Big City Revitalization. - 4/7/2024

Phoenix has tons of the best places to shop and eat at bar none due to it being the big city. Downtown is definitely underrated. There also is some nice new developments going on throughout the city and some cleanup/rebuild aspects throughout as well. The only reason why i can not give Phoenix a 5 star despite it having Light Rail, Bus Service and building out, is that they definitely have issues with crime in certain areas in the big city, homelessness. They need public safety and community organizers to help cool down the areas that are very bad and dangerous so that way things can get better throughout the city. Otherwise it's not a bad place to live in overall.

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Microcosm of the Valley. Building Back Better. - 11/16/2023

Phoenix Arizona represents a lot of problems with Arizona but it is the big city which has to carry more burdens than the rest of the greater Phoenix Area. 1. Homeless and Crime- Phoenix has worked hard to address the issues by making sure they have homes and rehab centers for the homeless and also to take care of the crime in the city with better staffing of police. It has been getting better but it will take some time. It is very obvious some areas of Phoenix look very nice, and some of it has these issues. This is no different than most of Arizona as there is a housing crisis i will get into in a moment. 2. Housing Crisis- Most of this has to do with underbuilding for the last 20 years and also the influx of everyone moving in due to it being popular with Middle Class Asians and Mexicans to Phoenix and the Greater Phoenix Areas. As they know it's relatively safe, business friendly and affordable. Phoenix is rebuilding for more Missing Middle, Mixed Use and trying to aim for high walkability including areas of greater Phoenix. 3. Transportation- Phoenix has the Light Rail and is looking into BRT systems, the reason why Phoenix has poor Transportation much like the rest of Arizona is due to a lack of state funds, so they have to rely on Federal Funding and City Funding to get the job done. Also I do wish after Phoenix and Greater Phoenix get's built, there is consideration for more Light Rail and potentially a subway system. 4. Food & Leisure, Downtown- I would say Phoenix's bright spot is it's Downtown and Leisure, especially the Food is affordable and the best you will get out of many cities in the greater Phoenix Area bar none. Always tons of things to do or places to hang out at. 5. Rebuilding. A lot of Phoenix is rebuilding itself right now from a big city to an even bigger city it even managed to get TSM, and host a few huge Sports events despite it's issues and it is doing a good job so far even though i do think they need to begin rebuilding more mixed use, TOD infrastructure especially in poorer areas that desperately need that kind of infrastructure as well. Not just Camelback. 6. Sprawl- Although Phoenix has bad sprawl and it includes parking lots and it's not as bad as Mesa or Gilbert. They do need a ton of Infill for Mixed Use and they desperately need to move away from the Car. A lot of Urbanist videos including various Metro sites use Phoenix Arizona as a punching bag right next to Houston Texas as examples of the worst kinds of Sprawl and Car Dependency in the entirety of America. That nothing in Phoenix is walkable except for Downtown. I can only hope Phoenix City Council proves that is not the case and builds very high and dense to prove everyone wrong. Like all things Phoenix is just a Microcosm of the valley, they did not build out correctly, they built out for the car, sprawl, and kind of just are waking up to this reality recently and have been doing as best as they can to clean up everything and passing laws to reverse this. I do think if people can be patient or at least for those intending to move here can see the potential of it's future they will be apart of something greater that reverses all of the bad things and becomes one of the top destinations outside of Vegas, Los Angeles, Austin in the West.

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I pity anyone who wants to move here. - 4/15/2022

I have lived here my whole life and it used to be not be as busy as it is. It used to be a state where old people would retire in this state and used to be cheap. To put it bluntly, I have always wanted to leave this city but now, I have to leave now. Absolute rude people, worst drivers, political extremists on both sides, bad weather, and everything negative about America is seen in this valley. This does not goes to only Phoenix but the whole metro area. I can not afford to live in this city anymore. This place is a lost cause and honestly I pity anyone who wants to move here. Only good thing is that Phoenix is surrounded by gorgeous nature but to bad that is spoiled by the people living here.

