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Old 02-08-2019, 08:55 AM
 
Location: Phoenix, AZ
2,653 posts, read 3,023,495 times
Reputation: 2866

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Quote:
Originally Posted by Valley Native View Post
Depends a lot on where you plan to work, and what your budget is. Arcadia is on the expensive side. Camelback East can be expensive, but there are some middle priced areas. Tempe would be good for somebody your age, but it may not be as "suburban" as you prefer. Coming from Chicago, I'm sure many things will seem cheaper, but there are some hidden costs (car maintenance for example) which are on the high side.

Bad traffic exists here, but it's most prevalent during morning & afternoon/evening rush hour. It's getting worse, but at least traffic here moves at a decent pace during the non peak times. The areas with the least amount of traffic would be the outer suburban areas ... and you might want to look into some of those places in the north Valley (Deer Valley, Desert Ridge, Arrowhead, Peoria, north Scottsdale, etc.) if you prefer easier travel to northern AZ, and thinks like hiking.

By the way: please DON'T even think about hiking the mountains around Phoenix during the hot season. Too many amateurs go out unprepared, and end up being carried off the trails ... wasting paramedics' time as well as tax dollars! If you like to hike, there are many unspoiled areas in Arizona's high country to explore, which are far better than anything around Phoenix anyway.
Why in the world would you think car maintenance costs are higher here than in Chicago? Because batteries only last 2 years here? Here we generally don't have potholes, no salt on the roads, etc. Just keep the cars in the garage or out of the sun and they will last here.
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Old 02-08-2019, 01:16 PM
 
277 posts, read 274,544 times
Reputation: 497
People here talking about the traffic have clearly not spent time in other places, Phoenix traffic is a relative breeze compared to any of the large metros and as for pay/salary Phoenix is pretty much dead center of the pack and relative to COL in places that pay more I have found little advantage to move out for salary over the last several years and I have looked

In fact I know more people that have moved and then come back in a matter of years because that higher paycheck simply didn’t provide an advantage in the long run
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Old 02-10-2019, 11:03 PM
 
Location: East Central Phoenix
8,028 posts, read 12,200,691 times
Reputation: 9803
Quote:
Originally Posted by DougStark View Post
Why in the world would you think car maintenance costs are higher here than in Chicago? Because batteries only last 2 years here? Here we generally don't have potholes, no salt on the roads, etc. Just keep the cars in the garage or out of the sun and they will last here.
Do you think it's only batteries which don't fare well in the heat? Tires are also very vulnerable, and you can see shreds on the sides of freeways quite a bit, especially in the summer months. Also, brakes & hoses wear out faster in the heat, as does a car's interior. Phoenix streets USED to not have so many potholes, but there are plenty of them lately! Keeping cars sheltered in a garage is fine, but when they sit in traffic on a hot day, or are parked at a store in an open lot where the sun blazes down on them, that subtracts life from batteries, hoses, and brakes.
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Old 02-15-2019, 02:43 PM
 
Location: Scottsdale, AZ
5,649 posts, read 5,928,076 times
Reputation: 8317
Quote:
Originally Posted by DougStark View Post
Why in the world would you think car maintenance costs are higher here than in Chicago? Because batteries only last 2 years here? Here we generally don't have potholes, no salt on the roads, etc. Just keep the cars in the garage or out of the sun and they will last here.
I've lived in both areas and can attest PHX's climate is far worse for automobiles than cold climates. Yes, salt used on the roads can rust out cars, but it takes a long time to make it really bad. I'm talking I owned new cars for 8 years in CHI that didn't even hardly have any surface rust yet. Here the heat and sun destroys clearcoat and dashboards, tires and batteries, belts and blades, plastics, leather, interiors, hoses, and a/c systems. And if you're like the rest of us that use the highways daily, you'll probably need windshields every few years, too. I've needed 2 already in the last 6 years due to rocks being kicked up. On a smaller front (read: not damaging), dust gets EVERYWHERE. Engine air filters, cabin air filters, etc, have half the life they do in greener, cooler climates. I keep a dust rag in my glove box to wipe off the ever-present dust from my dash, cluster bezel, etc.
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Old 02-15-2019, 08:57 PM
 
Location: East Central Phoenix
8,028 posts, read 12,200,691 times
Reputation: 9803
Quote:
Originally Posted by BIG CATS View Post
I've lived in both areas and can attest PHX's climate is far worse for automobiles than cold climates. Yes, salt used on the roads can rust out cars, but it takes a long time to make it really bad. I'm talking I owned new cars for 8 years in CHI that didn't even hardly have any surface rust yet. Here the heat and sun destroys clearcoat and dashboards, tires and batteries, belts and blades, plastics, leather, interiors, hoses, and a/c systems. And if you're like the rest of us that use the highways daily, you'll probably need windshields every few years, too. I've needed 2 already in the last 6 years due to rocks being kicked up. On a smaller front (read: not damaging), dust gets EVERYWHERE. Engine air filters, cabin air filters, etc, have half the life they do in greener, cooler climates. I keep a dust rag in my glove box to wipe off the ever-present dust from my dash, cluster bezel, etc.
First of all: where have you been??? Second, your points are highly valid. Extreme cold weather isn't good for vehicles, but heat is worse overall. I usually don't own cars for more than 4 years, but even in that short amount of time, I've had to replace things like tires, batteries, and hoses. Thankfully, they're covered by the warranty, but it's still a major hassle to deal with repairs at all. And my car is almost always parked in a covered environment. Even when a car isn't in the direct sunlight constantly, just the summer heat alone can shorten the life of various components.
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Old 02-16-2019, 01:42 PM
 
