Arizona Sucks

The game is officially over for so many in Arizona as we watch our population numbers continue to plunge. Arizona and so many of its residents counted on this growth and expansion to keep their jobs, businesses, and the local economy intact. The state of Arizona now has fewer people moving in, zero need for any new developments, people are running out of money, businesses are closing their doors, and jobs are running dry. This downturn in population growth has hurt a number of industries and has put a number of construction workers, Realtors, mortgage/loan consultants, strip mall, and restaurant workers out of work with nowhere to turn to in this beaten Arizona economy. Maybe, just maybe people are starting to wise up to the fact that Arizona is not a tropical paradise, but really a dusty, lackluster, hopeless, dreadful, terrifying, dead end place where you never want to find yourself. A few lurking surprises will await you should you choose to relocate yourself to a life out here in the sweltering desert, and these could just be a few of the reasons people are now saying NO to Arizona.

Traffic / Drivers / Congestion – the huge population surge in recent years has absolutely hammered Arizona freeways and surface streets. Most of the major roadways in Arizona were built far before the extreme population growth and have been at max capacity for quite some time. Travel around much of the Phoenix area is a mess right now especially during the rush hour, in construction zones, or whenever there is another accident. And in Phoenix, there are a lot of accidents. It is pretty much a fact that Arizona roadways just are not a safe place to be and you will witness this every single time you get in your car. You are guaranteed to see some of the most bizarre accidents and driving techniques while driving around Arizona. It doesn’t help that everything in Arizona is so spread out and driving is an absolute necessity to go anywhere or do anything. Most people live so far away from their jobs that it creates long, hot, and treacherous, commutes for the majority of residents out here. Of course, it is completely expected that a city the size of Phoenix will have some traffic and congestion concerns. However, it is the toxic amalgamation of drunk, illegal, inexperienced, aged, incompetent, and otherwise terrifying drivers out here that is really the icing on the cake, and will make you really wish the next time you got in your car that you were driving out of Arizona forever!

Low wages / Lack of jobs – we get it, a lot of Arizona Natives are perfectly content working in dead end jobs with no advancement and minimal pay. However, Arizona organizations are not going to attract or retain solid employees with this mindless business model. It has become shockingly clear to people just how poor the job market is in Arizona and people have stopped moving here looking for work because of this. People are not going to move to Arizona to make 30K (and often even less) while working in call centers, fast food restaurants, or mailing out DVDs. The lack of real, good jobs is going to keep the bright, educated, and innovative people out of Arizona unless there is a significant turnaround at some point. There is a reason that get-rich-quick, pyramid schemes, selling magazines door-to-door, and other scams are so popular across metropolitan Phoenix – the majority of jobs out here pay at the high school level no matter what your education or experience level may be.

Crime – in a big city, crime is certainly expected. In Phoenix, crime is running rampant and seems to be getting worse every year. Shootings, armed robberies, mail theft, drugs, property damage, stolen cars, rape, senseless killings, child abductions, hit-and-runs, human smuggling – you name it, we have it in Arizona and it is probably flourishing in your own neighborhood. You may have heard otherwise, but the crime in the Phoenix and Tucson areas appears to be on the rise and can only get worse as the desperation continues out here. Sadly, it has really become a question of when, and not if something will happen to you. Everyone in Arizona is a target at this point, even those who most of us look at as having just about nothing left. Have a car, a house, a MP3 player, a case of Ice House beer, a watch, a pack of cigarettes, or maybe just a dollar in change – you are next. It is only in Arizona that you will regularly hear these mind-boggling violent news stories that even the most fanatical Hollywood writers could never even dream up. In other words, you can’t make this shit up.

Phoenix, Arizona – it’s affordable for a reason!!

I’ve heard it, you’ve heard it, we’ve all heard it several times – ‘it’s the same everywhere else’ – it has slowly but surely become the go-to argument whenever a negative story or comment is shared about how life really is in Arizona. This argument has really increased in popularity out here over the last few years as many have tried to relate Arizona’s problems with that of the nation’s struggling economy. There are some people out here who may actually believe that other states are having the same economic, real estate, crime, and job struggles which we are dealing with in Arizona. Maybe you’ve even wondered if it really is this bad everywhere else in the country?

