Pros and cons and neighborhood advice. (Phoenix, Tucson: best neighborhoods, hotels, house)

[ColoZonia1502]

I need some advice from people that are familiar with the subdivisions in different areas. My husband and I will be moving to Arizona at the beginning of August (I know great timing lol) He works all over the valley, and from Flagstaff to Tucson, so where we live isn't exactly important. But I think we've narrowed it down to a few towns. Queen Creek, Goodyear, Avondale, and Gilbert. I know they're kinda all over the map. I was just wondering if anyone could share some insight about these towns. Pros and cons, and the best neighborhoods within these towns. And we would like to have easy access to highways and such to make commuting less hectic. Thanks in advance!

[observer53]

If you don't want a hectic (i.e., long and slow) commute, stay out of Queen Creek. Any of the others will give you better access to highways. You really need to come look well before you make the move. You are asking about cities on opposite sides of the Valley, and need to narrow your choices based on what you see with your own eyes, not what you might read here. Good luck to you!

[LocoAZnative]

you probably want to be centrally located with easy freeway access to the 1-10 and 1-17 for Tuscon/Flag travel. All those cities are all over the map you might want to look at Anthem and North Phoenix, Ahwatukee/Tempe/Chandler.

[ColoZonia1502]

Thanks for your advice. My husband has been working down there since September of 2009 so he's been able to get a feel for the area and he thinks that these areas are the areas that he feels comfortable driving from. When he works in Flag or Tucson he stays in hotels, so he's not commuting back and forth everyday. I am making a trip down in July so that I can go house hunting, I just wanted some input from people that are familiar with the different subdivisions in the towns. I know that during one trip I probably won't be able to get the whole feel for the neighborhood. What if I catch the neighborhood on a good day, and then like the next 6 months it smells like manure or something kwim? I kinda want the low down on what areas to stay away from, before I get there so that if my realtor mentions an area I already have a good idea of what I'm getting myself into. Thanks!

[observer53]

You aren't going to be troubled by manure smells in the areas mentioned in the above posts. (yes, there are some outlying areas of Chandler that are agricultural, but you are presumably going to be looking at subdivisions.) Find a realtor, tell him or her the things that are important to you in a home, and go from there.

[ColoZonia1502]

Thanks! What are some reputable realtors in the phoenix area?