Phoenix--& Arizona--What's the Attraction? :) (neighborhood, live, restaurants)

[BIG CATS]

Originally Posted by gbpakrfan

Completely agree. The day before we left Wisconsin to move to Arizona last August we were packing up the house. Mind you, we were INSIDE with the a/c on. But with the 90% humidity that day we were sweating like dogs. (Okay, dogs don't sweat, but you get the idea). Had to stop and take a shower. Twenty minutes later I needed another shower. Then, when we went OUTSIDE to pack the car it was pure hell.

Anyone who thinks AZ humidity is bad needs to head out of state in the summer. And don't get me started on Florida, where I lived three different times. Walking from the inside to the outside is like walking face first into a fire hose. I need to go towel off now after thinking about those days...

I had the opposite experience. We moved to AZ in August. Left IL where it was semi-humid, arrived in AZ two days later and unpacked in 108 degrees and humidity. I sweat through my boxers and shorts. It was a mess.

[ElleTea]

Originally Posted by gbpakrfan

We're retired so can't speak to the issues of schools or jobs. But we can speak to the weather and the cost of living. We moved from Wisconsin, so no need to expound on winter weather differences. Sure, it's hot here in the summer, but we knew that going in. We spend summers by the pool or on the occasional road trip. No problem.

As for cost of living, Arizona beats Wisconsin by a mile. State income taxes are minimal compared to Wisconsin's tax hell. Property taxes are miniscule in comparison, as well. For example, last week we received our property tax bill. We have the same size house in AZ as we did in WI. AZ property tax = $2,200. WI property tax = just under $6,000.

Sure, car registration is outrageous in AZ ($320 vs. $99)...but again we knew that going in.

That property tax thing is the truth! It's crazy how cheap it is here. My property taxes here are under $500 a year. I paid over $2200 a year for a slightly larger house but smaller lot in the midwest.

[ScottsdaleMark]

I like to shop for shirts on ebay, and a lot of the packages come in those sealed plastic/vinyl mailer bags. Depending on where the package is from, when you first open up the sealed plastic package, you can feel with your hands on the shirt, and sense with your nose the humidity of wherever it was shipped from.

[i'm not a cookie]

-weather
-the mountains
-how open the city feels
- the palm trees and unique desert landscape/sunsets/ect.

I was at the sanctuary one night and these New Yorkers were sitting next to me (from NYC) and said "wow this place is magical you are so lucky to live here" this was before I moved to LA but I thought they were ****** crazy for saying that. It wasn't till I left for LA that I realized how much I liked the Phoenix area. This was the same case for many of my friends who left for the east coast/midwest/California for college. They literally kissed the ground when they came back for their first Christmas break. Everyone who complains about Arizona or Phoenix and has not lived anywhere else will definitely change their mind once they leave the state...that's how it was for me and my friends at least. My family is originally from DC and I asked my parents why they chose to move to Phoenix a while back. They said they couldn't handle the winters out east anymore, palm trees surrounding you can make a hell of a difference, and my dad fell in love once he saw the mountains throughout the city. I do have to say I am a bit surprised that a city that is not near an ocean has managed to attract so many people but go figrues. It's not the best place to live, but it definitely has it's advantages compared to other large metros in the country.

[locolife]

Originally Posted by BIG CATS

If one is seeking big city life, plentiful high-powered jobs, cultural diversity, etc, Phoenix would not be a good place to start.

How do you figure this is not a good place for diversity and big city life? Any stats to support this claim?

[AZDesertBrat]

Originally Posted by Prickly Pear

Honestly, after living in the Phoenix metro for over twenty years, I don't see the appeal at all. In fact I'm sure some of the other regulars on here know that I'm very critical of Phoenix and Maricopa county as a whole. I hate the social behaviors of Phoenicians, I hate the lack of interest in intellectual topics in most Phoenicians, I hate how hot Phoenix is, I hate how expensive Phoenix is starting to become with no real increase in jobs or wages, I hate the politics...

