Possible move to Phoenix, AZ (Mesa, Glendale: transplants, apartment, to rent)

[bigproblems]

Hey everyone. I am really considering relocating to Phoenix because of my job. I have never been to Arizona and know next to nothing about it.

I am a 24 year old single male. I like to play sports, love the outdoors, and enjoy the bar/nightlife scene from time to time. My biggest problem is that the Phoenix metro is so overwhelming that I don't even know where to start. For my job I will have to travel all over the city, so I wouldn't really mind living anywhere within the area. Are there any areas of the city that you would stay away from and areas that you would recommend?

I was born and raised in Omaha, Nebraska and currently live in St. Louis, Missouri. I enjoyed living in Omaha and there are a lot of things that I like about St. Louis, but I feel like a big change would do me good and now is a good opportunity to do so. I'm just sick of living in the Midwest and am tired of the ****ty winters. Does anyone on here live in Phoenix that is originally from the Midwest?

What do you like/dislike about living in Phoenix? I know there are some great geographical sites to see all around the region, I'm looking for things that might effect you more so on a daily basis. Any help is greatly appreciated!

[Bungle]

You'd likely enjoy the nightlife around Old Town Scottsdale. Are you going to rent? Budget?

[observer53]

I'd live near downtown Phoenix, downtown Tempe, or, as suggested above, Old Town Scottsdale. Which depends on your budget and the particulars of what sort of nightlife you like.

[bigproblems]

I currently rent and plan on renting an apartment in Phoenix. Right now I pay $535 a month for a modest but quality apartment. The cost of living in Missouri is very low, but I could afford to pay up to 750-850 per month for an apartment if need be.

Like I said earlier, the Phoenix metro is huge and it's kind of overwhelming. It's way bigger then Omaha and even St. Louis which surprised me. Would there be a big difference in living somewhere in Tempe as opposed to Scottsdale, Mesa, Glendale, etc. I don't have any kids so schools are a non factor.

[Ztonyg]

Where would your job be located?

Honestly, you'd like and be able to afford Old Town Scottsdale, Downtown Tempe, Downtown Phoenix, or even Central Phoenix. One of the biggest factors as to what would be be your commute time.

[AlohaFriday]

Check other threads. There's been a lot of information about the differences among towns. And there's a lot of Midwesterners here. It's like the Midwest in the desert.

[Steve-o]

There are lots of undesireable areas here in Phoenix, where will your job be located? You say youll be traveling all over, but youre gonna have a central starting point, am I correct? Let us know where thats located and we can try and see if theres anything nice in that general area.

Phoenix probably has the highest "turnover" rate in the nation, meaning almost as many people move here as there are leaving. Phoenix isnt for everyone. If youre looking to escape winters, take a look at California, as I dont think youre gonna like the summers here (which is why most people leave). I dont think the outsiders grasp just how hot and how long summers here are. I wont sit here and explain this (unless you want me to), but theres a reason people flee here in droves come April. And dont think it doesnt get cold here either, it most definitely does. Not St. Louis cold, but nights here are downright freezing. We had snow flurries this year for Pete's sake. lol And after a few years of living here, nights in the 30/40-degree range will feel like 0-degrees to you. When it hits 50 here Im freezing now. Its funny how the body adjusts.

[bigproblems]

The central starting point of my job would be off East Roser Rd and South 40th street. But I probably won't have to go to that location after a few week or two.

I have been checking other threads and I am seeing a lot of transplants from the Midwest. I've definitely read a lot of stuff that I didn't know about Arizona.

I'm not too concerned about the weather change. The winters in Omaha where very cold and extremely wind. Snow would be on the ground from November to the middle of March since it rarely got above freezing during that time. And while St. Louis probably isn't as hot as Phoenix, it still gets up in the high 90's for months at a time and it is really humid in the summer months. I realize that it's going to be hot in Phoenix, I'm not too concerned about it. How long does the "summer weather" last? March-November?

Steve-o in your opinion what are the undesireable areas of Phoenix and why?

[observer53]

The immediate area around the starting point of your job is not an area you would want to live, you'd need to go further east into Tempe for the closest better area.

Summer does NOT start in March. May can be on the warmer to hot side, but not always, and it cools off at night. June is when summer starts in earnest, the humidity picks up toward the end of the month (but not like Omaha levels), and can last through Sept. We've had some hot daytime temps in October some years, but the nights are cooling off by then, so that helps. No one can predict for you how you will adapt to the summers, you just have to experience it yourself.