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Never again - 8/27/2021

I've lived here for a year. I lived in South Mountain. There's a lot of homeless people, a lot ot trash in the alleys, a lot of pot holes, no infrastructure, flash floods occur frequently because of the poor drainage system, a lot of abandon buildings, very bad traffic because of a poor engineering, tenants are treated poorly, the education system is confusing. Phoenix has a lot of hardworking minorities they deserve better from their city. They should demand better living conditions. Good bye.

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The worst place to live in America... - 7/11/2021

I grew up in Arizona, and I agree with every, single negative comment here. For many years into my young adult hood I was inadequate due to the failed public education system; the failed economy and job market and the failed sense of community. Although I admire the hot desert climate and have no complaints in regard to the heat... this place simply isn't liveable. I've spent years trying to advance myself into some kind of a career - but most jobs here pay extremely low wages, and they are usually call center jobs or labor based. There are very few jobs here for people with bachelor's degrees, not even the IT job market has much available due to the lacking industry. Many corporations wont branch into Arizona due to the terrible people who represent our state. Arizona roads are never repaired. There are constant detours due to construction , but the roads are never redone or repaired. I've seen the same potholes and cracks on the same roads my entire life. They have NEVER been fixed. I even took my drivers test at the DMV in a parking lot full of pot holes... The drivers are usually high on drugs or drunk. All days of the week you'll see people swerving on the road. Every other week I see major head on collisions, accidents or cars engulfed in flames. Oftentimes you have to be cautious in parking lots because arizona drivers like to speed through parking lots. Nobody uses signals here and everybody likes to slam their breaks at the last minute before making a turn or cut you off in the middle of an intersection. Arizona has been a scary place to grow up in. As a child I remember feeling so confused, lost and scared. I couldn't understand the people who lived here, and never made any friends. It would be cruel to raise children here as there is not much to do, and nothing ever changes. Most people live in Arizona because the rent is cheap and they can visit california but no... it's not worth it. This place is not worth living in, especially if you are ambitious and young. The trashy people you work with at these low wage, dead end jobs will treat you like trash. You will go to work everyday wondering if this will be the day you get fired and you will be over worked and paid very low wages compared to the rest of the country. Nobody has respect. Not even people in NYC or LA are this rude. Even trips to the grocery store are difficult because of the aggressive nature of these people. They all seem angry and hateful, they all look medicated or on drugs... there is no hope for this state. I want to get out of here as soon as I can... DON'T MOVE HERE!

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Good, not great. - 5/28/2021

I have been in Phoenix for 5 years. I am not sure how much longer I'll be here, because it is a mix of some really good and pretty bad aspects. The good: 1. the weather is amazing for ~7-8 months a year. Even in the summer when the weather can be brutal, it's not a huge drive to get up in elevation and escape the heat. The climate is also much less destructive to cars and homes; no snow, very little rain means no rust, less roof damage, all that nonsense. 2. There is also a lot of really easy access to public land and other recreation, from the mountain parks around the valley to BLM land and state/national parks, forests, etc all over the state. 3. It's such a big city that events are happening all the time. Concerts, sports, festivals, or even just groups with common interests, there is always something to do. 4. Traffic. If you drive (and don't live in the west valley) getting around is easy and quick. There is much less construction on the roads because the weather doesn't destroy them like in the Midwest. The highways are all over and there's a big surface road every mile or so, making traffic pretty mild (for drivers of cars). 5. Cost of living is pretty low for a city of this size. Compared to most major metros like Denver, LA, NY, philly, Minneapolis, Seattle, etc. It is very affordable. I live in a 4 bed, 2 bath house in a decent area with good (relatively speaking) schools. Getting that in most major metros is $100k more than what I got my house for. The bad: the sprawl. It takes 20-30 minutes to get basically anywhere in the valley, minimum. There is basically no public transportation; the bus is extremely slow and there is only one light rail line. Further, because it's so spread out, walking or biking is much less feasible for most trips (and it's hot as balls). The sprawl only continues to get worse. 2. The aforementioned transit. There is only one light rail line. They are working on a couple others, but with the geographic size of the city it'll take substantially more and it is a slow process with lots of resistance. 3. The air quality: Phoenix has been ranked the 4th worst metro for air quality in 2021 by the American lung association. Everyone drives and we are in a big valley. 4. Summers are getting longer, hotter, and drier. Last year we nearly doubled the record for consecutive days above 115° to around 60 straight days. The last two years have been abnormally dry. I'm not a climate scientist, but I'd guess that'll be a continuing trend in the coming years. Phoenix is actually set up for better drought resistance than most cities, but it's still unpleasant going 50+ days in a row above 115°. 5. Character and culture: maybe this will be a good thing for some, but AZ and especially Phoenix has a very individualistic culture politically. While the city itself is still somewhat blue, it's among the most conservative major cities in the country. It's also a newer city with little character. I think of the whole thing more as one big suburb than a city. Most houses are basically the same, lots of strip malls and cul de sac, and not much of a shared identity. Maybe that comes with the transplant nature of the population, but it's pretty bland. Overall, Phoenix is meh in my opinion. If you live in a more walkable area like Tempe, old town Scottsdale, downtown, or uptown it would be a lot less of a bummer. There's a lot to love (I personally love having mountain parks right in town and easily accessible) and, other than the climate, I think things are generally headed in the right direction, even if it's slower than I might like.

