Coming to Visit Phoenix in January (Glendale, Scottsdale: apartments, for rent, home)

[wase4711]

Valley Native hit it right on the head, re: the west valley..

We just moved into the exact area he spoke of, between Arrowhead, and North Peoria, and its fantastic out here!
We saved about 50k over what the same house would have cost in Scottsdale, and, the growth out here is EXPLOSIVE..shopping everywhere, restaurants everywhere, every kind of business,service, and everything else is within 15 minutes of our house, and we are 10 minutes away from both I17 and 101, and the new 303 is very close as well.

For me, I don't have to be at a job or anywhere else at a specific time, my wife works from home, and my son works close by, so for us, location was not an issue; however, as others have mentioned, you need to figure out where you are going to work, and THEN decide the area you want to live in, otherwise, you could be looking at a very long and hot drive to work every day..

Now, since I am not single, I am not sure how many things there are for a single 30 year old to do out here, but, during non rush hour times, you arent a really long way from the other side of town, so, that might not matter to you in the long run. From my house, I can get to scottsdale/other places in the east valley in 30-45 minutes, so to me, that is not a long drive..

[slowdude222]

When you move to a big metropolis like Phoenix, it is all the same as the rest of the USA. Educate yourself on the prices, weather, traffic and demographics. The same shops and stores are the same everywhere.

[locolife]

Originally Posted by Anglefan

I feel like I have to get a feel for things. I'm not opposed to either side if I feel that it fits me. Granted if the west side is developing wouldn't that be the better investment? I'm 30 years old. Single so it would be good to be somewhere to meet people. For fun I like walking, hiking, going to concerts/listening to music, eating at restaurants, sports, shooting guns, video games, and movies. I am not a big party person but I don't mind lively people or anything. I don't know what people really mean when they say if "culture" is important to me. Arts, I mean they can be cool to see but it's not a really big deal for me to see on a consistent basis.

Thanks for the recommendations and also for the heads up on Dignity Health.

Actually the areas appreciating the most are not on the fringes at all, infill has been the main growth engine adding a lot of density to the more central areas of the metro where people generally need to be for work and want to be for fun and entertainment. I also felt much more comfortable buying centrally after looking into the biggest losers during the last downturn. I would not be too excited about buying in an undeveloped area under the promise of future growth that may not come. I’ve been here long enough to see how that turned out for others who went to places like Buckeye, Goodyear, Queen Creek, Casa Grande etc... and have never seen most of that promised growth go anywhere.

The fringes will always grow but picking the winners and losers is a lot harder than going with an established area where you know job growth will continue.

[Anglefan]

Originally Posted by locolife

Actually the areas appreciating the most are not on the fringes at all, infill has been the main growth engine adding a lot of density to the more central areas of the metro where people generally need to be for work and want to be for fun and entertainment. I also felt much more comfortable buying centrally after looking into the biggest losers during the last downturn. I would not be too excited about buying in an undeveloped area under the promise of future growth that may not come. I’ve been here long enough to see how that turned out for others who went to places like Buckeye, Goodyear, Queen Creek, Casa Grande etc... and have never seen most of that promised growth go anywhere.

The fringes will always grow but picking the winners and losers is a lot harder than going with an established area where you know job growth will continue.

By infill do you mean central Phoenix? Any areas of Phoenix (Phoenix proper) to look into and any spots to avoid? I think Arcadia is out of my price range (it's a wealthy area correct?).

[locolife]

Originally Posted by Anglefan

By infill do you mean central Phoenix? Any areas of Phoenix (Phoenix proper) to look into and any spots to avoid? I think Arcadia is out of my price range (it's a wealthy area correct?).

Central Phoenix from downtown to uptown but also the biltmore area may be worth looking at. North Tempe near town lake is rapidly adding infill as well, you’ll see about 6-7 cranes driving around downtown Tempe. Also along the light rail line on Apache in northeast Tempe, lots of shorter infill but it’s not as walkable as downtown. Old Town Scottsdale is also growing up with quite a few new projects from about Indian School to past camelback just east and west of Scottsdale road. Chandler and Mesa are also pushing for infill in their downtown areas, I’d say Chandler is winning now but Mesa has a lot of potential if they can figure things out.

I’m in North Tempe as that worked well for us both job and hobby wise, I would avoid going west of 7th ave roughly, North of Northern, East of the 101 and South of the 60. Mainly out of my desire to stay central. East and South Phoenix have some rough spots that are sold as “up and coming” maybe they are but it can be dicey. The Apache section of Tempe also has rough spots but has been gentrifying since the train went in, but if you do look around there you’ll want to be aware of the surroundings. Downtown Phoenix is also gentrifying rapidly so areas like Grand Ave and East of Roosevelt are still surrounded by rough spots. The core of downtown and uptown tend to be nicer/cleaner.

[kytoaz]

No offense to anyone, but the west valley is BORING in my opinion. If you want to get a great deal on a house and spend most of your time In your house or don't mind driving for entertainment I guess it would be ok but I personally would lose my mind living out there. For a single 30 something I would definitely suggest central phoenix, tempe or south Scottsdale. Also without knowing where your job will be staying as central as possible might be a good decision.

[wase4711]

when you say "west valley" you are insinuating that EVERY AREA west of the dividing line is boring; are you talking about goodyear,buckeye, lichtfield park,surprise, glendale,peoria, deer valley, or ALL of them?
making generalization like "west valley" or east valley" is just silly, since both of those statements involve tons of cities and areas, all with something to offer many people...I just don't get the attitude of "east valley is better than west valley" or vice versa..
to each his own, but saying one area is "better" than another seems just silly, and is nothing more than your opinion..

[DetroitN8V]

Originally Posted by wase4711

when you say "west valley" you are insinuating that EVERY AREA west of the dividing line is boring; are you talking about goodyear,buckeye, lichtfield park,surprise, glendale,peoria, deer valley, or ALL of them?
making generalization like "west valley" or east valley" is just silly, since both of those statements involve tons of cities and areas, all with something to offer many people...I just don't get the attitude of "east valley is better than west valley" or vice versa..
to each his own, but saying one area is "better" than another seems just silly, and is nothing more than your opinion..

Then, what's not boring about the west valley? Westgate?

[wase4711]

I guess when you live a boring life, you'll probably be bored regardless of where you live..

[DetroitN8V]

Originally Posted by wase4711

I guess when you live a boring life, you'll probably be bored regardless of where you live..

Well sure, and of course you can create your own fun anywhere, but that doesn't address the point that you seem to be disagreeing with. The simple fact is that nearly all of the valley's events and entertainment are in Tempe, central Phoenix and Scottsdale. So, what are you taking objection to?