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I grew up in Phoenix and I'm now retired in Colorado. I'd consider moving back to Arizona but I would just be trading 4 months of too cold weather here for 4 months of way too hot weather there.
My mother, who stayed in Phoenix would come to Colorado each May to stay with us and help out with our kids and return in late September. She had it best both ways.
I have friends who have winter condos in Scottsdale and summer homes here. If you can swing that, it's a good deal.
I enjoyed the 4 years we lived in Mesa. The heat is no where near as bad as it sounds. In fact my favorite month was June. Sure the average high temperature was about 105 but it was a dry heat. The heat was not oppressive until the monsoon rolled in about the 4th of July plus or minus a week or so. Yes July and August were hot and uncomfortable but in my mind that beats snow, ice, and cold weather. Plus it was only 2 months of heat, not 6 months or more of cold weather.
Prior to Arizona, we lived in Chicago. Now that climate really sucked. In fact it was so bad after the first year, I could not remember a single nice weekend. The second year I kept track. There were 2 nice weekends the entire year.
The heat vs cold issue is more about what your individual body will tolerate. 105 dry heat to some is no big deal while to others it's a very big deal. I live in the SW desert and overall I tolerate the heat well, better than most, yet some days I feel as if the tires on my car are going to melt off. It's like sticking your head in an oven while you're baking a cake. Yes, it's a dry heat.
I want to get away from the desert in retirement because I'm so tired of it and want to see green. I want to live where it rains and even gets a little bit of snow now and then. Neither the desert nor Florida is appealing to me for retirement. I lived in Florida as a kid and hated it. Palm trees don't impress me much and I would go insane living somewhere that didn't have anything but flat ground as far as the eye can see in any direction.
The heat vs cold issue is more about what your individual body will tolerate. 105 dry heat to some is no big deal while to others it's a very big deal. I live in the SW desert and overall I tolerate the heat well, better than most, yet some days I feel as if the tires on my car are going to melt off. It's like sticking your head in an oven while you're baking a cake. Yes, it's a dry heat.
I want to get away from the desert in retirement because I'm so tired of it and want to see green. I want to live where it rains and even gets a little bit of snow now and then. Neither the desert nor Florida is appealing to me for retirement. I lived in Florida as a kid and hated it.
Exactly! I hate the desert. I'm glad you like it, OP, and really wish you well there. Kudos for making the move. But I don't envy you.
Kingman is an inexpensive place to live, certainly, at least compared to California. It has its charms but they are sometimes hard to see. Kingman is not representative of the whole state.
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Problem is...I love the seasons. The colors of fall make me laugh and tumble into such a wonderful place.
Wont find that in AZ.
In mid-November I drove down Oak Creek Canyon from Flagstaff. The autumn colors were breathtaking. Visit Sedona. It just might steal your heart away. It's a little less than 3 hours from Kingman. Arizonans think nothing of driving that far.
I'm SOOOO glad everybody has a different idea of the perfect environment!! Can you imagine if everybody in the US lived in one city? LOTs (and lots and lots) of people just LOVE California, and as a result, getting out of LA on a holiday was a 5-hour chore when I was there in 1998. Later visits to remaining family show that the problem didn't decrease with time...
I have lived and worked all over the US, from southern CA, to Tucson, Denver, Boulder, Portland Me, and now bouncing between southern and northern Michigan as I settle in the the long haul. Every place has their own unique flavor, and I miss elements of each place I have ever been in- even traveling abroad.
Glad that the OP found her place. Az had some really powerful moments which are fun to look back on! Like driving out of the city with a rattlesnake in the front seat of the car...
...but that's another thread...
I want to get away from the desert in retirement because I'm so tired of it and want to see green. I want to live where it rains and even gets a little bit of snow now and then.
Have you considered South Dakota?
I've been there several times. Liked it a lot. You'd get rain and some snow. Average summer temps are around 85 degrees. You'd see lots of green.
I think South Dakota is one of the best-kept secrets in America. I would like to buy a summer place in Rapid City one day.
This winter in IN is making me wish for old mountains, long drives over land, and NO ice.
Problem is...I love the seasons. The colors of fall make me laugh and tumble into such a wonderful place.
Wont find that in AZ.
The apartment complex has several trees that change color and lose their leaves in the fall. As someone else mentioned at 4,500 feet elevation this is high desert and cooler than much of Arizona. It's usually 10 degrees cooler than Tuscon and about 15 degrees cooler than the Phoenix area.
I love the desert, but the last time I was in Phoenix - I changed my mind.
It was late April and we went from wearing long sleeves (in Texas) to wilting in the heat in Arizona! It was awful. It had been a few years between visits, so maybe it was just me - body changes as we age?
I love the desert, but the last time I was in Phoenix - I changed my mind.
It was late April and we went from wearing long sleeves (in Texas) to wilting in the heat in Arizona! It was awful. It had been a few years between visits, so maybe it was just me - body changes as we age?
Acclimating to weather takes time. When you go from one extreme to another you feel it more.
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LOTs (and lots and lots) of people just LOVE California, and as a result, getting out of LA on a holiday was a 5-hour chore when I was there in 1998. Later visits to remaining family show that the problem didn't decrease with time...
