Why Live in Arizona???
I was born and raised in Southern California where, I believe, you find the best year-round weather of any other state in the US. But, like they say, "it's a great place to visit, but I wouldn't want to live there." The traffic is horrendous! How can you be stopped in a traffic jam at 2:30 in the morning? Where are all these people going? And the smog, wow! I remember taking in deep breaths and feeling the burn down my throat. Earthquakes, yeah they can be kind of exciting and fun, but in the Northridge Quake in 1994 - magnitude 6.7 - I lost everything! My apartment in Woodland Hills was turned upside down! Speaking of my apartment, a nice little 2 bedroom, I paid more for that in 1994 then I pay today for my 3 bedroom home on an over sized lot that backs to a beautiful park! I moved here in 1995 and started practicing Real Estate in 1998 and I love it here! Yes, it gets hot during the summer, but, as we like to say, it's a "dry" heat!
There is so much to do here. While others are snowed in their homes and bringing out the snow plow just to get to their mail box, we're driving with the top down in the car for an outdoor barbecue and swim party! It can get mighty cold here though, don't be fooled. Often times I'm torn...should I stick with the short sleeve Hawaiian shirt or do I go with a long sleeve? Just one of lifes tumultuous battles I'm left to contend with.
Arizona has something for everyone. I've enjoyed hiking at Piestewa Peak, Camelback and South Mountain where you find these amazingly huge lizards called chuckwallas, that have black bodies with an orange stripe around their tail, skiing and jet skiing at any of the several lakes we have nearby like Canyon Lake, Bartlett Lake, Apache, Saguaro and Lake Pleasent to name a few. We have some unique areas that are great for day trips like Tortilla Flat, Greasewood Flat, the Red Rocks of Sedona and the Grand Canyon. Check out Kartchner Caverns just south of Tucson for an awesome tour of the cave that will leave you slightly "batty" and follow it up with a visit to Tombstone where you can walk the streets where Wyatt Earp, Doc Holiday and the like had the famous gunfight at the OK Corral. While there, you'll have to order rattlesnake at one of the many eateries, (it tastes just like chicken!)
We have sports, too! I was there in 1998 when the Arizona Diamondbacks played their first game. We have the Phoenix Suns that have always been a formidable team to contend with and - although I never realized it before - we also have a football team, the Arizona Cardinals! Who knew? If you like golf (and I LOVE golf), Arizona is a paradise. We have sooo many courses and they are rarely crowded so you can almost always walk on to the course of your choice, even on the weekends!
We have car shows like Barrett-Jackon, festivals like the Renaissance Fair, Greek and Bluegrass Festivals, Art Walks in Tempe and Scottsdale, Tempe Town Lake, outdoor shopping malls, luxurious movie theaters (Harkin's is King!), museums, fine dining and entertainment, dancing, theater, concerts. During the summer, grab some friends for a relaxing day of tubing down the Salt River. And best of all - life in Arizona is AFFORDABLE!!!
There is so much more I could say about this great state we live in, suffice to say, this is home for me.
Hunter Clark
Associate Broker
US Preferred Realty