Work in Nogales, live in Tucson? (Green Valley, Sahuarita: apartment, to rent, houses)

[Du Ma]

My wife and I are thinking about moving to Tucson/Nogales area from California. My work is in Nogales, but I want to live in Tucson. We are a young couple with no children...yet.


Any recommendations? Thanks in advance.

[tumamoc]

The Sahuarita-Green Valley area will put you closer to Nogales and still have easy access to Tucson. Both towns have grown a lot in last few years, especially Sahuarita.

[jlawrence01]

If I had children, I would select Sahuarita over Green Valley. There are MANY more families there and the schools are pretty decent.

The problem with Green Valley is that the overwhelming majority of residences are 55+ which means that the average age is over 70. Do remember that NOT all houses in Green Valley is NOT all age restricted. I am not very impressed with the Continental school in Green Valley.

However, if you do not have children, I would look at the many residences in Santa Cruz Co. There are many really nice homes around the Nogales Country Club north of town.

The question that I have to ask you is whether you really want to commute the 70 miles from Nogales to Tucson twice a day. That is a long haul even in good weather. And that 70 might be 80 or 90 as some of the most desirable housing is not south of town.

[RichCapeCod]

As another poster mentioned, that's gonna be a long commute. If you live in Sahuarita, around 80 miles round trip. That's a big chunk of change out of your income (not only for fuel, but tires, maintenance and car replacement), just for commuting. Not to mention the time lost just driving back and forth to work.

I think you'd be better living in Nogales (there are some very nice places to live around the town), or in Rio Rico. Then, when you wish to go to Tucson, just go!!

When I worked in the NYPD I commuted from between 100 to 130 miles a day to and from work (Orange County NY to the Bronx or Manhattan). Nutty. Never would do that again!!

Rich

[jlawrence01]

^^^

I also forgot to add in the 2-20 minutes that you will spend waiting at the Border Patrol Check Point just north of Tubac.

Personally, some of the craziest drivers on I-19 are the commuters between Nogales and Tucson in the morning. Since they have a long commute and get a late start, they exceed the speed limit. In the morning, that can be an expensive mistake as there are a MINIMUM of two Arizona State Highway Patrolman on Northbound I-19 from 5 am - 9 pm.

[Staylor0977]

We are relocated to Sahuarita, in the next 9 months the home we are building should be done. My mother lives there now and works is Tucson. We have been to Nogales many times. Sahuarita is a very nice clean family friendly community. If you can I would suggest doing a pre-move visit to check out the towns and look at the schools and housing.

[Du Ma]

Originally Posted by tumamoc

The Sahuarita-Green Valley area will put you closer to Nogales and still have easy access to Tucson. Both towns have grown a lot in last few years, especially Sahuarita.

Thanks. I probably will rent first before I purchase a home.


Any good apartment to rent in Sahuarita-Green Valley area? My budget is $1000 or less/month.

[Bummer]

Originally Posted by Du Ma

Thanks. I probably will rent first before I purchase a home.


Any good apartment to rent in Sahuarita-Green Valley area? My budget is $1000 or less/month.

Sounds like an excellent decision, Du Ma . . .

I relocated to Northwest Tucson / Tucson Mall area about twenty years ago and love it. I have driven down I-19 a number of times, however, as a daily commute it could become a mini-nightmare.
Good Luck.

[bkolodzi]

Originally Posted by Du Ma

Thanks. I probably will rent first before I purchase a home.


Any good apartment to rent in Sahuarita-Green Valley area? My budget is $1000 or less/month.

I have not seen these on the inside, but you have quick access to I-19, close to many stores, fast food, gas station, etc.


http://www.sandstoneridgeapt.com/


If you want quality of life, I would not suggest living in Tucson and working in Nogales. Depending where you would live in Tucson, time of day and freeway conditions, you could have a 2 hour commute one way! From my life experience, living close to where you work is a far better option than commuting. Living in Nogales would be best in terms of having restaurants, grocery stores, doctors, etc. You could choose Rio Rico which is 8 to 10 miles north, or Tubac which is about 20 miles north, but with either you would have a commute, but far shorter than Tucson to Nogales. Both of those would be south of the Border Patrol check point just north of Tubac so you would not have to deal with that on a daily basis. The checkpoint is not the end of the earth, but sometimes it is very busy and you can wait a while. Here is a link to a video I took going through the check point a few months ago:



https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ngOpdOvbEjU


I hope you find this information helpful. Also, FYI, the less time spent on any highway, the less the odds that you will be in or affected by an accident. I-19 has it's fair share of accidents, several are fatal.

[jlawrence01]

Originally Posted by bkolodzi

I hope you find this information helpful. Also, FYI, the less time spent on any highway, the less the odds that you will be in or affected by an accident. I-19 has it's fair share of accidents, several are fatal.

Unfortunately a few of them have been Border Patrol employees falling asleep on their way home after a long shift. Going off the road at the posted speed limit of 75 mph seldom results in a positive outcome.