Nerd Wallet, you've done it again. And by "done it again," we mean missed the mark entirely. The financial counseling site that aims to help its users with everything from finding the right bank to finding Mr. Right has just released a list of the "Best Places for Homeownership in Arizona," and, suffice it to say, they're not exactly lively metropolises.
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To calculate this list of the best home-buying cities in the state, Nerd Wallet looked at three main criteria: home availability, home affordability, and area growth. In other words, the study favored parts of the Valley that had greater supply than demand (see: half-empty cookie-cutter developments) and showed solid signs of life that could potentially increase (albeit, slowly).
Coming in at number one was Maricopa, followed by San Tan Valley, New River, Sahuarita, Queen Creek, Buckeye, Marana, Anthem, Green Valley, and Goodyear. If you're wondering where some of those aforementioned cities are, don't feel too bad. Marana, for example, has only been around since 1977. Located 25 miles northwest of Tucson, the city has expanded from 1,500 resident to 35,000 residents, making for substantial growth in a still substantially small town.
So can you get more bang for your buck in Buckeye? Probably. Is it worth living 40-plus minutes outside town? Debatable. What can we say? Some things look better on paper.
