Reviews & Comments
Tucson, AZ
Pros and Cons -
4/10/2011Having lived in Tucson for over 5 years I thought I'd provide my take on this city. By the way, I do agree with many aspects of what a few other commenters have written.
Pros: Coming from coastal Oregon, I'd say home prices are fairly inexpensive. Right now you can easily buy a decent 3-bedroom home in a fairly nice neighborhood for about $140K. Of course you can buy a brand new house, in less than desirable neighborhoods for around $100K. Depending on area, Tucson can be a viable place to raise a family. Several private schools, not so much public ones, are said to be good. Gas prices, while climbing, are generally cheaper compared to many other parts of the country. And for those who don't like long cold winters, rainy or partly cloudy days, you "may" appreciated Tucson's weather. More on weather later. Tucson has mountains. Tucson is indeed a slower-paced city with a little less hustle and bustle.
Cons: While homes and rents are fairly cheap, the pay scale is pretty low here. For example. If you were making $22/Hr working in IT, expect $18 here. In other words, expect to possibly make about 20% less than you're used to making elsewhere. While jobs are hard to come by anywhere in the US these days, it's particularly hard to land one in Tucson. As other commenters have stated, speaking Spanish often helps. Crazy huh? I'll keep my mouth shut one that one. Back to that weather thing. Tucson has lots of sun. In fact, the sun is utterly relentless! Yes, I know, It's the desert. I suppose if you're a lizard 100 to 116 degree weather, from around May thru October, is optimal? But for humans? On a positive note, we do experience about 2 to 3 months of really nice weather. Then again, Southern California experiences more like 12 months of good weather. As for the mountains. Unless you are close up they appear rather drab. It's when you are closer that you can see signs of life, i.e. green cactus. I have to be upfront. Apart from the mountains Tucson is not a real pretty place. Tucson has no meaningful bodies of water. Downtown is worn out and tired looking. Now the more important stuff. Among a few area to avoid are the southern areas of Tucson. From a freeway prospective, you really want to avoid areas south of say the Grant Rd exit. And forget about living remotely close to the airport. Lots of gangs, graffiti, liter, and trailers that look completely unlivable abound. By no means does this applies to everybody, but I'll say Tucson does have its share of brain dead, out-of-touch, unmotivated people. You'll notice this almost daily when it comes to the customer no service mentality that infects most businesses. Tucson is also not a place to live if you like going out for great food. Good restaurants, including Mexican, are sorely lacking.
To close, I'd say that if you elect to live on the north side of town or out towards the further east side of Tucson, and you can leave during the stupidly hot summers, you may find happiness.
Prescott, AZ
re: We have found the Jewel of the Southwest - 10 -
6/6/2010If you have a spare $600K lying around to buy a house, then sure. Oy vey!
Oro Valley, AZ
re: Tucson - 2/3/2009 -
12/17/2009Did you say less rain? I don't know how much less you're talking about? Southern Arizona sees "very" little rain. The only place that comes to mind with less rainfall would be Death Valley. In all fairness, however, the cost of living may be cheaper in say the south side of Tucson.
Tucson, AZ
Four nice months -
11/8/2009The bottom line is that Tucson has about 4 months of pretty nice weather, i.e. the winter months. And while it's sunny almost year round, it's entirely too hot the remaining 6 to 8 months. Of course this is to be expected as it is, for goodness sake, the desert. Moreover, Tucson tends to have fewer nice areas of town compared to not so nice areas. What I mean here is from an esthetic and crime standpoint, the further NW and NE areas are nice, but central and south Tucson is pretty rough. While home price are fairly cheap these days, AZ's pay scale is comparatively lower that some other parts of the country. There's an expression. "Arizona is for people you can't make it in California." In all fairness it hard for any state to compete with the likes of California when it comes to such things like weather, beaches, mountains and so on. Oh! But again. Tucson does have about 4 pleasant months out of the year.
Tucson, AZ
Pros and Cons -
11/7/2009Moved from California and bought a house in NW Tucson in 2005. Pro: Today houses can be purchased rather cheap here. This is especially true do the shambles that our economy is in these day. $150K will get a nice, yet modest home in many parts of Tucson.
OK, so here are some pros and cons. Pros: Affordable homes, some area of Tucson a fairly nice, great for sun worshipers, mild winters, only about one month of rain, mountain, desert atmosphere, most people are approachable, good community college system.
Cons: Comparatively low paying wages, the sun is down right relentless with temps well over 100 for months and highs often exceed 110, not enough rain except during the so-called monsoons of July or August, ( almost no rain in 09), no nature lakes nearby, in spite of the mountains and cactus the overall views usually appear brown and lifeless much of the year, city lacks good cuisine, not the best work ethic, too many smoker, abundance of burn outs and druggies, high crime in many areas especially in South Tucson, ( best to live either far NW, NE).
Tucson, AZ
re: student - 12/29/2007 -
7/13/2009A bit hot in the summer? Are you kidding? It's 109 today!
