Arizona: a mixed bag - 3/7/2020

I have been in Arizona for decades. I would say that it is wonderful in some ways and abysmal in others. In the lower elevations of AZ, there are no blizzards. We also have no hurricanes, few ice storms, very few earthquakes ( the ones we have are so small as to be imperceptible)...Spring and autumn are glorious, here. If you love outdoor recreation 6 months of the year, if you love visiting historical sites, if you love sunshine, AZ is the place to live. But... The summers are brutal. They last from early May through the end of October. The heat is brutal 24 hours a day, in summer. It’s so hot, the only humane time to walk your dog is between 11pm and 4am. The tar black top in parking lots melts. Your electric bill ( from attempting to cool your residence) is sooooo high from May through October. Municipal Water quality is poor; but there’s such a demand for it that your water bill will be outrageous. And, lest we forget that Arizona is a border state: Arizona has one of the highest rates of vehicle theft in the U.S.... Guess where stolen vehicles end up? Yup. Mine was stolen from a parking area at a busy shopping mall. (Yes, I locked it). It was found 18 months later in Mexico, across the Rio Grande from Laredo. My aunts truck was stolen from the Douglas, AZ area. And, if you plan to buy real estate here, be warned. You pay a lot more money for a smaller home on a smaller lot than compared to other locations in the U.S.! Enjoying these mild winters means that you will pay much more money for much less real estate. But... the natural beauty is AZ is incomparable. Today, we’re enjoying sunshine and temps in the low 80s while much of the country is cold, soggy, flooded, snowy or having tornados. This is bar-b-que and sun tan weather.

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Arizona Princapality that rules the Air - 11/22/2019

I have lived here since 2002 to 2019. I do warn all that no matter what you pay to have done whether it be home house work remodeling to car work done. Its never done right. You will always either eat it the cost and have to pay again to someone else. Or fight tooth and nail to get a company whether licensed or not to correct what they did wrong.Not just a right to work state but right to screw whom ever.The home building ethics well the modo here is they'll never know it was not done correctly. Just get the house listed, black mold cover up in several homes.Oh they don't tell anyone moving here about VALLEY FEVER you get from the soil here.Then doctors all in Kahutes will not check you for that unknown reason why your not feeling so well. Valley Fever should be stated next to the sign welcome to Arizona "Beware of Valley Fever". All I have found and seen here is deceitfulness in people and businesses licensed or not licensed. Realtors when selling know theres black mold in the house. when you bring it up or point it out what you see. Their charm vanishes.They like to sell to unsuspecting ignorant people that do not know.1986 my house was passed inspection when new. And green board drywall was mandated then in bathroom bath and shower alcoves area. 2 yrs in the house was sick around 6 months later just wiped out tired. But noticed that after a few hrs away from the house I felt better.Told my husband.Showering one day. Mind you that it was tiled in shower. Barely brushed the wall and the whole wall emploded. exposing black mold, smell, and no greenboard drywall. what they had done was there is 2 types of grout. 1 is porus 1 is not. They had used the grout for floor tile that must be sealed for the grouting of tiles in bathroom. So everytime a shower was taken water and moisture was going into the walls behind. You would never know it. I knew something was making me ill in that house.Who got paid off to pass this house for inspection in Peoria,AZ. Do not think that its still not done today.They hire inferior,no integrity all breeds of people to do houses here.Its just a deceiful STATE . I lived in Las Vegas for 15 yrs. At least you know whats coming at you. Here its a princapality that rules the air here.LITERALLY.

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too hot - 5/3/2019

too hot

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Jeff Nakamatsu - 6/6/2018

Arizona has open carry for firearms.

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RATS! RATS! EVERYWHERE!!! - 4/9/2018

Since my last review of Phoenix below and trying to get up the money to get my family and belongings out of town, (Arizona people on Craigslist want whatever you're selling for nothing, making it hard for me to raise money to move), I now have a new problem stalling my progress to get out of HELL! I opened up my hot water heater closet and a big eight inch long body and eight inch long tail RAT, ran down the chimney from the attic and into my house. It is one of the famous Roof Rats of Arcadia, which I live in the poor part of Arcadia. Google Arcadia Roof Rats. I was lucky not to have roof rats in the past, but my luck ran out. I set up a few rat traps to try and catch him, he ate the food and did not go near the tied on food, tripped one trap but wasn't there, and hasn't gone near a trap since. The past two months I have since set up forty traps to try and get him, but failed. I have tried trip traps, sticky traps, ultrasonic traps, electronic/electrocuting traps, hav-a-hart traps but failed to get him as of yet. I did kill seven of her babies though! It's one thing dealing with the stress of having rats running around your house, but a strange thing happened to me these past two months. My body lit up with hundreds of hive looking spots from head to toe. I have been to the ER four times for these spots and three primary care doctors for the same problem, with seven different diagnosis. I asked the doctors if it's rat related and a few of them said that it could be from bed bugs or fleas that the rats bought in. NICE! But I haven't found one flea or bed bug yet. Three of the doctors mentioned to me that they also have a roof rat problem in their HIGHLY RATED ARCADIA, PARADISE VALLEY, AND SCOTTSDALE/SHEA NORTH SCOTTSDALE AREA MILLION DOLLAR HOMES! My family member also has them in the HIGHLY RATED SUN CITY WEST RETIREMENT HOMES! They supposedly started in the Highly Rated Arcadia area but are now throughout the valley. As of yet, doctors have not yet succeeded in curing my rash but am now trying steroids to hopefully get rid of it. Hopefully, it's not something like the Black Plague or something like that, which Arizona has been known to have. I have been suffering too long with this. So, I say again - DON'T MOVE HERE!!!!!!!!! (I ALSO HAVE SCORPIONS AND BLACK WIDOWS). Update. All the above is true and everyone I've talked to this past two months have had at least one rat in their house, but as one of my neighbor's said when I told her that I have only one, she said, you have more! She was right, and she has killed seven rats herself and still going. We live in a nice, clean area of Arcadia.

