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"we just purchased a rather pricey house, but it keeps the low income people away, by that I mean, Mexicans, druggies, mobile homes etc..."
Really? Maybe where you live, but I've lived around and socialized with multilingual people of Mexican and Central, and South American ancestry who were formally educated, affluent, and (in general) typically more interesting to converse with than the largess of people I've talked with here in Central Arizona. As far as substance abusers, they come in all socioeconomic stripes. I've been in social work group settings with plenty of recovering substance abusers who were from the professional classes, and although there is indeed a preponderance of the addicted in the poorer populations, you will find that addiction indeed cuts through all class distinctions. I suspect if the tables were turned, and the mostly Caucasian, European ancestry, American were emigrant's from poorer countries, that they too would find themselves being scorned by many narrow-minded citizens of their adopted country/state/city/town.
I think you missed my point. I didn't say all people were bad,,,and I didn't say they were all innocent either,,,,but in general,,,low price housing also brings in low income people, welfare, government assistance, etc....and with that there is more chance of all the lovely things that come with it,,,,which over time can drive property values down etc...
Not that this doesn't happen in the higher price areas,,,I am sure it does,,,but,,,,there is much less chance of that happening in our experiences..
In which case the higher price housing can have it's advantages.
Hmmm that really depends on the type of person you are I think.
Here is my experience/theory to your list
1) Retirees? yes there is, but didn't know this to be any problem. Rednecks?? we currently live in the country now, so we are used to dealing with that. Bikers? I have only seen a few hanging around Whiskey Row,,,and sometimes driving up 69 around the Chino area,,,who cares..I see bikers here in Ohio all the time riding around,,,don't know that it's a crime and they have never bothered me anyway.
2)I agree with this, since we just purchased a rather pricey house, but it keeps the low income people away, by that I mean, mexicans, druggies, mobile homes etc...that would otherwise drive your investment down,,,thats about the only positive I can think of with high prices. I don't like paying this much for a house, but it fit our needs, anything less wouldn't do. So we just deal with it.
3)I agree also,,,although I don't think we will be a frequent Whiskey Row visitor,,,nothing there appeals to us,,,but I find parking pretty much anywhere very tight and difficult to manuver, with concrete islands everywhere, restaurants and small business are very tight to park, and I can't stand DOOR DENTS! So this will be a tough issue for me, and I may relegate to driving my beater around until I get used to the area parking everywhere and find other ways to deal with it.
4)I didn't find anything too crowded anytime we were there,,,and we went to the rodeo when it was in town, and hit a few festivals at town square as well as the 4th of July, and just did Thanksgiving there this past holiday. Honestly we didn't find anything anymore crowded than it gets around here in Cincinnati. Seemed about the same to us.....this overcrowded idea may be coming from someone that was used to it being very rural at one time I guess?
5)We enjoy the outdoors as well,,,and actually get very little of that here in Cincinnati, (you can imagine why) it's either freezing and snowing,,,or in the summer it's raining most of the time. In Prescott we will have more outdoor opportunity than we currently have. I think the Natives have taken all that sunshine for granted out there And if we have to stay in for whatever reason,,,thats great, I have a very involved hobby that keeps me in the garage anyway most of the time. My wife being originally from Sacramento really misses the outdoor stuff, it's nearly non existent to her out here in Ohio.
6) We couldn't care less about bars and price of beer. We don't drink and don't visit any bars at all, just not our atmosphere.
7)Cold? Are you kidding? Coming from Cincinnati where it is currently 9 degrees with a windchill of -15!!!! And it doesn't warm up during the day at all!!!!! The Prescott winter weather will be a welcome for us,,,with your lows in the 20's and daytime highs in the 50's,,,,sheesh you guys/gals have it great,,,,thats damn near shorts weather here in Cinci
8)Taxes? What kind,,,property, sales??? I did notice the sales tax was a little higher than it is here in Ohio,,,,but the property taxes are rather low compared to Ohio. Out here in Cinci, living in the country 40 minutes from town, corn fields all around, compared to our new house in Prescott Valley, twice the size and surrounded by other $500,000 homes,,,,yet our property taxes are virtually the same give our take $20,,,,we are not complaining.
9) Yep jobs are scarce,,,the good paying ones that is. No denying that. We are currently searching for a good salary, but are uncertain what that will hold for us. It may even mean commuting to Phoenix and back if we have to depending on how bad my wife wants to get moving out there, otherwise we are content in waiting a while.