Tucson, AZ
re: Climate is the attraction; otherwise, brace fo -
7/13/2009You got that right as to the quality of the cuisine. 2 out of 10 is about right. But you forgot to mention the customer no-service attitude that most businesses have out here in Tucson. Despite it's short falls Tucson isn't exactly a bad place, all in all.
Tucson, AZ
Tucson's pros and cons. -
7/12/2009I moved here in 2005, near the height of the housing bubble, because I couldn't afford a house in CA. I'll admit that I didn't do a lot of homework before buying out here, but part of what attracted me to Tucson was the fact that $200K got you a decent little house in 05. Today you can get the same thing here for about $150K. Moreover, though, I bought here because it is a 6 hour drive, or a quick 1 hr flight to San Diego when I get home sick. LOL.
To me, the pros of Tucson are as follows: Affordable homes, nice weather about 6 months of the year. Reasonable amount of things to do, both indoor and outdoors. Generally speaking restaurant food is pretty affordable. More on that later. Scenic views, but only on the outskirts, i.e., the mountains and undeveloped desert landscape. And personally speaking, I have met a few nice people here and there. I am lucky to have really nice neighbors. I can't say I ever had nice neighbors in California. Moreover, most people I know here seem to be happy with Tucson. Lastly, the community college, Pima, is pretty good and they have campuses throughout the city.
Now the downside: While the fall and winter months here are very nice, better than many other places I've lived, the other 6 months, especially June thru September are absolutely nuts. I mean you'd have to be a desert tortoise to live here durning that time of year. By the way, don't tell me it a "dry heat." My reply to that comment would be "so is an oven." Oh yes, as I write this it is 108 outside. Dry heat or not, it's brutal for several months out of the year. The low humidity sucks the life right out of your skin! The pay scale in this state is rather low. Sure the housing is cheaper, but upwards of $4-5 hour less for the same work in CA? Come on! And while restaurant dinning is reasonably priced, you will not find Tucson to be a city for cuisine. Case in point, a $7 plate of Mexican food, at say Casa Molina, tastes just like a $5 plate of crap. If love an abundance of good restaurants to choice from this is not the city. Yes, there are a few high-end places, but few good casual spots. Oh, and customer service is absolutely subpar compared to other parts of the country. I noticed this right away when I moved here and you will too. I know I will offend the diehard Tucsonians, but a large percentage of the people here, nice or otherwise, are clearly behind the times. For example, a lot of men over 40 have haircuts straight out of the 70s. Attractive women? Not exactly a dime a dozen over here. Yes, I know that looks do not make a person. But the smokers! Geez! You think that in a place as hot as it gets here the last thing you'd want to do is light up? Furthermore, most car drivers do not use bluetooths, and many motorcyclist do not wear helmets. I have one word-foolish. Though they are widening the I-10, the entire infrastructure is sorely lacking. We have no converging freeways-just interstate 10. Therefore, depending on your location, it can take 20 minutes to drive 9 miles. But in all fairness the traffic is still lighter compared to other large cities. In closing, the north part of Tucson is fairly clean, however, the south is an armpit of sorts. And the south is quite high with crime. Rundown mobile homes abound!
Tucson is not unlike many medium sized cities in that it has its high and points points. Do I want to stay here? Actually, if it were 10 degrees cooler, and there were running water nearby this would be a decent place to live. I need to see more greenery and life. Plastic garbage bags stuck to cactus isn't my idea of beauty. Why doesn't the city, with it's large prison and jails, have the inmates do cleanups?
Will I be staying here for the long haul? Even with all the negative things I've mentioned Tucson would be a nice place to have a second home for the winter months. Unfortunately, I can't afford two homes. So the answer is no; I'll be moving in a few years.
Colorado Springs, CO
re: Are you moving here? - 11/30/2008 -
7/8/2009No disrespect, whatsoever. That said, understand that an over abundance of so-called diversity often equates to crime-ridden, rundown neighborhoods and or cities. That's just an inconvenient truth folks. Don't get me wrong! I love ethnic food and culture. However, that's not to say I feel we need Mexican restaurants on every corner. Moreover, do I believe anyone else appreciates graffiti-writing gang bangers on every corner either.
If you think I'm a racist then try contrasting a city's crime rate to the ethnic population and see for yourself. Oh, and since when does being a conservative equate to being a racist?
Diversity, to a degree, is great. But understand, it usually comes with a price called crime.
Regardless of my political views, I'm just like anyone else in that I want to live in a safe place that has decent weather, and a place that has a variety of things to do.
Coronado, CA
Nice, and expensive. -
7/8/2009I lived in Coronado for almost three years, 2004-2007. Yes, it was very nice there. However, the people, as with most Californians, were not exactly friendly. The word snob comes to mind. Moreover, the cost of living was/is nuts. No lie, two-bedroom condos are around $700K. As with all of CA, the mentality is of the "why pay less when you can pay more." attitude. Sure, the weather in So. Cal is arguably the best in the country. Then again, 72 degree nearly VERY day gets old, believe it or not.