Move to Phoenix, AZ???? Please Help!!
 

Hi All,
Been a while since I posted, everything went well with my move to Los Angeles, then I became single and it took a while to get back to a point of happiness in myself and being around here....

Anyway, skip ahead 2 years and my partner of 5 months has been offered a great opportunity in Phoenix AZ. I like her a lot, want to be supportive but I am fearful (more so than of L.A or even Vegas, which was another option).

I have never been to Phoenix, I know nothing about it, good areas to live, bad areas to live. Will I drive more, less, the same as in Los Angeles?

I am 30 she is 28 and we both like upmarket restaurants and craft beers, from what I can see about Phoenix its one big suburbs which is great if you have kids. Not so great for people wanting a bit of excitement, but maybe I am wayyyy off the mark.

I had a quick look at the IT job market out there and it seems people get paid much less than in L.A. But the cost of living is considerably less too.

Hoping the ever mindful sages among you can give me some insight on nightlife, neighbourhoods and IT career prospects. Especially as the areas biggest employer is Walmart :(

Thanks all!
Ned

Re: Move to Phoenix, AZ???? Please Help!!
 

As a Dinky? look at Scottsdale and Tempe, both have a broader nightlife than the rest of the burbs

Re: Move to Phoenix, AZ???? Please Help!!
 

Ok thanks.

What's a dinky?

Re: Move to Phoenix, AZ???? Please Help!!
 

Dual Income No Kids Yet

Re: Move to Phoenix, AZ???? Please Help!!
 

Ahhh haha I like that. :-)

Re: Move to Phoenix, AZ???? Please Help!!
 

Downtown Phoenix is trying to be the cool hip area to live, though I'm not sure how it defines its boundaries.

Re: Move to Phoenix, AZ???? Please Help!!
 

Hi there!

I live in Mesa and work in downtown Tempe. Downtown Tempe has the kind of bars/restaurants/walkable area that you might enjoy, but is also a heavily student-populated area, as it's right next to the ASU campus.

My guess is that you will drive a lot less than you are doing in LA, although of course the Phoenix metro area is HUGE, and driving from the southeastern point to the northwestern point can take a couple of hours in non-rush hour traffic.

Scottsdale is more upscale than Tempe, but I don't go there too often so I'm not sure exactly which areas have bars/restaurants/walkable area, except for maybe the Scottsdale Fashion Mall area (Camelback and Scottsdale Road).

Yes, cost of living is quite a bit less than LA. My husband works most of the time in West Hollywood, and I stay at home here in Phoenix. We own a 1,010 SF condo and pay $530-ish for the mortgage. He rents a tiny 1-bedroom apartment in W Hollywood and pays $1,300 a month.

The only thing to be afraid of in Phoenix is the 100+ temps in the summer, but if you have access to a pool you'll be fine. :) Absolutely everywhere has air conditioning.

Rene

Re: Move to Phoenix, AZ???? Please Help!!
 

I liked Tempe when I lived in the area, good nightlife well back when I lived there anyhow, imagine it still is due to the university being there, but then you may not be interested in dealing with all the college age folks that go out as well.

I didn't care for Phoenix proper, seemed like a pretty boring city overall. I was only there for work (an airline) who is still a large employer, but will be moving most jobs out of state to Texas in the coming months.

You will likely drive less, Phoenix region while large still, each mini-region offers more or less all your daily needs, so you generally don't have to go far for errands and the like and wont find yourself most likely going from one end to the other on a regular basis unless you create a commute for yourself.

Tempe was fun though, but I was 21 at the time...lol

Re: Move to Phoenix, AZ???? Please Help!!
 

Nip over for a weekend...

Re: Move to Phoenix, AZ???? Please Help!!
 

Well you'll drive further most likely but it's not quite as crowded so the traffic isn't as appalling.

If you're working in IT you're probably going to be in the east valley, Tempe/Mesa sort of area which is typical American middle-class dross of shopping plazas and cookie cutter houses.

A lot of people will tell you how wonderful Scottsdale is, well it is mainly middle-class dross too, take it with a pinch of salt. What they really mean is that it is mostly white people, unlike the rest of the Phoenix area.

Well it's full of retirees puttering around golf courses. I doubt anyone would say it's as "exciting" as L.A.

Re: Move to Phoenix, AZ???? Please Help!!
 

Downtown Phoenix has to be the most boring and dull downtown area of any major city in the US. Okay there is the convention centre and a few other odds and ends but it's pretty dire.