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Phoenix - 5/27/2021

I’ve lived in Phoenix for over 10 years. I love it, but I came from the northwest where it rained 9 months of the year. Don’t listen to other reviews about things that are subjective or would depend on ones personal choices like who you choose to interact with or where you choose to live/work. Life is what you make of it no matter where you choose to live. People complain of all these people with trucks like it’s a Phoenix thing when the top selling vehicle in the country year over year is trucks (2020 #1 Ford F-150 , #2 Chevy Silverado , #3 Dodge Ram. These aren’t top selling trucks, these are top selling VEHICLES) People complain about the homeless, and wonder why the police won’t do anything. It’s not illegal to be homeless, nor be outside. What are the police supposed to do? I would recommend taking some personal responsibility and remove myself from whatever area I seem to be troubled by since that doesn’t seem to be a problem everywhere but it is a problem in every major city Yes it’s hot, yes there are only two gears hot and hotter. Anywhere else you have 8 months of bad weather, in Phoenix you get 8 months of great weather. I prefer 4-5 months of hot to 8-9 months of cold and wet. It’s up to each person I suppose. Any Arizona native you speak to, will do nothing but complain about how horrible it is, because they’ve never been anywhere else so don’t listen to them or anyone else complaining. If you don’t like something, do something about it or shut it. Life doesn’t happen to you it happens because of you “I can’t believe I got attacked by a shark!” “You were in shark infested waters with shark bait all over you.

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Least comfortable climate in the U.S - 4/14/2021

A comfort index of 7.3/10??? Best Places just lost a lot of credibility.

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Only come to Visit not to Live - 1/20/2021

When I found out you can review a city on here I got so excited! Hey guys I am currently in my 20s living here for the past 15 years. I've gotten to see this city build up into the huge ass metropolitan it is today with 5+ million people residing in it. I live far from the heart of the city but of course they still consider it to be in Phoenix, Phoenix is way too big for not having good public transportation, its an absolute disaster and they should spend more money on it. Driving on highways isn't bad until they start reworking them because so many Californians are moving here. With so many people moving here making Phoenix the new California it's stupid. So many people act like Californian wannabes and are ruining the state little by little. We need more corporations to come here and build up our morning downtown that has NO culture. Honestly Gilbert has been booming lately with companies like Doordash and unique food places moving there it's great for them, but I'm just confused how Phoenix is a very moved to city yet it's not very "happening". Obvious you know its pretty hot here, but did you know 143 days of strait 100+ degree weather happened in 2020. It's so f**king hot here, it's like living in pure hell. I legit stay inside as much as I can all summer because of this but it is kind of hard with air conditioning costing way to much, they rather let people die then charge a normal amount. Also the hot weather runs from the end of April to the end of October. Once it hits November/ December most snowbirds come back to their second homes here and make traffic so much worse, it's so annoying. All our highways are newer which is nice with the layout of the city, but definitely still need some more and some of the construction going on, on the 101 is so annoying. With 2 years left of our governor, who knows what direction this state will go in. I just don't want to see it ruined by a more corrupt government and high taxes. The prices keep hiking up, it's not really worth it here and the only people who justify are probably rich and moving to Scottsdale instead and thinking it's Phoenix, but thats a whole other thing. If you're into real estate don't even try to do that **** here, the market is so saturated, everyone who graduates high school goes into it. Investment properties are definitely doing well but I don't know how much more prices will climb before another market crash like 2008. It was pretty bad here even in happening areas the prices never rose that high like right before the crash. The only good thing I would say is it's 5 hours to Vegas and 6 hours to LA or San Diego. Also there are a lot of cool things planned in the works not necessary in Phoenix but in Glendale, a beach resort and they are planning a Atari themed hotel etc. in the next coming years. I say Phoenix will be less crap in 20 maybe 30 years but it's just at its annoying teenage phase, remember it is a newer state. Arizona is a good place to visit in the winter when there is cooler weather but not live at this going rate.

