Small Yards - Any Transplants Missing Larger Yards (Phoenix, Scottsdale: real estate, apartments)

[cacto]

Originally Posted by cyberbehms

Larger yard?? Easier said than done Joe Just by looking on any close up map, it is house on top of house in most of suburbia Phoenix.

I always appreciate your replies and insight on things, but truthfully, can you tell me of good neighborhoods that have decent size lots that the average person can afford? As a realtor, you would be the one to ask. Would love to hear about some of these neighborhoods around Chandler specifically.

Your problem is suburbia. All the new developments sacrifice yard for more house. Even developments from the 80's have way more yard like the ones I grew up around in North Phoenix. The newer ones there have patios ringed by dirt. Central PHX in it's nicer areas has big beautiful yards in some great neighborhoods.

[HX_Guy]

You can find homes on larger lots both new and old, just depends on how much you want to spend, obviously.

Our house is very close to the neighbors on the side, literally 10' from each other on the sides and aside from not liking how tight the space is (with the garbage cans on the side of the house, you can barely walk by) I really don't mind it. We never open our windows though so if you do, it could be different.

[Jukesgrrl]

Originally Posted by cacto

Your problem is suburbia. All the new developments sacrifice yard for more house. Even developments from the 80's have way more yard like the ones I grew up around in North Phoenix. The newer ones there have patios ringed by dirt. Central PHX in it's nicer areas has big beautiful yards in some great neighborhoods.

Yes. Move to the city. The homes in Arcadia, for example, have huge yards and mature trees, too. Some of the streets look like Southern California appeared in My Three Sons, Ozzy and Harriet, and other programs that were on TV when I was a tot, making the Golden State look like dreamland to those of us raised in the Rust Belt.

Yards require maintenance. Younger, two-income couples don't have time for that and would rather spend their money on master suites and great rooms, things the older houses don't have.

[crystalys]

My lot is just over a third of an acre and is typical for a large number of homes in Moon Valley which is in North Phoenix. But like others have mentioned, this area was built in the 70's. You can certainly find something that has been upgraded here but what do you consider the "average" person's salary? How much home square footage do you need? Most homes in this area start in the high $200's and go up to the million mark depending on the characteristics. You can find some that may not be upgraded, but are still in decent shape, for the low to mid $200's.

[BlueCat1105]

We were very much in the same boat as you. Our IL home is on a 18,755 sq. ft. lot, and everything they were showing us in the east valley was on a 7,200 sq. ft. lot - and sometimes smaller. I could have cried seeing those small yards. The reason we wanted to move from IL to AZ is to have more outdoor time, and with that small a lot, I felt too claustrophobic. We even put a bid in on one on a 7,200 sq. ft. lot, and am I ever glad we didn't get it. When that fell through, we started to look at building, and found a 11,568 sq. ft. lot in Ironwood Crossing in Queen Creek / San Tan Valley. It is farther out than we had initially wanted to be, but the space was important enough for us to add to our commute time to have the home and yard we wanted. Things are building up out there, so it will be fine.

As it is now, we're 40 miles outside of Chicago, with horrific traffic and terrible roads. Now we'll be about 35 miles from Phoenix, with marginal traffic (comparatively) and wonderful roads. I think we'll be happy there.

[madmmac]

I specifically bought a house on a golf course so I had some space and greenery to enjoy from the backyard area. It's 2 fairways wide with some desert in between, so about 200 yards or so to the other houses.

I don't have to mow it or water it, just enjoy it!!

[hikernut]

True, the majority of houses are on small lots here. But if you are patient, and willing to be a bit flexible on location, amenities, age of the house, etc, you can find bigger lots.

When we were house hunting a couple of years ago we stumbled on a new development in Chandler than had some 3/4 acre lots. The premium for those big lots was pretty reasonable, I think around $15K, and I figured they would get snapped up quickly. But the reverse seemed to be true. They sold many homes on the smaller lots, while one of the 3/4 acre lots sat unclaimed for quite a few months.

hikernut

[Jukesgrrl]

To those of you just moving here and wanting what you had "back home," I would like to make one sincere request. If you want a big lot and are willing to pay for it, more power to you! Please don't come here and spend even more money recreating the landscape you had in Chicagoland, or suburban DC, or Buffalo, NY, or Massachusetts. Yes, thousands of the people who settled Phoenix and Scottsdale in the post-war period did that, but it was a mistake.

This is a desert. And those who can't accept that and work WITH the environment, rather than against it, are damaging a fragile ecological system. So, please, no grassy lawns. No non-native trees. If you want petunias and pansies, put 'em in pots. Once you've been here for awhile, you'll get used to the native look and desert landscaping will seem beautiful to you. Subscribe to Phoenix Home and Garden magazine. You'll find tons of beautiful and colorful things you can do to your yard to fulfill almost anyone's esthetic desires. But you might have to think outside your box if you aren't a Southwest native. If you must have non-native trees and lawns, buy ones that were put there by a less knowledgeable generation. Think of it as buying a vintage mink coat, instead of a new one. We aren't asking you to live without air conditioning or have a yard full of jumping chollas and century plants. Just please try to see beauty in THIS natural world.

[BlueCat1105]

Not looking for what I have back home. What I have back home is right now being covered with yet ANOTHER coating of snow.

[HTY483]

There are some really nice older neighborhoods in north central Phoenix, central Tempe and central Scottsdale. Most have larger yards that hold a pool, grass and some citrus trees. Homes in those areas are pricey though, as compared to farther out in the burbs.