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living in reno and hope to move to kingman - 11/25/2016

written my review of painted desert. will it be printed?

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Prescott - 1/23/2016

Am looking forward to retiring in Prescott in approx 1 yr. and would like as much info as possible re. housing and climate. Want to get away from the chronic drought and congestion of So California which is a nightmare. Looking forward to a safe, friendly community that allows for working on my photography and long walks with my dog.

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Arizona - 1/13/2016

I have lived in Phoenix my whole life, and I have never had any problem with this. Almost everyone I've met here is very kind and considerate. Many people are turned off by the heat, but almost everyone leaves for the summer, so the traffic is amazing, and honestly, you adjust to the heat real fast. Everyone just stays inside in the summer. Arizona is a beautiful and diverse state, with lush forests and snow, as well as vast deserts and cacti. We have many ooks and crannis where you will find amazing food, entertainment, and music. The symphony and ballet here will blow your mind, and Downtown Phoenix at night is magical. Every winter an outdoor ice skating rink is brought out and the whole community joins in. There are many options here for places to worship, and everyone here is very accepting of everyone else (with some exceptions, as any place.) we have loads of sports and teams here, with both professional and college teams. We have a great college community too, with ASU, U of A, and NAU, you really can't go wrong. There is really no limit as to what you can do here. I am very passionate about my state, and with all my heart hope that you come to join us here.

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Homes - 12/6/2015

I'm looking for a good area in mid-northern az. Any place/state good for my health.

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Seeking another state to plant roots - 10/31/2015

I've lived in Phoenix, Arizona for nearly 12 years - and I want out FAST.

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looking for a home in a city with low violance - 10/16/2015

thank you for this website

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finding small home - 9/3/2015

Sperlings is super cool

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DON'T MOVE TO ARIZONA - 9/3/2015

Good Day To All So I moved to AZ becouse all the grate stuff I read about.Well Let me tell you it's all lies .AZ is not a family state it's they do not care about you or your family.it's all about the Businesses.and the schools just push you kids through.if you are employed the company you are with can do anything to you and get away with it . if you don't make enough money for lawyers then you are screwed.employees don't have any rights.and if you have kids the schools are bad look at the reports on schools and you will see what I am saying . I have 3 boys that was special needs. and when I would ask for help from the schools they would tell me its the state that takes care of that . and the state would say it's the schools .and on top of that my boy should not of graduated they was not ready.so now its a nightmare. they can't get jobs or anything for they are lacking education we work with them all the time and it still don't help. SO PLEASE PLEASE DON'T MOVE TO AZ

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looking for retirement - 7/31/2015

I don't have one yet!

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Prescott valley? - 5/31/2015

Prescott is just a nice gateway for people that lives in Phoenix and a way for many California residents who want to feel once in their life middle class with some money, being able to move to a big new house under $ 300,000. Prescott is very inconvenient to live as is very isolated, the dry climate and altitute is not very nice for people with some health issues. This area is very depressing. I have heard that the local police department is very corrupted as well.I know many people that had to leave this town because of depression feelings or because they couldn't succes in their business or even survive.Neighborhoods are a mixed of whatever: mobile homes, tents, nice houses and ugly houses all together.Salaries are veryyyyy low.But if you want to experience living live simple and not many aspirations : you found the place!Of course is beautiful compare to Phoenix and many other unattratctive areas that Arizona offers.

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Phoenix Area - 5/27/2015

I love, love, love the Phoenix area! In five years, I cannot say ONE negative thing about it. Climate, people, beauty, amenities, activities, cost of living, ease of getting around, crime, food, proximity to many day trips, including Sedona and the Grand Canyon. I miss it so much!

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Phoenix - 5/2/2015

I was recently reading Phoenix is poised for a tech boom. Great news for the local economy.

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Arizona - 4/23/2015

Don't move here--save yourself. People who want “warm weather”?: I've lived in Chicago and I know the winters can be rough, but you will get the same with the ungodly heat and dryness 8 months out of the year here made worse by extremely hard water that's ladled in so much chlorine that no amount of filtering will make it better. It's a hot, dirty, dry and full of uneducated people whose life purpose is to destroy you. This place is soulless, unless you count Satan having a soul. It is expensive contrary to belief, especially since you will be nickeled and dimed to include people damaging you and your stuff just to cost you money that goes into their pockets. These people are desperate and will do anything to take your money and rape you of all you have. I came her for my PhD in community literacy and intersecting rhetorics of identity and it ruined my life, and this is coming from some who had it bad before. I could never have imagined that a place like this existed. This place is hell on earth. These people will eat you and spit you out and then charge you for the "pleasure." You will change, and not for the better.

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where i live - 3/25/2015

I live in the foothills of the adirondack mtns,corinth,n.y. winters are not to bad. However this winter was rough. spring is slow in coming. summers vary from humid to dry. Fall is the best year. temps in the summer range from 65-95. Saratoga springs is 13 mi. away. All major stores,business within a 15 min drive. Hospital 13 mi. away.

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Relocation to Show Low, AZ - 3/7/2015

My family (3 boys and husband) are planning a possible move to Show Low, AZ and I'm interested in the schools (Public, Private and Homeschool) as well as the Community, Neighborhoods to live, Boy/Cub Scouts and youth sports. We currently live outside Washington, D.C. in Virginia. I know it will be a huge life change, but we are positive about the move. Can anyone give us insight to Show Low? Thanks!

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