Another learn me thread, south-west U.S.

To help with health issues, my family is seriously considering a move to the south-western US. Specifically Arizona or New Mexico. What can you all tell me about those two states?

I'd prefer Utah, but my mom is going to follow us down there, and they tax social security bennies, so she says that's out. Are there other plusses in Utah that make up for that in any way, shape, or form?  

As far as AZ or NM go, I'd be thinking about the northern part od either state. Kinda like to stay away from  the oppressively hot southern part of the states. 

Any input?

NM has an undersized medical community. Like you might get an appointment for a physical twelve months from the day you call to schedule it. Have older relatives that moved to Santa Fe from central FL last year that wish they had done more research. They are also complaining about the taxes & cost of living. Also consider the effect of elevation on breathing. One of them has copd and they went from essentially sea level to 7000 ft. Guess who is dragging around an oxygen tank...

Sorry I don't have nicer things to say and I'm sure it isn't all bad. But goggle best & worst places to retire. I think NM was the 2nd worst state to retire in when I looked right after they moved. If my relatives had spent 10 minutes doing "research" I think they would have made a different choice, but they chose to make an uninformed decision.

In reply to DrBoost :

Make sure you pick a place where you can access the food of your people.  Phoenix has you covered.  Linky Link

I lived in Durango, Co in the 90's, and traveled all around the 4 corners. The West has its ups and downs. The nearest gas station might be 100 miles away. Fill up when you hit 1/2 tank. These areas statistically have 300 days of sunshine a year. That does a body good. Everything except dashboards seem to last a long time. Cars from the 50's are still on the road, because everything is too far away to drive to. Same with people. An active lifestyle seems to make them stay alive and healthy a long time. The sun does destroy paint and skin. The cost of living is generally high, and a long commute is common. 

The desert is beautiful, and couple that with the sparse population, and my mental health was good, but in the last couple of decades, fracking rigs have moved in. Water can be a real problem. Generally, if you stay near the bigger cities(Santa Fe, Albuquerque, Scottsdale, Phoenix), you have all the comforts of home, but an hour outside any of them, you are going back in time. That can be a good thing. 

I love the West. 

INlaws live in Tucson. Honestly I could see myself living there. A plethora of rust free old cars, beautiful country and dry air is nice. My hands and knees love the area. 

CoL is definitely higher than Indiana for sure. 

I lived in northern AZ for about two yrs for work.  I thought it would help my health issues, but the altitude and dust storms made my breathing issues worse.  This was along the I-40 corridor in Winslow.  Most of my drs. were an hour or more away, many of my specialists were in Phoenix.  Another problem my family had was a lack of greenery and water after growing up in the midwest.

I live in Flagstaff. If I had to choose between similar towns across the region, I'd choose Santa Fe. I'm a young guy who loves the outdoors and has no breathing problems. Allergies that I had back home are gone in the SW.  I also need to work, and Santa Fe has jobs. It's also only about 50 minutes from Albuquerque, which allows you to quick pop down there for anything you can get in the smaller city of Santa Fe. It's got cheaper housing than Flagstaff, a smaller college, and more charm. 

The only downside to Santa Fe is its relative isolation from the rest of the country. Head east, and there is nothing. Head west, and you've got about 10 hours of driving before California. Head north, and it's 5-6 hours before Pueblo. Head south and you've got Albuquerque and another 4 hours later you'll be in El Paso. Driving to other areas from Santa Fe just takes a long time. 

Flying too, is tricky. Albuquerque isn't a major hub, so most flights require transfers. I think this is slowly changing though. It may not be as bad I think. 

Some others ares to check out:

Prescott - High elevation but still on 4,000', milder weather, lots of housing, great medical services. Downsides - lots of retirees. 

Show Low/Pinetop/Lakeside - Cheap property, cheap taxes, more rural living. Downside? Sleepy town with no "core" and half the population are vacationers. 

Cottonwood/Clarkdale/Camp Verde/Sedona, AZ - Known as the Verde Valley, these old mining towns are slowly becoming the next Prescott, with cheaper housing, but better views. Jobs are probably more available in Prescott. 

Palm Springs/Palm Desert California - desert living, but kind of a building boomtown, at the base of snow covered mountains. 

Reno - cheaper, prettier Vegas. Gets snow.

Tucson - smaller Phoenix. Base of big mountains. Compact, but with traffic issues. HIghest unemployment in AZ. 

Albuquerque - cheaper housing, some issues with crime in some parts of the city, close to lots of wide open spaces, milder than both Phoenix or Tucson. 

If I had to stay in the southwest but could move anywhere with job a lined up, I think I'd be looking at Santa Fe. If I had to stay within my current employer's area, I'd choose Prescott. If I had to go somewhere that wasn't Phoenix or Tucson, but I didn't have a job lined up, I'd probably be looking at Reno or Palm Springs. 

If taxation might be an issue, you may want to include NV in the list, too. 

