Are there any NICE apartments in Tucson?? (Tanque Verde, Globe: apartment complexes, rental homes)

[awsun1980]

Hello all,
I'm moving to Arizona end of May, early June & trying to look for a decent apartment online. It'll be my boyfriend & I---we're looking at either a one or two bedroom. I've looked on Apartments.com - Free Nationwide Apartment Search with the Most Visual Rental Listings Online., Apartments for Rent and Resources for Finding Apartment Rentals Nationwide - ForRent.com & wow, what a difference. I know Tucson is going to be a huge culture shock coming from here in Denver where I live now, but is there any decent, NICE, not really old, dumpy apts in the Tucson area? From what I've seen online, I can't find any. We're looking in NW Tucson--have read that that is supposed to be the nicer part of town--and to avoid south Tucson.

Any tips, advice? Anyone there live in that part of town or know of some good apartments?

[Bummer]

First off, Moving . . . what's your price range?

Also, what type of place do you prefer and/or need? Large complex or smaller condo type?

[awsun1980]

Let's see...since the cost of living is significantly lower in Tucson (I pay $750 for a nice 1-bedroom in Denver) & there's 2 of us, looking in the price range of $700-$800? Probably looking for a larger complex---we're planning on buying a house some day in the future. Thanks for the response.

Originally Posted by Bummer

First off, Moving . . . what's your price range?

Also, what type of place do you prefer and/or need? Large complex or smaller condo type?

[sierraAZ]

Originally Posted by moving-to-AZ

Let's see...since the cost of living is significantly lower in Tucson (I pay $750 for a nice 1-bedroom in Denver) & there's 2 of us, looking in the price range of $700-$800? Probably looking for a larger complex---we're planning on buying a house some day in the future. Thanks for the response.

$700-800 might buy you a decent 1-bedroom, but not 2-bedroom. I was paying $725 (as recently as last month) for a 2-bedroom, 980 sq.ft., decent, good location, but nothing I'd call NICE. There are some better-looking complexes on the North and Northeast side (I'm not really familiar with NW), but I'm not sure what all of them look like inside. They all have really small balconies/patios and don't allow grills on them (very few places do anymore, if any). The newer places generally have paper-thin walls and are noisier. I've seen just as many complaints from their management as from other places. The North part of town seems to have scorpion problems...

There are some nicer places I've visited, but can't think of exact names and locations:

- one is on Tanque Verde, East of Bear Canyon, almost across the street from the Lakes at Castle Rock
- another was somewhere on Sabino Canyon Rd (was gonna turn into condos, but didn't)
- there's one on the right-hand side of Kolb Rd when you're coming from this weird for newcomers intersection - Kolb changes name to Grant and Wilmot changes name to Tanque Verde, so technically this complex is tucked in the angle between Wilmot and Kolb
- there are 2 newer complexes on Harrison Rd, between Speedway and Broadway
- oh, there are also these casitas - Tucson Rental Homes & Rates They have models. I've seen them. The casitas look really nice, but are extremely small. This company has properties in some nice locations (with garages) and some not so nice (without garages). I believe I read about them building on the NW side. Check it out. The not so nice ones have only evaporative coolers. If you've lived here, you'd know you don't want that. One of their attractive features is the backyards. They look like townhomes. Yet, many complain of them, too.

What can I tell you... there are complaints of all of them. That's apartment living... It has advantages and disadvantages. At least make sure car theft is not too bad. Management changes frequently and things can change dramatically. Somebody was asking me on another thread why I don't presume the name of an apt complex was changed just because the new one sounds better.... Well, I could presume so if it were an isolated case, but that's the routine. It happens because they change hands a lot. I also believe it's done so people can't track the bad reviews. I'd avoid HSL properties, but unfortunately they own half of the complexes in Tucson.

Check Apartment Ratings - Apartments for Rent with Ratings and Reviews from Actual Renters

[beowulf77]

I lived in Pinnacle Heights back in 2000 and they were great. They are in Snyder just off of Sabino Canyon Rd.

Dunno if they are still nice but they were really good back then. Quiet and in the foothills and new (Back then anyway)

[veuvegirl]

I lived in Tucson; quite some time ago, and there were PLENTY of apartments for $750, two bedrooms, two baths, fireplace, washer dryer. Of course now the name is escaping me! But look on River Road; there were several places in the range. I don't know what it is like now, but it is worth a look.

[sierraAZ]

Originally Posted by veuvegirl

I lived in Tucson; quite some time ago, and there were PLENTY of apartments for $750, two bedrooms, two baths, fireplace, washer dryer. Of course now the name is escaping me! But look on River Road; there were several places in the range. I don't know what it is like now, but it is worth a look.

There are PLENTY, but not plenty NICE, which was the original requirement!

[awsun1980]

Thanks, everyone,
So maybe I should take a step back & rephrase this to are there any decent, livable, NOT dumpy apts in Northern Tucson?

I've got a great apt here, I guess I'm lucky---newer, top floor & don't hear the neighbors. I know it's gonna be different in Tucson & we'll have to start out somewhere that we can afford, but I don't want to resort to a dump either, ya know??

Thanks, sierraAZ, for the info--I will have to look up these areas.

So where does everyone live? Apts, houses? N, S, E, W Tucson? What else can anyone tell me about the areas? Which are good, bad, indifferent?

Oh & what is the heat REALLY like in Arizona? I'll be there in June, will I make it??

[Super Dak©]

Originally Posted by moving-to-AZ

So where does everyone live? Apts, houses? N, S, E, W Tucson? What else can anyone tell me about the areas? Which are good, bad, indifferent?

Oh & what is the heat REALLY like in Arizona? I'll be there in June, will I make it??

Are you OK with a townhouse?? It looks like I'll be moving out of Tucson at the end of May. I currently pay $765 a month for a two bedroom, two bath, with a two car garage. It's an end unit on a small loop, so it's pretty quiet. They allow a single pet. Water/sewer/trash is paid (that's my lease, don't know if they would change anything for the next tennent). back patio (small yard) is walled w/ one palm tree, one lemon tree, and a large cactus. Part concrete and part river stone landscaped. I've been here since '01, overall a nice place. Single floor with no upstars neighbors (or downstairs . Has washer/dryer, dishwasher, fridge, stove, microwave, A/C (not swamp cooler!). Not sure if it's considered NW (NW keeps getting further out, so this might might be closer to mid W?) No fireplace, but lots of skylights, and walk-in closet in master bedroom. Just FYI (and pending on me finding a place in Globe AZ
It's HOT in the summer (expect crazy high electric bills if you run the A/C a lot) but winters are BEAUTIFUL (I'm originally from Buffalo NY, and I hate the cold

[veuvegirl]

sierra-- it must have drastically changed since I moved. There were two apartment complexes on River and Campbell were very nice!