OT - Possibly moving and need info...

[NikonJeff]

My wife and I are contemplating a move out of New York State - We are both IT people (I'm harware and shes software). I had heard that Pheonix was a really nice place to live and the cost of homes was reasonable.

Are there any board members that live in or near Pheonix or the surrounding areas that gan give me some feedback on cost of living, crime, schools, jobs etc....

Any help would be appreciated. Plus I would love not to have any more snow and salt on my cars, or motorcycle...

Jeff Guntert
Schenectady, NY
95 540i 6spd
97 K1100LT

[ejhiggins]

Hi there Jeff my name is Emilio and i live in Phoenix, i've been here for 8 years and lovin it Phoenix is a great city to live in, the wheather is fabulous for 9 months out the year, it's only really hot from june through august when the temps could hit 118F and the humidity is around 50 to 60% but at one and a half hour to the north is Flagstaff, Sedona and Presscot small cities up in the high country where the wheather is perfect that time of the year(75 to 80 degrees) and it's where most people go away for weekends or holydays . Like any other city it has good and bad areas and crime and schools depend upon which neighborhood you live in, most good neighborhoods are to the north northeast and northwest of the city (glendale peoria scottsdale and north phoenix). Cost of living compared to NY is going to be really cheap specially real state. Since we dont get any snow you could drive your 540 year round , i have a 540 also, there is a couple of good auto shops that specialize on bmw's only. My wife is a realtor so if she could be of any help let me know.

[NikonJeff]

Hi Emilio - I've heard that the real estate is good out there. In my area of NY, the housing market is going through the roof - we built a house 2 years ago for $240k and they start at almost $400k right around the corner (literally) from us. I think we would do well if we sold the house soon and relocated.

If your wife's company has a website that would be great! We're still in the evaluation stage right now, but Pheonix is one of the cities that peaked my interest.

Jeff

[Robin-535im]

I moved there from Boston - it is about as different from the east coast as you can possibly get! I loved Boston and Phoenix too so different != bad.

Housing is much cheaper there - plan on $100/sf for an average-to-nice house. The place is growing like gangbusters so don't worry about buying a house that is out in the boonies today, it will be in the center of town in a few years.

Tempe has a great school district (the "Kyrene" school district as it is known).

Take a trip out there and kick around for a while. I would move back there if I had a reason to. The weather is great, you don't notice the heat after the first few months, and man is it nice to walk around in shorts in February!

If I were to buy a house I'd get something in Scottsdale, Tempe near the university (ASU), or up north in Cave Creek, due north of Scottsdale. Land values in Cave Creek have about doubled in the past few years.

HTH

Robin

[Kalevera]

Lol....

!=

Way to speak the language, robin :)

best, lowell