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Old 05-04-2015, 02:39 PM
 
9 posts, read 11,930 times
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Well - third interview obviously went well because they have offered. Very attractive package - including relocation. So next steps are figuring out what to move (very little), where to stay for short term and where to look to settle for a longer term.

Does the Phoenix area have flats or duplexes or are those only found in our older cities?
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Old 05-04-2015, 08:43 PM
 
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I moved here in 2007 from Madison but was in Milwaukee for years. This is nothing like it whatsoever. Not that it's bad, just totally different. Memorial Day to Labor Day is too hot and when I retire, I will not be here during that time. I will be sitting on a lake somewhere in Northern Wi or MN. Oct/Nov and Mar/April are great here. Milwaukee is the suck Dec-Feb so take your pick. No place is perfect.
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Old 05-04-2015, 09:22 PM
 
Location: Telecommutes from Northern AZ
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The biggest thing is traffic. Traffic is a bummer. So since you are traveling light I'd find some place to rent that is in a decent area (ask around) and close to work. After you have lived here for six months, know the area and some people, then maybe upgrade to a nicer place that suits you better.

Good luck.
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Old 05-04-2015, 09:45 PM
 
545 posts, read 1,479,095 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by mju420 View Post
Well - third interview obviously went well because they have offered. Very attractive package - including relocation. So next steps are figuring out what to move (very little), where to stay for short term and where to look to settle for a longer term.

Does the Phoenix area have flats or duplexes or are those only found in our older cities?
Congrats! Where is your office going to be (or are you working from home)? That will determine a lot about where you should be looking to live. I don't think there are many duplexes around here, but there are plenty of rental homes to be had.

I'm a native Wisconsinite and spent 30+ years in the Milwaukee area. We just moved out here last September. I too was growing tired of the long cold winters and wanted a lifestyle change. While we haven't dealt with the really hot stuff yet (110+), it was 105 and pretty humid when we got here and it wasn't significantly different than some of the hottest days in Milwaukee and Chicago when it's mid-upper 90s and humid. You just deal with it. October - March were awesome. You'll laugh when it's 75-80 here and below zero with -30 wind chills where you came from. There's more variety in the weather here than most realize. This weekend was around 100 but today it's only in the low 80s with some thunderstorms rolling through.

Don't let the traffic talk scare you. IMO, traffic in Milwaukee was no walk in the park either because you could get stuck on 94 and just end up sitting for a while. At least here it moves unless something really major is going on. City streets are on a grid with most being 4-6 lanes, so you can easily get off the freeway and use them if you need to. The issue here is that things are so spread out. It's 60 miles from my house in Goodyear to my MIL's place in Apache Junction for example. For your own sanity, living close to your job is ideal.

Don't think it's going to be an easy transition, especially since you're going to be starting out here at the hottest time of the year. It's much different than the midwest and Milwaukee. Give it some time and it'll grow on you though. There are no shortage of people from the midwest that have made the move here. I'm constantly meeting people from Wisconsin and Illinois. My neighbors just moved here from Kenosha.

As far as moving goes, we sold pretty much all of our large furniture (anything that wasn't worth alot), kept our nicer stuff, loaded everything we had left in a 16' Penske, and towed our vehicle behind it. We emptied the truck and went furniture shopping with it before we returned it. The time between me accepting my new job offer our here and actually getting here was probably the most stressful time in our lives. We had a 1 year old child at the time too. It's definitely a leap of faith, but I don't regret doing it at all. I don't think there's any way I could go back now either.

Good luck and keep us posted!

Last edited by brian571; 05-04-2015 at 09:59 PM..
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Old 05-05-2015, 09:42 AM
 
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Thanks for the advise and congratulations. It's going to be different for sure. And an adventure.

I'm expecting a bit of culture shock and I'm sure that there will be days that I think I made the biggest mistake of my life but I'm pretty darn excited over all. Nothing is ever perfect but coming up quick on my 51st birthday - now is the time if I am ever going to make such a change.
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Old 05-05-2015, 10:21 AM
 
Location: Chandler, AZ
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Originally Posted by mju420 View Post
I am hoping however, that not everyone in Phoenix is such a literal interpreter of comments/questions. It would be exhausting to have to defend every innocent query or request for information.
Grain of salt...Big Cats is from Chicago...like a lot of people that have moved here from Chicago, NOTHING about AZ is as good as it was "back home". "Opinions are like ________, everyone has one and they all stink".

