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Relocating from MA, need local advice
Hi everyone,
My husband has the opportunity to relocate to Chandler, AZ. We live in Massachusetts right now and have lived here our entire lives including during college. I have never been to AZ.
I'm not sure how I feel about this potential opportunity because I have no experience with making a big move like this. I know it will open a lot of doors for him, but I'm afraid to leave my home, family and a job that I love.
My question is 2 fold:
Does anyone have experince with relocation and what's it's been like for you and your husband or family?
If we did move to the Chandler area, what are some nice/safe places to live? We honestly live in a "Mayberry" like area; crime is non existant, everyone knows each other and there is a great sense of community here. It's also going to sound silly, but we live right on the ocean and I love to garden, so I'm not sure about moving to a desert-like climate.
Any thoughts or help would be greatly appreciated.
Re: Relocating from MA, need local advice
We relocated here to AZ from MA almost two years ago now. I tell you, it has been a HUGE adjustment. We were also in that "Mayberry" kind of town. I think a lot of New England is like that and it is SO not like that here. Don't get me wrong, there are a lot of nice people but from what I've found the garage doors go up at 5 and go down at 5:01 you know. The ladies on the board are great and i am sure that there are a lot of great people here, but coming from the East Coast I notice that people are totally different here then what we would be used to.
That being said, 99% of the time I am so happy to live here. I do miss the ocean more then I realized I would. We LOVE the ocean, well I love the ocean haha and it's hard not having one here. And lakes are very minimal too. We purchased a house with a pool so that helps but it's not "home" you know. Even though I have no plans to move back to NE, I consider it home. I don't have that "home" feeling here yet *shrugs*
I don't know much about Chandler as I live way up in the WV. There are a few girls on here who can tell you more about the area. But if you move out here let me know. We'll have to get together and talk about home haha! I miss it.
CNJ, where in MA are you from? DH and I grew up in the Marblehead, Swampscott, Salem, Beverly area. We live in Beverly now and I work here too. I work for a local non-profit, so I feel very connected to this area.
Part of me is afraid to move, part of me thinks we should take this as an adventure to try something new and if its awful, we can always move home. I'm definitly afraid though that if DH says no to this, he will be passed over for other opportunities. I don't want to ruin his chances at moving up in his company, at a time when we may want to start a family and I would have an opportunity to stay home or work part time.
DH & I moved here from Seattle almost two years ago now. He got a job offer in Chandler, and we left a few weeks later.
It's been difficult at times for me, as most of my family is in WA and I've always lived close to them. DH went to college on the east coast, while his parents remained in CA (at that time), so it wasn't as difficult a transition for him. He was already used to being away from his parents. I totally agree with Sweetie, in that it has made us closer. For so long we were really all each other had, and that was also a difficult transition for me. I was used to having a close group of girlfriends, as well as my family, so to go from that to just DH was hard, but good at the same time.
We currently live in Gilbert, and love it. I don't know that it's necessarily the "Mayberry" feel. I think what Jess (cnj) said about the garage doors going up at 5pm and down at 5:01 is pretty accurate from what I've seen as well. People are nice, but not necessarily super friendly or neighborly - mostly keep to themselves. Of course this is just what I've experienced, but could definitely be different in different neighborhoods. Gilbert has good schools (from what I hear - I don't have kids) and it's a really nice area. Our commute to Chandler is pretty minimal - takes about 20 minutes or so, and traffic really isn't bad at all (Especially compared to what we dealt with with Seattle traffic). There's good areas and not so good areas of any town, Gilbert included. I really like East Mesa, Gilbert & parts of Chandler. Tempe is also relatively close, I just don't personally care for it as much.
Before we moved here we were down near the cape in Wareham (just before the bourne bridge) and before that Nashua NH and right before that Tewksbury MA.
We did he same sort of thing with moving here. My husband was given the oppertunity to move up to management. There were a few places we could have gone to, but I was happy to get away from the snow so we chose this area. We also moved from our family and friends so it's been hard. I have met a couple really great people out here who I consider good friends but it is a lot harder to make friends here then it is back east, that is for sure.
Oh and a tip.. traffic here is NOTHING like it is back east, haha! Not sure if your husband commutes now (i know you said you work local to home) but we went from an almost 90 (or more on a lot of occasions on 95 or even 93) minute commute each way to about 40 minutes.
We actually just took the plunge and relocated to AZ a few weeks ago. I'm just finishing week 2 of new job. We took three days to drive around the area and find an apartment. We're in northern Chandler. I can't really decide if it is a good neighborhood or not. I've heard it is the older part of town. We are living in an apartment complex and it seems OK.
We just had our first child and my parents were kind of bummed that we were moving away - even though they live in the Caribbean for 6 months out of the year anyhow. DH's parents were happy that we moved because it will provide more opportunities for us and Baby J.
We moved from Minnesota so I am loving the weather. We'll see what I have to say come summer though!
Relocation is hard, but I'm guessing you both have discussed it and agree it will be the best for your family.
I live in South Gilbert (Layton Lakes Community) and it's very nice. Doesn't seem to be any crime and the neighborhood is friendly. AZ is different when it comes to meeting your neighbors. I've found that I have to make the first move and introduce myself and get to know them. Our neighborhood is newer, so it's a little easier to talk with people and connect. We have a lot of common areas for interaction (tennis courts, parks, rock wall, and splash park).
Getting used to the "dry" climate will be a big adjustment. I moved from Ohio and was astonished by all the brown!! I have grass in my front and back yard because that's what I want to see and what I want my kids to play in
and you have to think of the summers as your old winters, but for the rest of the year the weather is wonderful. Plus you're only about 6 hrs from the beach. We try to spend a little time during the summer in San Diego for the beach life.....totally not the same as living on the beach, but we have to get our fill someway.
Good Luck!
2mom74 - I moved here from Ohio as well, and I live a few blocks from you! I agree with you, this area is really nice! FI and I love it here!
I have lived in arizona my whole life. I just wanted to comment on the living situations...
I prefer Gilbert schools over Chandler schools. Gilbert has better test scores than Chandler. Also, Chandler has year around schooling, while Gilbert is just on the regular schedule.
From what I've seen, Chandler is mostly "older" than Gilbert. And usually older homes are cheaper, and when you have a neighborhood with low-income families the crime rate is usually higher. I'm not saying its like that EVERYWHERE in Chandler,... I just think that overall, Gilbert is better.
Right now my DH and I live in east Mesa. I told him that I would like to move to Gilbert by the time our daughter goes into kindergarten. If thats not possible, then I will be looking into charter schools.
Wow! We should meet up
Sorry it took me awhile to see this....not a lot of time with a 5 month old.
Before DH and I married, I owned a home in east Mesa and DS#1 went to a fabulous school there (Falcon Hill). He had great teachers and I loved the school staff. We now live in Gilbert, but go to Chandler schools....I know it's weird, but it's all about how the borders are drawn. It's a great school and I love the "all year round" schedule. More vacation time throughout the year!