New Job in Tempe... living in Laveen??? (Phoenix, Mesa: for sale, real estate market)

[chamo112]

I will be starting a new job in Tempe later this month. My wife and son will follow me down once son finishes the elementary school year in late May. We would like to buy a home rather than rent and have seen that there are many short sale opportunities in Laveen/South Phoenix. I saw a thread here from a couple years ago with people from that area mostly saying it is a nice place to live, but to try to stay south of Baseline and to definitely stay south of Southern.

I would like to know if you (the city-data phoenix area community) can give me a better idea about life in Laveen or South Phoenix.

Also, for those with a feel for the real estate market in the area, how can I best increase our chances of purchasing a short sale home? (We have excellent credit and have been homeowners for several years, but will probably only have about $3,000 for a down payment)

Thanks for your help here.

[Skywayy2001]

If you're looking for a short sale under $200k, you will generally have little to no chance of getting that property (most will go to cash investors). In addition, the short sale timeline, albeit better, can take months..if not close to a year in a few cases (if it happens at all). You may also want to look at other communities rather than Laveen...maybe Chandler or Gilbert...or Tempe is great as well albeit a bit more pricey.

[ReadyFreddy]

I personally wouldn't live in Laveen. The houses can be nice in those newer developments but your kids are in school with kids from much lower income areas to the north, and that's who you'll be grocery shopping with and in line at the post office with, etc. I would just pay more for Tempe or Chandler or Ahwatukee or something.

And they say that picking up a short sale under $200k is getting darn near impossible, due to short supply. Or even a regular sale. Maybe you're in a higher market but with $3k down I'm guessing not. Be aware that closing costs when buying a house can be significant, too. Especially a short sale.

[Jkgourmet]

And, IMHO, that would be a ridiculous commute.

[sh9730]

Yeah, you are going to have a hard time with only 3K down. That really limits you to homes under 100K (even that is not a given since the FHA mortgage premiums have gone up recently).

You might enjoy your daily life much more if you rented in a nicer area and saved a bit more for a down payment. And this is coming from someone (me) who is normally an advocate of trying to buy if possible in this market.

Your only other option would be to try and find a house in the outskirts - there are still a few under 100K - but as others have said - they get snapped up really quickly these days, and then the cost of the commute would really be tough on your finances.

Just need to save a bit more I think....

You ll be able to rent a much nicer place in Tempe for close to your same budget I would think.

[Bungle]

I live in South Phoenix in a gated community with a few homes currently for sale under 80k. Typical morning commute to Tempe would be about 10 minutes since it's pretty much opposite flow of traffic. My wife use to commute to 48th St and Chandler Blvd in Ahwatukee in about 15 minutes.

We don't have kids so I can't speak about the schools but in general we love living where we do.

[Guitarmaan]

Originally Posted by chamo112

I would like to know if you (the city-data phoenix area community) can give me a better idea about life in Laveen or South Phoenix.

Also, for those with a feel for the real estate market in the area, how can I best increase our chances of purchasing a short sale home? (We have excellent credit and have been homeowners for several years, but will probably only have about $3,000 for a down payment)

Does it have to be a short sale home? Just curious.

Simply looking at Yahoo property there are plenty of decent looking homes from about $65K upwards. Is there a reason these are ineligible?

[chamo112]

Doesn't have to be a short sale, although our funds are limited. I'm sure we'll qualify for up to $150,000 or so, but we don't really want to go much higher than $110,000. We're also looking heavily at Mesa, Chandler, and Gilbert. I haven't heard anything negative about those areas yet. I plan on contacting a realtor shortly after I begin in Tempe on the 16th.

[goolsbyjazz]

I used to live in Laveen right before the implosion of the housing crisis. We purchased a brand new $300,000 home only to have drive-by shootings, robberies, home invasions and other such incidents occur. Not to mention the police helicopter waking us up every night with its searchlight! I think things may have calmed down a bit, but please don't fall for the cheap prices as many of the homes were sold to out of town investors who are not concerned with who they rent to. We saw that happening right before we sold our home. We also found the schools in the area to be lacking and drove our kids out of the community to better schools. South of Baseline is the nicer area, in my opinion, but it's also more expensive. I'd look for something in the East Valley (Tempe, Chandler, Gilbert) if I were you.

[jmac1]

I really don't know why all of the Laveen hate, but I am moving there. I commute from Chandler!!!! Yes south Chandler. I have lived here for over 6 yrs and love it, but the commute to Phoenix is a killer. I have driven through Laveen often (weekends, mornings, evenings, week day) and I have yet to experience the OMG I wouldn't want to live there/here sydrome. I went to Chavez high school and the park with my 16 month old....very nice time. I worked out at the LA Fitness on Baseline a few times; and I thought it was a really nice gym, it actually had real people working out!

I know several teachers who currently live there and they love it. I know there are bad areas, but that is true of any city with such proximity to downtown; the Ecanto Historic District is a great example. You can live in a million dollar house and walk a half block and see homeless people walking the neighborhood......Why such disdain for Laveen and not other "trendy" places such as the described?

The drive to Tempe (Mills mall) is 10 miles! It is close to downtown Phoenix (8 miles), so being off the beaten path isn't such a big deal. I am looking south of Dobbins, in one of the gated communities; great location and great view. I can have the tranquil Desert living and be 10 minutes from downtown!?

I'd like to thank the people who says it is all bad and kept the property value down for me to afford such great location and place to call home.