Moving to AZ in July (Luke AFB area) (Phoenix, Glendale: houses, safe neighborhoods)

[theafguy79]

Hello all,

My family (married w/ 4 kids all under 10) and I are relocating to Luke AFB in July, and I am looking for housing information for the local areas. We are moving from South Dakota and are probably in for a good bit of culture shock. Our current city is about 8k and the Phoenix area is kind of intimidating. We've been looking at houses online in the Surprise, Goodyear, Glendale, Buckeye, and Glendale area. Any info you guys have on those areas would be appreciated. I'm looking for info on realistic commute times to the base, safe neighborhoods to live in, neighborhoods to avoid, schools etc. Anything you got will be greatly appreciated!
Thanks
B

[LBTRS]

Hello and welcome!

Moderator cut: snip

I live in Goodyear, just south of Luke AFB and am in the military myself. Living out here in the far west valley does not feel like you're living in a metro area of 4 million people. There is a lot of farm land and hills around and kind of feels like a smaller town. I would recommend against Buckeye due to the distance from the Base and from everything else in the valley. Glendale is a bigger city and you'll feel like you live in a more metro/busier place than you're used to. I would highly recommend Goodyear, Surprise or Litchfield Park for your housing searches.

Goodyear will leave you with easier access to the rest of the valley than Surprise which is isolated in the northwest corner of the valley. Litchfield Park is nice but more costly for housing and you'll do most of your shopping other places as there is not much in Litchfield Park.

Goodyear has been great for us and we looked in all the places you're looking. Very glad we picked Goodyear as it is much more convenient than the others and still has a small town feel.

Commute times to the base will vary widely depending on where you live and what roads you have to deal with to get there. Can be anywhere from right outside the gate to 30-40 minutes coming from Buckeye or south Goodyear (Estrella). If you're looking in Goodyear, the best schools are north of I10 in the Litchfield Elementary and Aqua Fria HS Districts, the schools south of I10 are not as good but not bad either (I live south and we're happy for the most part with the schools). Estrella Foothills HS is the exception and is a very good school.

Let me know if I can be of any other help.

[theafguy79]

Thanks for the advice, that area is a little overwhelming and the housing market is a little crazy. What are some of the better neighborhoods to start looking at in Goodyear!
B

[jessrscott]

We canvassed the Goodyear-Avondale area when we were house-hunting a few weeks ago and fell in love with Canyon Trails. Lots of parks and green space, and very close to several of the local shopping centers in Goodyear as well as quick access to the highway. I know there are several people on these boards that live in that community, as well, and have commented that they really like living there.

[LBTRS]

Originally Posted by theafguy79

Thanks for the advice, that area is a little overwhelming and the housing market is a little crazy. What are some of the better neighborhoods to start looking at in Goodyear!
B

In Goodyear the areas that are most popular are Palm Valley, Estrella and Canyon Trails with the cheapest housing being in Canyon Trails for the most part. I live in Canyon Trails and we are really happy here. Palm Valley is closer to the busier parts of Goodyear and in a little better school district. Estrella is very nice but further out and will add to your commute.

If you are looking at buying there are some nice newer developments that are west of the base and before you get to Verrado that are nice but are more rural which may be a positive for you.

[EDnurse]

Originally Posted by theafguy79

Hello all,

My family (married w/ 4 kids all under 10) and I are relocating to Luke AFB in July, and I am looking for housing information for the local areas. We are moving from South Dakota and are probably in for a good bit of culture shock. Our current city is about 8k and the Phoenix area is kind of intimidating. We've been looking at houses online in the Surprise, Goodyear, Glendale, Buckeye, and Glendale area. Any info you guys have on those areas would be appreciated. I'm looking for info on realistic commute times to the base, safe neighborhoods to live in, neighborhoods to avoid, schools etc. Anything you got will be greatly appreciated!
Thanks
B

Arriving in July? Should be the monsoon season: forget about the dry heat. The greatest shock you'll have will be the weather: hot, hotter and hotter than hell, BUT Nov, Dec, Jan, Feb, Mar, April are absolutely fabulous.

