempe, that's a once every few months trip for us. Rumors always swirling about a Trader Joes coming to Litchfield Park. In Laveen you would be a bit closer to downtown and things to do there (ball game, theatre & comedy club). Nightgirl151 use to live in Laveen and has commented about it, you might search under her username to find it. I agree with the Surprise commute and I don't have any areas of Avondale to suggest. You might also look into new areas of Palm Valley, North of I-10 off Sarival Rd.
The flak jacket comment was just ridiculous. People who are not involved in some criminal dealings are not at much risk of crime, in Laveen or anywhere else. That said, there are more people involved in criminal dealings in Laveen than in other parts of town, so you see the dots on the map. OK, but let's be honest here. The only reason people would choose Laveen over Goodyear is a) it's what they can afford or b) they don't know any better. "b" should not apply to you anymore. The schools in Goodyear may not have the highest scores of any in the valley but they are all good schools and are head and shoulders over the high schools that serve the Laveen area. Go to Goodyear (forget Surprise; there is no need to move way up there) unless "a" applies.
Laveen is not all doom and gloom as some make it out to be (note the hyperbole about the flak jacket). I've spent a lot of time working in Laveen and know quite a few people that live out there. It may be one of the most diverse areas of the valley: Mexican and Vietnamese immigrants, retirees, white, black and a lot of younger families. You'll find farms, a dairy, old ranch homes and new subdivisions.
Anything south of I-10 in the city of Phoenix is bad news I have been here 20 years unless you are in a horse property my sister in law has 10 acre's in Laveen up against south mountain that's the only way I would live down there. Lot of gang activity in south Phoenix in those older neighborhoods by the junk yards on Broadway & 35 ave a few miles away from those new builds. There are some nice home west of 43rd ave south of baseline. I would definitely stay away from anything east of 43rd ave between i-10 and baseline going east all the way to Tempe all of that is a rough area.
The flak jacket comment was just ridiculous. People who are not involved in some criminal dealings are not at much risk of crime, in Laveen or anywhere else. That said, there are more people involved in criminal dealings in Laveen than in other parts of town, so you see the dots on the map. OK, but let's be honest here. The only reason people would choose Laveen over Goodyear is a) it's what they can afford or b) they don't know any better. "b" should not apply to you anymore. The schools in Goodyear may not have the highest scores of any in the valley but they are all good schools and are head and shoulders over the high schools that serve the Laveen area. Go to Goodyear (forget Surprise; there is no need to move way up there) unless "a" applies.
What he said^. +1.
Sunshinegirl. I live in Surprise and I love it. But my commute is from the bedroom to the office 40 feet away. I have neighbors who commute 45-50 minutes a day. That's crazy! They obviously have not calculated what it really costs to drive that far in gas and wear-and-tear.
With the super low 3.5% interest rates, the extra $75K to buy into say Goodyear costs $330 more a month for a 30 year mortgage. You are going to spend at least 2 gallons a gas per working day or $130 a month in just gas. The depreciation and wear-and-tear is going to cost you a couple hundred a month. People don't calculate the cost of oil changes, tires, as well as depreciation for those long commutes.
With all of that said, there are always reasons that some towns to cost less. Laveen's crime rate is much higher. More crime generally means not as motivated students. Mysteriously, the market has spoken and homes cost less in Laveen. The bottom line is pick your trade-off. You won't find an area close that is nicer, newer, and safer for less $$'s. Another option is for your hubby to find a job closer to Surprise.
That all said, you are awake 16 hours a day and work more than 1/2 of those hours. Why give up 20-25% of your available free time stuck in traffic to spend more money on gas and your car wear-and-tear. Work the numbers. Don't focus only on a house payment just because the costs are more visible than the commute expenses.
