Tempe West of the 10: A Good Move? (Phoenix, Scottsdale: apartment, crime)

[rr72]

Hi everyone,

My wife and I moved to Arizona four months ago for my job and we've been living in a nice apartment in west Chandler (85226), but are looking to buy a home here as my job is going quite well and we like AZ.

I work in downtown Phoenix and my wife is currently attending MCC, but will transfer to ASU to finish her degree, so we would like to find a home somewhere in the middle (in the $150k ballpark). I'm thinking ZIP codes 85281, 85282, 85226, or 85224.

We want an older home in a mature neighborhood, something affordable but with charm. We've seen quite a few houses we like in west Tempe (west of Arizona Mills and the 10) -- how does this area compare to the rest of Tempe? How is crime there, etc.? Cross streets for one house we particularly like are 48th St between Baseline and the canal.

Thanks all for any help you can give.

[vegaspilgrim]

I'd move this to the Phoenix forum if I were you.

I would NOT even think about buying a home in the part of Tempe you just outlined-- that's a pretty crappy area; it's basically the same thing as south Phoenix. The four years I lived in Tempe I didn't find any "charm" in the that part of Tempe. Tempe in general is an overpriced city, where you really need to spend $300k just to get something okay but still not great, so a home that's only 150k in Tempe is that low for a reason.

[rr72]

Thanks (and thanks for moving it into the Phoenix forum). Anyone else have an opinion on this area?

[LocoAZnative]

I live on the other side of the Mills near Hardy and the US60 and the area you are considering is not the best area. It is actually on the border of South Phoenix. I would not recommend that area at all.

[NytoPhx]

Yeah I live barely East of the 10 on Priest and Southern and thats kind of the boundary of where it gets bad. I honestly had no idea the area west of the 10 was still Tempe. It is no different from south Phoenix, I would stay away from that area. Parts of Tempe are nice though, actually the majority of it. South Tempe is really nice in particular.

[miamiman]

Originally Posted by rr72

Hi everyone,

My wife and I moved to Arizona four months ago for my job and we've been living in a nice apartment in west Chandler (85226), but are looking to buy a home here as my job is going quite well and we like AZ.

I work in downtown Phoenix and my wife is currently attending MCC, but will transfer to ASU to finish her degree, so we would like to find a home somewhere in the middle (in the $150k ballpark). I'm thinking ZIP codes 85281, 85282, 85226, or 85224.

We want an older home in a mature neighborhood, something affordable but with charm. We've seen quite a few houses we like in west Tempe (west of Arizona Mills and the 10) -- how does this area compare to the rest of Tempe? How is crime there, etc.? Cross streets for one house we particularly like are 48th St between Baseline and the canal.

Thanks all for any help you can give.

I wouldn't buy in that area. You're pretty much sandwiched between south Phoenix and Guadalupe. Try to find something east of the 10.

[OctoberMoon]

I lived in that area for 7 months and live more west of there now. My husband and I like the area. Sure, it's no Scottsdale, but we never had any problems there and never felt unsafe. There are some nice communities around there.

A lot of people think it's a bad area because it's more diverse than other areas of Phoenix and Tempe. I'm white and I love that about the area. If you don't like diversity, though, you may not like it there.

[d2snow]

South Tempe (85284) is very nice andhas a large range of prices. Or Chandler (85226) which borders that area is also pretty good. Both belong to the Kyrene school district which is one of the better districts and home values hold up pretty well.

[Valley Native]

There isn't much of Tempe west of the I10. In fact, the 10 is almost a dividing line between south Phoenix and Tempe. But I will echo the majority of the posters by stating that this small section of Tempe (west of 10 and east of 143/48th Street) is almost a carbon copy of south Phoenix in terms of neighborhoods. They are older, and generally not kept up as well as other parts ... which is why this section is less expensive.

[NytoPhx]

Originally Posted by OctoberMoon

I lived in that area for 7 months and live more west of there now. My husband and I like the area. Sure, it's no Scottsdale, but we never had any problems there and never felt unsafe. There are some nice communities around there.

A lot of people think it's a bad area because it's more diverse than other areas of Phoenix and Tempe. I'm white and I love that about the area. If you don't like diversity, though, you may not like it there.

I don't think people are saying its a bad area because its more "diverse". Compton is diverse, but its not because of that fact why its an undesirable place to live. Based on that logic, NYC would also be considered a "bad area"