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Only come to Visit not to Live - 1/20/2021

When I found out you can review a city on here I got so excited! Hey guys I am currently in my 20s living here for the past 15 years. I've gotten to see this city build up into the huge ass metropolitan it is today with 5+ million people residing in it. I live far from the heart of the city but of course they still consider it to be in Phoenix, Phoenix is way too big for not having good public transportation, its an absolute disaster and they should spend more money on it. Driving on highways isn't bad until they start reworking them because so many Californians are moving here. With so many people moving here making Phoenix the new California it's stupid. So many people act like Californian wannabes and are ruining the state little by little. We need more corporations to come here and build up our morning downtown that has NO culture. Honestly Gilbert has been booming lately with companies like Doordash and unique food places moving there it's great for them, but I'm just confused how Phoenix is a very moved to city yet it's not very "happening". Obvious you know its pretty hot here, but did you know 143 days of strait 100+ degree weather happened in 2020. It's so f**king hot here, it's like living in pure hell. I legit stay inside as much as I can all summer because of this but it is kind of hard with air conditioning costing way to much, they rather let people die then charge a normal amount. Also the hot weather runs from the end of April to the end of October. Once it hits November/ December most snowbirds come back to their second homes here and make traffic so much worse, it's so annoying. All our highways are newer which is nice with the layout of the city, but definitely still need some more and some of the construction going on, on the 101 is so annoying. With 2 years left of our governor, who knows what direction this state will go in. I just don't want to see it ruined by a more corrupt government and high taxes. The prices keep hiking up, it's not really worth it here and the only people who justify are probably rich and moving to Scottsdale instead and thinking it's Phoenix, but thats a whole other thing. If you're into real estate don't even try to do that **** here, the market is so saturated, everyone who graduates high school goes into it. Investment properties are definitely doing well but I don't know how much more prices will climb before another market crash like 2008. It was pretty bad here even in happening areas the prices never rose that high like right before the crash. The only good thing I would say is it's 5 hours to Vegas and 6 hours to LA or San Diego. Also there are a lot of cool things planned in the works not necessary in Phoenix but in Glendale, a beach resort and they are planning a Atari themed hotel etc. in the next coming years. I say Phoenix will be less crap in 20 maybe 30 years but it's just at its annoying teenage phase, remember it is a newer state. Arizona is a good place to visit in the winter when there is cooler weather but not live at this going rate.

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Good with the bad - 1/10/2021