The flak jacket comment was just ridiculous. People who are not involved in some criminal dealings are not at much risk of crime, in Laveen or anywhere else. That said, there are more people involved in criminal dealings in Laveen than in other parts of town, so you see the dots on the map. OK, but let's be honest here. The only reason people would choose Laveen over Goodyear is a) it's what they can afford or b) they don't know any better. "b" should not apply to you anymore. The schools in Goodyear may not have the highest scores of any in the valley but they are all good schools and are head and shoulders over the high schools that serve the Laveen area. Go to Goodyear (forget Surprise; there is no need to move way up there) unless "a" applies.
Quote:
Originally Posted by MN-Born-n-Raised
What he said^. +1.
Sunshinegirl. I live in Surprise and I love it. But my commute is from the bedroom to the office 40 feet away. I have neighbors who commute 45-50 minutes a day. That's crazy! They obviously have not calculated what it really costs to drive that far in gas and wear-and-tear.
With the super low 3.5% interest rates, the extra $75K to buy into say Goodyear costs $330 more a month for a 30 year mortgage. You are going to spend at least 2 gallons a gas per working day or $130 a month in just gas. The depreciation and wear-and-tear is going to cost you a couple hundred a month. People don't calculate the cost of oil changes, tires, as well as depreciation for those long commutes.
With all of that said, there are always reasons that some towns to cost less. Laveen's crime rate is much higher. More crime generally means not as motivated students. Mysteriously, the market has spoken and homes cost less in Laveen. The bottom line is pick your trade-off. You won't find an area close that is nicer, newer, and safer for less $$'s. Another option is for your hubby to find a job closer to Surprise.
That all said, you are awake 16 hours a day and work more than 1/2 of those hours. Why give up 20-25% of your available free time stuck in traffic to spend more money on gas and your car wear-and-tear. Work the numbers. Don't focus only on a house payment just because the costs are more visible than the commute expenses.
The advice on here has been excellent and I know next week when I tour these areas, I will hopefully have weaned out most areas that I have in my portal. I still have a lot of houses in Surprise to tour but I want to just to know I did and also to try the commute out for myself by driving from there to his work and school during the rush hour. It makes complete sense about the gas and wear and tear on the car, that's' why I am leaning towards something closer to Phoenix. Goodyear does have a few houses in my portal to view it still seems to be a commute though for my son if he chooses not to stay on campus. I have a gated community house in my portal for Laveen, this would make it a lot more safe right? One worry I have though is that the house value will drop if Laveen gets worse then we will be stuck with a house say in 10 years that we might want to sell. The houses we are looking at in Laveen are SO much more than they sold for, one was bought in an auction last month and now is almost double the price! Another one is about $60,000 more than they bought it for a few years ago, it does look to have some updates though, but it seems like a lot of the houses asking prices are very high compared t what they sold for within the last 4 years. Is that a good sign or just someone flipping a house?
The advice on here has been excellent and I know next week when I tour these areas, I will hopefully have weaned out most areas that I have in my portal. I still have a lot of houses in Surprise to tour but I want to just to know I did and also to try the commute out for myself by driving from there to his work and school during the rush hour. It makes complete sense about the gas and wear and tear on the car, that's' why I am leaning towards something closer to Phoenix. Goodyear does have a few houses in my portal to view it still seems to be a commute though for my son if he chooses not to stay on campus. I have a gated community house in my portal for Laveen, this would make it a lot more safe right? One worry I have though is that the house value will drop if Laveen gets worse then we will be stuck with a house say in 10 years that we might want to sell. The houses we are looking at in Laveen are SO much more than they sold for, one was bought in an auction last month and now is almost double the price! Another one is about $60,000 more than they bought it for a few years ago, it does look to have some updates though, but it seems like a lot of the houses asking prices are very high compared t what they sold for within the last 4 years. Is that a good sign or just someone flipping a house?
The prices are just fallout from the recession. The price may be twice what it was in the depth of the housing crisis, but it is half of what it sold for in the first place. The widest fluctuations down and then back up are in the newer parts of the city where many homes were built in the early 2000's. Those happen to be all of the areas that you are looking at. There were some sweet deals to be had a couple years back at the bottom.
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