Here I am, just another complainer in the Phoenix area (Tucson: crime, how much)

[MG1]

Originally Posted by Boatdrinks

Also, keep in mind that there will be MANY days in NC, CO, etc, that you won't be able to go walking with your baby or play outside b/c of rain, snow, and heat too, in many states. Believe me - I've been searching for the perfect-weather state for years, and have yet to find it. I hate snow, so that rules a lot of states out for me.

Have you ever lived in the south or mid-Atlantic? Summers are NOT fun there. It's humid, and it gets very hot too - you won't be jogging in the middle of the day when it's 85 degrees and 70% humidity, believe me. It's brutal. Your wife will still be stuck inside with the baby in the middle of summer, as well as on the many days it rains, and when it snows too.

Oh I agree that every place you go will have issues to contend with. There are rainy days and potential hurricanes and such. But the rain doesn't go for four months straight. Neither does the snow, at least not there. The humidity doesn't bother me, but I know it does bother some others.

I just can't stand another summer of such intense heat here. I'm glad to see that others have found it to their liking, and I encourage them to do what's best for them. But for us, it isn't going to work. Again I appreciate yours and everyone's answers to this!

[dusesean1986]

Originally Posted by Boatdrinks

Also, keep in mind that there will be MANY days in NC, CO, etc, that you won't be able to go walking with your baby or play outside b/c of rain, snow, and heat too, in many states.

Colorado is very comfortable in the summer, there is no humidity, and no heat like Nevada, Utah, or Arizona.

[jager]

Idaho, more specifically Boise, is a great place to raise kids, live and not have to endure the heat. The houses are relatively affordable and the Boise area has a great economy. Good luck with your decisions.

[montevista1]

Perfect Weather is in L.A./San Diego, but housing will cost in a descent area $400 sqft and the schools may not be so great!

[scubashawn]

Maybe Austin TX...I have heard really great things about that area.
I lived in PHX for 7 1/2 yrs....and now live in the south(Savannah,GA).
I really have grown to dislike this area....and actually wish I had not left PHX.
I actually love the heat... I know I must be sick....lol.
I understand that you hate it there , alot of people can't get use to the summers.

Good luck to you !

[PARUS]

I feel your pain,,-Good Question- Where do you go?

How do you escaped the huge crowds, forever long lines, the sardine type traffic, and all the waiting that comes with? I've been in crowded areas, but this is far worst than any I had to deal with.
I moved here only about a yr & 1/2 ago I came here to mesa for a 2 wk visit, and for some assbackward reason - at that time -liked it. I was warned it was going to be hot, but I grew up in the snow and thought I needed a change, because I was tired of slip sliding around every winter in Illinois. Yes, the summer heat-dry as it may be-feels like home in the middle of a forest fire. I expected but I did not expect full body flame in the shade. We're now seeking a place w/o snow or very little with winters like those we have here in AZ(the only thing thast kept me from tucking my tail and heading back to cool the burn on my buns in the winter snow), along with decent shopping areas, cleaner air (some members of my home have severe allergies, we found out that AZ is not the best place for ppl who have bronchial illnesses). one of family passed away since our arrival here from
pneumonia, another of my family members has it and thus far we have gone thru many hospitals/DR's trying to find someone who will treat it properly. they all seem to want to treat problems she's not having and the generic meds provided by many pharmacies here are useless. So if you're sick with bronchial illnesses this is'nt the place to come to get better .My family and I searched for long periods over the internet mostly seeking advice for the best place to move. Everywhere someone had suggested was hit by some horrific storm or some other act of nature, the crime rate would sky rocket or we'd hear some other displeasing news about places we'd decided to go. So we decided to put the map on the wall and seek out states we'd heard very little or no bad news about. this was one of quite a few. The others were ruled out by income, snowy weather, territorial types etc. We then narrowed it down to a few states, we may be willing to try. AZ, NV, our two top choices of those believed we'd be able to find more affordable housing here than in NV. Boy were we wrong. Not only is housing horribly priced, almost all the newer communities look alike. If you want to be different it's going to cost ya! Also, insurance here is terribly high. I'm generally a great driver, have only had one fender bender that was my fault since I started driving 33 yrs ago. I've survived the streets of Chicago for yrs accident free, only to come here, park my brand new 2007 pickup in the grocery store parking lot and have an illegal alien with no insurance slam into my parked vehicle head on, pulling into parking. Then to top it off have the police to tell me I was on private property and nothing would be done about it, unless the store requested it or there was more than $5000 damage done or someone was injured, not even a report written up. I took all the info I could gather from the guy who hit my truck then pretended not to speak english. Even with an interperter never offered to pay for or repair my vehicle. The police- never sought to do anything further even though he was driving without insurance. So one must be severely careful when out and about, make sure you get "hit in the street," anywhere else may be private property which leaves your insurance company or you footing the bill. forums llike this one would have really helped, wish I could have found it before I moved here other sites I'd search did'nt have enough info, this has a wide variety of opinions /views. I wish you the best If I seek out A great place I'll list it here.

