Possible Job Relocation - several ?s on Phx Metro (Phoenix: apartment, renting)

[2PHXGUY]

I have an opportunity to relocate to Phoenix for work from Columbia, SC. One of Our offices in the 'valley' is in NE Scottsdale. I have never visited Phoenix before so I do have several questions. I searched the forum and did find some good info, but a lot of it appears to be older posts and know cities can change quite a bit over time.

1. Where to live?
I am open to at least a half hour commute. I prefer to buy a house. Do not want to live in a condo anymore. Preference is for a 2 or 3 BR Home, 2 baths, pool will be nice. Not that this should matter, but I am a single gay man 46, looking to live in a gay friendly area. My son will stay summers with me and some holidays. Want to live in a safe area of town that is open with budget $300k or less.

2. Utilities -
What are the typical costs of utilities there? I am sure the power bill can get really high during the summer with such high heat?

3. What beach do you go to?
Living in Columbia, I can be at the SC beaches in an hour. I love the beach. What beaches do people in Phoenix often go to?

Thanks you for your replies!

[locolife]

I have an opportunity to relocate to Phoenix for work from Columbia, SC. One of Our offices in the 'valley' is in NE Scottsdale. I have never visited Phoenix before so I do have several questions. I searched the forum and did find some good info, but a lot of it appears to be older posts and know cities can change quite a bit over time.

1. Where to live?
I am open to at least a half hour commute. I prefer to buy a house. Do not want to live in a condo anymore. Preference is for a 2 or 3 BR Home, 2 baths, pool will be nice. Not that this should matter, but I am a single gay man 46, looking to live in a gay friendly area. My son will stay summers with me and some holidays. Want to live in a safe area of town that is open with budget $300k or less.

South Scottsdale or North Phoenix would be good options for you as far as a commute goes. But what do you care about for life outside of work? Is being near an urban center important or are you cool with mainly chain stores and more of a vehicle focused lifestyle? If you want to be able to quickly access downtown Phoenix and downtown Tempe on the weekends more towards south or central Scottsdale might be better. If that stuff doesn't matter North Phoenix is safe, affordable, and a super easy commute for you.

Since you've never been here I'd suggest at least renting at first, until you get to know the valley a little bit. You don't want to buy in the wrong part of town for you, it's a very spread out city and if you find you wanted to be in the central part of the valley but your stuck in the north fringes you won't be happy.

2. Utilities -
What are the typical costs of utilities there? I am sure the power bill can get really high during the summer with such high heat?

For your reference, we have 40 year old brick home in North Tempe w/ pool, it's been remodeled and has newer windows but the a/c unit is old. We pay about $110 a month on the year round on the SRP balanced plan, which makes it so you're bill is exactly the same year round instead of having the big swings from summer to winter. Everything in our house is electric except the water heater which is gas.



3. What beach do you go to?
Living in Columbia, I can be at the SC beaches in an hour. I love the beach. What beaches do people in Phoenix often go to?

San Diego, Orange County, Los Angeles are the most popular spots all are about 5-6 hours, depending on who you ask and how fast they drive. The closest beach is actually Rocky Point, Mexico at about 3-4 hours (212 miles). The water there is much warmer, probably more like what you're used to in SC. But some people freak out about it being in Mexico, and others of us don't. For me it's a mix of culture and warm water that I can't get in many other places, not to mention the prices are pretty awesome. But some people watch the news, freak out about safety and refuse to ever go. I've gone a lot and never had a problem, I find most Mexicans to be great very welcoming and friendly.

Beyond beaches, we have lakes, lots of them. They're pretty large too. You can checkout Google to see what I'm talking about. A lot of us head to the North Country on long weekends, especially during the summer. When it's 110 or so here it's about 75-80 roughly 2-3 hours away depending on where you decide to head. Towns like Flagstaff, Prescott and Payson all have typical summer seasons that you'd find in the North part of the country, 80ish degrees. They also get snow in the winter, so if you're looking for a winter wonderland it's right up the 17.

Another favorite is Sedona, I think it' was called the most beautiful place on Earth, which I happen to agree with. It gets hotter than the other northern cities in the summer, about 95 normally, but the nights are always nice and cool and it's home to Oak Creek, a killer brewery named after said creek, and some wineries that are close by. It's a great spot to have 90 mins from Phoenix.

If you have any hobbies besides beaches, that might be helpful to hear about, but I feel like some beachy people can adjust to the desert, and others just can't get over the fact that there's no tidal affected, large, salty bodies over water nearby to look at/jump in/lay by. I've always been a desert dweller and actually prefer fresh water beaches/activities to oceans.... But that's just me.

Thanks you for your replies!

[smoochaz]

Originally Posted by locolife

I have an opportunity to relocate to Phoenix for work from Columbia, SC. One of Our offices in the 'valley' is in NE Scottsdale. I have never visited Phoenix before so I do have several questions. I searched the forum and did find some good info, but a lot of it appears to be older posts and know cities can change quite a bit over time.


What beach do you go to?
Living in Columbia, I can be at the SC beaches in an hour. I love the beach. What beaches do people in Phoenix often go to?

Lot of sailing, tubing, paddleboating, canoeing locally (tempe, salt river) then at the lakes you can have your powerboat and water ski, jet ski but not a beach with waves and sand - no gulfs or oceans here

We have many homes/condos that face man-made lakes such as this condo on lakeshore drive is that what you are talking about??

[dvxhd]

Originally Posted by 2PHXGUY

I have an opportunity to relocate to Phoenix for work from Columbia, SC. One of Our offices in the 'valley' is in NE Scottsdale. I have never visited Phoenix before so I do have several questions. I searched the forum and did find some good info, but a lot of it appears to be older posts and know cities can change quite a bit over time.

1. Where to live?
I am open to at least a half hour commute. I prefer to buy a house. Do not want to live in a condo anymore. Preference is for a 2 or 3 BR Home, 2 baths, pool will be nice. Not that this should matter, but I am a single gay man 46, looking to live in a gay friendly area. My son will stay summers with me and some holidays. Want to live in a safe area of town that is open with budget $300k or less.

2. Utilities -
What are the typical costs of utilities there? I am sure the power bill can get really high during the summer with such high heat?

3. What beach do you go to?
Living in Columbia, I can be at the SC beaches in an hour. I love the beach. What beaches do people in Phoenix often go to?

Thanks you for your replies!

The most gay-friendly area is Melrose, but that will be a bit of a haul for you (easily more than 30 minutes). I think most of Central and parts of East Phoenix would be suitable in that regard, as would North Tempe. While I think there are some areas of the Valley that are more hostile than others, but generally I think it's a fairly well integrated city. Still, in that regard, I personally would probably feel the least comfortable in most of Mesa and almost the entire Southeast Valley, most of the North Valley, South Phoenix and Ahwatukee, and pretty much anything west of the 17. I'm sure others will come to those areas' defense, but I would least like to live in any of those areas. So, on that note, I would strongly suggest you don't buy, at least not immediately, especially if you haven't visited before.

But, to get you started, you can look up echomag.com (hyperlink feature isn't being cooperative with me tonight) and browse through the niche market.

Most utilities are cheap, except for electricity. I'm sure if you had to completely drain and refill a pool or kept a lawn green, then your water bill would be higher. My last water bill for a 1,000 sq ft apartment was $34, and I run the dishwasher three times per week, do laundry 4-5 times per month, and shower daily. Electricity has been low lately because I leave the windows open at night.