Sure wish I was there now though,,,it's rather cold and snowy here
About the cold weather part. It is cold and freezing tonight. It might even snow or rain later this week. I'm from the southeast and this is too cold for me. So, in my opinion, it's too damn cold.
9) Yep jobs are scarce,,,the good paying ones that is. No denying that. We are currently searching for a good salary, but are uncertain what that will hold for us. It may even mean commuting to Phoenix and back if we have to depending on how bad my wife wants to get moving out there, otherwise we are content in waiting a while.
You hit the PRIMARY issue of Prescott / The Tri-City area. JOBS AND PAY. Most of the people living in Prescott are wealthy retirees, that is a fact. The workforce is "piped" to Prescott from PV and Chino Valley. That is where the "blue-collar" workers live.
If you have $$$ or some type of high-demand trade or business, then you will do fine in PV. Otherwise, get ready to drive 90 miles each way to Phoenix for work. Surprisingly, some people do that. I guess if the job pays enough, then it will be worth putting 40K miles a year on your car.
Here is MY view on the Prescott area:
Shopping = B- (Has the main stores you need, but any specialty or a better variety of stores, you have to drive to 180 mile round trip to Phoenix)
Medical = D+ (Finding a family doctor is impossible, get ready to wait 6 months. We ALWAYS drive to Phoenix for health care. 100% of all major surgeries and trauma is done in Phoenix. Get ready for a helicopter ride!)
Weather = A- (Very mild winters. Yes, it might drop into the teens and even single digits temps at night, but it will usually warm-up to the 40s or 50s during the day. Snow is light and melts fast. Summers can be hot, with temps coming close to 100F, especially PV, they are lower elevation, they can and do hit 100F. It does cool off A LOT at night. OVERALL, the climate is excellent. Not much rain, so landscapes of ROCK are common, or low-water use plants. Water can get $$$$, so use it wisely.)
Seasons = C (Anyone who says it is a FOUR season climate doesn't know what they are talking about. If you want a REAL SPRING AND FALL, Prescott is NOT for you. Salem Oregon, Denver, Washington D.C. , those are true FOUR season climates. Where springtime brings awesome blooms and colors. Remember, Prescott is HIGH DESERT. I would call it a TWO season climate - Winter & Summer - That is the 1st thing I remember being disappointed with. They sell Prescott as a FOUR season area. It is NOT.)
Jobs = F (Read the above. There are a lot of public service jobs like Lowes, Wal-Mart and other such fields. Real Estate fields were HOT back in 2005 and earlier. Now it has tanked. )
Nature/Scenery = B (Nice rolling hills and mountains. Prescott/Williamson Valley is where it is at. The Ponderosa forest, juniper trees and mountain top views are gorgeous. PV is ugly IMHO, as is CV. I'm sorry, but compared to Prescott & Williamson Valley, PV and CV are flat deserts. Phoenix at least has the cactus and Palo Verde, the CV & PV desert landscape is flat and dead. Lots of wildlife in the Ponderosa forest of Prescott & Williamson Valley. )
Quality of Life = B (Crime is rising but nowhere like a major city would be. Traffic is small compared to Phoenix. Pace of life is slow. There is a thing they call "Prescott time", which means slow and easy. Unfortunately, this sometimes rings true for businesses. Prescott is in the middle phase of being a large town. It is still small but not to small, it is growing but it will take another 20+ years before it might start getting "too big".)
People/Culture = C- (This is MY view. You get clashes with different types of people. You have the retired wealthy people who, at times, look down upon you since you are one of the "new" people who "destroyed" their small town appeal. Then you have the good'ole country folk, some are kind, others are just ignorant and rude. Not too much diversity. The black population is less than .05%. American Indian comprise 2%. The Hispanic population is 8.2%. The white non-hispanic makes for 88.2% If you want MORE diversity, Prescott does NOT offer that. So you do get the IGNORANT white folks as they do not get much diversity coming in.)
Housing = C (PV, CV and Dewey are affordable but they are NOT what embodies Prescott. If you want juniper and pine trees with rolling hills and mountain views, then Prescott & Williamson Valley is where it is at. That is WHY the price factor comes into play. A home that costs $250K in PV, will cost $500K in Prescott. IMHO, Williamson Valley is the FINAL FRONTIER where you can get TRUE Prescott nature and views, while still finding decent deals.)
I agree with most everything you said Pettrix. There are some things we will have to adjust to,,,thats for sure.
