So we’ve been kicking around the idea of moving to AZ in the next year or so from the shitattle area, getting the f away from here for obvious reasons, but I’m curious what arf AZ members think of it these days.

I visit fairly often for work, but the trend to blue doesn’t give me a ton of optimism, had I made this thread in 2010 it would have been a no-brainer, but I’m not sure how bad the CA/WA/OR cancer has gotten in the last few years.  I have a 4yr old, likely going to private school (he’s in $25k a year Montessori now) and from what I’ve seen school costs there are significantly lower overall than Washington.

I used to spend summers in Palm Springs, so I definitely know how dragging summers can get, although IMO not as bad as Seattle area fall/winter/spring.

Looks like mule deer hunting is ok there, but I can always travel for that, and AZ still seems pretty 2A friendly.  My other half is interested in the Prescott area for more seasonality, but admittedly I’ve never been up there on my business trips, so we will probably be making a trip in spring to let her get a feel for the phoenix area, as well as a trip to Prescott.

What does the braintrust say?

https://www.ar15.com/forums/general/Cartel-Gunman-Shootout-in-Arizona/5-2694098/

It’s gonna be better than Seattle 100%…. But not quite the same AZ anymore.

If ur doing private school, Prescott is gonna be hard. It’s more of a retirement community. You will have to stay in metro Phoenix for schools like that.

I moved here in 2017 and would still do it again. I wanted a place that I could be outside and shoot year round. Unless you do not mind real cold and snow not many states qualify for still being 2nd Amendment friendly. Coming from Seattle you are coming out way ahead moving to AZ.

My wife and I moved to Prescott Valley in 2012 from the Detroit suburbs.  We looked at a lot of locations around the country before settling on this area.

In the past 5-6 years there has been a huge influx of people from west coast areas and the midwest.  A lot of people land first in Phoenix and find out that 115 degrees is too hot period.

It is a lot busier more traffic and crowded than just a few years ago.  

There are good private schools here and sufficient shopping/medical/firearms that trips down to Phoenix are unneeded.

Our new likely fake governor is a liberal twit and there is a push towards ruining this state.  When that might happen I do not know.  This county (Yavapai)votes approx 72% red.

Wife and I are late 60's and not going to move again.  We will ignore the stupidity as much as possible.

Were we again in our 40s we'd be looking hard at southeast Idaho or Wyoming some damn place.  While the border issues have not impacted us here much, they will at some point.

Good luck to you.

There is a points lottery for the better hunts.  Study up on that and don't make your decision based on the hunts.

Phoenix area traffic can be horrible and I mean Los Angeles horrible.  

Lots of areas outside, both up North and down South that are better for most things, but you need to decide if you have to live near good health care or if you need access to hardware stores, as in a home remodel or such things. I see that schools are a consideration for you.  There are some good ones, but you have to shop around and I think you need to live in a district.  Not sure about private or charter schools.  I don't have any experience on those things.

It is nothing new that AZ is a drug and human smuggling corridor.  It has been that way for decades.  

It would be difficult to find better Mexican food than Southern AZ has to offer.

Echo AB ‘s comments. Moved from gun owner hell ( NY) in 2015 and delighted with the Prescott area in general. I will say ( as a medical professional myself) some medical resources are limited here but no worse than any other similar size “country city”
Traffic is worsening but nothing like you would se3 in Phoenix and the weathe4 is about as good as you can get.
Lots of great land to shoot on, and my gun club ( Prescott action shooters) hosts a ton of shooting matches ( pretty much 4 out of 7 days a week they have some sort of match)
I am a vet and my recent experiences with the Prescott VA ( again with the perspective of a medical professional) have been very positive,
Gun shops too numerous to count, generally great people.
I am a member of VFW post 10227 Prescott valley. If in the neighborhood swing by- we have a very friendly membership and out post is open to the public Monday to Thursday for lunch and dinners Friday night

While true AZ is turning a bit blue, I think ( optimism) the next election the pendulum swings very red everywhere

Nope.  I'd probably go to Idaho.  I've heard Idaho has been getting even more conservative with all the influx of new residents.

