Best Phoenix Neighborhoods for NY transplants (Scottsdale, Chandler: rent, homes, to buy)

[azdr0710]

your concern about the LDS (Mormon) residents may be somewhat overblown...they are not radical and in-your-face....if you do happen to pick Mesa or Gilbert, you'll probably have lots of LDS neighbors who will warm up to you eventually....there may be a subtle hint that you aren't their type and there may even be some discrimination in kids' activities, but maybe not....there are all types of Mormons.....many drink occasionally and even have a forbidden Coke once in a while....most LDS families are very friendly, wholesome, clean, well-behaved, straight-arrow.......

but Mesa and Gilbert fail your access-to-the-airport and access-to-Desert Ridge tests....both are at least 30 minutes from M and G.....

the areas mentioned in mid-north Scottsdale are great, convenient to Desert Ridge, but pushing 30 minutes to the airport....

many very nice areas in Ahwatukee ('tukee to the locals) and some older areas there, too....look around.....Chandler is great, but more than 30 minutes to Desert Ridge.....

the four or so square mile area around Tatum/Shea/Cactus is very convenient to both DR and the airport, has every store you could possibly want within one mile, and is very desireable....areas east of Tatum in this area have the coveted Scottsdale mailing address (zip 85254), but are in the cheaper City of Phoenix....I highly recommend this area and there are lots of housing options (apts up to $2M houses)

[GilbertMom]

Originally Posted by ItsGavinC

With 4 kids under the age of 10, a neighborhood that has Mormons might actually be nice for you guys! Lots of kids to play with. I'm not saying you should focus on neighborhoods with LDS families, but I wouldn't include that as a + or - in your search for a neighborhood. It is NOTHING like living around Hacidic Jews.

I am Mormon, currently living in NY (Long Island!) and moving back to Phoenix in 2 months (lived there for 4 years). Hope you enjoy your time in the valley!

Except that once they reach high school age, they won't be allowed to socialize with non-mormons.

[GilbertMom]

We have lots of NY, NJ transplants in our Gilbert neighborhood, some retired, some young families. There are still many more Catholics in Arizona than Mormons, on the order of 4 to 1 if memory serves me right. We live in the St. Mary Magdalene parish in SE Gilbert and have a beautiful home for sale if you are looking for 3,000 sq. ft. on a large lot with swimming pool, mature citrus (orange, lemon, grapefruit) and outdoor "rooms." We have great neighbors and a quiet, secluded neighborhood near the 202, shopping, Riparian area, award winning dog park with doggy beach and lots of walking trails. Also walking distance executive golf course. Excellent new high school with Olympic size swimming pool, swim and dive teams, golf team, tennis, etc. Good Academics. Higley School District, Williams Field High School. Let me know if you would like to see photos. Oh, also be aware of what your electric bills will be in your new home. If the home is all-electric, faces west or was poorly constructed, you will have very high air conditioning bills in the summer. We designed ours to be very energy efficient and it is!

[azriverfan.]

Desert Ridge is far. I literally live off Warner and I-10 in NW Chandler so I live closer to Desert Ridge than most people in Ahwautukee and I can tell you it would take me at least 45 minutes to Desert Ridge without traffic. So if you live in Ahwautukee itself, you are looking at an hour at best. And Gilbert and Mesa are big and it depends where you live. For example, if you live in Dobson Ranch in Mesa, you are looking at 45 minutes to an hour. If you live in East Mesa, you could literally be 90-120 minutes away. In general, Mesa and Gilbert are much further away than Ahwautukee.

[mikec34]

Originally Posted by gsheridan

Hi Everyone,

My wife just accepted a job in Phoenix, and we're trying find a home to
rent. We're 43 and 42, and we have 4 kids under 10. We're looking for
a friendly neighborhood where the adults and children are friendly with
each other. My wife will be working right near the airport, and I'll be
working out of the house.

Our priorities are:
Safety
Great Schools
Friendly Neighborhood
Community amenities - this isn't essential, but would be nice.
I'm thinking pools and parks, not golf.
Commute to airport under 40 minutes, preferably under 30.
Short Drive to Desert Ridge(intersect of 101 and 51), where a friend lives

Any help on which neighborhoods we should look at would be very much
appreciated.