I live in Tucson now and it's better by leagues in my opinion. A place with real culture, history, diversity (Scottsdale is one of the whitest suburbs in the country btw), better weather scenery and outdoor recreation. Friendlier people and cheaper as well. As a whole Arizona is a very beautiful state with lots to offer. One of the wonders of the world, places to ski (Flag is amazing), one of the best for stargazing, huge climatic diversity and almost every type of ecosystem you can think of (even swamps, called cienegas here). You can get everything in almost the whole world with some driving time in Arizona for a decent price. And if you hide in your house for five months of the year or so summers aren't that bad. Winters are great and many people are anti-snow.

Different strokes for different folks. I don't see the appeal in Texas either but people like it for some reason.

I can see the appeal of Phoenix to a lot of people but I'm not one of them. I was born there, five generations of my family have been born there, and most still live there, but I don't want to. I have lived there off and on over the years but where I live now...the Verde Valley...has been my home since I was two.


I lived my first five years of school in Tucson, back in the Stone Age of 1948-1953, and loved the place even back then. I still like going down there to visit friends and family. My favorite parts of the state are the far south and central to far north AZ. That 'bowl' in the middle isn't my cuppa tea.


I don't hide in my house five months a year. lol Don't know anyone else who does either. The weather is just something you either do, or don't, learn to live with and pretty much always know what to expect. I don't mind the summers but I don't like being cold so I do like our winters.

[AZDesertBrat]

Originally Posted by WilmaWildcat

Tucson is diverse in ethnicity, but only 5% are black; it's not that it's the whitest city in America -- a Tucson Weekly story in 2006 rather attempts to say it is more the "non-blackest." Hispanic or Latino of any race are about 42%.

Growing Up Black in Tucson | Feature | Tucson Weekly

That was an interesting article. I lived in Tucson as a little kid and I don't recall even one black person back then. I know there weren't any in my school but a ton of Hispanic and American Indian kids. We lived in South Tucson at the time.

[i'm not a cookie]

Originally Posted by WilmaWildcat

Tucson is diverse in ethnicity, but only 5% are black; it's not that it's the whitest city in America -- a Tucson Weekly story in 2006 rather attempts to say it is more the "non-blackest." Hispanic or Latino of any race are about 42%.

Growing Up Black in Tucson | Feature | Tucson Weekly

Arizona cities are becoming more diverse in general. Phoenix is definitely becoming a more diverse city. A good amount of Black and Asians are moving to the Phoenix metro, which will add to the diversity. While Tuscon isn't really that black, Phoenix is a lot blacker than people make it out to be with 300,000 African Americans living in the metro. Phoenix also came in at number 7 in terms of cities with the highest amount of African Americans moving into the metros (more blacks moved to the phoenix area last year than to the NYC or Philly CSA's). I'm glad that Phoenix is getting more diversity although I'm sure it will upset some members of the citydata Arizona forum

[BeerGeek40]

Originally Posted by Tall Traveler

Wife and I love Arizona and have 3 houses there. We love the sun, the beautiful landscapes, low cost of living, mountains, politically we are aligned with Arizona being Conservative/Libertarian, reasonable taxes, great road system, climate with low humidity and fabulous winter and we also find the vibe of the people very friendly and relaxing. Many wealthy people have homes in Arizona and elsewhere and skip the hot summers of Phoenix.

We don't consider ourselves 'very wealthy' but have the wealth/income to live anywhere we want.

If you have 3 houses (plus I'm assuming a 4th in Washington)..... YOU ARE WEALTHY.
Wake up.

[BIG CATS]

Originally Posted by locolife

How do you figure this is not a good place for diversity and big city life? Any stats to support this claim?

Bro, coming from Chicago area where there are entire neighborhoods that only speak Lithuanian, Chinese, Russian, German, Spanish, Somali, Polish, etc, where nothing is in English (except the street signs), there just isn't anything like that in Phoenix. Sure you might stumble across some restaurants here and there in PHX (every city is like that, though), but there are no big enclaves to visit to feel much diversity outside of Spanish-speaking enclaves.