Living in Phoenix Arizona

[TambaBerry]

Me and my wife are planning on moving to Phoenix sometime this year. I was wondering if you could tell me the best places to live there. We are just tired of the weather in Kansas City and want out. We can deal with the blistering heat.

[Why Not?]

Originally Posted by Chiefs Pantalones

I hate being away from my teams as well. With my wife and I having our first kid and sports being a big part of our lives we want them to have that joy of going to the games, etc. Nothing like taking your family to the games, etc. Our teams.

This isn't breaking news but Arizona is a sports ghost town; graveyard. Awful state for sports.

Got it dude, you hate Phoenix.

[Chiefs Pantalones]

Originally Posted by Why Not?

Got it dude, you hate Phoenix.

Lol I don't hate it, it's just not my thing. I see why people like it.

[TambaBerry]

Originally Posted by Chiefs Pantalones

Lol I don't hate it, it's just not my thing. I see why people like it.

Ya, I'm not at all questioning you about it. You tried it and didn't like it. I could feel exactly the same when we move down there.

[Hootie]

Originally Posted by BWillie

Kudos to you. I'm thinking about buying a home in Vegas, and because I'm lazy, the lack of doing any yard work of any kind is really appealing to me. Make sure you get really really good ****ing windows though.

want a roommate?

[lewdog]

Originally Posted by eDave

Dude. I moved TODAY and tomorrow. I'm sporting a nice migraine at the moment. Nearly impossible to keep hydrated enough.

Moved back to Ahwatukee for a bit.

First time I went back to visit KC after moving out here, I was struck at how GREEN KC is. It was so vivid.

I thought you were moving out of Phoenix completely?

[TambaBerry]

What do you guys pay for utilities? What kind of tv providers are out there?

[lewdog]

Originally Posted by dingleberry

What do you guys pay for utilities? What kind of tv providers are out there?

Utilities are very hard to compare. It will depend on your house sq/ft, one or two story home, how high you keep your AC, the amount of vegetation or pool usage for water. I have solar on my house so my electric bills range anywhere from $20 to $120 (current bill for July) but most houses our size would easily be $300+ this time of year for electric only. SRP has better rates for electricity but you can't choose your provider and the majority in Phoenix have APS with higher rates. Our house is single store 2300 sg/ft. Gas ranges $25-75 which runs hot water and heat in winter. My Water bill is $55-90 and that's with a pool and drip system for about 20 plants and no grass.

I have DTV so I can see the Chiefs. I go with Cox for internet. Other options are Cox or Century link for internet/TV. Dish Network obviously as well.

[Why Not?]

Originally Posted by lewdog

Utilities are very hard to compare. It will depend on your house sq/ft, one or two story home, how high you keep your AC, the amount of vegetation or pool usage for water. I have solar on my house so my electric bills range anywhere from $20 to $120 (current bill for July) but most houses our size would easily be $300+ this time of year for electric only. SRP has better rates for electricity but you can't choose your provider and the majority in Phoenix have APS with higher rates. Our house is single store 2300 sg/ft. Gas ranges $25-75 which runs hot water and heat in winter. My Water bill is $55-90 and that's with a pool and drip system for about 20 plants and no grass.

I have DTV so I can see the Chiefs. I go with Cox for internet. Other options are Cox or Century link for internet/TV. Dish Network obviously as well.

House is right at about 2,000 sq ft with a pool and lots of electricity used and we almost never top $300. APS and I think SRP both have plans that allow you to save $ if you run your major stuff during off peak hours(noon-7 are considered peak)so we just run our big stuff at night. Keep the ac between 76-78 during the day(78 when it's 110 outside feels like a freezer)and we're good. Pay almost nothing for water and I'm with Lewdog, gotta go DTV for Chiefs games

[Why Not?]

Hey Lewdog, do you like solar? I've been thinking about it but I don't want to pay the $20,000 upfront and the monthly lease payments seem like they neutralize the electric bill savings?

[lewdog]

Originally Posted by Why Not?

House is right at about 2,000 sq ft with a pool and lots of electricity used and we almost never top $300. APS and I think SRP both have plans that allow you to save $ if you run your major stuff during off peak hours(noon-7 are considered peak)so we just run our big stuff at night. Keep the ac between 76-78 during the day(78 when it's 110 outside feels like a freezer)and we're good. Pay almost nothing for water and I'm with Lewdog, gotta go DTV for Chiefs games

Even with on/off peak in our rentals were were close to $300 in the hot months for 1500 sq/ft and no pool. And we only did stuff at night. Maybe those houses just weren't well constructed?

Originally Posted by Why Not?

Hey Lewdog, do you like solar? I've been thinking about it but I don't want to pay the $20,000 upfront and the monthly lease payments seem like they neutralize the electric bill savings?

House had solar on it already so in order to buy the house we had to accept the solar. We didn't have to put any money down on it and lease is good for another 18 years. You definitely come out more ahead if you can purchase the panels but most don't want the up front cost or responsibility of maintenance. Lease does cost you more in the long run but you aren't responsible if the system breaks down and no up front expense. I say we still save roughly $40-50 a month with our lease and electric bill compared to my estimated without it. Not as much as some people think but still coming out ahead. Leases are getting worse and worse though with APS trying to level higher rates and taxes for those acquiring systems. Those who started leases for solar 3-4 years ago when rates were awesome, are coming out way ahead.

Another great thing is the Kwh roll over. We still go on/off peak plan with solar and we currently have a 1600 kWh credit for on peak usage, meaning I can run the AC cooler, do laundry and run pool pump on peak as we aren't even close to being charged as they use our credit hours first. So I've paid $0 in on peak electricity usage the entire year! Last month our off peak electricity we used, that the solar didn't generate, was 1000 kWh. That's a whopping $35 spent on electricity for us for July in Phoenix! It's APS stupid fees that cause our bill to be $120 last month! June was only $50 though. Solar lease is $131. So last month was total of $250 spent on solar/APS with 2300 sq/ft house, pool pump 12 hours a day, AC at 78-80 degrees when home and 75 degrees at night. So I think my estimate of saving about $50 last month is pretty accurate.

We get paid out $.03 for any kWh credit we have left at the end of the year. And we will definitely have on peak credit at the end of the year topping easily 2000 kWh.

[BWillie]

Originally Posted by Hootie 2.0

want a roommate?

I will need one actually

[eDave]

Originally Posted by lewdog

I thought you were moving out of Phoenix completely?

Delayed. Fiance's mother is out of here soon so we are staying and moving closer.

[lewdog]

Originally Posted by eDave

Delayed. Fiance's mother is out of here soon so we are staying and moving closer.

Don't do it man. End it now. Marriage ain't worth it!

[lewdog]

Dingleberry, get down here! I'll be at the Tuesday and Wednesday games.

[eDave]

Originally Posted by lewdog

Don't do it man. End it now. Marriage ain't worth it!

I've been putting it off for 8 years now...

Great being back in Ahwatukee though.

Hey Dingleberry, can't believe you are choosing Gilbert. Bland.