Moving to Tempe (apartment complexes, university, living in)

[DiscoDan]

For some unknown reason I've always been supernaturally drawn to Arizona and will be moving to Tempe this coming May, right after I graduate from college.

I've only visited the state once but loved it, and the idea of living in a mystic desert sounds utterly delicious and inspiring (I'm a writer).

I'll be moving from Oklahoma. Is there anything specific I should know about before moving there? Apartment complexes to avoid? Streets with regrettable reputations?

I'm young and college-aged, but more bookish than social butterfly, so I'm not entirely interested in living next to a bunch of party kids.. yet I'd like to live around people my own age, too.

Any other general information about AZ and Tempe specifically would be amazingly helpful.

[observer53]

There really aren't any streets to avoid in Tempe. Once you get out of the immediate area around the University, you can find apartment complexes that still have a lot of younger people in them, but are not primarily "student housing". Tempe has the best public transit options in the Valley, a good parks, rec and library department with all kinds of special interest classes, and just a nice suburban feel. And, the University is a great asset when you want it, in terms of cultural and educational opportunities.

You don't say anything about job issues, so I won't discuss commuting, etc.