Phoenix among top cities for millennial migration (Tucson: apartment complex, lease)

[Mac58]

Albuquerque and Tucson are Double A and Triple A outposts.
Phoenix is Major league.

[Jnvlv247]

Originally Posted by Valley Native

Somehow they manage to function just fine. I hate our summer heat just as much as (if not more than) the average person, but at the same time, I think too many people use it as a lame excuse.

THIS and the other posts mentioning how Phoenix isn't the only "island" city.

Someone mentioned in a different thread that if we did not have the intense summers, we'd have the population/size of LA. So, I am glad the summer keeps our population balanced. I know more and more people move here or stay after snowbirding it for a while.

I think young people are traveling more so they can take the vacations up north or to the beaches of CA or Mexico in the summer. The job opportunity, ability to home own and raise kids and the stable, nice weather year round besides 3 months is pretty good. It's the opposite problem of CA.

I cannot imagine living any other place.

[kemahkami]

Originally Posted by Jnvlv247

THIS and the other posts mentioning how Phoenix isn't the only "island" city.

Someone mentioned in a different thread that if we did not have the intense summers, we'd have the population/size of LA. So, I am glad the summer keeps our population balanced. I know more and more people move here or stay after snowbirding it for a while.

I think young people are traveling more so they can take the vacations up north or to the beaches of CA or Mexico in the summer. The job opportunity, ability to home own and raise kids and the stable, nice weather year round besides 3 months is pretty good. It's the opposite problem of CA.

I cannot imagine living any other place.

Large population isn't actually much of an issue, so far the density is high. Just look at how they do it in the deserts of Dubai, with all those skyscrapers.

[DougStark]

valley native, you MISunderstood my writing. When I said, "Sadly, it's a relatively small metro with a bad crime problem and a sluggish economy, but I like its climate", I was referring to ALBQ, not PHX.

[Valley Native]

Originally Posted by DougStark

valley native, you MISunderstood my writing. When I said, "Sadly, it's a relatively small metro with a bad crime problem and a sluggish economy, but I like its climate", I was referring to ALBQ, not PHX.

Actually, I believe you misunderstood me. I was replying to your reply to Potanta who thought Phoenix would be similar to Albuquerque, which unfortunately is what Phoenix is sometimes compared with. Obviously, Potanta doesn't realize that Albuquerque and Phoenix aren't in the same league (even though there are some similarities). Albuquerque is more in line with Tucson or El Paso as far as size, job opportunities, culture, etc.

[Ponderosa]

Originally Posted by Tall Traveler

The average age in Phoenix is 3 years younger than the average age in New York City, Phoenix is a great city for young people.

There are retirement areas in Arizona including some areas in the Phoenix metro but Arizona is equally a draw for young families as a place they can afford to buy a decent house.

The younger average age is a result of larger families of the million or so illegal immigrants who call the Phoenix area home rather than Phoenix being a magnet for young people from other areas.

[JGMotorsport64]

Originally Posted by Ponderosa

The younger average age is a result of larger families of the million or so illegal immigrants who call the Phoenix area home rather than Phoenix being a magnet for young people from other areas.

Or both?

[Potential_Landlord]

We hired two Millenial engineers from other areas and they love Phoenix. Also, my kids say they want to stay in the area if possible. I think Phoenix is a magnet for Millenials. It's true.

[RJ312]

Originally Posted by Potential_Landlord

We hired two Millenial engineers from other areas and they love Phoenix. Also, my kids say they want to stay in the area if possible. I think Phoenix is a magnet for Millenials. It's true.

Originally Posted by Mac58

Albuquerque and Tucson are Double A and Triple A outposts.
Phoenix is Major league.

I am an older Millennial and I started my career in Phoenix last decade. It was a mistake. Phoenix isn't a great place to develop a career, unless you are in the medical field, which services a lot of the retirees. The biggest problem with Phoenix is that Phoenix wasn't much of anything prior to the advent of air conditioning 65-70 years ago. As a result, there are few legacy companies such as the Procter & Gamble types with HQs in Phoenix. The Dial Corporation, later purchased by Henkel, even left Metro Phoenix within the last few years, after Dial relocated there from Chicago in the 1970s. There just wasn't a big population in the past and corporate relocations never kept pace with population growth in Metro Phoenix. Phoenix also never did much with being the incubator for newer technology companies since the 1990s. There was a reason that the FAANG companies don't have their HQs in Phoenix.