Re: Move to Phoenix, AZ???? Please Help!!
 

Yeah, not saying I agree. Roosevelt row and that area where they do first friday.

Re: Move to Phoenix, AZ???? Please Help!!
 

Sounds like it has Jacksonville beat already?

Re: Move to Phoenix, AZ???? Please Help!!
 

Check out some posts by Steerpike (or PM him.) He splits his time between No. Cal. and Scottsdale Arizona. He's also part of a couple, with no kids, who likes eating out (a lot). He also works in IT.

I'm sure he'd be happy to help answer some of your questions.

Re: Move to Phoenix, AZ???? Please Help!!
 

There's the Rose & Crown pub I think it is. Has some very pseudo British type food.

Re: Move to Phoenix, AZ???? Please Help!!
 

When you come down I-17 onto I-10 you can see all these glittering skyscrapers in the distance and you think: "oooh, that looks interesting" and then you pull into downtown and wonder why you did. And if it's the summer the objective seems to be to blind you with mirrored buildings at the same time you're about to die from heat exhaustion.

Re: Move to Phoenix, AZ???? Please Help!!
 

We're not doing a good job of selling Phoenix are we? That said, the AZ legislators don't make it easy to like this place.

Arcadia's not too bad.

Re: Move to Phoenix, AZ???? Please Help!!
 

I love the location of Phoenix in that it's a few hours south of pine trees and cooler weather in Flagstaff/Sedona/Grand Canyon. It's only about 5 hours to go east to even bigger mountains (White Mountains) with great skiiing in the winter, lots of small towns with forest and cabins, and then a couple of hours south to more deserty stuff if that's what you like.

Rene

Re: Move to Phoenix, AZ???? Please Help!!
 

Oh yes, I'll just call up the Phoenix Tourist board and suggest a new slogan for them:

"Phoenix, it's close to other places"

Re: Move to Phoenix, AZ???? Please Help!!
 

There are lots of things to do in Arizona, endless national monuments and parks, not sure that appeals to a young about-the-town couple.

I like the Apache Trail, I do laugh at Americans though who think it is a "tough" road.

Re: Move to Phoenix, AZ???? Please Help!!
 

LOL yeah, I guess that STILL wasn't a positive thing for Phoenix! LOL

Oh well, I do like living in Phoenix and so far in my travels haven't found anywhere else in the USA that I prefer. I did like Seattle, but maybe that's because I rarely see rain and I love rain. But if I saw it every day, I might not like it as much.

Rene

Re: Move to Phoenix, AZ???? Please Help!!
 

Phoenix - slightly less old people per capita than Scottsdale;

Phoenix - where the term: "Sheriff's Posse" is still in common use;

Phoenix - highest tag fees in the country and we still only give you one licence plate;

Phoenix - where old white people gather together to moan about latino people;

Phoenix - the Sheriff of our county is 81 years old, which is considered middle-aged;

Phoenix - we built the ugliest State Capitol building just to piss off Frank Lloyd Wright;

Phoenix - we have so many immigrants that we put our USCIS office in a refurbished supermarket;

Phoenix - we're passing a State law to discriminate against gays, but one of our largest employers is Cox;

Phoenix - our convention centre has a Hooters!

Re: Move to Phoenix, AZ???? Please Help!!
 

Yes you can go down to Nogales and look at that wide-open Schengen-style border that RoadWarriorLP was on about in the other thread.

Re: Move to Phoenix, AZ???? Please Help!!
 

Stealing that one.

Re: Move to Phoenix, AZ???? Please Help!!
 

You have lower taxes, more freedoms, and more choices in the state of Arizona then California..

IT is growing in the South West for the following reasons

Cheap Land
Low Regulations
Low Taxes
Right to Work Laws
Low Power costs

Arizona, Nevada, Utah have all of those

California is regulation nation, and is hemorrhage jobs and job creators...

Re: Move to Phoenix, AZ???? Please Help!!
 

More then California now?

Re: Move to Phoenix, AZ???? Please Help!!
 

Yes slightly better then California, but not by much. AZ ranks 42 vs California's 47.

I'd still rather live in California, couldn't pay me to live in AZ again.

Phoenix region is also losing at least one large corporate HQ and support jobs in the coming months, and will likely see a reduction in air service in the next 2-3 years, but you will have a nice big airport with empty gates. ;)

Re: Move to Phoenix, AZ???? Please Help!!
 

Phoenix is a better IT location because it is less disaster prone than California. That is the only real reason. Income taxes are a bit lower too.

