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I've searched some threads comparing Verrado and Estrella, but many are older and my questions are rather specific to our situation. We're planning to buy a vacation home in the Phoenix area in the under $250k range. We have children ages 6, 10, 12, & 14. Phoenix is the destination for us because it's one of the few places with great weather all year and attractions like professional sports, etc. that's easily/affordably accessible for a larger family travelling from Montana. And homes are still affordable for us though we missed the bottom-of-the-market bargains by a mile...
Since commute times aren't an issue, we're looking for a place to relax and have fun together as a family that can be a second home for us. West Valley suits us fine, and is that much closer to SD if I have to have a beach!
We'd be there more often during the winter months, especially January-May.
For myself, I'd like to have some semblance of the "resort" experience in my home, with a beautifully landscaped private back yard with a pool. Someplace tranquil.
We looked at homes in Verrado, but time ran out that day and we didn't make it to Estrella. I found a few houses I liked in Verrado, and there's one I like a lot that we're thinking of making an offer on. The feeling of the community is welcoming, and I absolutely love the more stylish architecture and tree-lined streets. For me, as an adult, it's a slam dunk. Verrado looks like home to me. I could walk the neighborhoods, have a coffee downtown, return to my back yard, and be happy. I think it would be a great place to live full time. The golf course is lovely, and we all golf, but more expensive than Estrella.
For my kids, I think Estrella is the better fit, IF it is what it appears to be. But not having visited there yet, I don't know if it's for real. I don't like the architecture as well. It doesn't feel as "upscale" as Verrado. I am not sure, as a result, if homes in Verrado will appreciate more/faster. (Thus affecting any plan I might concoct to buy in Estrella now and trade off for Verrado a few years down the road.) On the upside, the desert landscaping more typical to front yards in Estrella would be less upkeep for absentee owners than the lush grass of Verrado.
Is Estrella worth a look for us?
I have lots of questions: Are the lakes in Estrella Mountain Ranch actually sparkling jewels that are used for great fun family times on boats from the yacht club (like in the marketing materials), or are they greenish and swampy and closed half the year due to contamination or algae blooms? How much does it cost to rent boats? Are you allowed to bring your own boats (like kayaks) to the lake?
Is the pool open all year? I read an older thread that said it's only open in the summer. That's a bummer for a family visiting in March wanting to use the water slides! (To us, it's nice and hot in Phoenix in March)
Is the yacht club/boat rental open all year?
Just what kind of fish are we catching and releasing in the website photos?
Are there tennis courts?
Overall, for those who own homes in Estrella, are the amenities worth it? Do you actually use them? Is it the kind of neighborhood where kids can ride their bikes down to the lakes or to the golf course, where mom & dad can take a peaceful walk in the evening?
With its boulevards/set-back sidewalks, Verrado just feels so much more walkable. But then, walk to what? A pool and a library, and a very very cute downtown district. Rick Springfield will be playing on the green there in April! Fun for adults, not so much for kids.
We'll be back in 3 weeks and will have the opportunity to look at both neighborhoods at that time. The reason it's a pressing issue to me today is that the house I like best in Verrado just dropped its price, and we are thinking of offering. Like, now. I am pretty certain it will be sold in the next week or so. But I'm wondering if that's a mistake, and if we'll be missing out on great fun family time activities (if less stylish accommodations) if we pass on Estrella without even seeing it first. We've seen (online) several homes there that would be perfectly livable for us.
I am leaning toward family fun as the priority over style, but will be disappointed if I pass up the home in Verrado only to find in three weeks that Estrella's offerings are all show and no substance.
This forum has been an invaluable source of information for us as we've made the decision to buy a home in Phoenix. I am so grateful for those who are willing to share their opinions to my benefit! It's made an overwhelming choice into a manageable one. Thanks!
My kids go to high school in Verrado and we're out there fairly often and Verrado doesn't feel like a "resort" to me and you say that is important to you. It feels like squished together nice neighborhood. I always feel things are too tight and closed in when I'm in Verrado.
We spend less time up in Estrella but that feels much more like a "resort" when we do travel through there. If I was picking between the too I would pick Estrella over Verrado by a mile as I like the open desert foothills feel of the area more than the closed in tight feel I get in Verrado.
I live in Estrella. The lakes are open year round. Boats are free to HOA members. HOA is $86/moth. You can bring your own boats. Estrella Golf course is better than Verado; it's managed by Troon so it is in fine shape year round. Waterpark pool is only open in summer but lap pool is open year round. My kids spend a lot of time at South Lake park playing with their friends. Verado has Buckeye address and Estrella is Goodyear. I won't address the architecture as that is personal but I live in the custom portion where no 2 are alike. 2 lighted tennis courts (south lake park), fish are tilapia and are abundant.
Thank you so much, very helpful feedback. It's hard even when driving through a place to know what life is really like there. It's wonderful to hear from people who actually live there.
