El Mirage (Phoenix, Surprise, Buckeye: new house, neighborhoods, buy)

[Autumn07]

Is El Mirage a good city?
Home prices seem to be pretty cheap there.

[Finger Laker]

not really

they also aren't making many friends in the west valley community - as they are unable to actually figure out a growth plan they are in the desparation mode of blaming everything on the presence of luke airforce base and asking for relief

poorly run city which makes it's future prospects a bit suspect in my opinion

a house is a pretty long commitment and I would be cautious to not buy into a place that doesn't seem to have a lot of long term potential

[ibarrio]

Originally Posted by Finger Laker

not really

they also aren't making many friends in the west valley community - as they are unable to actually figure out a growth plan they are in the desparation mode of blaming everything on the presence of luke airforce base and asking for relief

poorly run city which makes it's future prospects a bit suspect in my opinion

a house is a pretty long commitment and I would be cautious to not buy into a place that doesn't seem to have a lot of long term potential

I agree. Instead you should be looking at Surprise.

[jd433]

I lived in El mirage for 4 years 2001 to 2005 when I bought a new home. Lets see. I have a lot of stories. One time my mom flew out to visit and that night a helicopter was landing right behind my house. We had to go out and investigate and happened upon the scene of 3 men who just had their throats slit and were left to die in a van. My mom was REAL impressed with our new house.

Another time I was headed home and almost got into a head on collision with a truck that was being chased by the police. Another time the street was bocked off with helicopters overhead because there was an armed standoff. Then there was the day someone shot one of my neighbors.

Oh, and there is gang related graffitti everywhere. I was driving home one day and happened upon a naked dead couple that were face down on the shoulder of the road with police everywhere.

I could go on and on but just let me tell you that El Mirage is n not a good place to live. Yu will be exposed to a lot of crime, illegals, drugs. drop houses etc. It is equatable to some of the worst neighborhoods in the country.

I lived in the new KB homes by Cactus and El Mirage I think it was called Arizona Brisas. Not a good place...

[fcorrales80]

Originally Posted by jd433

I lived in El mirage for 4 years 2001 to 2005 when I bought a new home. Lets see. I have a lot of stories. One time my mom flew out to visit and that night a helicopter was landing right behind my house. We had to go out and investigate and happened upon the scene of 3 men who just had their throats slit and were left to die in a van. My mom was REAL impressed with our new house.

Another time I was headed home and almost got into a head on collision with a truck that was being chased by the police. Another time the street was bocked off with helicopters overhead because there was an armed standoff. Then there was the day someone shot one of my neighbors.

Oh, and there is gang related graffitti everywhere. I was driving home one day and happened upon a naked dead couple that were face down on the shoulder of the road with police everywhere.

I could go on and on but just let me tell you that El Mirage is n not a good place to live. Yu will be exposed to a lot of crime, illegals, drugs. drop houses etc. It is equatable to some of the worst neighborhoods in the country.

I lived in the new KB homes by Cactus and El Mirage I think it was called Arizona Brisas. Not a good place...

I was looking at murders in El Mirage in 2003 and found the murder you were talking about on Columbine in El Mirage. That is NOT a good area of town. If you lived there you must have been pretty desperate for your house search. The average house in that area is $70,000-$80,000. This is in the old section of El Mirage and not in the newer subdivisions. The murderer was a thief from Philly; he had to be extradited from Philadelphia to Arizona... To the OP, as with any city, town, etc etc I think if you live closer to Surprise and further away from the older areas of El Mirage you'd be better off.

[miamiman]

El Mirage is cheap, but not really crime-ridden. The town has a very large Hispanic population, which causes many people in the Valley to automatically label it as being "dangerous" or "undesirable." Most people who live there are hard-working, law abiding, legal citizens.

Surprise is nicer than El Mirage, but it is much more expensive. Youngtown is a very small suburb, also in the Northwest Valley, that has cheap housing, as well.

[las vegas drunk]

Most of these comments about El Mirage are unwarranted. My best friend has lived in El Mirage since 2000. He has a wife and 4 kids, and has never had a problem. He lives in a newer beautiful 2 story house that would not be out of place in Surprise. There is a nasty ghetto older area that is bad, but most of the newer area's are ok.

[Autumn07]

Thanks everyone for your responses. What about Buckeye or Tolleson? Are they a good or bad area?

[miamiman]

Originally Posted by Autumn07

Thanks everyone for your responses. What about Buckeye or Tolleson? Are they a good or bad area?

Buckeye is still an agricultural community with a mix of older neighborhoods and much nicer, newer subdivisons. Verrado is a master-planned community that is very attractive, with grass lawns, front porches, and numerous shade trees. Verrado is quite expensive, but there are other new subdivisons through Buckeye. The town has been exploding in growth and will continue to do so after the recession ends. Before the recession, there was an estimate that Buckeye would have 2 million people by 2025. Now, it'll probably be a couple hundred thousands.

Tolleson is generally regarded the same as El Mirage, in that the high Hispanic population and cheaper homes automatically cause people to assume the worst about it. Tolleson is in a good location, near the 101 freeway that will take you to Cardinals Stadium and the enitre Westgate entertainment complex, and it is right off of the 10 freeway for quick access to downtown Phoenix.

[jd433]

Originally Posted by fcorrales80

I was looking at murders in El Mirage in 2003 and found the murder you were talking about on Columbine in El Mirage. That is NOT a good area of town. If you lived there you must have been pretty desperate for your house search. The average house in that area is $70,000-$80,000. This is in the old section of El Mirage and not in the newer subdivisions. The murderer was a thief from Philly; he had to be extradited from Philadelphia to Arizona... To the OP, as with any city, town, etc etc I think if you live closer to Surprise and further away from the older areas of El Mirage you'd be better off.

I am sorry but Columbine dr is not in the old area. Most of those houses were built in 2002. That is a new area of El Mirage. That murder happened in the middle of a 2 year old Subdivision.