Couple Seeking to Relocate

[timothyaw]

Originally Posted by jwins823

Thanks for your response but I don’t need any additional input from you.

Wow, he was only try to help. He is correct, with your budget, lot needs and political leanings maybe Phoenix is not the best place for you. As others have mentioned, if you do decide to move here you'll have to deal with a postage stamp lot at your budget level.

[Slater]

Arizona is loaded with Conservatives. You'll be fine wherever. We try to filter out the Leftists/Liberals but some slip through.

[PhureeKeeper]

Originally Posted by jwins823

Thanks for the response and the info on Scottsdale! I like that area as well.

We like to be able to get to the city and to rural areas easily and don't want to live in densely populated areas. Living in this state has made us a bit claustrophobic
- We've seen a few 1400+ sq ft houses with 2-3 bedrooms in the area for around 200-300K and just want to find something nice and not too pricey to settle into.

Can you kindly advise what this bolded statement means? Have you been to Gilbert? The Phoenix metro area has over 5 million people. Gilbert blends right into Chandler and Mesa. There is no separation between cities. If you didn't know the city dividing lines by heart, then your only clue would be that the street signs look different from one city to the next.

If you don't want densely populated then you should consider outside the Phoenix metro area like the town of Maricopa. Or, I was just in the town of Dewey this weekend. It's just outside Prescott. The town is a sleepy bedroom community, but if you want to get to Prescott you have to fight all the traffic from the visitors from Phoenix and CA.

Wherever you choose you'll want to rent first before you buy.

[hikernut]

JFYI...

I saw a roaming band of leftists at the Gilbert Inn-N-Out last Tuesday. At first I thought it couldn’t be possible... leftists eating meat, let alone beef. But then I saw they were all wearing sandals and two of them even had a tattoo.

[belgirl]

So I have lived and worked all over in Arizona since 1978. I currently live in Gilbert and LOVE IT.

How expensive is it to live there (average utility costs?)
Gilbert is going to be cheaper than California, but housing costs are rising. You will be able to find something in your budget, but you will need to search east of downtown Gilbert to get more bang for your buck.

Is it a family friendly area?
Yep, pretty family friendly. Considered one of the best cities/towns to live in. Here is a good article that explains why: https://www.bizjournals.com/phoenix/...ces-lists.html

Are neighbors usually friendly, easy to build friendships with? I wouldn't say people are overly friendly here and never have been. (it's not Texas..lol) I would say people are polite, and like someone said earlier we are more of a "open the garage door, wave hi and go inside our home" sort of peeps. Nicer than most people in California? Probably.

What are some Pros and Cons of living in this town?
Do you consider Mormons a negative? Because there are ALOT of Mormons in Gilbert. If you are Ok with that, then you will be just fine.

Is there a trend towards leftists gaining leadership positions in this area?
If you look at a voting map, Gilbert is a Republican stronghold and will be for some time. But like others have noted, alot of liberals from California and other jacked up states are moving here which has changed the political/moral landscape in almost every other major city here. But I am all for more conservatives like yourself moving here to change that. Feel free to PM me if you have any other questions.

Read more: https://www.city-data.com/forum/phoen...#ixzz5siNFRtau

[JGMotorsport64]

Super vague post. I’ll be frank:

What you want you cannot afford here. You cannot afford land. you might get a small tract home in an exurb.

Despite its reputation, Arizona, and more specifically its urban areas, are not deep red and in some spots quite blue. They’re not blue due solely to Californians, Arizona has always had that dynamic due to its libertarian leanings—i.e. right wing fundies (evangelical types) don’t fare well, and Tucson, which is historically blue. Left politics here are not nanny state politics like Oregon or Illinois. They’re social policies like gay marriage and minimum wage as well as less harsh policies toward immigration. It’s getting more blue by the day here as well.

You might make a few likeminded friends saying things like leftists or whatnot but on the whole using terms like that gets you nowhere with most people.

You seem like you’d be a better fit for the Midwest or South where it’s cheaper and reliably conservative

[Slater]

Arizona is very much a firearms-friendly state. Assuming you have no legal restrictions/issues, you can own as many of these as you want. Most Third-World armies aren't as well armed as Arizona.

[belgirl]

Originally Posted by JGMotorsport64

Super vague post. I’ll be frank:

What you want you cannot afford here. You cannot afford land. you might get a small tract home in an exurb.

Despite its reputation, Arizona, and more specifically its urban areas, are not deep red and in some spots quite blue. They’re not blue due solely to Californians, Arizona has always had that dynamic due to its libertarian leanings—i.e. right wing fundies (evangelical types) don’t fare well, and Tucson, which is historically blue. Left politics here are not nanny state politics like Oregon or Illinois. They’re social policies like gay marriage and minimum wage as well as less harsh policies toward immigration. It’s getting more blue by the day here as well.

You might make a few likeminded friends saying things like leftists or whatnot but on the whole using terms like that gets you nowhere with most people.

You seem like you’d be a better fit for the Midwest or South where it’s cheaper and reliably conservative

While AZ has always had an "independent streak" there have always been more Republicans registered since about 1986:

Democrat: 669,741
Republican: 702,274
Other: 176,244

Through each election cycle you slowly see that independent number grow. It's gone from 176K in 1986 to over 1.2 million in 2019--almost equal to Republicans. Some like myself became independent because we are sick of both parties and it used to be that many independents were conservative--but that has changed in AZ and that's simply because of the influx of people from liberal states. Austin, TX is another place that has been overrun with liberal Californians.

Ironically, Arizona has some of the biggest evangelical megachurches in the country, so its an interesting mix of people.

[ginasantiago]

Wow....what a conversation.
Visit before you make a decision. Spend as much time as you can in the area you think you want to move to. Make sure you read your HOA agreement before purchase. We've lived in New York, Toranto and California and I sometimes feel like the traffic came with us. Keep that in mind if you travel to work. Also, experience the summer weather.
AZ is different and we are slowly getting comfortable living here part time. Budget wise it is very affordable. We've been here for one year and my observation is that people- for the most part -are friendly and helpful. We currently live 4 months in Maricopa and there certainly is a unique blend of people. I must confess they are older people since we reside in an "active adult" community
Politically, it's like any place else. It is my opinion and only my opinion that the climate is more leftist and it appears that that is the direction it will continue to go.
There are some charming communities in AZ other than Gilbert. It depends on what your needs are and what your wants are.