My husband and I moved out of Phoenix in Sept 2020 and I never want to go back. We both lived there for 4 years (coming from the Midwest) and enjoyed the novelty of desert living and lots of things to do, but eventually the heat, traffic, nasty drivers, and overall insane pace of the city just wore us down in every way possible. The GOOD: Most of the east valley is quite nice (not counting Mesa, sorry Mesa). The amount of small businesses really surprised me in a good way; Phoenix tends to be way more open to unique stores and restaurants than the Midwest was. Not everything is a chain restaurant in Phoenix, so it gives you lots of options. Food service is the best I’ve ever had anywhere. People are generally pretty nice. I moved from Minneapolis and the people in AZ are far more genuinely nice without the passive aggressive snootiness. They’re more open to jokes, small talk, and just general interaction. Solid music scene if you’re a musician or music lover. Lots of venues (as least pre-COVID), and the scene is very supportive. I found a great band here to join. Winter is gorgeous, and unfortunately the only thing bearable about the weather here. Variety of things to do. The city is REALLY spread out (that’s a con), but it gives you lots of smaller communities and more chances to catch a show, art festival, taco festival, or whatever you dig. The BAD: The eternal sun. 2020 had triple digits starting in April and went until November. Absolutely unbearable during the summer. You can’t “dress for it,” you literally “run for it.” Drink lots of water and wear SPF 5000. The drivers. Omfg the amount of crazy drivers is something I’ve never seen in the 7 states I’ve lived in. People will fly by you going 100 in literally any lane, motorcyclists driving IN BETWEEN the cars on the highway, people riding your ass even if you’re doing 20 over the limit in the right lane. My mom has been involved in three road rage incidents (just in the last two years) where psychos have followed her home, run her off the road, and had to get the police involved. Don’t drink the water. It’s so over-chlorinated for algae prevention and will literally make you vomit. Get a filter asap. Pollution is surprisingly bad for a city that mandates emissions testing. I never had allergies in my life until I moved to Phoenix. Rednecks. Don’t get me wrong, I’m conservative and I like the blue collar folks who work hard and are good people. I’m good with them. What I don’t like are the tatted up macho a-holes in the pickup trucks who act like they’re god. Phoenix is absolutely filled to the brim with these idiots. For a city with no inclement weather, literally everyone drives a pickup. If you move here, it’s required to buy a pickup truck. And put a Monster energy decal and “don’t tread on me” sticker to make it really authentic. Cost of living is going up. You can thank the Californians. The pace. Everyone is in a massive hurry even in the suburbs. The millisecond the lights turn green, people will literally try to race each other to get to to the next red light. I’ve lived in larger cities most of my life, but Phoenix people drive like they want revenge on life itself. I’m not a slow driver by any means, but it all becomes needlessly stressful really quickly.

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2/10 City - 12/9/2020

This is my honest take of the Phoenix-Metro area after being here for roughly (14 years). Let's start with the pros Pros: >Grid street system. (having been in other states such as California and Oregon) the streets were engineered pretty well here, it's very simple and easy to navigate, not hard to find your way around if you were lost and didn't have a GPS. >Infrastructure. In general the roads are in good shape compared to states like Maryland or Michigan, the homes aren't ancient like the east coast (which is a good thing or bad thing if you like that historic vibe) buildings and plazas tend to be in better condition than other places mainly because this is a newer state. >Winter weather? Maybe? Normally the weather's great starting in October in the valley but I don't know if this is a good point anymore because this November we broke a record of 98 degrees. INSANE. And this seems to be the new trend here on out OK NOW that we are done with the pros. Cons: >Eternal damnation for 8 months. Most people like making the argument of "well its a dry heat", I like to say that a convection oven is also a dry heat, but it wouldn't be very pleasant to stick your head in one right? Going outside in the summer is honestly painful and I'm middle eastern, on top of that, get ready to pay a hefty electric bill for that big 2000 sq ft house that needs to be cooled 24/7 during the summer months. My average bill in the summer was 400$ a month for a 1600 sq ft house to put things in perspective. Seriously, don't underestimate the summer here, know what you're getting into before moving, it's not a joke. >Lack of greenery. Different stokes for different folks and this is a desert after all, but living I found myself longing for trees and grass and forests, without having to drive 3 hours north :) just a simple drive to work in other states you'd see trees all around you, but in Phoenix its all brown and beige. The houses are brown and beige the highways are brown and beige the plazas are brown and beige etc, starts to take a toll on you after a while (again I know people are going to say "well flagstaff is just 3 hours away") but it's kind of a let down driving 3 hours to see some greenery then come back to this brown dull city. >Housing costs. The valley was once a good spot to purchase a decent sized house at a reasonable price (I'm talking 90k for a 2-story house in Laveen). Those days are long gone, the housing market is absolutely insane as of now and I don't know why anyone would spend 300k+ on a stucco house when you'd be able to get more bang for your buck in other areas such as Houston or Atlanta, it's just not smart to buy a house right now in Phoenix. >Traffic. This one is a given, with the influx of people moving to Phoenix, on top of the fact that public transportation is non-existent, the streets and highways are going to be strained. This city was kind of engineered around the car, it's not walkable unless you live in downtown Phoenix, so you'll find yourself in bumper-to-bumper traffic alot, wondering what it is about this piece of desert that's so appealing to 5 million people. >Education. If you have children and you value their education, you might want to look into private schools or just home schooling them (if you can). Phoenix is rated 49/51 in education which should be alarming to future parents, or parents with school aged children looking to relocate here. The school districts in general are hit and miss (except Kyrene School District) and if you're fortunate enough to live in their boundaries, then your children are in safe hands. >Location. (This one is subjective). Personally, the south-west location is not appealing to me, it takes me 12 hours to drive to Sacramento CA, that's the same amount of time it takes to drive from NYC to Savannah Georgia. Also, flying from Phoenix costs more than other places and you're more than likely going to layover at least once before reaching your destination. If you're someone that frequently travels it's not a good location. There's a lot more I can touch up on, but I think this review is long enough. In general we all have different needs and perspectives, this was just my take on living here, if you have any other questions feel free to comment.

