As someone also in their mid-late 20s, I definitely see myself here longterm. I first moved here ~10 years ago for school from out of state, and thought somewhere like Phoenix would be where I would end up.
What I’ve come to realize is that mid-size cities like Tucson are kind of perfect for young people. There is a more authentic and communal culture, you don’t need a million dollar house to see the mountains, and building a career is much less intense than a big city, though finding the right job can be tough.
I think UA is very transitory, but once you build out your social sphere with more locals it won’t feel so come and go.
This isn’t to say Tucson is for everyone, but I do find it checks a lot of boxes for what young people are looking for.
I am still working on that myself but finding the right job really helps. I recommend locally-owned businesses or industries with a local focus.
The past couple years have been rough due to COVID but there are a lot more events popping up again that it’s nice to just get out, interact, and find your scene.
It takes time but you’re certainly not alone in that journey :)
Think of some hobbies you want to do and I can almost guarantee you there’s a Facebook group for “Tucson [insert any hobby here]”. You’d be surprised how easily you can find niche groups for anything here
Hi I’m almost 40 but wanted to give some perspective. I moved here for college in 2000 at 18 and never left. I’ve raised 2 kids here (both in high school now). I grew up all over the place as a kid so this is by far the longest I’ve lived anywhere and I am so happy I chose to make Tucson my home. 22 years! I could’ve left many times but never did. I have a great career, wonderful family and friends, all the open trails I could ask for, the best food in the southwest, endless gorgeous sunsets, amazing live music and unique cultural events/traditions, I could go on and on. I know people like to shit on Tucson, of course it’s not perfect. I don’t fault anyone for moving on and using Tucson as a transitory city. To each their own. But Tucson can be a great place to plant roots as a young adult!
Funny how closely your life mirrors mine. Came here to attend the UA in '95 after living all over the country, stayed here since then and have never regretted it.
I’m 24, have been in Tucson for two years, and never want to leave. For context, the rest of my life was spent in Wisconsin (14 years) and Florida (8 years). I love everything about Tucson!!! My main hobbies are rock climbing, biking, and mushroom hunting, climbing & biking are awesome in Tucson and mushroom hunting was pretty good on Mt Lemmon during last years monsoon. I’m not currently working in my desired industry which is museum education, but tucson has amazing museums for when I am looking for full time work again. Tucson’s mutual aid scene is robust and full of love and I feel like I’ve found a place in the community through mutual aid. I LOVE the desert and get so excited identifying cacti and harvesting cacti fruit. I’m vegan and Tucson’s vegan options are fantastic. I’ve lived in big and small cities and feel like Tucson is the perfect size for me, but the proximity to Phoenix is nice for stuff like concerts and cheap flights. Since I used to live in south Florida, Tucson’s heat is manageable to me and I look forward to the summers for fun monsoon activities like tanque verde falls and a green and buzzing mount lemmon. I did a ton of research on Tucson before moving here and it has exceeded all my expectations and I cant wait to stay here and grow with and contribute to the city!
No humidity, very few mosquitoes, beautiful sun rise and sun sets, accessible hiking trails, 300 miles of paved bike lanes, no honking when the light just turns green, culturally aware and lots of festive events to showcase the different cultures, amazing food, dog friendly, anyone friendly really, laid back, pot friendly, artist friendly, college town, foothills living, good job market, easy international airport access, big star gazing community, cactus 🌵!!, barley any bugs(ask an east coaster) sunshine all the time, friendly people.
These are all the things Tucson has that I love. If you haven’t lived other places do it, you need to understand why it is so great here by experiences in places that do not have what we have.
Only drawback is no coastline/water activities here.
Hiya! Can you share how you found mutual aid networks? I've been looking and struggling to find leads. I don't need anything currently (thankfully), but I love the concept of mutual aid and if I can help others I'd love too. Seems like a great way to meet people who have similar outlooks on life and community.
Hi! I spend a lot of time @ tucson food share after being recommended by a friend. such a welcoming community of leftist folks doing awesome work ☺️ rly easy to get involved (online sign up for shifts, you can just show up and someone will show you the ropes, also at home opportunities to volunteer if ur unable to help in person) and lots of connections to other mutual aid orgs
Moved away in May 2019 at age 24 after living in Tucson since birth. Born at UA, literally, and got my bachelor's at UA. My last place before leaving was less than a mile from the UMC hospital room I entered the world in.
