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Hi all,

Just puting it out there to our Arizona members, or those familiar with Arizona.....I'm looking at purchasing a freehold single family dwelling in Arizona in the next couple years, but don't necessarily know where to look.
Ideally, I want to bring the Pinz, so I need to be relatively close to some cool desert locale.
Other than that, I want a reasonably respectable, low crime area and possibly some nice mountain view.
Home will ideally have a garage and a pool. Other than that, it's all in the planning phase.
Any geographical suggestions would be appreciated!
tx Dave

I'll jump in. First that is really not enough information to get you into the right location. Arizona is a fairly large, open place. My first concern is what you might consider "desert" and what temperature ranges you can deal with. Second would be price range, there are very diverse housing and neighborhoods available. Would you be thinking of a southern city like Tucson or a northern city with a higher desert like Prescott. You also have the option of the Phoenix metro and surrounding areas or the smaller towns. Your basic description would put you in just about half the state. Are you needing to be near a job or retirement?
There is definitely something in this state that fits the bill just need to dial in exactly what you are thinking of.

Ok, let's get more specific....I am good with high temps, the hotter the better. I am not looking for work, this is a vacation home/retirement investment.
By desert, I am looking for something near by that I can do some Pinz trekking, but I don't want to have to drive an hour to get there.
Price range is under 100K, but not a 20K disaster. Proabably in the 60-75K range (so not Scottsdale or something like that...I don't drive a Porche.)
Everything else is open to suggestion.

tx Dave

There's a lot of deals in Lake Havasu. The offroading is all around, Laughlin and Bullhead City aren't too far.

Several years ago I bought 5 acres in Chino Vly. (approx.14 mi. north of Prescott). Elevation is about 4700 ft. This week average high is about 100, in the winter it gets into the low 30s/sometimes the mid-high 20s. Snow is minimal (3-6"). Mostly rolling grass land with some scrub oak. Some areas near Prescott at a higher elevation, may have pine trees. I now have reduced my property to 2 1/2 acres and have a good sized house and a large garage. Offroading is very nice, lower desert is not that far away.
Cheers, Stevo

the under 100K is going to keep you out of the larger metro areas. I am not up on the prices for the smaller communities scattered around the state. The sierra vista are is great as it is close to lots of fabulous trails but like everything there is a cost. The wonderful illegal problem (oh yeah obama says it does not exist) with the loss of property and damage that some experience in the southern part of the state. Even our AZGF department has a black line on it noting possible problems. Been a while since I have been through the Chino Valley area but the Havasu/Parker area has some fantastic wheeling and Laughlin, NV is just over the hill.
Arizona still has lots of places to get offroad, although they are closing fast. The new BLM and forest service policy of "closed unless marked open" is going to be a real eye opener for some folks when they start enforcing it. the grace period is now. I am sure the way things are going it won't be long before the tickets start flying.

I guess you are just going to have to come down and hit the trails and check out different areas to see which you prefer.

I guess you are just going to have to come down and hit the trails and check out different areas to see which you prefer.[/quote]

Looks like this is the best idea....good excuse anyway!

stevo wrote:Several years ago I bought 5 acres in Chino Vly. (approx.14 mi. north of Prescott). Elevation is about 4700 ft. This week average high is about 100, in the winter it gets into the low 30s/sometimes the mid-high 20s. Snow is minimal (3-6"). Mostly rolling grass land with some scrub oak. Some areas near Prescott at a higher elevation, may have pine trees. I now have reduced my property to 2 1/2 acres and have a good sized house and a large garage. Offroading is very nice, lower desert is not that far away.
Cheers, Stevo

This sounds quite nice, a bit out of my price range I'm sure, but a man can dream!

Looks like this is the best idea....good excuse anyway!

A little heads up and we can put a trip together of some of these areas. For me any excuse is a good excuse to get the truck rolling. Hey!.. its a new day, another great excuse.

A little heads up and we can put a trip together of some of these areas. For me any excuse is a good excuse to get the truck rolling. Hey!.. its a new day, another great excuse.[/quote]

For sure, I look forward to checking things out

You might be surprised, the economy is bad and there are LOTS of nice places at GOOD prices there. The job market in that area is pretty soft. A large number of residents are on a fixed income (like myself-retired). I have seen many places on the market for 3-4 years now, nice places with 2-3 and even sometimes 5-10 acres at a good price. One needs to drive around a bit to see what there is-unless you don't mind MLS realtors- seems to me that there are more realtors there than anything else.
Cheers, Stevo

stevo wrote:You might be surprised, the economy is bad and there are LOTS of nice places at GOOD prices there. The job market in that area is pretty soft. A large number of residents are on a fixed income (like myself-retired). I have seen many places on the market for 3-4 years now, nice places with 2-3 and even sometimes 5-10 acres at a good price. One needs to drive around a bit to see what there is-unless you don't mind MLS realtors- seems to me that there are more realtors there than anything else.
Cheers, Stevo

Hi Stevo,

That's what I have been noticing and hoping for. While I am sorry for those affected by the rough economy, it's an opportunity for myself to get a nice piece of property off the books for one of these banks. I've been cruising the MLS and am amazed at some of the homes (in need of a bit of love) going for 50%-75% less than I'd pay here. Certainly the motivating factor to invest!

tx Dave

seems to me that there are more realtors there than anything else.

What else are retired people to do?

I was looking to PV area when the economy turned south in the early '90s. Then people left LA and traffic became bearable .
A friend moved to PV in early 2000s and the area had gone from (what I remember) little towns to looking like Los Angeles suburbs ... where you needed road signs to let you know when you left one town and entered another.

I remember Chino Valley back in the '90s as so small, if you sneezed, you'd have driven through downtown ... loved it.

The general area is where I'd still like to move to... if I could move all my iron, and if the Supreme Court didn't uphold the portion of the Arizona immigration law that specifically named me..

"in the winter it gets into the low 30s/sometimes the mid-high 20s. Snow is minimal (3-6"). "

That's not winter!!! That's just 'bad skating'!!

Good call on looking at property Stiffler! I read this thread with great interest as I am leaning that way too. I feel terrible for all those people who have had financial difficulties over the last few years (there but for the grace of God go I...), but with our dollar close to par, and great prices, it seems like the way to go.

Heed wrote:"in the winter it gets into the low 30s/sometimes the mid-high 20s. Snow is minimal (3-6"). "

That's not winter!!! That's just 'bad skating'!!

Good call on looking at property Stiffler! I read this thread with great interest as I am leaning that way too. I feel terrible for all those people who have had financial difficulties over the last few years (there but for the grace of God go I...), but with our dollar close to par, and great prices, it seems like the way to go.

Ya, the investment is hard to ignore. And the lack of humidity is REALLY hard to ignore, especially on a day like today...holy crap it's hot and sticky here!!!