I agree, Verrado feels more "closed in", and smaller lots are not something we're really used to in Montana, but it doesn't bother me. I find the treelined streets and manufactured "hometown" feel equal parts creepy and appealing, but I think I could easily live there if it were just me alone.
My remark about wanting the "resortish" feel was just to say that that's my priority personally, and l I think I can have that either place just by making my back yard my resort and finishing the home to the level I like. But it's a good point about the desert feel in Estrella. I happen to enjoy the desert landscape and I have it in my mind that the sunsets would be nicer--and more visible--from Estrella. Silly, small things like that are actually big considerations for me.
We would not be in the custom section at this point, at our price point. We have looked into lots but really can't afford to build what I want right now. Plenty of perfectly serviceable homes with pools in Estrella, it seems. For a vacation home we only need three bedrooms, so that opens up a lot of properties for us. Perhaps we could upgrade to the custom section a few years down the line! I have always wanted a territorial style with Saltillo tile floors & exposed beams....ahhhh.
But for now I can do with what seem to me to be sort of cookie-cutter homes as long as they are in a friendly, tidy, safe neighborhood. It's the amenities and the setting that appeal in Estrella. And yes, I realize that's only my opinion of the architecture--tastes vary widely.
What is with the huge power lines cutting right through some of the neighborhoods? Are they a nuisance, or do you just stop noticing them after awhile?
Thanks for the info on the boats. Free boat usage is big when we're talking 4 kids. Even a nominal fee tends to add up for our vacation activities!
I've lived in Estrella for about 15 years now. We raised kids here who went to the schools from kindergarten and are now graduating and going off to college. I live in the north end by the lake. The lakes are the focal point of the community the place where they hold community gatherings and so on. They are pretty unique in Phoenix where most subdivision lakes are more like small canals that snake around. As for fishing, I catch mostly bass. The post above answered most questions. The power lines, well they are no where near my house so I guess I don't notice them. I think Verrado looks phoney, out of place in the desert, and the houses are so close together you can shake hands with your neighbor from your bedrooms. But that's me. I like a little more elbow room. Estrella is much more in the hills than Verrado as well with topography in every direction.
The biggest appeal of Estrella you did not mention: it has the feel of a community. You actually know people particularly if you have kids in school and run into them all the time at the store, lake, golf course, pizza parlor etc. The schools have very little teacher turnover so that families have kids that go to the same teachers the older ones went to. Parents know the teachers, teachers know the parents. It is just different from anywhere I have lived in Phoenix over the years. Verrado may have this too, since there are many similarities.
Last edited by Ponderosa; 03-09-2014 at 06:20 PM..
The community feel is something we value, and that can be hard to get a feel for when house shopping. In Verrado we got an immediate sense of it when we stopped at the town center and chatted with some people.
I am hoping for the same feeling in Estrella, even though our kids won't be going to school there. For those without children in the neighborhood, or those without a connection to the school, does the sense of community extend between neighbors in general?
While I think Estrella is beautiful, I really prefer Verrado. We go out there probably once a week for dinner and I love the housing areas close to the "downtown." Estrella seems so big to me and I'm not sure how many little kids would walk to the pool/lake or is it easier to drive. It really is a tough choice because both are so nice. Also, I prefer the grass at Verrado, but that does seem to quickly turn into desert landscaping as one gets away from the Heritage (I believe that's what it is called) area. Now, Canta Mia in Estrella….I could sleep at their pool---beautiful! That's going to be a tough choice!
We took a close look at both communities and while Verrado is a nice community, it just seemed a bit "forced" to us for lack of a better word in a desert environment. It seems to be trying to put an east coast/mid-west look in a desert and that didn't appeal to us. Though I'm guessing a large appeal of it is to people who come from small towns back east, mid-west, etc that have a look that people are used to/want to stick with.
Like Ponderosa, we have a house on the north end of the community by one of the lakes in Estrella. It just feels right to us in how they integrated the natural surroundings, lots of hiking trails that wind through the surrounding desert, and of course the lakes, etc. Living in the north end of the community will have you easy walking distance to the rec center and lakes though I've heard they have plans to build another rec center in the south end of the community where the new development is going on.
As for the power lines, it depends on where you are in the community/if you see them or not. Where we live, we don't see any of them.
As for the friendliness/community, Estrella certainly has that. Within the 1st few days of doing work on the home/not living there yet full time, we met so many people/neighbors we lost track! By the lake, just meeting neighbors close by, etc we have found if you're outgoing/friendly, you will have lots of company.
Not to sure if Verrado has people who rent there homes weekly or not but we rented a home with a pool in Estrella for a week last summer to get the feel of the community and we loved it.Spend a week there in a beautiful home talk to some residents,check out the amenities,pools,two beautiful lakes one with a boathouse,gym,kids club,beautiful golf course.Community has its own shopping plaza great supermarket,bank,Mcdonalds,pizza,bagels Etc.We looked at various communities in the valley to us there was nothing like Estrella it will be our hometown in the not so distance future.
check out Anthem as well. we really enjoyed the feel when we toured the community a couple weeks ago.
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