Not a chance. Do other states share some of the similar problems? Absolutely. Do other states have their own issues to deal with? They sure do. How many other states are stuck with permanent economic and social issues? Not many. Could it be the economy? Elsewhere, yes – in Arizona, not really. Is it just that the future for Arizona and its residents doesn’t sound all that appealing? Probably.

Anyone who really believes that the problems we are experiencing in Arizona are ‘the same as everywhere else’ either has never left the state of Arizona, has been stuck here so long that the heat has left them with no rational thought left, or is just ignorant to what is really going on around them. Look around you – most of these issues found here are not plaguing the rest of the country. Arizona does share some similar struggles with the rest of the nation, but the main difference is the rest of the country will probably recover at some point. Three of Arizona’s major struggles which will continue for the forseeable future include the housing market, job market, and increasing violence. I’ll keep it pleasant and much, much shorter by leaving the weather, schools, residents, drivers, traffic, and lack of things to do out of this one.

Arizona’s Housing Market – finished. I really don’t think there is a simpler way to describe how the real estate market is going to continue playing out here in the coming years. The growth over the last 10 years fueled a real estate boom like something never seen before. Brand new developments went up all over the Phoenix area and each new development managed to get farther and farther away from the center of this mess. The homes continued to go up, but the population growth did not. The homes became larger, more feature packed, and pricier, but the number of unemployed and underemployed in Arizona increased. Arizona now struggles with tons of vacant homes, foreclosures galore, and a population struggling just to make rent. Who is going to buy these houses now? Arizona has always relied on growth to keep the bulk of its economy moving along, but what happens now as the growth continues to go down? More foreclosures and extremely cheap housing for anyone dumb enough to still move out here. Investors will certainly be shopping around for the best bargains, but might be in for quite a surprise when they realize nobody wants their home or they have to accept Pesos just to get someone to rent their home. I’ve said it before, and it needs to be said again – avoid the Arizona housing market all together unless you plan on staying for a very, very long time.

Arizona’s Job Market – almost non-existant with the exception of the retail, call center, and fast food industries. Even the construction jobs have vanished since we have vacant homes, offices, and strip malls for years to come. It will be interesting to see how the restaurant and service industry fare in Arizona since disposable income is just another thing running dry out here in the desert. Arizona’s job market will not rebound like that of the rest of the country because it can’t come back around since there was never really any jobs here in the first place. The so called HOT job market in Arizona was one of the more elaborate schemes coming out of Arizona which was pioneered, abused, and a success story for many Realtors around the state. It was simple, but it worked – create a false job market, persuade people to relocate to Arizona, and then sell them a home. The result was thousands upon thousands of people who made the voyage to Phoenix in the hunt for a piece of this bogus job market. So many people moved out here thinking good jobs were abundant, bought homes, and then could never find work. Want a good job, maybe even a career? You probably want to avoid Arizona, unless you want to push shopping carts around while it is 117 degrees outside.

Arizona’s Escalating Violence/Gang Activity/Drugs – they say crime is going down in Arizona, but picking up a newspaper, watching the news, or just keeping an eye on what is going on around you would tell you otherwise. The crimes out here seem to get crazier and more intense every year. Arizona criminals are desperate and will go after anyone and everyone including kids, the elderly, cops, the homeless, and even your pets. Fanatical crimes happen everywhere in Arizona from the white trash trailer parks to the illegal ridden apartments to the so-called affluent area of North Scottsdale. Drugs are all over the place as well, and what were once normal people will now do anything to get their fix. The schools out here can’t brag about the education your children are getting, but they do offer great exposure to gang activity and hard drugs. The number of gangs is on the rise across Phoenix, and the bulk of it is originating from our friends down South. Drug, human, and weapon smuggling is commonplace in Arizona and something you probably don’t want to get in the middle of. The most alarming part about all the violence and crime in Arizona is that it is only going to get worse as more illegals creep in, more people lose their jobs and houses, and the meth use continues to rise. It is quite the situation out here and it is definitely not the same everywhere else.

Still think Arizona is exactly or close to being like anywhere else? Think again.