Help, advice on scottsdale areas (Phoenix, Flagstaff: sale, new home, purchase)

[liz451]

I would encourage you to rent for a year. There are plenty of luxury homes you should be able to rent. None of those developments are far from your work but I think once you've settled in you'll have a better idea of where you'll be spending most of your time outside of work - for instance will you be going downtown a lot to sporting events or hiking a lot in the desert? If you're going downtown PV would be a much better option, if you're hiking a lot in the "wild" then North Scottsdale it is.

Regardless these different neighborhoods have much different vibes to them. PV is very high end, large lots, close to the city (shopping, restaurants, activities) with yes, some older homes but majority of homes have been updated to be luxurious. McCormick/Gainey Ranch is a little more family oriented, lower priced, smaller lots, has the greenbelt if you're a runner/cycler. North Scottsdale can give you a large lot size and really the feel of living in the desert excluded from others.

I do agree there are other locations you can look into for a home but with your work being at 56th and the 101 I would stay looking in your current areas. Definitely get a realtor who specializes in homes in this price range to assist you.

[observer53]

Originally Posted by vince3vince

My work will be at 56th st and mayo blvd- the phoenix mayo campus. Are there other wealthy parts of town nearby?

I forgot about your work location, sorry. North Scottsdale and Paradise Valley are your best bets, still, with N Scottsdale having the edge to avoid the teardown issue you don't like. I agree with the poster who suggested renting for a year (or even six months, if you can find that). You will get a lot more opportunity to know the area and find what you really like and not make an expensive mistake. Either way, find a N Scottsdale realtor.

[pbenjamin]

Originally Posted by vince3vince

My work will be at 56th st and mayo blvd- the phoenix mayo campus. Are there other wealthy parts of town nearby?

Carefree comes to mind.

[observer53]

Originally Posted by pbenjamin

Carefree comes to mind.

Could work ... I sometimes forget about Carefree, as we don't get a lot of questions about it, and I haven't been out there in a long time....it's a longer drive down Scottsdale Rd., but it may offer some of the sort of home the OP is looking for. Don't know how much new/newer construction has gone on out there. There will be a lot of older homes, but they won't have the same look as the older homes in some of the other areas the OP has looked at.

[AZJoeD]

Originally Posted by vince3vince

I am from westchester NY, and the style of homes is MUCH different, the scenery and the lifestyle as well. I think what I value most is location- first meaning the homes in the area are well kept and priced right, not in that "redevelopment" stage from years of neglect and not a completely new development with nothing around. I am not against "old" homes- In westchester NY, most homes were built in the early 1900s- I am use to older homes.

While searching zillow, I found this french-style home which is exactly what I am used to, but it is too much money, and I did not like the neighborhood.

However, the Spanish/Tuscan-style architecture is appealing to me and thus I liked places like paradise reserve, silverleaf, etc...

One of the hardest things coming from the east is to get used to the different architecture, landscaping and lifestyle. I know, I moved here from the midwest and tried to bring many of the things that I liked about the midwest here only to find that it is just clinging to old ideas. I drove my agent nuts looking for homes that looked like the one I moved from, after looking at dozens of homes we ended up with a territorial style home. 180' from where we started. Many of the homes in N. Scottsdale will be southwest style with high ceilings, desert landscaping, low intensity lighting, etc.

You are correct to value location first. Since you will be one of the lucky few to be working this far north and have a substantial budget, I think you are wise to look in N. Scottsdale, despite what others will say, it is the best place. The lifestyle may be a little different, but you will adjust quickly. I encourage you to keep an open mind and look for the things that AZ has to offer.

Oh and finally, if you want to check out another great location, Desert Mountain in N. Scottsdale is the coolest place.

[azdr0710]

just an opinion for the OP to keep in mind....you said you like Tuscan....if you really, really like it, then do that, but I think many that know these things will say that Tuscan is already rapidly passing as a trend and will look dated in a few years (just like those 70s ranchers you don't like!!)....it was white hot in the 90s and early 2000s, but I think it's the next avocado green and harvest gold in house fads....with granite and stainless steel following close behind....

just my opinion

[vince3vince]

thx for the advice guys. I've heard about the 'snobbish' reputation Scottsdale has and I will just assume that is where some of the underlying disdain is coming from. As someone has already said, PV is closer to downtown Phoenix- but not by that much. I don't think I have a need of going downtown, but I see there can be value of that in resale. It is similar to westchester/NYC- Westchester was 25 miles from midtown manhattan (above the Bronx) but westchester had much more to offer than the Bronx.

What kind of activities are there downtown? I would think mostly work and maybe sporting events so being 10 minutes vs 30 minutes from downtown doesn't appear to be an issue. I have 2 kids in elementary school right now- I am not too concerned with where they attend elementary and middle school, but when it comes to high school I kind of fear the quality of education. Top universities on the west coast are all in CA while ASU has the party school reputation. I know there is more of an edge to get into ivys and other top east coast schools having gone to highschool there and so I have 6 yrs before I attempt another major move.

Recreation wise, what do families do for fun on weekends in phoenix, besides the usual errands ? With no beach nor getting to take quick manhattan trips, I think we will have a lot of time on our hands ha.

I've heard of carefree and that there is no public school system up there. I think scottsdale is the best option, and as others have said, maybe central scottsdale would be attract a larger buying audience than north. I found this home on zillow, love the architecture and seems like a great "bang for my buck" but need to see what is around it. Plus previous sales show homes in the $700s and even $800s, maybe there are asking too much?
9939 E Gray Rd, Scottsdale, AZ 85260 MLS# 4747617 - Zillow

[observer53]

You never mentioned the kids before. That would take Carefree out of the equation. The Gray Rd house to me is still north Scottsdale, not central, but it is closer in than some of the places you have been looking. As far as activities in Phoenix, in the summer, things slow down a bit here in the Valley, and there's no beach as close as you are used to having it, but there's all kinds of recreation activities available through most of the year. Depends on what you and your kids like to do.

[liz451]

Not sure about it being an edge to be from the East Coast and get into Ivy's. The public high schools in the area of Scottsdale that you're looking (Chaparral and Desert Mountain) are both known to be very good schools with a small portion of students consistently going to Ivy schools from each - just make sure to get your kids into the honors programs. There are also some very good private schools - Phoenix Country Day School in Paradise Valley and Xavier College Prep/Brophy College Prep (girls/boys schools right next to each other) in Phoenix that also consistently churn out Ivy bound grads. PCDS is quite expensive I believe, probably 25k/year, while XCP/BCP are probably 15k/year.

A majority of students from these schools obviously don't go to highly ranked universities but there are definitely students every year that go. PCDS, while being extremely expensive, is known for really churning out a lot of Ivy students.

Scottsdale-area National Merit semifinalists announced
(this only includes Scottsdale schools)

Overall with everything you've said I would make sure your kids are in a very good elementary/middle school to make sure they can get into either a college prep high school or honors program at a public school. It may seem unnecessary now but if you have dreams of your kids getting into an Ivy then you don't want them in a regular Arizona public school as frankly our education system isn't that great here. The areas you are looking at overall have great public schools although there are some areas of PV that go into Phoenix school districts which aren't great.

[Skywayy2001]

You should stop looking at zillow for homes immediately as more than half the time, the homes are: (a) not actually for sale b) have already been sold, c) went back to the bank d) enter a variety of other reasons. Work with a realtor and get access to the MLS so you know what's actually for sale.