How High is High? (Re: housing in Flagstaff) (Pine: apartments, rentals)

[treegirl75]

Okay, I've been doing some research on Flagstaff, and have seen all of the comments that the cost of housing is very high. But how high is high? My husband and I currently live in Atlanta and pay $1125 a month for a 2br/2ba apartment with a one car garage. Is this comparable to Flagstaff rental prices, or is Flagstaff higher or lower?

[FlagstaffMama]

Usually when people are saying housing is high, they are talking about buying a home. It is a college town so rentals are somewhat affordable. It depends on the neighborhood. Check somewhere like craigslist for a good starting point.Also keep in mind salaries are relatively low here, too.It depends on the field you are in.

Good Luck!

[azdr0710]

apartments with garages may be hard to find in Flag....the price you quote makes me think Flag will be higher than Atlanta....a whole different feel in Flag compared to Atlanta, so be ready for that: much smaller, mountain town, NAU is big, tourists in summer, some traffic issues in summer, cold in winter, competing political interests, growing pains......................

[CCCVDUR]

Originally Posted by treegirl75

Okay, I've been doing some research on Flagstaff, and have seen all of the comments that the cost of housing is very high. But how high is high? My husband and I currently live in Atlanta and pay $1125 a month for a 2br/2ba apartment with a one car garage. Is this comparable to Flagstaff rental prices, or is Flagstaff higher or lower?

For 2br/2ba w/ a garage, Flagstaff would generally be higher than $1125 in Atlanta.

However, Flagstaff contains "suburbs" where the cost of living is 20%-30% lower. For example -- there are some townhomes with garages as you suggest, in the City of Bellemonte -- 9 miles west of FLG on I-40. There are other townhomes within the City Limits on the west side of town, in Presadio by the Pines (spelling). And there are others located in SE Flagstaff near the Country Club.

[Wayward Traveler]

Housing is high in Flagstaff if you are buying or renting (this is mostly due to a cost of living vs salary issue). There is a reason it is called 'poverty with a view' here. Ultimately though it just depends what you are looking for.

Apartments
Studios or 1B/1ba start around $725 and up but so do 2b/2ba, you get what you pay for. It will probably be small and well used. Most nicer 2b/2ba run around at least $1000 and will still be smallish but a lot nicer. Most parking for Flag apartments is not covered.

Houses
There are houses in Flag for rent starting about $800+ with parking but not usually a garage and they are older. The downtown area and around NAU usually have places. If you live near campus expect noise, party night starts Thursday.

Try LIPS (Levitan Investment Property & Services) they usually have good deals, low cost for nicer places. Also apartments around the Lake Mary area are newer, bigger, and cost affordable.

If you pay $1125 in Atlanta and expect to pay that in Flag you will be able to get something comparable.

Hope this helps.

[CCCVDUR]

Originally Posted by Wayward Traveler

Try LIPS (Levitan Investment Property & Services) they usually have good deals, low cost for nicer places. Also apartments around the Lake Mary area are newer, bigger, and cost affordable.

For rentals, also try Santa Fe Realty (of Flagstaff, Arlys Dollerschell, Laurie Mayton, Dawn Riddle and associates), the Ginsberg Group (Allen T. Ginsberg and associates), and Hagaman Realty (Morgan Hagaman, also w/ Mountain Country Mortgage).

All are very familiar w/ the market w/ decades of experience.

If you are a college student, start looking right now (May-June), since places will start filling up in July before the school year.

Likewise if you need a part time job in the area ... the students will get them by late summer.

This is typical small town America where there is a University ... consequentially, housing and jobs
are in short supply except ... for the next several weeks!

Originally Posted by Wayward Traveler

Housing is high in Flagstaff if you are buying or renting (this is mostly due to a cost of living vs salary issue). There is a reason it is called 'poverty with a view' here. Ultimately though it just depends what you are looking for.

How is this horrible nickname going to go away? The quality of life is very high in Flagstaff. Yes, there is high unemployment and expensive housing. However, similar college/outdoors towns w/ high unemployment such as Durango, Colorado and Eugene, Oregon do not have nicknames like this one, and the other one -- "the ghetto in the meadow." I've posted before a new nickname for Flag: "The City By The Peaks" (the San Francisco Peaks)

[poolgirl51]

Originally Posted by Tom Lane

" I've posted before a new nickname for Flag: "The City By The Peaks" (the San Francisco Peaks)

Love it!!!!!!!

[CCCVDUR]

Originally Posted by poolgirl51

Love it!!!!!!!

thanks

If the Chamber of Commerce decides to use it, how will they reimburse me? <emoticon=confused>

Would they send a check to my out of state (AZ) address? <sarcastic>

No...I'll just give it to them for free if they would like to use it. Perhaps I'll write them a letter on replacing the current nickname: "poverty w/ a view." Flagstaff is a GREAT place w/ a lot of potential, and in these difficult economic times, the Chamber can use the money for their brochures and very nice visitor center.<grin>

Any other suggestions on nicknames? <think>

[CCCVDUR]

Originally Posted by Tom Lane

However, similar college/outdoors towns w/ high unemployment (NOT TRUE!) such as Durango, Colorado and Eugene, Oregon do not have nicknames like this one, and the other one -- "the ghetto in the meadow." I've posted before a new nickname for Flag: "The City By The Peaks" (the San Francisco Peaks)

Sorry! Durango actually has LOW unemployment - 5.1%.

If I don't correct this, I'll get in big trouble with La Plata Economic Development Director Jack Llewellyn who I met with in Durango:
Durango / La Plata Co.:
La Plata Economic Development Action Partnership
Durango's unemployment is just 5.1%, according to the Durango Chamber of Commerce in May 2009, lower than Flagstaff and even Boulder.

There are lots of jobs there this summer, and rents for studios / 1 bedrooms are 20% less than Flagstaff. There's a superwallmart that provides a significant % of Durango's tax revenue, so the cost of groceries is less than Flag. I have heard nothing but POSTIVE things about Durango, both from people living there, and elsewhere in the Southwest.

Durango is doing VERY well, with large scale infilling and new bike trail / road construction projects.

My sincere apologies for the typo.

Eugene, on the other hand, has over 12% unemployment as of March 2009, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics Web Site on-line.

[DgoNative]

Originally Posted by Tom Lane

There are lots of jobs there this summer, and rents for studios / 1 bedrooms are 20% less than Flagstaff.

This statement piqued my interest, so I did a quick comparison between the two on Craigslist.com. It would seem that Flag and Dgo are nearly equal, save for the fact that the when the prices and sq. footage equal up, Flag's tends to still be within town limits while Dgo's is 12-20 miles out of town.
And as for the Walmart shopping statement, I know many (if not all) a Dgo local who would rather ski on rocks than step foot in Walmart; there are too many great, locally-owned, organic stores to shop at to waste your time at the corporate, economic, societal vampire that is Walmart.