Best community to move to in northern AZ (Phoenix, Flagstaff: houses, neighborhoods)

[Alexia1997]

I'm a physician looking at moving to northern AZ to work and retire. I would mainly be working in Flagstaff and sometimes in Cottonwood. Any areas of Flag or further down towards Cottonwood you recommend? The housing prices in Sedona are stunning albeit beautiful houses and views. Thanks in advance.

[MortonR]

What is your budget and desired climate? Those are a couple of the questions I would immediately ask.

Sedona is a hot mess. Avoid it.

RM

[Alexia1997]

I was looking at Sedona. What is the problem?

[CCS414]

Originally Posted by Alexia1997

I was looking at Sedona. What is the problem?

Traffic and being way way over crowded. Maybe a local has better perspective but as a Phoenix native and avid mountain biker I can tell you that I just dont even bother riding there in the spring and fall because of the tourist crowds. The traffic backup on SR179 between Village of Oak Creek and Sedona is just absurd.

[agorski]

Sedona is overrun with tourists, so if you want to live there I would suggest the side of town closer to Cottonwood.

[Alexia1997]

I would be working mainly in Flagstaff.

[MortonR]

Cottonwood is an easy hour, maybe less, from various parts of Flagstaff. In the winter it can be a challenge, as I-17 is often the scene of wrecks and jackknifed trailers. Sedona would be more of a challenge, as it doesn't take much to close down 89. Not to mention the throngs of tourists that blanket the place year-round.

Housing will be a challenge, as it always is, but less of one in Flagstaff compared to Sedona as well.

RM

[jamies]

If you are going to work in Flag you need to live up in that area. The less expensive area seems to be the east side, but you are still well over 1/2 million for a starter home. Belmont and William's are options, but in the winter you may or may not be able to use the freeway during storms. Kachina Village is more of a cabin style working folks area, but last I looked still in mid 6 figures.

Traffic is terrible much of the time. Millions of tourists visit the area. Millions.

It's not really realistic to commute from Sedona anymore. But it's probably one of the most scenic commutes you'll find anywhere.

Also, Flagstaff is at 7,000 feet. How's your heart and lungs?

The final reason we never moved to Flag - it is a huge, very dry pine forest. With a LOT of people using and living in it.
Every year there's a big fire on the mountain, sooner or later there's going to be a bad one right in town.

[Ruth4Truth]

OP, do you already have work lined up in Flagstaff? First of all, I'd recommend living in town or on the outskirts of the town, for easy commuting to work. Winter is a particular concern, as blizzards are common. You don't want to have to be on the highway in that weather. But I'm also wondering if you could consider Santa Fe, NM. Milder weather, a nicer town if you enjoy the arts, and the tourists are mostly around downtown. There are a number of nice neighborhoods. Someone mentioned altitude: Santa Fe is at 7000 ft., like Flag.

Flagstaff is on a major truck route; there's lots of trucking traffic through town constantly, as well as passing by town on the highway. Have you spent much time there? In any case, my understanding is, that the more affordable RE there is on the periphery of town.

[MortonR]

Originally Posted by Ruth4Truth

OP, do you already have work lined up in Flagstaff? First of all, I'd recommend living in town or on the outskirts of the town, for easy commuting to work. Winter is a particular concern, as blizzards are common. You don't want to have to be on the highway in that weather. But I'm also wondering if you could consider Santa Fe, NM. Milder weather, a nicer town if you enjoy the arts, and the tourists are mostly around downtown. There are a number of nice neighborhoods. Someone mentioned altitude: Santa Fe is at 7000 ft., like Flag.

Flagstaff is on a major truck route; there's lots of trucking traffic through town constantly, as well as passing by town on the highway. Have you spent much time there? In any case, my understanding is, that the more affordable RE there is on the periphery of town.

Trucks don’t transit the downtown, they’re pretty much limited to I-40 and the area around the exit for Butler Ave. avoid that area, which is easy to do, and you avoid the trucks.

I will say that when looking for places to live that you pay close attention to the presence of I-40, as there is a lot of noise from interstate traffic.

“More affordable” is a subjective term. The OP has yet to address their housing budget, and until they do any suggestion of places to consider for housing is pretty useless. Suffice to say, if they’re looking to purchase the entry point is at minimum $500k, with a “sweet spot” around $700k-$800k.

RM