That said, outside the big metropolii we also have issues with medical care availability, and people here suggest that one ends up with new allergies in due course due to the different vegetation etc that people are used to.

I personally prefer the North, Vegas and the south gets way too hot. Oh, and there are the usual water supply issues.

Reno is getting pretty expensive these days as it's the new bolt hole for Silly Valley companies that are tired of paying silly prices. But if you're willing to live a little outside it gets a lot cheaper. Well, if you don't insist living in Tahoe that is. Reno/Carson City can get snow - Reno tends to get a bit more than Carson City. Neither get a lot of snow, but things can get a bit chaotic when we do.

A colleague of mine lives a bit outside Phoenix and loves it, but he grew up in that area and will readily admit that summers are a good time for staying indoors.

Do an extended stay during cactus pollen season before you commit. You think dry air and fewer trees should be good for allergies, but dust and pollen might actually make the issue worse.

I’m surprised to hear NM isn’t retiree friendly because it seems like a lot of folks retire there.  

Great info folks. There's a lot to learn and I appreciate the insider views. 

Employment is obviously going to dictate the general area for sure. I don't want to move to a place where I found a job, I want to move to a place where there are jobs. I don't know if that makes sense. 

I also really appreciate the mention of different allergens. 

What about vehicle inspections???

As a fellow Michigander considering the same things, I think you are on the right track but I will be watching this thread.  I like AZ, but it seems like employment would be an issue for me outside of the Phoenix area.  Unfortunately, the Phoenix seems like too much of a sweltering hell hole of a city.  Last time I was there was in early spring and it was hot, and the smog was gross.

I personally have decided that if I want to move to AZ, it's going to wait until I can at least semi retire.

Check out Grand Junction, CO and environs. I don't know about the tax question, but it's a bit friendlier temperature-wise than AZ/NM. Many many things to do within a 2-3 hour drive. You can go from big lakes (Powell) or red rock desert (Moab) or high mountain in that time. We've got decent medical including a level 1 trauma center.  5000' elevation and nice dry air. Our housing prices are lagging behind the big cities so it's still affordable but there is a shortage in the sub-$400k market so it's moving fast. Above that, you've got a pretty good selection. No emissions tests and no rust for the car guys.

Employment depends on what you do. The oil fields (not close, we're the support town) come and go but there's a range of other options. Including some Miata shop.

Could that miata shop use a guy to handle all documentation, and wrench when needed?

DrBoost said:

What about vehicle inspections???

NV does have annual emissions testing in Clark and Washoe counties (ie, around Vegas and Reno) but nowhere else. No safety inspection.

DrBoost said:

Could that miata shop use a guy to handle all documentation, and wrench when needed?

Given that I'm currently wearing the "technical writer" hat...it's possible. We actually need someone for tech stuff. If you're serious, drop me a line.

In reply to Keith Tanner :

Tech as in wrenching or tech as in IT?

Tech is mechanical technical. Not IT. Technical support of customers, R&D, wrenching - as opposed to sales or shipping or finance.

Expect to hear from me tonight. 

I assume yourname@flyinmiata, right?

Yeah, we make it easy for people

Whoa the snowfall in Grand Junction is far less than I expected. Only 18" on average, compared to Flagstaff's 110". 

The population is also higher, while not being reliant on a college, which is a good thing. It's got a college, but it's not huge. 

It's still 4 hours to Denver or SLC, though.  As someone who still has family that I like to see a few times a year, easy access to a cheap airports is valuable to me. Others may not require that.

On Phoenix and it's weather: originally I thought I'd hate the heat of Phoenix, but so far my experience with it isn't too bad. The really smoldering days during the peak of summer do indeed suck the balls, but only if you're really exerting yourself or stuck outside in jeans. If your someone who on 80º days is complaining about heat, then it's probably not your jive, but if you're someone who absolutely hates cold weather, Phoenix is a dream. My hates the cold and loves Phoenix. 

It's a good college, edging towards university status. The dean is doing a great job. You can actually get a CU engineering degree through it. And I don't think we actually get 18" of snow in town. I had to push maybe 3" off my driveway once this winter.

The airport is a bit of a problem. You can get anywhere you need to because both SLC and DEN are a quick hop, but it does add to the cost and limits your scheduling options to some extent. The flip side of that is that the security lineups are basically nil. When Janel was traveling for work, we usually left the house an hour before her flight was scheduled to depart and she'd walk right up to the X-ray machine.

Albuquerque is on our short list of places to move when we get tired of Alaska. Cost of living looks to be extremely reasonable and it can be almost as urban or rural as you want. UNM is a legit University, there’s a great art scene in both ABQ and Santa Fe, there is a good hospital system from what I’ve been told by my wife’s relatives (she’s from southern NM mountains), and the food... I’m only half joking when I say I’m married because of her red chile. 

Have you considered Texas?  San Antonio and Austin are located right in the middle of auto-cross/track heaven and have decent medical care and universities (UT).  Cost of living in San antonio is pretty low.  Unsure about Taxes though.