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California transplants, Colorado is nice - 11/3/2020

Phoenix is Los Angeles except at 120 degrees with no beach. The only difference between the ghetto and posch is how new the paint is. I have yet to find a place that you can have a house worth 750k next to one that is 250k. I hate Phoenix! Please don't let it form your opinion of the great state of Arizona. Which outside of the phx metro area is one of the most beautiful places in the world. I will live in Arizona for the rest of my life. If I don't go to Phoenix ever again, I'm OK with that. Unfortunately, being a business owner and it being the capital and the closest metro area (112 miles) it's inevitable.

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Burning hell - 10/2/2020

I've lived in Michigan, New York, New Jersey and Maryland. I moved to the Phoenix metro due to my job. I must say this place is one of the sh!ttest places to live in the US. From April to October sunshine is a death ray. In the summer it feels like living in a gigantic oven that is on all the time. The air quality is terrible and the tap water quality is beyond terrible. And all kinds of insects everywhere. Humans should not live in this burning hell on earth. The day I'll get out of this hell on earth will be one of the happiest days of my life!

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Beautiful City! Why would you live anywhere else? - 9/21/2020

Wonderful City. I don't understand why some of these people call Phoenix a "dirt bag" when they come from Los Angeles, Chicago, San Francisco, Seattle, etc. It is such a clean city! Such a beautiful landscape! The mountains never get old. The summer heat isn't bad once you get used to it. I would suggest visiting in the summer if your going to be moving there just so you can have a taste of the summer heat. If you ever get tired of the heat just drive 2 hours north to Flagstaff and it will be in the upper 70s low 80s in the summer. It is also very conservative. I consider that a huge plus! It is the most conservative large metro area in the country. I think that's why it's so clean.

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Phoenix isn't that bad - 8/18/2020

It really isn't that bad, I don't know why everyone on here is freaking out. I've lived in Mesa to the east for more than 15 years. Phoenix isn't the best city in the world but it's more than livable and it's perfect if you hate weather. There are more than enough amenities to make up for the bad parts but at the end of the day Phoenix is a big city and big cities have issues like homelessness, crime and a higher cost of living. If you're looking for a big city that doesn't snow and is relatively cheap compared to the job market then Phoenix might be for you. Just also make sure you look into the surrounding suburbs like Mesa, Scottsdale, Glendale etc. There's even ski access 3 hours north in Flagstaff if you are dying to get out of the heat. Pros: - big city amenities - great city for music lovers, there are live shows everywhere - some of the best food in the US, especially the Mexican food - Tempe has college town amenities - great job market, it's easy(ish) to find and keep a high-paying job for most people - winter weather is beautiful, 60 degrees almost every day from November-February - great city for professional sports lovers Cons: - It's really hot for most of the year - there are some crime hot spots, just make sure to do your research - traffic isn't terrible but the 101 loop sucks around rush hour - parts of Phoenix are really brown and ugly - housing and rent can be expensive Don't listen to the insanely crabby people on this website. There are a lot of parts to love about Phoenix and a lot of parts to hate, it's just a matter of if this city fits what you need or not.