Traffic in/out of Surprise can be a PITA. Don't know what your rank is, but the base has really nice/newer Senior NCO housing and officers' too. The Goodyear/Avondale/Litchfield Park area should be a good fit. Stay north of the I-10. The drive to base is a piece of cake-about 10-15 minutes. If you buy a house, buy one that has N/S exposure. Avoid a house that has a lot of windows on the west side. The western sun here is brutal and your electric bill will show it.

Anything you need/want to buy you can find on base or along Litchfield Road & Dysart Road just south of the gate. The commissary is huge and the latest remodel will be completed soon. The BX is also quite big. There are 4 supermarkets (Bashas, Sprouts, Fry's, Albertson's) plus Walmart on the east side of Dysart Road alone! Restaurants, coffee shops, banks, doctors, dentists, Home Depot/Lowes/Ace Hardware, Best Buy, spas, etc. are within minutes of the base.

You won't know what to do with all the choices you'll have.

Welcome to Phoenix!

[LBTRS]

Originally Posted by EDnurse

The Goodyear/Avondale/Litchfield Park area should be a good fit. Stay north of the I-10.

Staying north of I-10 cuts out the largest part of Goodyear and is much busier for someone that is worried about coming to the valley from a small town. I recommend you don't have any preconceived stereotypes when you get here and look at all the areas and then ask specific questions on the ones you liked.

[Discovery1]

Originally Posted by EDnurse

Arriving in July? Should be the monsoon season: forget about the dry heat. The greatest shock you'll have will be the weather: hot, hotter and hotter than hell, BUT Nov, Dec, Jan, Feb, Mar, April are absolutely fabulous.

Traffic in/out of Surprise can be a PITA. Don't know what your rank is, but the base has really nice/newer Senior NCO housing and officers' too. The Goodyear/Avondale/Litchfield Park area should be a good fit. Stay north of the I-10. The drive to base is a piece of cake-about 10-15 minutes. If you buy a house, buy one that has N/S exposure. Avoid a house that has a lot of windows on the west side. The western sun here is brutal and your electric bill will show it.

Anything you need/want to buy you can find on base or along Litchfield Road & Dysart Road just south of the gate. The commissary is huge and the latest remodel will be completed soon. The BX is also quite big. There are 4 supermarkets (Bashas, Sprouts, Fry's, Albertson's) plus Walmart on the east side of Dysart Road alone! Restaurants, coffee shops, banks, doctors, dentists, Home Depot/Lowes/Ace Hardware, Best Buy, spas, etc. are within minutes of the base.

You won't know what to do with all the choices you'll have.

Welcome to Phoenix!

I rather stay south of I10 in Goodyear than any where in Avondale including N of I10, east of Dysart.

[pandaundercover]

I agree with that others, that since you're coming from a small town in SD, Goodyear will be the closet you can get to that in, while still being a reasonable drive to the base. Yet, at the same time, it really doesn't matter which city you pick, because all homes out here are suburbs, unless you find an older home with a less suburb feel in the Glendale area (but it's 30+ min drive to the base and a more crowded, older city). As they say, Surprise is isolated a bit, but it really depends what part of Surprise you live in. West Surprise is a 10 minute drive (5 miles) to places like Target, Home Depot, Lowes, most fast food, restaurants, and anywhere from a 15-40 minutes for larger places, like a mall or more restaurants. But East Surprise is right in the area where that Target, Lowes, etc is located, and would cut the commute to the base to 10 minutes instead of 20 minutes from west Surprise. A lot of Surprise is well kept (mostly cause it's all new and still going under construction to expand its highway, build more stores, and a Walmart just opened in West Surprise, fortunately), and there are lots of green parks around and most of the town feels really safe to have your kids out playing.

If you can afford the area, lots of people recommend Marley Park (which is even closer to the base), in Surprise, but it is more on the costly side b/c of its idealism.

I'm not clear if you were looking to buy or rent, but both vary all over the west valley, with Surprise having the cheapest buying prices for the value (this is b/c of its location, many people live here and work in Phoenix and hate the 40-60 minute drive), while Goodyear would cost just a little more. We'd all agree to recommend you avoid El Mirage, however, which borders NW Glendale and SE Surprise. Hope this helps!

[nightnurse613]

Hmm, no one mentioned Garden Lakes in Avondale???