[MovinFromUT]

You really have to sit down with your wife, and decide what the most important factors about the quality of life that you like the most. We just moved here from Utah. Utah was a GREAT place to raise kids. But (there's always a BUT), for six months out of the year, it's freeeeezing. Especially four out of those six months. For us, since we were raised in CA, we HATED the cold. Summers in Utah can get above 100 too, but not consistently, and it usually does cool down at night. So for us, living with extreme heat was far better than freezing for six months. It's all about you. What you can tolerate better. Housing prices are an issue too. We just sold our 3,000 sq ft home in central Utah for $215,000, and we were glad that we got that price out of it. We just bought a 2,700 sq ft. house in Power Ranch for $335,000, and we got a deal on that.! It's just a matter of sitting down and figuring out the wheres/hows/whats of where you want to be. Good luck to you.!!

[blueoktober]

Originally Posted by WantingoutofAz

MG1:

I hate to say this to you but if you are miserable now it is only going to get worse once your baby arrives and gets a little older, in my opinion. I also was born and raised here, am 32 years old, and left only to go to college in Flagstaff. It was pretty darn cold up there and couldn't wait to get back to Phoenix. I thought I would never want to leave Phoenix. But now I have four kids, the oldest two are 4.5 and my husband and I can't wait to leave. This is not the place where I want to raise my children. It is miserable for at least 4 months of the year where my poor boys can't go outside to play. You can only go in the pool so much. Then for two more months they can only go outside in the morning or evening. Having children made my whole perception of the Phoenix area change. The traffic is horrible, the school systems aren't that great, and it is hotter than you know what. Plus it is so darn expensive, my husband and I can't get seem to get ahead. The only thing keeping us here for now is that all of both our families are here. But we still fully intend to leave.

So, where do we want to go? Well over the last couple of years I have been researching a few different places on the internet including Boise, Id, Colorado Springs, Co, Raleigh, NC and Nashville, Tn. From what I have learned about Boise, it is just going to turn into another Phoenix, but a colder one at least. I love the idea of Colorado Springs however the economy there doesn't appear to be the greatest and my husband doesn't think he could a job there very easily (he is an attorney). Raleigh looks to be getting more overcrowded with high crime rates. So right now we are leaning toward a suburb of Nashville called Franklin. We went there a year and a half ago and fell in love with it. We are going back in April to see if we really do see it is as somewhere we could live. It is green, houses on one acre are the rule not the exception, people are friendly and although it is humid in the summer, our friends that live there say the really bad humidity lasts only 3-4 weeks (which compared to the miserable heat for 4-6 months here seems pretty appealing). Franklin is definitely the more upscale part of Nashville, referred to as the Paradise Valley of Nashville but we are still looking at being able to get a beautiful brick home with at least 3,000 sq. feet on at least 1/2 to 1 acre for between 300,000 and 400,000.

My recommendation to you is to check out other forums on here. That is what I have been doing for at least the last year and how I have gotten a lot of my information. I just post questions or read others questions. People have good opinions of places.

Good luck in your search and on the birth of your little one.

Angie

I don't want to sound rude, so please don't take it that way - but where have you seen that you can get a 3000 sq ft house in Franklin for 300-400k?
I live 12 miles south in Spring Hill, which is going to be the "new Franklin". You cannot even get a house here for that much with that size. And an acre or a half an acre? I have .18 of an acre. About 2500 sq ft. for 375k. I can hear my neighbor sneeze practically. And before you move here you must be told of how horrible the traffic is. It takes me an hour to get to Franklin during rush hour.
The secret was let out years ago about this area and now it has turned into exactly what people leave their cities for. Lastly, I again dont mean anything rude, but if you're white, scared of diversity, very wealthy, drive a hummer and enjoy cliques that don't welcome anyone other than their doppleganger, then you will love Franklin.

PS: NashVILE just passed a law today that Nashville's government is English only. While some people will love this, it speals volumes of the racism and bigotry this town is full of.

I'm moving to Austin ASAP.

[vfrpilot]

We lived in the heat of Lake Havasu City, and the perfect weather of San Diego. We now reside in Monument,CO and love it. Everywhere you look will have positives and negatives. For us, the schools were the positive that resulted in our move.
I guess you can say we lived in 'hell'(130 degrees) and 'paradise'(70 degrees year round) .

[councilor j]

I have to say I think Las Cruces,New Mexico has the perfect weather of any U.S. city.Its a small booming city with a population of 80,000 and is 45mins away from El Paso,TX and Juarex,Mexico.you can get all 4 seasons here with summer temps in the 100's on some days and winter temps in the 40's and 50's,plus the New Mexico sun beats down on you in the winter so it feels better,the sun shines over 350 days a year in Las Cruces,and you still get a trace of snow in the winter, the city is pretty with desert ,palm trees,mountains and southwestern style houses and the best mexican food anywhere.although the winter nights get cold,but hey thats the desert,warm days and cool nights,except for Phoenix,but Las Cruces is alot more scenic of a city than Phoenix or El Paso.Check into it,you would be surprised what a perfect place this is.