Rural Arizona -(near metro Phoenix) What's the best neighborhood? (Casa Grande: for sale, 2013)

[DesertRose61]

I lived in Arizona from 2002-2009 and currently live in north Georgia. I have decided to move back to AZ and purchase a home. Being a one income family, I have not qualified for a very expensive house so I've had to look at other areas that are more rural with better housing deals.
I've seen that homes in Maricopa, Florence, San Tan Valley and Buckeye have the best home deals but I am sure the reason why that is, is because of how far out there they are and less amenities.
I work from home so I do not have to live in a certain area. Can anyone tell me what neighborhoods in these areas seem the best/safest right now?
Maricopa has a number of planned communities but I also know with the housing downfall a few years ago that these house were dirt cheap. I am a bit wary of crime that might be in this area now. Is it true the air quality in these areas is also poor because of the farms out there? My daughter lives in Laveen but the homes there are now out of my budget. I thought the air quality there was also poor. I have no school-aged children so school ratings are not important. I'd like a walk-able neighborhood.
If anyone can suggest a nicer, safer area, please do. I love other areas in the valley but the home prices are just out of my reach.
Also, does anyone know if Valley Metro bus still has a route in Maricopa? Thanks!

[observer53]

There is limited express service, it's not operated by Valley Metro, but by the city of Maricopa:

http://www.movingaz.com/briefcase/41...17AM41986..pdf

What do you mean by "walkable"? Walking to shopping, or just recreational walking around the neighborhood?

I would pick Maricopa because of better access to more amenities. The housing market has picked up some there, so the number of vacant houses and houses rented cheap to people you might not want as neighbors has gone down, making crime issues better than in the middle of the housing crash. I know several people who live down there, and like it.

[sh9730]

Out of those specific areas I would probably go with Maricopa also - just personal choice although San Tan Valley is almost Maricopa on the other side of things.

But - as always with me - don't leave out Casa Grande - ALMOST the same house prices as Maricopa (a little bit more usually for the same house - but not much) and quite a few more amenities. CG already has a both a Lowes and a Home Depot, a full service walmart (Maricopa only has a smaller one), a full mall with movie theatres, department stores and restaraunts with more coming as the Phoenixmart project gets going.

CG also has a larger "old downtown" than Maricopa or STV with the mom and pop shops and restaraunts many prefer.

Also, and this can be a big one - CG has a HOSPITAL in place that Banner Health recently acquired.

Maricopa and STV will both get there in the future I have no doubt. But if you want a little bit more now, for not much more money....CG is an option.

[DesertRose61]

I'd like to be able to walk to the grocery store, library, etc. Is that possible to do in either Maricopa or Casa Grande (or any of these rural communities mentioned in my first post).

What communities in Maricopa have the best to offer? (Rancho El Dorado, The Villages, etc)

[sh9730]

Well - as you may remember things in AZ tend to be a little spread out.....

In CG, there is a new library branch integrated with the newer (guess its 5 years old now - sheesh seems like yesterday) high school (Vista Grande HS) that has a couple of nice subdivisions nearby (Tamarron, Sandalwood, and a couple others) that would put you less than a mile from the library and then about a mile to the Walmart (which has a grocery component) along with being about a mile from the main drag Florence Blvd which then has all sorts of other stuff (Walgreens, CVS, fast food, shops etc.). Then within 2 miles would be even more options (Safeway, Frys, and many more stores etc in a couple of directions.

But in the summer of course even those walks can be a bit brutal....

You could go close to the OLD library (though just recently went through a major upgrade) in the old town area and there is a smaller grocery store there.....the problem is the houses nearby are all older (50+ years) and very hit and miss as far as neighborhood, and very small homes - not what it sounds like you are looking for.

Do a search for Vista Grande High School and then a radius you are comfortable walking and you can get an idea of home prices near there - my guess is for smaller homes you would be looking at should be about 140K or so....and again, these are nice neighborhoods there....

[observer53]

Agree with the above post. Neither city is particularly walkable in those respects, except as noted in the one area in CG.

[sh9730]

D R Horton is starting to build again in the Tamarron subdivision I mentioned above. (This is one of the subdivisions that got started and never completed during the boom/bust of 2008).

New Homes in Tamaron Ranch | Casa Grande, Arizona | D.R. Horton

They don't have prices listed yet - but my guess is based on their other subdivisions working in town that for a new home you are looking in the 160-175K range there.

Did a quick search and there arent really that many homes for sale near that new library.....but there are a couple in the 140 range and then more in the 160-175K range...again its a newer middle class area.....one nice thing is that Sandalwood has no HOA but the homes are all well kept etc.

Hope this helps!

[DesertRose61]

Thanks for your help. I appreciate it.
Does anyone have information on the Copper Basin community in Queen Creek/San Tan Valley? I found a really lovely home for sale there but the community reviews were terrible. Most of the reviews were from 2013 though. I wonder if it ever improved.