Best place to buy near Phoenix (Chandler, Tempe: short sales, foreclosures, to rent)

[Gooduklady]

My son is moving from Indiana to the Phoenix area with his three dogs and three cats. He wants to buy a house with a pool that is within a reasonable driving distance to the airport (he is a Flight Attendant with Southwest Airlines).

He was looking at Maricopa because the prices are so low. However, I am concerned that it is too far from the airport. He wants to pay no more than $111,000 for a house with a pool in a nice area. Would a single story house be better than a two-story because of air-conditioning costs?

Any ideas for a safe, convenient area would be appreciated. Out of the main city is preferred.

He has found a house for $106,000 that is huge - six bedrooms and four baths - over 3200 SF and two stories. I told him it will cost him a fortune to cool, but he won't listen. Feedback please!!

[azdr0710]

you get what you pay for!!!!!.....don't buy the 106K house!!!!!.....

does he really need a pool?....just asking...there is a bit of cost and maintenance involved.....

don't buy in Maricopa.....there's a reason houses are cheap down there.....

he needs to hook up with a realtor and discuss the options....S Tempe, Chandler, Ahwatukee are some obvious ideas....yes, AC will be expensive in the summer...could be over $300/month for a bigger house

[Gooduklady]

First, it would seem to me to be a necessity to have a pool if you are living in a very hot state. He can afford the maintenance. I am more interested in knowing what is wrong with Maricopa. He has been out there and seems to like the area. Is there something we don't know that would make this a bad choice? And would a single story house be cheaper to cool? I would think so.

[ji603]

That house will cost 600 a month to cool in the summer. Google maricopa electric rates with ED3, who charge a transportation/delivery cost for power bought from APS, as well as global water pricing.

Utilities are decidedly more expensive in Maricopa.

[Kimballette]

Originally Posted by Gooduklady

First, it would seem to me to be a necessity to have a pool if you are living in a very hot state. He can afford the maintenance. I am more interested in knowing what is wrong with Maricopa. He has been out there and seems to like the area. Is there something we don't know that would make this a bad choice? And would a single story house be cheaper to cool? I would think so.

Although nice, not everyone in the Phoenix metro has a pool or considers it a necessity. The responses you receive on an anonymous internet forum will, inevitably, include opinions which don't match yours. You have to take the bad with the good.

If you perform an advanced search of the Phoenix area forum (see buttons near top of every page), you'll find many threads discussing the pros and cons of Maricopa.

As for cooling costs, an energy efficient single story home will be less expensive than a comparable two story.

[pbenjamin]

Originally Posted by Gooduklady

I am more interested in knowing what is wrong with Maricopa. He has been out there and seems to like the area. Is there something we don't know that would make this a bad choice?

The biggest problem with Maricopa is the location. You have to drive across an Indian reservation on a 4 lane road to get in and out. That route can be fairly congested, and if there is an accident at rush hour, you are stuck. I know someone who lives there and commutes to a location an exit or two closer than the airport. That person is looking for a new job because of the commute. There are a lot of other issues, including low quality schools, lots of vacant homes, limited shopping, and the odor of cow dung, but the commute is the one that would bother me the worst.

Still, there are people that like it. You can get a lot more house for your money than in some other areas.

[Jkgourmet]

Sigh. Why do people insist on saddling themselves with a home and mortgage before they discover WHERE they want to live when they move to a new area? Hell, you test drive a car!!! Rent First should be the first rule in any relocation.

That said, all things being equal, one story will be cheaper for a/c than a two story. Not everyone has or wants a pool - and if utility costs are a concern, you don't want a pool. Remember that most people don't heat their pools (too expensive) so they only use them 4-5 months a year. Nobody HAS to have a pool.

Why the heck does a single guy want a six bedroom house? Especially a guy who travels for business all the time? Why go so far out of town (and from the airport) to maricopa, a community that has few amenities or services for a young single? And Lord help him if he has to sell that thing in less than 5 years - not likely to rent very easily either.

Sorry if I sound critical, but this scenario deserves it, IMO.

[Bakeneko]

Family member lives there - they keep their 3600sq ft house at like 85 degrees, the electric runs $700+ a month.

They seem to really like living there - I've been several times and just don't get the appeal at all. Aside from the town itself - you have to drive to do anything and everything

[azdr0710]

Originally Posted by pbenjamin

You have to drive across an Indian reservation

gee, you make it sound like there's a risk of being scalped or something.....driving across the rez is not really a concern....have you ever driven on I-10 S to Casa Grande?....if so, I'm glad you made it across alive!

yeah, no reason a single guy needs a 3600 sq. ft., six-bedroom house!!....if he's thinking of it as an "obvious" good investment, there's a reason it's priced that low (poor location, excess of other similar properties, little appreciation potential).....

location, location, location!....tell him to look IN town in established neighborhoods ten or more years old....find areas with lower-than-average short sales/foreclosures, stable ownership, no cookie-cutter homes, well-tended yards, the whole bit.....

lots of choices in Phx!!!

[Jukesgrrl]

Maricopa has many cattle ranches. Depending on where you are, you might be able to smell cow poop most of the summer. The wind blows constantly in Arizona, so you don't have to be able to see something to smell it. And given that gas prices in Arizona are nearing $4 a gallon, that doesn't seem to me to equal a "reasonable" commute to the airport on a flight attendant salary.

Maybe your son's goal is to live next door to Bristol Palin. She bought a 3,900 sq.ft. home in Cobblestone Farms recently. I saw photos, but didn't see a pool, so I guess people from Alaska don't consider it a necessity.