Former Colorado people living in Arizona? (Phoenix, Tucson: 2014, renting, car registration)

[Hschlick84]

Are there any recent former Colorado people living in Arizona? What brought you out here? What do you like better about Arizona compared to Colorado and what did you miss from back home? Post your thoughts and opinions.

[vfrpilot]

We moved from Monument to Avondale last Nov. We moved to be closer to our daughters in San Diego without actually moving back to that mess. After renting a nice home in Garden Lakes for a few months, we bought a home in an older development with larger equestrian lots and no HOA. It feels much different than most of the developments in the Phoenix area. Hopefully, it will feel cooler surrounded by grass and trees.
We lived in AZ in the 70's and 80's, so we know what to expect weatherwise. I do miss the crazy Colorado weather. Weather here is pretty boring. I think it went 70 days without rain in Feb/March/April.
I like the feeling of living in a rural neighborhood, but still close to major shopping and services. Getting around is fairly easy because of the lack of hills and the street lay out. While the scenery here is OK if you live close to the surrounding mountains, I really miss the tree covered hills of Monument with Pikes Peak in the background.
I realize there are pro's and con's for every location. Here's a few for Avondale (not all AZ)>
Pro> car registration is very reasonable
Con> emission testing (gotta find a pre 66 project)
Pro> great winter wx
Con> brutal summer wx
Pro> use the same tires year round
Con> the sun/heat damage to vinyl/rubber/paint
Pro> You can buy and plant almost anything year round
Con> The sun and wind will toast a lot of stuff that you can buy and plant
Pro> Only 5 hour drive to San Diego
Con> 5 hour drive to San Diego
Pro> Flood irrigation is reasonable, and keeps my grass and trees looking like a park. Kinda fun too.
Con> Had to get up at 4 something Saturday morning to open valves and monitor the flow of water for an hour and 15 min.
Summary> I am enjoying AZ so far. Can't say if it's better than CO. I think it all depends on individual circumstances.

[ajonesaz]

Originally Posted by vfrpilot

Pro> car registration is very reasonable
.

Wow what are they charging for registration in CO, I always felt AZ was among the most expensive.

[Hschlick84]

I paid $164 to renew my license plate registration last year, 2010 Mazda 3 hatchback. Another family member, paid almost $500 for a 2014 Nissan Pathfinder. Not cheap here.

[BIG CATS]

The newer the car, the more you pay. Its ridiculous.

[vfrpilot]

I just changed from CO to AZ on my 92 Toyota pick up. It was $35 for 2 years, plus the $20 at the smog station. In CO I paid around $70 a year. On our 2016 Camry, the AZ registration was $435 for 1 year. I can't compare that to CO because we bought after we moved here.

[TheBaldBlur]

Originally Posted by vfrpilot

We moved from Monument to Avondale .

We're in Gleneagle now and currently have our sights set on the Prescott area or Camp Verde by summer 2017. That area seems very similar in many ways to what we loved here before the front range exploded.

[vfrpilot]

Originally Posted by TheBaldBlur

We're in Gleneagle now and currently have our sights set on the Prescott area or Camp Verde by summer 2017. That area seems very similar in many ways to what we loved here before the front range exploded.

Prescott was my first choice. I've spent a lot of time there over the past 4 years. We just drove up to Prescott today to visit a friend of my wife. The area is growing rapidly, and the traffic near downtown was pretty heavy, especially for a Wed. While Prescott is still a beautiful little town, I think it may be straining at the seams a bit, due to the influx of people.
Good luck with your move.

[JGMotorsport64]

Lived in Denver after college for a few years. Loved it, made some great connections that still serve me well in my practice. Because of that I'm in Denver quite a bit.

While I do like Denver for its economic prowess, the rapid growth there reminds me of the rapid growth we experienced about 8 years ago, except their economy is less of a house of cards. But it changes the character of the place.

Phoenix could learn a lot from Colorado it if wants to be actually business friendly. The amount of investment that goes into start ups in Boulder is incredible. We have the same potential with ASU but it isn't being tapped the same way CU-B is tapping into it. ASU seems to be more interested in imperialising and building campuses.

As for my move to Phoenix, it came years later after various moves and a return to Tucson for a professional degree, as well as Tempe for another and I've been here ever since, no qualms, but I've been around so long I don't praise Phoenix for the same reasons others do at this point. I'm not excited about the hot for example, but I'm used to it, I've accepted it. My feeling about Phoenix generally is meh it's home it is what it is.

But I do love most of Arizona, especially the White Mountains, Southern AZ, and Prescott. I'm also enamored at the beauty of the four corners area but I'm not up there often these days.

[Hschlick84]

Comparing central AZ (Prescott Valley, Sedona, Cottonwood) to northern CO (Fort Collins, Loveland), central AZ has the potential to become an affluent area for new jobs, IT, professional careers etc. I don't know what's holding up the area to become big. Those areas in particular cannot attract retirees forever, they should diversify its economy.

Prescott and PV can easily grow to 200k to 500k people if it wants to.