Come visit and decide.  Rent for a year or so and make a decision.  There's a lot of dynamics involved and perspectives based on where/what you're used to.  

Prescott is nice, but it's getting crowded.  And housing is expensive.  Not sure how good the medical is if you need something real?   The Phoenix area is just LA in a very hot desert.  And Tucson proper is a dump.  The outlining areas are nice but getting crowded.  Then you have the snowbird's (Locust) that come in and crowd-up the medical, shopping, roads, and restaurants.  And a lot of them lean Blue.

And the State is still gun friendly, but we've gone from a solid number 1 per G&A's ranking, to in the top 5.  The citizens here voted in a senator who spent years running an anti-gun organization.  And who just co-authored a gun ban on the Federal level.  Personally, I think he'll be the next McCain and will stay in office for AZ forever.  I don't really buy into it's all going to change back to Red.  Far too many Lefties have moved here from all over.

I way the Pros and Cons every time I travel somewhere I might want to move to.  Right now, I'm content where I'm at.  But eventually that may change.

I miss the Arizona of the 80s and 90s.

This place has changed.

My parents died here. I want to be with them when I go.



It sucks. I love it here.

Thanks all, good info in here

We are still planning on a trip this spring, i think Washington state is about the bottom of the barrel in every way so almost anything is an upgrade.

Idaho sounds great but since i have a young son and am a millennial I have a lot of years left before retirement, so being closer to bigger industry and more opportunities is something I need to consider as well.  If that wasn’t the case, we’d be in Idaho already.

I’ve also kicked around Texas, as i have family there, but it’s a flat swamp and way too humid

70's, 80's and 90's.
Amen brother.

I left for many reasons.

1. It's become overly urban focused. This is why it's getting so "Blue". This also brings all the other urban problems.

2. Expensive. The costs are getting insane. Housing is unaffordable, along with everything else

3. Crime.


Frankly the Phoenix Metro of 2023 is the LA metro of the 2000s

After 30 years in Shitattle WA we moved here in 2001.  WA wasn't nearly as bad at the time we left as it is today and AZ in the early 2000's was a whole lot redder than now.  
If I was in your place today I would look elsewhere, but it is worth a trip and a look/see.

If you stay out of the Phoenix Metromess it's not bad. Words are insufficient to describe my hatred of Phoenix. Having lived in Albuquerque, I'd take it over Phoenix any day of the week if that tells you anything.

Rural AZ is a good place to live and raise a family. The city-person progressive cultural rot doesn't exist here in any meaningful capacity. Your options for work will be more limited but things are really on the upswing if you're doing anything related to the mining industry. I don't know if I'll stay out here long-term - if the right projects go somewhere I'll move back to New Mexico.

You ain't lying.  The similarities are striking.  

This is the truth, except for the positives like the weather and beaches.

We are on our way out and a lot of people we know are doing the same or have already done so.

You're part of the problem.  Don't cut and run to AZ.  Unfuck your part of the country please.

Washington is a lost cause, but a big reason I want to move is to get away from the endless goddamn rain, gray, and dampness

I moved to Prescott AZ from MN 45 years ago.
I love it here and would still do it all over again.

If you need to be around bigger industry, I don't think Prescott will work for you.  It's still pretty far from Phoenix for a commute.  And the 17 Fwy is currently being widen and is under construction.  And I've seen it completely stopped for accidents.

The Anthem area (northern part of Phoenix metro) seems nice with access to Phoenix proper.  But again, think LA.  

Honestly if I was moving here again, I would have moved to the Marana/Oro Valley area north of Tucson.  Tucson proper is a toilet & leans left, but the surrounding areas are nice (Sahuarita, Marana, Oro Valley, Vail, Catalina Foothills).  And the Tucson area is cooler than Phoenix by a few degrees.  

