I was actually coming here to ask the same questions. My husband and I relocated here 3 weeks ago to MM from the East Coast. We opted to rent first rather than buy in case we  were unhappy in AZ.... So far we love it,and would like to buy when our lease is up, what we are unsure of however is  if we are going to stay in MM or maybe  buy in a different subdivison. My concerns are the spiders (black widows?) and the "tagging" on the mailboxes with Gang names etc. Is it just kids playing around or is there really some sort of Gang violence?

shadow- Thanks for your reply. Obviously, no place is perfect but as long as it's a good neighborhood overall we will br happy. I have lived in AZ my whole life, growing up in Gilbert. We have never lived in an HOA community, so that's a little nerve-wracking (for lack of a better word). We live in a very nice neighborhood that was built in the early 90's, before HOA's. We are very much looking forward to the change of pace, we have some friends that live in Senita and RED, and my brother used to live in Alterra. Thanks for your reply.

The house we are buying is a foreclosure and it is in the Montanero division (I found this on the HOA website). It is a Homelife house (they are now Atreus) and is on Dirk St. Does anybody have a house from this builder, or in this area? It passed inspection with flying colors, and I don't think it has been lived in very long, there isn't even evidence there were pictures hung on the wall.

Not to be a pest, but one more question. The backyard is landscaped, but we want to change it some. If we only change the backyard, does it have to be approved by the HOA?

Thanks!

I live in the Village at Rancho el Dorado. Some really nice house here for reasonable prices. Our community has a pool and fitness center included in HOA fees. Been here since 2006, from NJ and we really love it.

lucee- Actually the first house we tried to buy was in VRED and I loved the neighborhood. The bank that owns that house made it where basically the only person that could buy it was an investor. We couldn't agree with their terms and had to move on. I hated doing that because I actually liked that house more.  I think this is bad for the neighborhood because if all these foreclosed homes are purchased by investors, they may stay empty until the marker turns again. Very sad, but true.

keep trying...something will come up i'm sure.

Maricopa Ghettos

Well to be honest mollymoose, their are stray dogs everywhere in Maricopa. Its part of living out in the Desert, along with the little creatures. Other neighborhoods have also had their fair share of violence. To say that their is a gang problem in MM is just absurd. You have obviously never lived in a place with a REAL gang problem. There is violence everywhere and in my opinion Maricopa is much much safer than anywhere else you can live in the Phoenix area. Thats why I moved out here. Oh and BTW, every where you go in Maricopa their are rentals.

Really the things you have to weigh when you are considering living in MM is do you want to deal with the train, which in my opinion isnt too bad. Also, do you want to live next to the schools. This place does swarm with children before and after school. I dont mind but I know some crab asses who do.

Oh and as far as the tagging of the mailboxes, it really is in every community here. We have never had ours tagged but have seen a few driving through MM. But I have also seen it driving through VRED, RED and Alterra.

Thanks for all the replies. We did buy the house, we closed last week. We will be moving in next month. Thanks again!

Thanks! We are pretty excited!