I'm thinking about moving to Phoenix. Can someone tell me the ups and downs from an insider's perspective? I've read a lot on wikipedia (and searched it on google earth); it looks beautiful!
by 
bolilla
ANSWERS: 15
-
I once said it was a good family town, but Phoenix was too hot for me when I departed in the 70's and it is getting hotter due to the heat retention of the asphalt and concrete of all the city infrastructure. I visit Phoenix now and am glad that I live in a small town 2 hours north. There are a great deal of job opportunities if you are in computers and electronics and a few other industries. The traffic is infuriating, people drive 50 to 60mph on streets posted 40mph and wonder why the traffic light is always red. Several have been clocked at over 100mph on the 101 fwy by photo radar and don't care who they kill. The smog is now an issue too. Still the area keeps growing. I like Carefree area if you can afford it. Anthem is a brand new development to consider for housing. Housing is generally more affordable than other major cities.
-
I live in phoenix myself and it isn't that bad. The up is no oceans so there is hardley any flodds. Plus there is swimming and lots of it. The down is it's hot very hot even inside the house and the traffic sucks!!
-
I used to commute on the weekends back and forth from Chicago. They are 2 different worlds. In Chicago you are thrust into a busy world of concrete, apartment buildings, no parking, crooked politicians, traffic jams on expressway and cross-town, freezing waiting for the 'L' trains. In Phoenix my cab ride was viewing the mountains and wide open spaces. I live by 56th St & Bell, Scottsdale. It's 'inland' enough so that the coyotes don't take your cats and small dogs. Just a few miles east of there I was at an apartment complex and someone said that a guy lost 3 of his cats in a month. There's also scorpions if you live on the desert. In fairness Chicago has a beautiful lakefront, if you can find a place to park, great restaurants, museums, clubs. Phoenix is much more laid-back, although Scottsdale has a lot of places to go eat. Customer service is better - more polite overall. Unless you have to take I10 (the main drag to LA) or I17, traffic's not that bad, and there's a lot of places within a 3-6 hours, like CA, Las Vegas, Mexico - Chicago just has the Wisconsin Dells - yuck!
-
i dont know I’ve lived in phx all of my life and i love it yes some traffic but that’s everywhere and the heat is only unbearable during summer other than that a laid back kind great place to live and even raise kids if you have any if not oh well i think you will love phx the way that i do and it really is beautiful when you go out somewhere away from the buildings and all the hustle and bustle of any city then you can enjoy the real beauty of phx my city!
-
I was born in Arizona and I know it can be unbelivably beautiful but the summers are brutal!
-
I'm from Arizona and I've lived in different parts of the valley. I prefer the North side, like Deer Valley or further North. The East valley used to be good, but I would not recomment it now. Enjoy AZ.
-
I live 100 miles North of Phoenix, I used to Live in Scottsdale, this is my thoughts.... Pro's: great job economy lots of entertainment large city (if thats what you like) nice in the winter months Con's: Very hot! in the summer I've seen it at 120 degrees very dry heat large city (If thats not what you like) smoggy congested traffic too many freeways you can get lost ghetto in some places expensive in the nicer areas AZ has one of the lowest standards of education Want to know anything else....just ask.
-
It gets up to 115 degrees in the summer, phoenix is trashy in some places like west phoenix. Move to mesa its better. I dont think its that pretty at all and there isnt much to do here. no communty pools or oceans. its so boring. but it is cheap here and at first youd think were mean but were really friendly. we just hate snowbirds so were grouchy.
-
can you say hotter than hell, nasty and trashy? why not move to the nicer areas like, flagstaff somewhere closer to the mountains and away from the ghetto scene? JMO
-
Its great in the winter, I hate the summers, just to darn hot!!!
-
Its okay if you like the heat
-
I'm from Nebraska but have and have had relatives in Phoenix and the area. We have visited in both winter and summer and have found the weather to be great in the winter. We have visited in the summer and found the heat to be almost unbearable. Thanks for the AC. Traffic is not fun. Another person mentioned the drivers. During the rush hour it is brutal dispite the new highways and new construction. Getting lost, yes you can do that, probably in any large city. I would be a "snowbird" but wouldn't live there in the summer.
-
I've lived in Phoenix and surrounding suburbs for 9 years now. Living on the east side of town is the way to go, specifically Tempe. The weather in Phoenix is nice year round. Sure it gets hot in the summer, but only for a couple of months, and the beautiful winters and springs more than compensate for that. It's motorcycle year round which makes it a great place for me. The job marketplace is great, and the cost of living is rather low. The only real downsides are the lack of functional public transportation (allegedly to be fixed with the light rail) and the fact that the city pretty much closes at 10:30pm. For being one of the most populated cities in the country you'd figure there'd be more 24 hour chinese restaurants and coffee shops... or any at all. One MAJOR upside for my friends and I is that Phoenix, next to LA, pretty much has the most active electronic music scene in the country.
-
if you're moving to the phoenix area, make sure to move in the east valley, not the west. try to live some place where you are at least 5 miles away from a wal-mart.
-
1-21-2017 Phoenix used to be a nice little town in the desert, but the east half has been completely taken over by yuppies and monied types. If you go to a restaurant in Scottsdale, expect to get water sprayed in your face. The wealthier parts of the area have lakes and fountains and even f**king WEEPING WILLOW TREES! Phoenix covers over 400 square miles, and even its bedroom communities are the biggest cities in the state. Half the state lives in "Greater Phoenix". Be careful when driving. If your car gets in front of another on a public street, the other driver might discharge a pistol in your general direction.
Jewels Vern RELATED QUESTIONS
Copyright 2023, Wired Ivy, LLC