Congrats on the job...now it would help us to make recommendations if we knew the general area you will be working. General rule is the closer you can live to work and around things/places you enjoy, the better your outlook on life in general will be. So...work location (don't have to be specific), price range, size of homes, etc. Yes, there are condos and duplexes around but they are going to be hit and miss around the Valley. There was also a surge of "shared driveway quadplexes" there for a while...but again...I can think of only about 2 neighborhoods designed like that around the area I live.
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Old 05-05-2015, 12:37 PM
 
Location: Scottsdale, AZ
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Quote:
Originally Posted by KurtAZ View Post
Grain of salt...Big Cats is from Chicago...like a lot of people that have moved here from Chicago, NOTHING about AZ is as good as it was "back home". "Opinions are like ________, everyone has one and they all stink".
Thats not quite fair. There are PLENTY of things I love and adore about AZ. I wouldnt have moved here had I hated it.

With that being said, until youve lived in a place like Chicago, you'd see the things you'd miss living in a place like Phoenix. I love Phoenix, I really do. However, theres lots I miss about Chicago, too. Im positive there are lots of things youd miss about Phoenix if you moved to Chicago as well.
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Old 05-05-2015, 12:52 PM
 
9 posts, read 11,930 times
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** If this is a double post sorry - my computer is being strange **

I know there are going to be things I really miss about Milwaukee - no doubt about it. We have some great stuff going on but it's time for an adventure and this is just to good of an opportunity to pass up.

As for work - I will be working downtown - right near 1st and Washington. I'm really intrigued by your light rail but my employer is paying my parking so it will probably be more cost effective to drive.

After reading so many posts and listening to advise, I am planning on renting either a studio or one bedroom at first. I don't want to make a big financial commitment until I know where I want to be and that it's all going to work out

Last edited by mju420; 05-05-2015 at 01:02 PM..
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Old 05-05-2015, 01:08 PM
 
9 posts, read 11,930 times
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I have also heard from friends that lived there for a few years before moving to Germany that there is a "Wisconsin/Packer" bar somewhere in the Phoenix area.

I saw that the Cardinals play the Packers in December in Arizona. I will probably work on getting tickets for that and the Brewers play the Diamondbacks in July - I bet that's hot as all get out. And then it's only a few months until spring training.
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Old 05-05-2015, 01:20 PM
 
545 posts, read 1,479,095 times
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Actually, if you can find a place near the light rail line, that's probably going to be more cost effective for you. Someone can correct me if I'm wrong, but I believe the parking lots at most (all?) of the light rail stations are free if they have one. A monthly bus and rail pass looks like it's $64. Wouldn't take much gas to add up to that. Working downtown, you'd be dealing with traffic from almost any direction you'd be coming from both inbound and outbound. I would at least look at places close to the rail line and consider it. I'd take it to work if I had the option.

Quote:
Originally Posted by mju420 View Post
I'm expecting a bit of culture shock and I'm sure that there will be days that I think I made the biggest mistake of my life but I'm pretty darn excited over all. Nothing is ever perfect but coming up quick on my 51st birthday - now is the time if I am ever going to make such a change.
There will be days early on that you ask yourself "What did I just do?" or "Am I crazy for doing this?", but they end quickly. For me, it was questioning giving up a job that I liked and could have been secure in for years for the unknown out here, selling much of what I owned to get out here, and being far away from most of my family. As time went on, it looked like a good decision for us, so I became much more comfortable with it.

Quote:
Originally Posted by BIG CATS View Post
Thats not quite fair. There are PLENTY of things I love and adore about AZ. I wouldnt have moved here had I hated it.

With that being said, until youve lived in a place like Chicago, you'd see the things you'd miss living in a place like Phoenix. I love Phoenix, I really do. However, theres lots I miss about Chicago, too. Im positive there are lots of things youd miss about Phoenix if you moved to Chicago as well.
Indeed. I spent the last year and a half before I moved out here living in Suburban Chicago. Lots to love about Chicago and I do miss some of it sometimes (real big/international city amenities, the lakefront, midwestern attitudes). But there's a hell of a lot that I don't miss about it too! (bad weather, corrupt pols, high taxes, etc.) The good here is outweighing the good there for now!

Quote:
Originally Posted by mju420 View Post
I have also heard from friends that lived there for a few years before moving to Germany that there is a "Wisconsin/Packer" bar somewhere in the Phoenix area.

I saw that the Cardinals play the Packers in December in Arizona. I will probably work on getting tickets for that and the Brewers play the Diamondbacks in July - I bet that's hot as all get out. And then it's only a few months until spring training.
There are a ton of Packer fans around here - probably because of all the transplants. There are also a ton of Bears fans around here, so beware! I know there are a number of Packer bars in town - I've heard they exist, but not sure where they are. I'll have to figure that out one of these days. Chase Field has a roof and A/C, so no worries about frying watching a baseball game in July. I'll be there too. From one Packer/Brewers fan to another, welcome!

Last edited by brian571; 05-05-2015 at 01:32 PM..
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