Best areas in AZ to live for nurse/young couple (Phoenix: 2013, apartment complexes)

[HappyDappy]

Hello everyone!
I am an RN currently locked into a 2-year contract at a hospital here in Northern Virginia, but once I am finished, my boyfriend and I are thinking about moving to a less expensive area of the country. One bedroom apartments here (~15 miles outside of DC) are $1500/month PLUS and we really don't use the benefits of living near DC nearly as much to make it worthwhile in the long run. We are both from Long Island, NY and my parents moved out to Maricopa two years ago.

A preliminary search showed that nursing salaries are less, but the costs of living are proportionately much less than here, and there was a recent article that said that the Phoenix area had the highest quality of life rankings for nurses in the country! I was surprised. My boyfriend is a medical assistant with his degree in nuclear medicine, and would also like to go back to school for nursing/something medical related (no nuclear med jobs... anywhere!)

What areas should we consider for the future? Next time I'm out there visiting my folks, I'd like to take a look at some areas that would be family friendly/near medical facilities where I could work as a nurse... We are both 27 years old (will be closer to 30 when my contract expires, obviously, haha) and will be planning on starting a family at that point.

I guess I'm just looking for a starting point... our combined income here is about 85-90k and we'd eventually like to buy, so any suggestions would be awesome!

Thank you!
HD

[cactusland]

We have tons of medical facilities in the phoenix-metro area. I would suggest Tempe or maybe even south Scottsdale. You will most likely have no issues finding a RN job somewhere around here.

[HappyDappy]

Awesome! Thank you! Scottsdale is only about an hour from where my parents are, so that seems fairly reasonable as well I'll have to explore the area next time I am there. I appreciate it!

[stevek64]

I agree with the previous post in that you will have a bunch of options around the Phoenix metro for nursing jobs. However, I wouldn't limit myself to Tempe or Scottsdale right off the bat. There are of course nice areas to live in both cities but there are tons more options all around the valley on where to live and where you might decide to accept a job that you might like the "feel" of more. Or perhaps you want to live closer than an hour's drive from your parents. As you probably have learned, Phoenix metro is a huge area and there are hospitals/medical facilitates in all parts of it so you have lots of options. Since I'm guessing you'll have to get a job before you move out here, after you get your job, I'd rent a while that's an easy commute from your job so you have time to scope out various areas/cities on where you might want to buy a home if that's your goal. Lots of opinions on various cities/areas around the valley to live but nothing beats checking them out yourself to see what feels right/has what you want, not what works for others.

Good luck on your plan!

[Jukesgrrl]

I've attached a link to an article from the Phoenix Business Journal that lists all the Phoenix hospitals appearing on US News & World Reports ranking of best regional hospitals in the country. The magazine ranks hospitals based on a variety of criteria, including reputation, mortality rates, patient volumes and key technologies and in 16 specialties and only 147 U.S. hospitals scored high enough to make the list in 2013. Thirteen Phoenix hospitals made the list (out of 56 hospitals in the metro), with the Mayo Clinic in North Scottsdale earning the top ranking in Phoenix.

These 13 might be places to start your quest for a new job if you're looking for a quality employer. I notice that Chandler Regional Medical Center is fifth on the list. That's also a great suburb many young couples are attracted to. It's a southeast suburb with reasonably priced homes, well-regarded schools, good access to I-10 and Sky Harbor Airport, excellent amenities, and it's close to Tempe, home of ASU. I'm not a suburban person, but if I had to live in a suburb of Phoenix, I'd pick Chandler. It also has a lot of quality apartment complexes if you will be renting when you first come here.
13 Phoenix-area hospitals ranked as best by U.S. News & World Report - Phoenix Business Journal

Phoenix magazine, this city's equivalent of The Washingtonian, has an annual issue devoted to top doctors and medical facilities. That same magazine also has an extensive article at least once a year describing the hot neighborhoods to live in ... why they're growing, what kind of people are attracted to them, what prices are, etc. I used to give people links to those articles but Phoenix mag online went behind a paywall this year and you have to be a subscriber to read old articles. But if you're really serious about moving here, a subscription might be worth the money to you. As a new resident to Arizona I found this magazine to be a wealth of useful information about the entire metro.
https://w1.buysub.com/pubs/CP/PHX/PH...91019218&vid=1

If your boyfriend is looking for a different specialty, he might want to keep in mind that Phoenix on one of the world's capitals of plastic surgery. There are an extraordinary number of plastic surgeons practicing in this metro, doing everything from serious reconstruction to keeping the Valley's beautiful people beautiful. While I'm sure the competition for patients is an issue for the MDs, there might still be a lot of jobs available for people trained to assist in that arena.

Good luck to you.

[HappyDappy]

Originally Posted by Jukesgrrl

I've attached a link to an article from the Phoenix Business Journal that lists all the Phoenix hospitals appearing on US News & World Reports ranking of best regional hospitals in the country.

This is amazing -- thank you SO much!

My parents know Chandler quite well and don't live too far from there, which would be great. My boyfriend has been looking at schools nearby and he might try to get his RN from a community college and then do a bridge program to get his BSN, eventually.

We are just amazed at the cost of living differences between Northern Virginia and Arizona, in general, and would like to eventually buy a house, which seems WAY more doable there than here.

Thanks again!