566 posts, read 781,903 times
Reputation: 675
Where in Chicago are you from?
We left in '73 and never looked back. Hubby and I were Northsiders: me, LSD; him, Rogers Park.
What to keep in consideration are finances, where you will work/worship, and how much you're willing to drive/put up with traffic.
We lived in Tempe for a couple of years but have been in the West Valley ever since.
The East Valley has ASU and some baseball, but so does the West Valley, along with football and hockey. The Diamondbacks/Suns play downtown. Shopping-wise, while we've got Arrowhead Mall here and a Trader Joe's/Sprouts, we've got to go all the way into town or to Scottsdale to find a Whole Foods, which is absolutely ridiculous.
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Old 02-17-2019, 06:07 PM
 
6 posts, read 6,630 times
Reputation: 10
Thanks for all the additional information everyone. One reason why I'd rather own a vehicle where there isn't snow is because many drivers (here at least) don't know how to drive in the snow. Around Chicago/suburbs, I've seen my fair share of accidents due to people sliding and not taking appropriate measures to drive safely, brake sooner, etc. In AZ, I'd want a garage to be able to combat some of that heat eating away at the car/motorcycle.

I was considering Texas so avoid some of that AZ extreme heat, but there seems to be no hiking nearby, or trails of any sort. I just feel lost and want to move where it won't snow, has outdoor stuff to do, and be in a populated area so it's not too empty/quiet.

LagunaMom, I'm from the NW suburbs, maybe 20 miles out from the city.
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Old 02-17-2019, 06:48 PM
 
Location: Phoenix, AZ
66 posts, read 57,416 times
Reputation: 31
We are in the far far far suburbs of Chicago - 60 miles west and finally have some things lining up to make moving easier. My tech job is currently 100% offsite and would make a transition to Phoenix easier. I also spoke with my tech leader who has been in the Phoenix area his whole career, and that gave me more confidence. He mentioned that the Hwy101 area to either side of Hwy17 and 51 is a place that many aerospace tech workers reside. Some Zillowing of that zone shows some nice housing possibilities. So, we are now starting specific planning instead of generalized planning for moving to our next stage.
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Old 02-18-2019, 11:46 AM
 
Location: East Central Phoenix
8,028 posts, read 12,200,691 times
Reputation: 9803
Quote:
Originally Posted by V1k1 View Post
Thanks for all the additional information everyone. One reason why I'd rather own a vehicle where there isn't snow is because many drivers (here at least) don't know how to drive in the snow. Around Chicago/suburbs, I've seen my fair share of accidents due to people sliding and not taking appropriate measures to drive safely, brake sooner, etc. In AZ, I'd want a garage to be able to combat some of that heat eating away at the car/motorcycle.

I was considering Texas so avoid some of that AZ extreme heat, but there seems to be no hiking nearby, or trails of any sort. I just feel lost and want to move where it won't snow, has outdoor stuff to do, and be in a populated area so it's not too empty/quiet.
I think you'd like it here, but the summers are just not anything to take lightly. You won't slip or slide in the heat, and you don't have to shovel it, but there are too many who suffer from heat stroke/heat exhaustion, and don't realize their bodies have limits. They end up being rescued from the hiking trails, wasting taxpayer money (and paramedics' time). Also, tires easily shred in the heat (mostly from poor maintenance), which can cause serious accidents. If you take precautions and can survive roughly 4 months of intense heat, then you should be fine.

Quote:
Originally Posted by EEngineer View Post
He mentioned that the Hwy101 area to either side of Hwy17 and 51 is a place that many aerospace tech workers reside.
Why do so many Chicagoans refer to our freeways as "highways"? There is a difference between the two.
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Old 02-18-2019, 12:36 PM
 
Location: Scottsdale, AZ
5,649 posts, read 5,928,076 times
Reputation: 8317
Quote:
Originally Posted by Valley Native View Post
First of all: where have you been??? Second, your points are highly valid. Extreme cold weather isn't good for vehicles, but heat is worse overall. I usually don't own cars for more than 4 years, but even in that short amount of time, I've had to replace things like tires, batteries, and hoses. Thankfully, they're covered by the warranty, but it's still a major hassle to deal with repairs at all. And my car is almost always parked in a covered environment. Even when a car isn't in the direct sunlight constantly, just the summer heat alone can shorten the life of various components.
Hi, Valley Native! I took a new position at work which is far busier than my previous, so my time here on C-D has dwindled, sadly. I enjoy the site most of the time.


Our cars are long out of warranty, so repairs are funded by me and done by my mechanic. The heat out here has decimated both cars' hoses, belts, a/c, etc. The Infiniti has had numerous hose issues due to the heat. I replaced 4 coolant hoses on it, and 3 years later they were brittle again and resulted in the lower radiator hose exploding at speed on the 101. The mess was catastrophic. I'm still finding dried up coolant in areas I thought I cleaned. The hood insulation mat was so soaked that I had to replace it because it stuck when the engine got warm and kept dripping all over the engine for days. The tow bill from Scottsdale to my mechanic's house in El Mirage was also frustrating.
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