Out of all those listed, I have to say jobs are our only real concern at this point. Driving to Phoenix is a real possibility for us. We will probably by a cheaper beater car for commuting that far if thats what it comes down to.
It really depends on my wife and how anxious she becomes. We are both looking forward to this move. Even with all the negative feedback that Prescott Valley has received, we still find it much more appealing than Cincinnati. I think how one views Prescott really depends on what part of the country you are coming from.
I am sure there may be other places that offer alot. We actually liked Carson City, Nevada, and Reno, Nevada (sister lives there) been there many times. But found they get too much snow fall for our liking during winter months. With my wife originally being from Sacramento, she doesn't like much snow at all. And we didn't want to move back to California, it's been alot of years (about 15) but it really hasn't changed for the better since,,,in our opinion. So Arizona became the focus,,,and it's within driving distance to visit the inlaws and relatives. So there is alot more to it for us than just diversity, jobs, landscape, etc...
Hey Firebird, I think you'll find the weather to be wonderful. The high temps are just about the same as Sacremento. The lows are probably 10-20 degrees less - but you're sleeping at night, so what's the difference? Snow is very light in the Prescott Valley and Dewey areas. It gets a little heavier in Prescott, but nothing like Reno.
The drive to Phoenix from Prescott Valley/Dewey is about 1-1.5 hours, depending where you are going. I have a neighbor who makes the drive every day. Luckily for him, his employer pays for the truck and gas. He also leaves at about 5am and gets back around 4pm, so he misses rush-hour. The I-17 speed limit is 75mph for some of the way and 65mph for the rest. Hwy 69 is mostly 65mph once you pass Dewey.
We live in Prescott Valley . . . moved from a really rural area but I've lived in Denver and S. Florida as well as Memphis. . . I have no idea where all the traffic is everyone's talking about . . . compared to ANY area with over 10,000 people there is NO traffic problem here.
The only draw back we've found is that the houses seem overpriced but not like Phoenix or Denver or S. Florida. We are actually renting for a while because we may be moving back to Denver next year . . . but we're renting a BEAUTIFUL 3 Bedroom, 2000 sq ft home for $900 a month and we're in one of the planned communities.
Oh- the other draw back to PV is that it is really windy here . . . no joke . . . the wind just rips through you on the cold days.
re commuting to Phoenix for work ~ I've got friends that have done that. They were sure that they couldn't afford to give up their high-paying Phx job. As it turns out, though, a couple of them have decided to switch jobs and take something that pays less up here. What they discovered was that they saved so much money on gas, etc, plus the extra hours away from home, that in the end they're doing just fine financially staying closer to home, and they're so much happier being able to spend more time here rather than on the road.
Jobs are definitely the #1 drawback to the Prescott area. However there are some good ones out there, depending on what you're looking for. Jobs in any medical field/support seem to be in high demand, but there's jobs in other fields, too. Fortunately, my family has all been able to find nice jobs in various fields. But we've been willing to branch out a little. It seems like the people that are trying to stay in a very specific job description are the ones that are having the most difficulty finding what they want.
re weather: To me this IS extended spring and fall weather. When the majority of the highs are upper 60's and low 70's, to me that's great. But if you're looking for a green spring, you won't find it here. Our green time is monsoon season (July thru mid-September). Having dealt with brutal winters and hot humid summers, to me this is almost ideal weather. I have actually come to appreciate the winter weather here, because it doesn't last long. One thing I don't like, though, is when the wind blows. Nothing like Kansas/Nebraska/Colorado where I used to live, but I'm glad when whatever front moves through and we get back to our typical 5-10mph light breezes.
Oh- the other draw back to PV is that it is really windy here . . . no joke . . . the wind just rips through you on the cold days.
Good luck
Being that you are from Denver, Prescott is nowhere near as cold as Denver would be, right?
It seems that Prescott gets the fronts from the cold north (Flagstaff) and hot south (Phoenix) and the two fronts collide causing this wind. I see businesses with flags and those things get torn to shreds pretty fast out here. The windiest times of year are spring and fall. The summers get windy also when you get the monsoons from July-September.
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In Prescott we will have more outdoor opportunity than we currently have. I think the Natives have taken all that sunshine for granted out there 
And if we have to stay in for whatever reason,,,thats great, I have a very involved hobby that keeps me in the garage anyway most of the time. My wife being originally from Sacramento really misses the outdoor stuff, it's nearly non existent to her out here in Ohio.
Prescott is in the middle phase of being a large town. It is still small but not to small, it is growing but it will take another 20+ years before it might start getting "too big".)