I would agree that Phoenix is major league when the comparisons are Albuquerque and Tucson. However, Albuquerque and Tucson realize that they are not big league whereas Phoenix tries to compete with the big league cities and does not compare favorably. This is why I eventually left Phoenix because I needed a true big league city for my own career development.

Originally Posted by DougStark

Oh, you're joking, right? Albuquerque has nowhere the opportunities and amenities that metro Phoenix has. Sadly, it's a relatively small metro with a bad crime problem and a sluggish economy. I like its climate though.

This is a fair assessment. Albuquerque's climate is better than Phoenix's due to the more reasonable summer temperatures. It can get cold in Albuquerque in the winter, but it is worth the trade off not to deal with Phoenix's summer heat.

Other than climate, Albuquerque doesn't compare well with Phoenix. Albuquerque offers even less than Phoenix from a business environment. There are even less quality jobs than in Phoenix, and less amenities. The corporate HQ issue is a problem there as well, but it's ok because they've never tried to be a major city. There are fewer amenities.

Sandia National Labs is a good employer there bringing in a fair amount of high quality jobs. Los Alamos National Labs (where the atomic bomb was first developed) is further north in the state, but LANL employees typically live in Santa Fe or Los Alamos. Outside of Sandia, there's not a lot to like about Albuquerque as far as economic indicators go. There is a lot of poverty in Albuquerque and New Mexico as a whole. The teen pregnancy rate is high. The crime rate is high. All of those factors are interrelated and create a negative cycle.

Overall, Phoenix is an upgrade compared to Albuquerque.

[Valley Native]

Originally Posted by RJ312

I am an older Millennial and I started my career in Phoenix last decade. It was a mistake. Phoenix isn't a great place to develop a career, unless you are in the medical field, which services a lot of the retirees. The biggest problem with Phoenix is that Phoenix wasn't much of anything prior to the advent of air conditioning 65-70 years ago. As a result, there are few legacy companies such as the Procter & Gamble types with HQs in Phoenix. The Dial Corporation, later purchased by Henkel, even left Metro Phoenix within the last few years, after Dial relocated there from Chicago in the 1970s. There just wasn't a big population in the past and corporate relocations never kept pace with population growth in Metro Phoenix. Phoenix also never did much with being the incubator for newer technology companies since the 1990s. There was a reason that the FAANG companies don't have their HQs in Phoenix.

You're absolutely correct on this assessment. Phoenix is definitely lacking when it comes to being the HQs of national/global companies, and white collar jobs with competitive pay. I doubt that Phoenix's "nothingness" a long time ago has anything to do with it. We had substantial growth after WWII, as did many other cities in the West & Sunbelt areas, but places like Atlanta, Houston, L.A. area, and the Silicon Valley have great opportunities for high paying jobs. Atlanta & Houston have many Fortune 500 & Fortune 1,000 firms based there.

Another thing: what few Fortune 500/Fortune 1,000 HQs are in the Phoenix area are located in suburban office parks, which can make commuting a nightmare depending on what part of the Valley you reside. At least in other cities, many of their large firms are based downtown or in a more centralized location where they should be. This is one reason why the Phoenix skyline is small compared to many other cities our size & smaller. It's also why traffic can be bad on practically all the streets & freeways during rush hour, even in the suburban areas.

I've said for a long time that Phoenix's main problem is it wants to be in the big leagues as far as population, but still seems to want to promote itself as a mid sized resort town with seasonal tourism. You can't have it both ways. In order for Phoenix to truly be a big league, world class metro area, we have to behave like it. A city this size can't expect to attract the major corporations as long as we keep promoting things like sunshine, cactus, and mountain views, or cater largely to snowbirds & retirees.