Tourin Tuesdays with Househangout - Verrado is the Place to Be!
We're back with Tourin Tuesdays and do we have a place for you today. Now to many people around here this place may not be news, but it's just one of those places that is well worth talking about all over again! And we're calling all of our Midwest friends, as this one is right up your alley. The place we are talking about is a wonderful, master-planned community in Buckeye, AZ, nestled in the foothills of the White Tank Mountains, and it's name is VERRADO!
Verrado was actually designed with the Midwesterner/Southwesterner in mind. It was their goal to take people back to a simpler time and to rebuild that sense of "community" that so many cities have lost. While it has not been an easy undertaking, it appears that whatever they're doing...it's working.
Verrado is just coming to the end of their Phase I build out, which includes a bustling little downtown with parks, schools, a health club, Raven Golf Club, and lots of wonderful homes to choose from. Phase II is just starting and will incorporate more cool homes, custom built as well, a couple of commercial buildings in the downtown area, a couple of worship centers, and a new retail area not too far away. They will also offer rental lofts where you live in the top and then have your business downstairs - nice! When the entire area is built out, they estimate between 12,000 and 14,000 people will live there.
So what makes this place so great anyway? Maybe it just tugged at us a little more since we are originally from the Midwest (small towns to boot)...so it really felt like we had taken a step back in time. Even the homes are designed like the styles you would see in little towns back home (lots of charm and character)...and we love the bungalows! One especially neat feature of these homes are the big front porches which were purposely designed this way to promote the "neighborhood porch party" where you just sit out and talk with friends. The homeowners say they know all their neighbors and absolutely love it there...and most really just wish they would have discovered this place a lot earlier. It's a place that is very much about community with lots of young families raising their children. And if you're a pet lover...we saw plenty of those, as well.
We were reading one of their brochures and laughed at the opening statement, "Spend time talking to people about why they live in Verrado, a new town in Phoenix's West Valley, and you begin to think the residents must be under some kind of strange but lucky spell." 
We laughed because as we were walking around my husband stated, "it almost feels surreal here...it's like you're in another place altogether." So when we read that we had to agree. Now we don't believe in spells, but we do believe that sometimes, when people work at it hard enough, a place just like this can be created.
They also have a town manager and an assembly who work like crazy to keep it going, and they are huge into "social networking". There are constant activities going on to keep everyone involved.
As far as the homes go...well there's a little bit of everything for everyone. They have condos, town homes, single family homes, and custom homes and the builders list is definitely tops in the industry: Ashton Woods Homes, Capital Pacific Homes, Centex Homes, Hacienda Builders, Engle Homes, Cachet Homes, Monterey Homes, Pulte Homes, Argue Custom Homes, and Camelot Homes. In this next phase there may be more..but this is a pretty nice list so far.
What else makes this town so appealing is the architecture and the overall design. Buildings look like "small town" buildings and there are parks and flowers everywhere. And best of all for our Midwest friends...there is GREEN GRASS 
and tons of it!!!! Oh sure...we wondered what the water bill runs during the summer in order to keep it that green, but it was nice to see real grass again. Now don't get me wrong, we also really enjoy the "desert landscaping" and the "no maintenance" yard, but coming from the Midwest, when you're someone who really loves being outside and gardening, you didn't really see the yard as a hassle, but a great way to relax, meet your neighbors, and get some good exercise.
Ok...so we know what you're thinking...there must be some drawback...nothing can be that good. Alright...the one drawback is that it is located about 35 minutes from downtown Phoenix (without traffic). I do always tell my clients to be sure you know where you want to work before you get your housing situated, as the traffic here can be pretty horrendous. Now there are those people who love to drive and wouldn't mind it at all, but if you lived in Verrado and worked in downtown Phoenix, your morning commute would be somewhere between 45 minutes and an hour (without a wreck or stalled car). Works for some people...doesn't work for others. But...if you had a home-based business or worked in the West Valley....no problem! (The West Valley consists of Avondale, Buckeye, Goodyear, Glendale, Surprise, Peoria, Litchfield, Sun City, Tolleson, El Mirage, and west Carefree/Cavecreek). So if you see any of those cities to work in...you'd be in good shape. And believe it or not...there's lots to do in this part of the Valley too!
They did tell us that two more roads are being built that will open the city up a bit more...but actually that seems to be why some of the people like it...it keeps it a little bit secluded away.
The homes range in a wide variety of prices there and the builders are offering some incredible incentives right now. Home prices go from the very low $200's for a 2 bedroom, 2 bath to the mid $300s and $400s for 4 and 5 bedroom homes with over 3,000 square feet - that's unheard of in our neck of the woods! One builder we spoke with is taking up to $135,000 off his homes and several others were discounting around $50,000, plus several other incentives.
They also have an HOA that maintains the area and we understand they can be pretty strict...say if you want flowers...there are a certain number you must have and they have a list of "approved" plants. We asked for the CC&Rs just so we would have a little better information for you, as you always want to know what you are getting into right up front. But hey...if fairly tight rules and regulations don't bother you and you can actually see the good in it...then you won't have any problems.
So there you have it...Verrado in a nutshell.
If you would like to know more or see some photos, drop us a note and we'll get them to you.
Otherwise, thanks for "hanging out" with us!
See you on Wednesday!