Moving to AZ - research thread

Yesterday was awesome - thanks for coming out.

 

good to know

 

do you guys heat your pools out there and swim this time of year when it’s 70s etc or do you “winterize” them?

 

I don't heat mine but use a solar cover from April to September. keeps the water warm (80's). No need to winterize, just run the filter a good portion of the day. Even though it was about 79 today and has been, without heating the water is too cold as is the air temp really. No real hard freeze, but to be safe run the filter in the early AM hours.

 

Zero tolerance DUI laws make me happy. https://www.hamplaw.com/arizona-dui...ona law, if a,an evidentiary breath, urine or

 

Lived in AZ for 10 years in the early 90's to the 2001. North Scottsdale 115th and Shea on the way to Fountain Hills, which was a very posh place then. $525 a month apartment at the base of the McDowell Mountains. I'll bet it's all built up out there now. Then I lived on 86th and Camelback right off of the wash with all the parks and bike trails. Then got a family and had to move to North Phoenix 19th ave and Cave Creek. I'll bet that's all built up too with all the highways they were building when I left. I would definitely consider Scottsdale again if it's not too expensive now. Maybe the outskirts part of it. Would be curious if the area between Fountain Hills and Mesa is built up now. I know a lot of it was the Pima Indian reservation but that was a cool place too. I used to watch the Apache helicopters do maneuvers in that area so maybe the government owns it.

One other place that was nice was Payson which was less than 45 minutes from the Valley. I actually Googled Earthed that place and it is certainly built up more than I was there but it was a tiny town back then. Looks like a pretty cool place now and is a little cooler than the Valley as it's in the lower part of Mogollon Rim or Rim Country as they called it. Rim country is incredible. The White Mountains were my favorite places to camp.

As far as the heat goes, I didn't mind it too much and I hate the heat. But this ain't FL heat. It's a dry heat so it doesn't make you sweat as soon as you walk outside. 105 is a comfortable day. And you only have to deal with it for 4-5 months then from late Oct to mid April is beautiful. 300+ days of sunshine a year. All kinds of stuff to do. Cactus league baseball if you're into that. I would love to live there again. So does my wife. We just Love our grandkids more and South NJ isn't as bad as the cement wasteland up north.

 

No heat and really nothing to winterize...just keep an eye on chemicals. What I do weekly in the summer I may do every 3-4 weeks this time of year, keeping the pump on the same schedule.

 

I was just thinking about this thread this week after thinking how great the weather had been up here in Northern Arizona (Prescott to be exact).

Hard to beat mid-60s and sunny with no wind in mid/late December

 

80* in the Valley today. Heading to the river on Sunday for the week and looking at mid 70's and mid 40's.

 

Saguaro River? Out by Saguaro lake? I went tubing out there somewhere. It was a blur. Do they still allow people to cliff jump at Saguaro lake?

 

Salt river or the dirty verde

 

That's a tad warm for my liking. I feel I shouldn't have to run the AC in December in my vehicle

 

It's funny for a lot of the population to think about, isn't it? The majority are running heat, but here, many still run a/c. It's...different.

 

I tolerate the ~4 harsh months in exchange for the ~ 8 months of fantasy I get in return. Pretty tough to aquire anywhere else. Each person's wants and needs are different.

 

Colorado... Ehrenburg, AZ

 

Yea we're running heat up in Prescott, but by noon time it's mid-60s and you can crack the windows and open the sunroof up. Pretty nice happy medium

 

I’m a residential, new home superintendent for a builder in Vail. There’s definitely a lot of new construction going on. I don’t pay a lot of attention to the resale market, but the homes we're building average 500k for 2200sf, on .19 acre lots with 5’ side yards (10’) between houses. Vail is a small town that has been booming, so it has newer, nicer feel with a sense of upper middle class. It might comparable to “new money” Oro Valley. I’d be happy to chat with you in more detail about the construction processes, if you’d like.
Edited to add: I work for a production builder that is considered the best in class. That is, we’re building production homes but offer our buyers many options and cater more to them than what you’d get from the DR Horton / KB / Lennar / Richmond America builders.

 

Agreed. I mention the lot size to dispel the myth for out-of-state buyers that might think they can buy a nice, custom home on several acres “in the desert” for 5-600k, only to find houses are much pricier without the land. That being said, we're currently building models for a new community of homes on 1 acre minimum lots that are 2600-3000 sq ft that offer RV garages in 750k range (can be had for less if you choose less options). This community is off of the 83 exit.

 

thanks for the offer, I may take you up on that at some point , I would be more interested in the latter setup , don’t want the smaller lot and close neighbors but appreciate that context for sure

 

What part are you in? The chart posted on the first page looks more like 6-7 months of intense heat. I'm guessing this gets worse every year.

Arizona is the only other state I've been to so far that I would like to live in someday. But it would have to be one of the higher elevation cities where the heat is more manageable. For the other cities it looks like you essentially can't do anything outside from May-Sept unless it involves water.

I really enjoy having four seasons in TN but your last sentence is true. Some people are fine with the oppressive heat if it means no winter.

I've learned a lot in this thread.

 

June - July - Aug - Sept can be intense.

May - Oct are hit or miss, but typically pretty tolerable. 95* here is not like 95* in the Midwest.


Where exactly in East TN are you? I'm considering TN for my next move (Benton Co area). I have to start one of these threads in the forum section.

 

I'm in Knoxville.

 

Even June-Aug is generally okay after sunset. Although Phoenix basin, Maricopa County, Yuma County, and Western Pinal County are definitely hotter than Tucson area and most parts of Pima County (still hot), even at night. Cochise, Santa Cruz, Graham counties can be very nice. Of course Northern Arizona is nice in the Summer. But much colder in the Winter.

 

^ this

I die when its 95 here in those months

95 out there isnt shit.

 

I guess that's good for vampires. Still seems pretty damn hot during the day but I'm sure you get used to it.

The avg temps in Flagstaff seem pretty moderate to me, even in winter.

 

I'm in Gold Canyon, Erik. Far east valley of Phoenix area. I tolerate it because I love the culture and lifestyle. I am active and rarely indoors, so this climate suits me and the things I'm involved in and enjoy. There are many suitable locations to the north, as well.

Edit: I should add that I also like that I can be at a beach within hours in one direction and then be in the rugged old-west within hours in another direction.

 

It's 69 degrees now in Prescott at 430pm on the first day of winter. Not really all that cold

 

It’s 75 in the valley, I was about to start a fire out back…..