Thinking of moving to Surprise area any opinions on Sierra Montana, Cortessa, Surprise Farms? (Phoenix: renters)

[Dawn Driscoll]

My husband and I are coming in the next few weeks to start looking at homes. Problem is I can't narrow down the communities just by looking at the internet. We are looking for extended lots, homes in the $450 price range, some privacy, not a lot of kids, shopping close by. Am I unrealistic about trying to find something like this?

[ibarrio]

How old are you? If you age qualify you could live in Sun City Grand/West.

Keep in mind that Surprise is a Mix of Old People and Families.

Can you handle that?

[sablebaby]

You can absolutely find something like this, Surprise or not. This valley is so HUGE that it's impossible to narrow down an area on the internet. Spend some time here, drive around and see what feels right for you. You never know what you'll end up liking.

One thing to consider though is where you will be working. If you know that, we can advise you on nice areas throughout the valley.

[jco]

Personally, I don't like Sierra Montana. It seemed like there were a lot of renters when we looked. You might look into The Estates at Ranch Gabriela. They're in your price range (and under), close to shops, but feel secluded. If you have kids, it's close to the better charter schools if you want to keep them out of the regular public schools. The floor plans are great and the yards are huge. They aren't as far out as Surprise Farms, either, so if you ever end up commuting to Phoenix it won't be as bad.

[Dawn Driscoll]

Thank you. We are 38 and I work from home. My husband would be looking for work, but his trade is HVAC so you would think he wouldn't have a hard time finding work.

Estates at Ranch Gabriela sounds good - we'll check it out. We'll be out there in a few weeks. I'm just looking to narrow down some neighborhoods so we're not spinning our wheels while we're there - literally.

[SOON2BNSURPRISE]

Dawn, You could also look at Marley Park. They have large homes in your price range. There will be kids as that is one of the things that draw many to Surprise, affordabe family homes. My parents live in Rancho Gabriella though and love it. There kids are all grown up though. Surprise Farms is a ways out there, on the far west end of Surprise. We love the area though and our price range was a lot lower than yours. You could probably get quite a bit of house for $450 in Surprise Farms. Then again if you opt for six inch walls, extra insulation, chances are you will never hear the kids next door. If I was spending $450 I would look at Marley Park though. I have been in most of the models over the past year and there are some really great lay outs. There are others that I didn't prefer. Comes down to preference though.

[Dawn Driscoll]

Thanks. I really like what I've seen online of Marley Park - the only draw back is it looks so busy...I don't mind busy sometimes but not all of the time. My brother lives in surprise and sent me pictures of Cortessa, I love those mountain views!

We also have 4 dogs so we need a decent yard, big enough for a pool and some running room! I have Fibromyalgia and my dream is to create a spa backyard - I suffer terribly here on the east coast and everytime I come to AZ I feel so much better.

Last time we were out there we looked at Tartesso. I wasn't too impressed with the area. Kind of in the middle of no where.

Can't wait to come look around - I'm counting the days!

Thank you for all of your feedback!

[jco]

I'm sure that for this price, you can get a larger lot in Marley Park. Most of Marley Park has pretty small backyards, though. It sounded from your post that you would rather not be in a subdivision where you were one of few with a large yard. It sounds like you want to be in a community where everyone is a little more spread out. If this is the case, you'll want to look in the gated communities. If you don't have to commute and don't mind driving 10-20 minutes for shopping, you can find custom houses in west Surprise of Jomax in your price range. There is a subdivision called Desert Oasis out there, but they have smaller yards. The custom homes are on the mountains and a Desert Ridge type mall is going up within five minutes from there off 164th Ave. A lot of the construction/HVAC jobs are in Phoenix. If you decide to move somewhere that isn't good for commuting, try to find an HVAC position with the school district (dysart.org) so that you can stay in the area.

[California Yanqui]

Before I bought in Cortessa, I liked the Copper canyon development (cactus& bullard)The Lyon homes were fantastic looking and the lots differ in size.