Best and affordable place for a young couple moving to Arizona to live. (Phoenix: real estate, to rent)

[arae30]

My fiance and I are planning on moving to Arizona in June. I have lived in Chandler previously for a very short time. I liked the Chandler area but also believe I've heard it is getting a bit more expensive. We want to find a place in an area that is reasonable to rent or buy. We'd also like the area to be a scene that two 28 year olds would find fun and entertaining with plenty to do, whether it's close to sporting events, concert venues, hiking, golfing, etc. We live in Maryland right now and to get anywhere is 30 mins to an hour, such as DC 40 mins away. We wouldn't mind to have to commute a bit to go watch the DBacks play but we don't want to be sitting in the car for an hour.

Budget is around 1200/month. If renting it'd be nice to have the 1200 include utilities, for buying I realize we can probably find a house for 1000/month mortgage and worry about the utilities as the months go. Therefore 1200 is slightly flexible but would rather stay closer to 1200.

We are looking at the following places if anyone can give us more insight on these areas and whether they would be suitable for 28 years olds:

- Phoenix
- Tempe
- Chandler
- Gilbert
- Scottsdale (but I know this is more expensive)
- Laveen (a friend lives here and its quite affordable but a very dull place I hear)
- Tolleson (hear it is affordable but a dull place)

So our main things is affordability and accessibility, can we get to a place in at least 30 mins driving without traffic. I understand the traffic gets bad here, but try commuting into or out of DC at rush hour! The problem right now won't be a commute to work because I will be working from home, my fiance will need to find a job.

BTW anyone familiar with jobs working with kids/teens with emotional disabilities, such as a level 5 school or something similar in/near the Phoenix area?

[D.Rock]

My wife and I are both 28 and live in a house we bought 2 years ago in Tempe. We enjoy how we are so close to everything except the suburbs where both our parents live. Lots of entertainment and restaurants within short commune (Downtown PHX, Scottsdale, Tempe). My wife recently went back to grad school and its nice that she can hop on the bus by our house and get directly/easily to ASU so public transportation is nice(light rail/bus). I work in Mesa and I love how I go the opposite way of traffic every morning. I would recommend Tempe if you OK with living in older homes but this is part of the reason I like it here. House few down from us recently rented for $1250 for 3 bedroom 2 bath but it was remodeled recently so I bet you could find something to rent +/- $250 depending on size and condition. Utilities(water/trash/sewer/internet/gas/electric) for me range from $180 - 380 depending on the weather so maybe you can expect similar range.

[Hschlick84]

What happened to your other thread?

Phoenix or Denver for young couple?

[observer53]

Originally Posted by Hschlick84

What happened to your other thread?

Phoenix or Denver for young couple?

It's in the City vs City forum. The link to it is still in the Phoenix forum (it says "Moved" at the beginning.) Click on it, and it will take you there.

[JGMotorsport64]

Originally Posted by observer53

It's in the City vs City forum. The link to it is still in the Phoenix forum (it says "Moved" at the beginning.) Click on it, and it will take you there.

I hate it when moderators send posts to that sub forum. It turns into a contest instead of answering the questions.

Best and affordable for a young couple will depend on income and location of employment. North Chandler is pretty popular for people in your age range as is south Tempe. Scottsdale is popular but that's a scene thing.

[DetroitN8V]

Originally Posted by JGMotorsport64

I hate it when moderators send posts to that sub forum. It turns into a contest instead of answering the questions.

Best and affordable for a young couple will depend on income and location of employment. North Chandler is pretty popular for people in your age range as is south Tempe. Scottsdale is popular but that's a scene thing.

That's a foolish comment. Certainly not even a significant percentage of the over 225k people that call Scottsdale home do so because of "the scene".

[JGMotorsport64]

Originally Posted by DetroitN8V

That's a foolish comment. Certainly not even a significant percentage of the over 225k people that call Scottsdale home do so because of "the scene".

Certain things mesh with certain people. It depends on OP. Scottsdale has a strong personality. Maybe scene was the wrong word.

[John7777]

Originally Posted by arae30

My fiance and I are planning on moving to Arizona in June. I have lived in Chandler previously for a very short time. I liked the Chandler area but also believe I've heard it is getting a bit more expensive. We want to find a place in an area that is reasonable to rent or buy. We'd also like the area to be a scene that two 28 year olds would find fun and entertaining with plenty to do, whether it's close to sporting events, concert venues, hiking, golfing, etc. We live in Maryland right now and to get anywhere is 30 mins to an hour, such as DC 40 mins away. We wouldn't mind to have to commute a bit to go watch the DBacks play but we don't want to be sitting in the car for an hour.

Budget is around 1200/month. If renting it'd be nice to have the 1200 include utilities, for buying I realize we can probably find a house for 1000/month mortgage and worry about the utilities as the months go. Therefore 1200 is slightly flexible but would rather stay closer to 1200.

We are looking at the following places if anyone can give us more insight on these areas and whether they would be suitable for 28 years olds:

- Phoenix
- Tempe
- Chandler
- Gilbert
- Scottsdale (but I know this is more expensive)
- Laveen (a friend lives here and its quite affordable but a very dull place I hear)
- Tolleson (hear it is affordable but a dull place)

So our main things is affordability and accessibility, can we get to a place in at least 30 mins driving without traffic. I understand the traffic gets bad here, but try commuting into or out of DC at rush hour! The problem right now won't be a commute to work because I will be working from home, my fiance will need to find a job.

BTW anyone familiar with jobs working with kids/teens with emotional disabilities, such as a level 5 school or something similar in/near the Phoenix area?

With your budget, you could probably afford to rent almost anywhere in the Valley. Purchasing is another matter. You might want to rent for a while until you get the lay of the land. Also, if you wait, the current real estate bubble has a good chance of popping. I realize that we'll now hear from a bunch of homeowners and real estate experts that there is "no bubble." And if you believe that, take a look at some of the junk houses they're asking $300,000 for. It's a joke.

[DetroitN8V]

Originally Posted by JGMotorsport64

Certain things mesh with certain people. It depends on OP. Scottsdale has a strong personality. Maybe scene was the wrong word.

I'll ask my 72 year old neighbor down the street and the hardworking family of four next door if they live in Scottsdale because it's cool. Don't believe the hype. It's just another city with real people that live in it due to finding value in a plethora of different things.

[JGMotorsport64]

Originally Posted by DetroitN8V

I'll ask my 72 year old neighbor down the street and the hardworking family of four next door if they live in Scottsdale because it's cool. Don't believe the hype. It's just another city with real people that live in it due to finding value in a plethora of different things.

Please note OP Scottsdale is a proud bunch