Picture Rocks (Tucson, Oro Valley, Marana: house, buy, living in)

[ladypanner]

We might buy a manufactured in Picture Rocks.Az.I really don't know to much info on the area.My husband will be communting 1 hour to work in Sahuarita,az.I can't find any info on the area such as closest stores,hospital,wildlife,people etc. any info appreciated.

[themudpuppy]

I looked at some homes out there. Picture Rocks is a beautiful area, but don't buy sight unseen like some people do.There is very nice mixed in with very trashy. I found several nice manufactured homes that had really trashy and noisy neighbors next door. A cop told me there's some drug problems out there too, but I'm finding that's the case with most of the more rural areas I've looked at. There's good and bad.

Also, some of the manufactured homes I looked at there were on unpaved roads that were deeply rutted and extremely difficult to travel with my small car. Some of the dirt roads were ok, but some had me wishing I'd have turned my car around and not attempted to drive them, and one was so bad I couldn't drive the last half mile to the house no matter how determined I was. If you have a truck, this shouldn't be a problem.

Can't help you with closest hospitals, shopping, etc. I didn't investigate it further when I decided none of the homes I looked at there would work for me. I really wanted to find a house there. In my opinion, it's one of the most beautiful areas around Tucson. My budget was under $110,000, so you might have better luck with a better budget.

Have you looked in Sahuarita? I really like that area too.

[azdr0710]

have you looked somewhere that will allow a much shorter commute for him?....like Sahuarita??!!....

[LordBalfor]

Picture Rocks is a VERY beautiful area with - as mentioned - a real mixture of nice homes with good roads and trashy homes with rutted roads so it really matters WHERE in PR you end up (closer to the mountains tends to be much nicer and more upscale). TONS of wildlife in the area and the desert is extremely lush there (odd as that may sound). Not a whole lot of major shopping there - but if you are close to the mts it's not that far over to the other side where there is lots of shopping choices.

Ken

[luvmyelement]

I bought in Picture Rocks and couldn't be happier. There are some sections that you couldn't pay me to live in (too many barking dogs, trashy properties, etc. so you do have to be selective. It's a short drive through the national park to get to major shopping - and there are two hospitals within 15 minutes (north in Marana and east near River).

I think Picture Rocks will be getting nicer since it is a great location and I do see more and more nicer homes being built. It will never be like Oro Valley (which can be a good thing if you like a more rural feel).

For us it was perfect - nice and quiet and no HOA's. My husband can set up his aquaponics system and not have to worry about pretentious neighbors getting upset that we raise our own Tilapia and Catfish. I can set up my own small citrus grove and not worry about neighbors not liking where I've planted them. On the flip side - I can't say anything if my neighbor thinks that a bright blue toilet as a planter is art. But I think I would rather have the freedom and have the option to put up bushes to block out the blue toilet than deal with an HOA.

If you want to ask me any questions feel free to send me a private message.

[5150aries]

This is an old post, however I want to update it.
I have been living in Picture Rocks for for years, my husband and I got a great fixer up.
A tip, if your considerate, love farm animals, coyotes, tarantulas, and other wildlife, you might like Picture Rocks. But, keep in mind, most of us have moved to Picture Rocks to get away from the city BS. The people are laid back, but we take alot less bull**** out here. The sheriff dept.is right around the corner. We are 12 miles from the super WalMart on Cortaro, so commuting in and out can be a pain, esp. with all the 50 now on Picture Rocks road.

[sownman]

On our first Tucson visit my wife and I drove all over looking to see the petroglyphs at Picture Rocks but never found them. We found a trail in Sauguarro Nat Park that supposedly led to petroglyphs bu it was hot and we weren't prepared for the hike.

Are there any picture rocks in Picture Rocks ?

[azdr0710]

I know what you mean about finding the real Picture Rocks....

the "real" original picture rocks are on the grounds of the Redemptorist Renewal Center at 7101 W Picture Rocks Rd....I only went there once years ago and made a courtesy visit to the office to see if I could wander their meditative paths to go see the rocks....they said sure and, a couple minutes later, I was looking at them....

Redemptorist Renewal Center

http://www.desertrenewal.org/rrc/misc/petroglyphs.html

there are many petroglyph sites all over the Tucson area and these are average, I guess....but, historically, the road was named after this site, many decades ago, so they may have an aura about them that other sites don't....

[sownman]

Thanks. We just returned to LA from a week in Tucson before I saw your answer, but will put it on my list for the next trip.