Coming from So Cal., I really don't like the Metro Phoenix area at all.  Far too hot and busy.  But it does offer more jobs and entertainment.  Something I'm not real concerned with in retirement.

Az is a pretty libertarian state. If the social conservatives aren't pushing dumb shit the state elects Republicans to preserve liberty.  If the social conservatives get too active the state elects Dems to keep them in check.    Most Dems here stay the fuck away from gun laws and high taxes because they will lose if they push that shit outside of a few areas.  

Kind of up to you.  If you are more libertarian you'll like it here. If you are hoping for abortion bans and stopping gay marriage and banning weed you'll probably be disappointed.

For the foreseeable future we'll remain a pro gun and pro business state most likely.

We were pretty set on moving from CO to AZ a few years ago, but when Kari Lake had the election stolen from her and the subsequent shenanigans from the left covering it up and blocking an honest investigation we put on the brakes.   Still in CO but the urgency to GTFO is increasing on a daily basis.

For us, AZ isn't completely off the table but it's not at the top of our list any more.

Good sir,

I understand, completely. I moved here from the dreaded communist state of CALIFORNIA. There was just no staying, I love California, it’s gorgeous. However, the liberal cancer in the state has brought it to what I call “Stage 4”. It’s BAD, REAL BAD. I’m sure I don’t have to tell you that. I’ve watched Colorado pretty much turn into California. What is done in California seems to quickly happen in WA, OR, NV, CO. And then happen back east. I don’t think anywhere is safe from the Libtards.

That said, where, good sir, is the state most desirable to you?

For AZ?   We were planning on Yavapai County or far northern Gila.   I have fond memories of my time at Ft Huachuca in Sierra Vista but my wife isn't comfortable that close to the border, and to be fair it's ~30 years since I was there last.

Border crime wise in Sierra Vista really is not that bad.  It does get the occasional border related high speed chase and a stash house is found every once in a while.  Luckily SVPD and Cochise county sheriffs office are very good and do a good job with smacking down crime.  Some of the worst crime in Sierra Vista was done by the kind of Californians we do not want moving here.  It seems some criminals from CA still think this area is the wild west and can get away with crime.  It is strange to me that most of the drug crime in the area are from people bringing drugs from Tucson and selling down here.

I spend a lot of time in the Huachuca mountains and along the border and it really is not an much of an issue.  I do see the trash left behind, I do see the illegal trails, and I do run into an illegal now and then.  

I used to live about 1.5 miles from the border.  Yes I had problems, cut fences, garbage, seeing illegals...  Once they put up cameras in that area and completed the border wall from Douglas into Coronado National Memorial it made a huge difference.  It does not stop every one, but there are not hordes of illegals coming through in this area. The worst part are the wildland fires the illegals start.

When was the last time you were at Ft. Huachuca?  The area has changed a lot.  There are a lot more people living in the area for one thing.

I do have some border related stories.  I have certainly complained about border issues.  And there have been bad border related things happen in the area over time.

You cannot go wrong with other parts of rural Arizona either.

I lived in the Denver metro area from 1995 to 2003 and saw some of the bad changes Colorado were going through.  I see some of the same things happening to Arizona.  I just keep doing my part to help keep Arizona Red.  But, it is scary how well organized the democrats are.

Yes

Arizona was never that red.  Heck, AZ voted for Bill Clinton over Bob Dole.

If it wasn't for gun laws and landlord favorable rules, it would be middle of the road compared to the other 49 states. And the Dems in the state are aggressively trying to change both.  

Moved here 20 years ago. NW  AZ.   I still would move here.

Today it was sunny, 73 degrees, the lake was glass, so I went jet skiing....in January I went jet skiing....heck yes I'd move here again!

Thanks for the feedback all, we’re planning another trip in April to check it out