Daughter moving to Phoenix..Advice regarding apartments please? (Mesa, Paradise Valley: apartment complexes, rental)

[montecarlo64]

Hello All,
My 28 year old daughter is moving to Phoenix next month (Single, no children). We are both flying out from Indiana next week to find her an apartment, furniture, utilities, BMV, bank, etc.. She will have no job; however, she has almost $5,000 in a credit union here in Indiana saved for the move and she has a credit score of about 700. She is a nursing assistant and has recently completed a phlebotomy(drawing blood) training course. She is hoping to find employment at one of the many Phoenix hospitals as a patient care technician (probably $9-12/hr). I am a registered nurse and have adequate income to co-sign if necessary. Her budget is $600 month for studio or 1 BR. Any advice regarding potential apartment complexes in the Paradise Valley, Deer Valley, North Mountain area? Also, how does the utility companies work there? Will there be a deposit, credit check, or any obstacles getting the utilities in her name? May I be a co-signer for these as well? Any recommended banks for balances less than $1,000, as I expect she will need to pre-pay a few months rent + deposits? She is opting to move due to a better quality of life in a warmer climate, so she can be more active and have more choices for everything in general. Here in rural Indiana, there are very few opportunities employment, for what she wants to do. She also had a serious health problem a couple of years ago(which now is resolved), which made her realize life is too short to live in a place where we have not much to do for entertainment, lots of unhealthy people, long winters and short summers. Many gray/gloomy days here.. Any suggestions, comments and advice are welcome. Thanks in advance!

[esiebert7625]

Welcome to the valley, many utilities do run credit checks and require deposits, being in an apt though she probably won't have to deal with water and gas only electricty. APS will require a deposit with bad credit but with her credit score she probably won't have to worry. If there is one it will probably be small as its an apt. She'll most likely need to put a deposit down anywhere she lives but I don't believe it is legal to require someone to pre-pay more than one month. This link might help, there are also a couple landlords on here that might now.

https://www.azag.gov/sites/default/f...sibilities.pdf

It's really tough coming here without a job lined up as it makes knowing where to live a bit challenging. The valley is huge and she could potentially end up with a long commute. Paradise Valley will be a bit pricey but Deer Valley is a great place to live, it could potentially be a long commute though if she gets a job in Mesa. I believe there are a number of big medical centers in the valley, someone can probably help identify those, it might be worth looking near where her best chance to find a job is.

[AZgarden]

I would set up a VRBO - The Most Popular Vacation Rental Site in the US rental for a couple of months until she knows where she will work. That way she won't have a lease on the wrong side of town from her new job.