My wife and I are considering a move to AZ. Specifically, the White Mountain area or further North around the Flagstaff area.
What are people's thoughts on AZ in general?
We currently live in the NE US and the legislation and taxes are killing us!
Greetings from Mesa, AZ. We get to Flagstaff now and then, usually taking friends and relatives to the Grand Canyon, and frequently overnite there. I like the Flag area more than the White Mountain area simply because there is more to do there. I strongly suggest you visit and check out the areas as thoroughly as you can. We are settled in Mesa and our kids have also settled here. Lots of people and businesses moving into this area, and lots of immigrants settling here as well, legal and illegal, and I worry about that. Otherwise, I cannot say anything bad about the place, except for the summer sun, which is hot.
Hi Ralph,
Thanks for your reply. I have visited AZ before including the areas that I mentioned. I did really like it. However, living somewhere and vacationing there are always different. My wife has some friends in Mesa and they love it. I really did like Northern AZ when I was there, it's nice to have all the AZ sun without so much of the heat.
What are most of the people like there? It seems that a lot of freedom minded individuals are in AZ when compared to other areas. I understand gun laws are very good there and there is a lot to do, but cost of living is fairly high and there is an increasing problem with immigration. Any particular concerns we should have or areas you feel are good to look at? Thanks for your reply.
Maybe I'm out of touch, but I don't think of the cost of living as being all that high in Arizona. There are lots of freedom and preparedness minded people here, and since Katrina the preparedness issue is getting more attention. The most restrictive gun law for me is the requirement of a permit for concealed carry. Guns are easily purchased and sold privately without paper trail, which I consider important. Finding places to shoot other than ranges is becoming a problem. Flagstaff and the White Mountains are cold in winter. We have to think of access to Phoenix airport and closeness to our kids, which is one big reason we remain here in retirement, even though there are places like St. George, Utah and elsewhere in Arizona that we liked.