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Don't move here - 7/3/2020

Phoenix is a dirt-bag city. I have lived in many other cities and this place was hands-down the worst. The people are rude, uncouth, uncultured, judgmental, dumb, cold and ruthless. The educational level is low. Yes these idiots think they know what's right for YOU. I just love when uneducated, functionally illiterate redneck types try to tell me how to live my life. I've lived a lot of places but never met meaner people than in Phoenix. You're judged by your wallet, or your looks or if you adhere to the latest clothing fads and lots of tatts. The city is dirty and there's no culture. The summers are horrid. No breaks in the summer weather. Summer AC bills are awful. You have to run your errands early in the morning to avoid the furnace-blast heat. If you want nice weather and some nice terrain go to San Diego. You have to get out from November through May for activities like the zoo. Employers are cheap and don't care about you. (yes I have a degree but the cost of living is high for what they pay). There's no sense of community. People really don't want to make friends with you. Most are hiding from a flaky past back in..say.. Illinois, or Minnesota (Wisconsin people are the exception; they're generally nice). They wanted to start fresh but they're the same bad people, repeating the same behavior. A lot of people bring their mental illnesses here. Crime is horrible. Gangs are prevalent. I don't know anyone there who hasn't had things stolen. Dating is easy if you flash big money. Otherwise you're stuck with a tatted-up chick missing teeth. I know few people there who weren't cheated on. Most every nice person I've met wants to go home.

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It is not the paradise you think it is. - 6/16/2020

I have lived here for 20 years and due to family issues not able to move. The pros - very little weather - if you like that. Except in August when you may get hit by a microburst - we did three years in a row and the last one was a $21,000 claim followed by a huge insurance premium hike. November - March is very pretty though. If you enjoy a range of weather you will not get that here. The summers are basically hell. If you are from the midwest you know how crabby people are in by the end of winter. It is the same here. By August / September people are done with the heat and crabby. You won't see many of your neighbors out chatting with one another. You will see your neighbors pull straight into their garage and shut the door before they get out so they do not risk interaction. The property taxes are actually pretty low. But you will pay for that. The education system is TERRIBLE. Arizona has the 3 WORST school system in the country and it shows. I am constantly surprised at the stupidity I see here. I would never recommend moving here with children if you are wanting them to have a good public education. The cost of living is relatively high. Homes and utilities are above average. If you are unfortunate to have APS for your electric company plan to be gouged every month by them. And a price hike every few months. Also, expect your vehicle to cost you more. We are #10 for highest car expenses and 10th least peaceful state in terms of crimes. There is beauty in the mountains - however, the many condos being built are diminishing those views more and more. But you can still drive a short distance and enjoy the beauty. I know this is a negative post, but it is important to hear the bad as well as the good. The biggest and best positive I have is had I not moved here I would never have met my husband and I have met some wonderful friends here. If you are thinking of moving here do a lot of research in areas that are important to you.

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The desert is not all you think it is... - 6/9/2020

So you want to live in the sun, eh? Well, trust me my friends. You will change how you see the sun when you hardly ever get any rain. It will become a energy drain where you will want to stay inside for 8 months out of the year. Oh yea, and a sunny apartment? Nah, you will keep the blinds closed to keep out the heat to try and shave a few dollars off your $300 energy bill.

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Phoenix Sucks compared to Tucson - 6/9/2020

Main St ,Tempe , Mesa, Van Buren , Downtown, Sh#@ Holes , Many Homeless and Drug Addicts ,Car Theft very High in Phoenix , Many unreported shootings and killings in Phoenix , Poor Medical and Dental Facilities in Phoenix , Most Tradesmen You'll work with in Phoenix are Underskilled compared to Tucson Workers

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