One other thing. I don't want this to sound offensive, but I've heard that
some communities are predominantly Mormon. I'd be happy to
live with people of any religion(we live in a very diverse neighborhood in
NY), but as a practical matter, we might make more friends if we are
not the one Catholic family in a predominantly Mormon neighborhood.
Also, we're social drinkers, and I know that as a rule, Mormons don't drink.
That's not a problem for me, but I don't want to offend my neighbors if I
decide to sit outside on a Friday night and have a drink. And I don't want
my kids to have trouble mingling with the other kids in the neighborhood,
because the other parents think we might be bad influences. I wouldn't
blame them for believing that, by the way - it's part of their religion. I'd
just rather avoid that situation.

So my question is - are there certain areas which are almost exclusively
Mormon? Many people have told us that Gilbert and Chandler are very
family-oriented, nice areas, and we've also heard that many Mormons live
in those two areas. Are there any neighborhoods in either of those
two places or other areas that are exclusively Mormon? Are there any that
are not?

I hope that political correctness doesn't cause people to get offended by
my question or cause this message to be deleted from the forum. I'm not
making any kind of judgement about Mormon people. I'm just asking a
practical question. Maybe I'm being naive, and it's not an issue at all.
I just don't have any experience with living with Mormon people, and I
don't want to move into an area where my family might feel
uncomfortable, and just as importantly, be offending our neighbors
without meaning to. We have areas near me in NY that are exclusively
Hasidic Jewish. A Catholic family would never move there, not because of
anti-Semitism, but because they would be violating the rules that the
Hasidics live by every minute of the day.

Thanks,
gsheridan

I'm Christian only on Sunday... Mormons won't bother you. They may try to recruit you, but they won't come over and take away your keystone light while you are sitting on the porch. I'd rather live in a neighborhood with them. They are almost always friendly and just nice to be around in general. I like living with church people, even though I ain't one of them. At least I like the mormon church type. Not sure of the others....

[observer53]

Originally Posted by GilbertMom

Except that once they reach high school age, they won't be allowed to socialize with non-mormons.

Not necessarily. Some Mormon parents may feel that way, but not all. Overgeneralization doesn't really help these discussions.

[azriverfan.]

Originally Posted by observer53

Not necessarily. Some Mormon parents may feel that way, but not all. Overgeneralization doesn't really help these discussions.

I think you make a good point about not overgeneralizing but you claim to be an ex-Mormon so your comments are biased considering you were once Mormon and probably have family that is Mormon. Naturally, we are going to assume that you still share some strong feelings toward Mormons. There is nothing wrong with that but let's be honest, all of us are going to have strong feelings toward the faith we were raised with on some level. And Gilbert Mom is a non-Mormon who lived next door to Mormons so unlike most of us (me included) she can actually speak from experience even if what she says appears to be stereotypical.

[mikec34]

I lived next door to 'them' my entire youth and I can say what observer said is the most accurate statement on here....based on my expereince. I went to Mormom churches and did events and I was never part of their church. They bring far more good to Arizona than bad IMHO. edit: removed 'another can of worms' lol

Parents will tell their kids to not play with other kids for reasons such as race, religions, 'class', and whatever, so it's hardly a mormon thing.

[observer53]

Originally Posted by azriverfan.

I think you make a good point about not overgeneralizing but you claim to be an ex-Mormon so your comments are biased considering you were once Mormon and probably have family that is Mormon. Naturally, we are going to assume that you still share some strong feelings toward Mormons. There is nothing wrong with that but let's be honest, all of us are going to have strong feelings toward the faith we were raised with on some level. And Gilbert Mom is a non-Mormon who lived next door to Mormons so unlike most of us (me included) she can actually speak from experience even if what she says appears to be stereotypical.

I don't just "claim to be", I am, but that's beside the point. I have not been active in the church since I was a child, but my mother was until her death, so I still am acquainted with a few families that I'm not related to, and some that I am. I'm absolutely sure there are families like those that GilbertMom has encountered, whose teenagers were not permitted to socialize outside their faith. I am equally sure that not all Mormon families feel that way. That's all I was, and am, saying -- that no one should assume that all Mormon families would take that position.

[Design7]

As a transplanted New Yorker myself I would recommend Tempe. It is a college town and as a result has a more urbane feel along with a pleasant lifestyle. It also has many good cheap restaurants and is quite convenient to points in Phoenix. Although Phoenix is the city proper, it has a more surburban feel and attitude than Tempe.

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