Trying to decide between CantaMia at Estrella or Trilogy at Vistancia (Phoenix: 2015, HOA fees)

[dynasinger]

Hi folks,
I am planning for my retirement moving from Southern California this summer. Trying to decide between CantaMia at Estrella or Trilogy at Vistancia. Also, easy accessibility and shopping is important to me. Having a good hospital nearby is also a plus. I do not like driving on freeways and would rather take the back or town roads to avoid the freeway. Any insight comparisons would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks,
Patricia

[bkypjy]

Hi there. My husband and I have toured multiple times all the active age communities in the Phoenix area. There is another poster on this site that has a lengthy review of what he went through to make his final decision. I have a sister that lives at CantaMia at Estrella and loves it. Major downside is it is so remote. It is at least a 20 minute drive to nearest store. Trilogy at Vistancia is beautiful but more costly. There is great local shopping nearby. Trilogy does seem a little more upscale but again, prices reflect that. New builds will cost approx 100k more for same sq footage. HOA's are more at Trilogy but not much more. I think 250 per mo vs about 200 at CantaMia. Good luck with your search. By the way, there are many more activities at Trilogy than Cantamia.

[dynasinger]

Thanks so much for your reply. In doing further investigation, I realize that CantaMia is to far for my liking. I am one who likes stores and such close by. Now I am trying to decide between the new section in Pebble Creek or Trilogy at Vistancia. Tough decision. Do you know anything about Pebble Creek?

[military spouse]

While I don't know anything specifically about Pebble Creek, I live in a community just south of it and love the area. There are grocery stores, restaurants, and a hospital a short distance away. Traffic isn't bad and the community is very clean. We live in Portales and are very happy....

[MN-Born-n-Raised]

Originally Posted by dynasinger

Thanks so much for your reply. In doing further investigation, I realize that CantaMia is to far for my liking. I am one who likes stores and such close by. Now I am trying to decide between the new section in Pebble Creek or Trilogy at Vistancia. Tough decision. Do you know anything about Pebble Creek?

Vistancia has rolling hills around that area. +1 for natural beauty. +1 for being adjacent to Lake Pleasant (I love to boat). Pebble Creek is flat. As far as location, both are farther out burbs but close to a couple of major highways.

As for resale, Vistancia and the surrounding area has no shortage of land. Until an area builds out, appreciation will be slow. So I predict Pebble Creek will have a higher percentage of appreciation a decade from now. Furthermore, an extra $100K (Vistancia) for the same size property will stunt your appreciation; especially for retirees with a fixed income. But all in all, Pebble Creek is closer to more stores and infrastructure.

I live in Surprise and certainly hear the jets flying from Luke. They will be adding a lot more F-35's at Luke in the not-so-distant future. Be aware that the closer you get to Falcon Golf Club (by Luke and just north of Pebble creek) the more intense the sound pressure level (SPL) will be. In order to take off, they need thrust
and that is LOUD. But it is much more localized on take-off closer to the runway. I've noticed there are some beautiful homes going up in that area. There would be no way and H_ell I would be spending that kind of $$ so close to Luke's runways. Allow me to explain... I was golfing at Falcon Club with some friends and I measured 128 db a few different times (you can get a free app on your smart phone). That SPL is INTENSE and over time, will cause hearing damage. "The sound of freedom" is fine when I hear planes overhead. That's because they are distributed in the sky along several flight patterns and elevations. But make no mistake, when they hit the trust in the air, you will hear them miles away. Now picture every single take off needing thrust. Evidentially, it's not a problem for the people buying at the nearby Toll Brothers development. IMHO, those people are crazy! I digress....

So if it was me (and if you decide on Pebble Creek), I'd be picking the part of Pebble Creek that is the farthest away from Luke. Don't assume planes aren't a problem simply because you don't hear much activity with a visit or three. The training is sporadic based off of variables like cloud cover, when foreign pilots come into town, what part of the month (earlier month normally means they didn't blow their budget), new plane deliveries, etc, etc. When you ask people opinion who live there, realize people are going to say "I don't hear them anymore" quickly followed by "That's the sound of freedom". Psst, that's called rationalizing. I'm sure the people who live across the street from a set of train tracks will say it doesn't even bother them. Right!...........

Please note, I am not saying that all parts of Pebble Creek have a jet noise problem. But I will say the closer you get will have a wide SPL gradient.

[JoReLo]

My husband and I moved to PHX in Dec of 2015 from Florida. Because the valley is so huge and has so many attractive areas to live, I really don't think you could go wrong with whatever zip code you decide upon. We first put in an offer on a house in Anthem but within the first 24 hours after submitting the offer, decided to withdraw it because we reconsidered the HOA fees more closely. (We're both retired and fees/taxes/etc get our attention!) Next, we put in an offer on a home in Pebble Creek. We went back to the hotel room that night and carefully considered our choice. We both love Pebble Creek, and still do, but we decided the property taxes there were questionably high. We did some research about the tax assessments and what the city of Goodyear was going to provide for such taxes, and we just couldn't justify it, meaning we didn't see what we could directly benefit from with such a high tax obligation. So, we backed out. The next day we put in an offer on a home in the Trilogy/Vistancia development. We concluded Vistancia offered good square footage for the asking prices, very reasonable HOA fees with great amenities, and about $1500/year lower taxes than Pebble Creek/Goodyear. We absolutely love living in Vistancia. We love the terrain here and the easy access to the 303 as well as to all of the retail along Lake Pleasant Pkwy. We consider this area like the best kept secret in the whole valley. Let us know what you decided to do. Sure do wish you well.