Relocating to Scottsdale, AZ

If you’re thinking about relocating to Scottsdale, Arizona, then you have made a great choice indeed.  Scottsdale is an amazing city with loads of natural beauty, golf courses, world class shopping and dining and plenty of nearby attractions.

There are countless things you should know before moving here and we will try to cover some of the basics.

• Scottsdale Schools–We’re often asked “are the schools good in Scottsdale”.  Well, this is a great question and if you are judging a school by test scores, then yes–there are many good schools.  Our feeling  is that unless we have a child who is attending a particular school that you have questions about, it would be careless of us to do anything other than recommend good sources of information.  To that end, here are some great links about Scottsdale schools:

1. Landing page for the Scottsdale Unified School District: http://susd.schoolfusion.us/
2. Zillow’s best schools in Scottsdale rating page: http://www.zillow.com/scottsdale-az/schools/
3. GreatSchools.org page about Scottsdale schools:  http://www.greatschools.org/arizona/scottsdale/

• Scottsdale Housing Options–You’ve likely been scouring Zillow, Trulia and the like, but if you want to get the most accurate and complete information about available homes for sale in Scottsdale, AZ, check out our Scottsdale real estate page.  Scottsdale offers housing options for every budget.  As of the writing of this page, June 2014, home values range from $32,500 for a studio in South Scottsdale to $32,000,000 for a huge estate in the Silverleaf community of North Scottsdale–and, there are all sorts of housing options at every price point in between.  If you’d prefer, we can set-up an automated search through our multiple listing service and this will allow you to receive listings within one hour after they hit the market–if this would be of benefit to you, contact me and we’ll talk about your housing needs.

If you plan on renting before you buy, we can help you secure a rental property, but we only have access to properties listed in our MLS (multiple listing service).  If you are just looking for an apartment to rent, try ApartmentGuide.com.

• • • Property Taxes–We all “love” paying taxes, but you’ll be pleasantly surprised to know that the tax base is relatively low in Scottsdale as compared to other parts of the country like New York or California.  In Arizona, taxes are levied annually on January 1, but they are billed semi-annually.  The calculation of property taxes is based upon numerous factors such as square footage,type of property, water districts, community colleges, bond issues, municipality, owner occupied versus second home or rental, etc; What confuses newcomers is that our property taxes are based upon assessed value and not the market value.  In Scottsdale, the assessment ratio is 10% of the full-cash market value; so, if your home has a full-cash market value of $400,000, your taxes will be based upon the assessed value of $40,000.  In our example, taxes on a $400,000 condo might be as low as $1500 per year, but a newer home could be as much as $3500 per year.  For more information about Arizona property taxes, check out Maricopa.gov.
    • Crime Statistics–Every city has crime, but Scottsdale does enjoy a very low rate in all categories compared to other cities in the greater metro Phoenix area.  For more detailed information, check out the “Uniform Crime Reports” at http://www.scottsdaleaz.gov/police/crime-statistics.

The Scottsdale Convention and Visitors Bureau offers some fantastic guides about everything from golf and dining to kids activities, sports and outdoor adventures–their destination guide is especially useful–you may download it here.

You can also access our home buyer’s LUXE Relocation Guide optimized right here.

Your Scottsdale Relocation Partner

As your relocation “partner”, we will assist you with every phase of your move–whether its connecting you to a reliable moving company, finding you temporary housing or helping you get pre-qualified for a loan and finding your dream home in Scottsdale.  Please consider one of our outstanding agents to lean on before you embark on a move to our beautiful city.