Moving to AZ...which city is better Chandler or Gilbert?

Question

We are planning to relocate from Wisconsin to the Phoenix area. Would like to get your opinion on whether it is better to live in Chandler or Gilbert. Any additional thoughts on Queen Creek would also be helpful.

Answer 1

I don't know that I would do either. There are some nice homes in both but both areas are getting some bad reps. Chandler in particular is going downhill fast, but mostly East Chandler. The areas closer to the West, near Ahwatukee, are still okay. I have heard the schools in Gilbert district are horrible. There are several parents at our school that drive their kids 30-minutes every day to get to us for a better school. Unless you enjoy spending most of your day in stand still traffic OR are retired and don't have to work OR can work from home, I would not recommend Queen Creek. The home prices are cheaper but it is Sooooo far out that you will spend half your day commuting. And Phoenix metro traffic is horrible, especially in the East valley. I hear word of mouth that the schools there are really bad too.

You can get crime stats for different areas through the police department websites for the cities. You can check out school ratings and compare at:
http://www.greatschools.net

Of those two, I would have to say I have heard fewer bad things about Gilbert. The gangs and coyotes seem to be taking over Chandler.

Answer 2

i have lived in chandler for 5 years now and i absolutely love it!!

for the serial rapist comment-this was a man that attacked 2 13 year old girls on their way to a friends house-it was an isolated incident but the police are working heavily to catch the man. they've been passing out flyers for weeks now throughout neighborhoods. in my opinion-there is always a freak no matter what city you live in. my neighborhood shares a wall with the mall and it's perfectly safe (i was just at the mall with my kids today-we go alot). the attack happened way east of the mall actually-the police have not come through my neighborhood with flyer so that should tell you something.

i live in an older neighborhood right next to the mall and the new 202 freeway. it's the safest neighborhood i've lived in. i know all of my neighbors (we are good friends actually), and i feel totally safe letting my kids play at the park down the street.

house prices range from 250k all the way up to 800k-it just depends on what part of the city you would like to live in. there is a freeway closeby to pretty much any neighborhood.

gilbert is nice too. both cities are fairly similar but gilbert has more room for growth. expect house prices and crime rates to be about the same.

queen creek is growing rapidly but currently not the best place to live b/c it's soo far away from inner city stuff. a drive to downtown will take you 45 mins to an hour easy. house prices are cheap but b/c the city is so rural

i have 3 small children ages 4,5,and 8. i feel safe in chandler and always have since i moved there from tempe (which i hated-college town). the school district i've heard is good-i don't use it b/c my kids attend a private montessori in awahtukee (which is a great city too)

here are some links for you. good luck with your search and welcome to sunny az!!

http://www.ci.gilbert.az.us/

http://www.chandleraz.gov/

Answer 3

The two cities are next to each other, though Gilbert borders Mesa and mesa can be sketchy....Chandler is very nice and still relatively affordable, but that wont last for long. Queen Creek is ok, but it is far away from central Phoenix where the museums and sports are

Answer 4

I grew up in chandler ive lived in Mesa, Tempe, Chandler, Gilbert, scottsdale, and queen creek i would always go back to gilbert it is a great place to live.

Answer 5

Gilbert is one of the fastest growing areas it and Chandler are both very nice places to live. My vote would be for Gilbert
as I live there and really like it.

Answer 6

Between Gilbert and Chandler? Flip a coin...they're virtually identical. Lots of nice uniform neighborhoods with cookie-cutter houses, parks, and shopping centers.

Answer 7

I would choose Gilbert because right now there is a serial rapist that only rapes people in Chandler and in chandler mall.Its true,I heard it on the news.

Answer 8

Oregan

Answer 9

that's creepy because we go to chandler mall sometimes.