Has been for a long time as far as I'm aware, Arizona has this weird two-tier fee, the registration fee then an add-on for the value of the vehicle so at first glance the fee looks really low but actually they're the highest in the US, AFAIK. This explains it, sort of: http://www.azdot.gov/media/blog/post...es-calculated-

I always think it's dumb because it makes people drive cars that are falling to bits, they'd earn more from sales tax revenue if people went out and bought new cars.

Re: Move to Phoenix, AZ???? Please Help!!
 

I think "more freedoms" is a relative term, okay you can carry a handgun concealed without a permit but they do like to crack down on immigrants and gays, etc. which works against them.

And no water. How are the power costs lower? News to me.

Re: Move to Phoenix, AZ???? Please Help!!
 

Just ate there yesterday. The place is going down hill, they are dropping British meals from the menu. They used to have the best sausage rolls but no longer sell them. Your are now limited to just bangers & mash, fish and chips and shepherds pie. I had the shepherds pie which was just OK but the menu said it comes with Yorkshire pudding which I was looking forward too but it never came :sneaky: I did have a nice couple of pints of Fullers ESB though.

You are much better off at the George and Dragon food wise.

Re: Move to Phoenix, AZ???? Please Help!!
 

That makes sense if they are doing a 2 fee system of sorts, its been awhile since I owned a car in either state, California to the best of my knowledge is also based on value of the car or some scheme they have, I know the newer the car, the more you pay.

Re: Move to Phoenix, AZ???? Please Help!!
 

Rula Bula in Tempe is meant to be pretty good. Irish rather than British but apparently good fish and chips. I keep meaning to go there but always end up somewhere else.

I fear going to the George and Dragon, keep reading bad things about it.

Re: Move to Phoenix, AZ???? Please Help!!
 

I had the sausage roll at the Rose & Crown, wasn't that impressed tbh.

Either of you been to this place: http://thebritishopenpub.com/ ?

Re: Move to Phoenix, AZ???? Please Help!!
 

I had to move here, only job going after the dot com bust. Well here or Miami.

We love it here. But i'm no so much concerned with statistics and corporations and jobs will come and go as they do everywhere else i'm sure.

I live in north west, but not too far north west (sun city etc). I'm still within the loop 101. OP needs to avoid that area for sure !!!

Really i should be down the south east as I'm in IT but as of now i've changed job twice since moving here and always managed to get a job with a less than 12 mile commute.

Sounds like the OP needs to be down south east. Lot of nightlife due to the university but is mostly students. To be honest I've only been down to Tempe & Chandler once or twice. I would have to say Phoenix is not a great place to be single. Scottsdale is also a possibility. Lots of restaurants, bars and nightclubs etc with a more mature crowd. But it has a more snotty reputation and attracts posers. Scottsdale nightclubs do not have dance floors.

Re: Move to Phoenix, AZ???? Please Help!!
 

Not a great area and I've never stayed until closing. I've been mostly to eat and then leave, lunch or early evening. I've also been to watch a football game, quite a rowdy atmosphere, plastic cups only etc.

I got talking to a British couple who were sat next to use one night. He spent most of the conversation trying to convince me as a Brit I should move closer to the George and Dragon. Also that his 16 year old son what settling in well because he had been with all these girls etc.

Re: Move to Phoenix, AZ???? Please Help!!
 

sausage meat comes from the local schreiners, not perfect but close enough.

http://www.schreinerssausage.com/

I've not been to the British Open pub its the opposite end of the metro area for us. I need to make an effort to go.

I get to go to the Rose and Crown a few times a year as we lunch there when we visit the Arizona science center or childrens museum with the kids.

I also need to go to the cornish pasty company too.

Re: Move to Phoenix, AZ???? Please Help!!
 

Hi,

I live in Scottsdale, I am much older than you, but my younger friends really enjoy themselves. Make a weekend of to find out for yourself:)

Re: Move to Phoenix, AZ???? Please Help!!
 

So have you been here: http://thebritishopenpub.com/

Re: Move to Phoenix, AZ???? Please Help!!
 

I work right across the street from Rula Bula, I love their fish and chips. They have good Shepards Pie too, although I'm not from that side of the pond so have nothing original to compare it to.

I liked the food at the George and Dragon at the 48th Street location. Never been to the one downtown.

Rene

Re: Move to Phoenix, AZ???? Please Help!!
 

I've been to the Cornish Pasty place in both the Tempe and the Mesa locations. Wasn't really fond of either of them.

Rene