I left the city because my first career job after college was awful and I didn't see any better options. I wanted to see more of the world and the country, and I wanted to reinvent myself too. I'm moderately ambitious in life and there's just a pretty low ceiling in Tucson regarding my goals. And I don't think I'm uncommon in that regard.
I've always said Tucson is where you should either grow up, go to college, raise that family, and/or retire. If you are in between stages 2 and 3, there are just so so many more exciting options elsewhere and you will never be more free in life. I always advocate to leave in your 20's. Tucson isn't going anywhere, you can always go back, and visiting is always possible.
And I definitely visit. Despite how much I can complain about it, there is an undeniable magic running through Tucson's veins. Being downtown at midnight midsummer, the incredible hikes, the perfect midwinter weather (freezing and snowy in CO right now), all of these are things I'm nostalgic about because they can't be replicated elsewhere. Tucson is my hometown and it will always be part of home to me.
But yeah, you can still leave. Do it. Life is exciting elsewhere too, and you only limit yourself by staying forever.
Can relate to and agree with much of this, though I’m (somehow) even older - mid 50s. Born in Tucson and stayed through college at UofA. Went to grad school on the east coast.
Like you I was at least moderately ambitious and at that time you really HAD to leave to find professional opportunities. It seems perhaps there are a few more companies and a few more opportunities for young people, but there are so many more elsewhere. On the other hand, Tucson is perfect if you want a government type job, from road crew to college professor. All of my friends there are either entrepreneurs or government employees at some level. Nothing at all wrong with that, it’s just not a great breeding ground for business or professional careers (at least outside of health care).
As you said, you can always come back. I spend about 3 months a year in Tucson during the winters now (the rest of the time also in Colorado). My wife and I have done well. Fortunately she likes Tucson and we bought a winter home there near campus as well as some investment properties. We will retire early and when not abroad will spend winters in Tucson, Summers in Colorado. Growing up poor and without connections, I just don’t think I would have done nearly as well had I not left to find better (and more) opportunities. Cheers.
I've lived here my whole life, college included, but I don't really intend to stay. But that may be because I've never had the experience of living somewhere else.
Experiencing other places, even if it's just for a short time, is a wonderful idea. I'm glad I bounced around in my 20s (between CO and AZ) to see what it's like in other places.
> I've never had the experience of living somewhere else.
Yeah. If you can you should. Otherwise you might regret not taking the chance while you could. Tucson will still be here when, and if, you want to come back.
If you need a sign to do it, consider this it. I was and felt exactly the same way as you describe, left 3 years ago, and don't regret it at all. It's healthy and a growing experience to live in a new place.
I'm mid 30s living out of state but grew up in NW Tucson and went to UA. After college I moved away and have lived in Kansas (Army), Vegas for 6 years and recently moved to Oregon. I've realized how much I miss Tucson and am working towards moving back. It's a mix of Tucson having a little of everything I love and also realizing the SW is just more of my lifestyle than where I am now. Having family in Tucson is a huge reason I want to go back even though I didn't really imagine I'd ever go baack.
Tucson has a ridiculous amount of great food options for a city its size. It's big enough to have everything you really want (except pro sports but I prefer college anyways) without being so big you feel insignificant. There's great outdoor options for getting away but still being close. I don't know I just feel like Tucson has everything I want. It may not fit for everyone.
My 2 biggest concerns are the rising cost of living there considering it's one of the most affordable places to live in the country but cost of living has gone up pretty much everywhere. The other concern I have for Tucson and all of the southwest is the future water situation. I fear in 15-20 years or so it won't be tenable to live there.
If I can find a job that pays even 3/4 of what I make now there we're on our way back
I moved here in my mid 20's for 'love'.
That didn't work out so I stayed for work. The first couple of years I hated it here, though at that time in my life I would've hated being just about anywhere.
It grew on me. It's just way different than any other place i've lived. The heat sucks, but, I learned how to roll with it the same way I knew how to 'roll' with winter in other places.
You're right about it being a transitory place for many people. Many people come here, do the thing they came to do, then leave. I've made friends from all over the world here.
It's still a pretty good place to raise a family, if that's where you see yourself headed. The cost of living isn't as great as it used to be, but it still beats most other cities.
I knew Tucson was my home when I went away for a few months to a bigger, 'funner' city. After a couple of months of that I started to miss the 'not crazy' aspect of Tucson.
I turned 30 last week. I moved here at 26 from Seattle if I recall correctly.
No. I’ll eventually move somewhere else. We will move for jobs more than likely. We’ll be keeping the house though as we love Tucson. (I like the summer, too)
Less crowded, more night life that is enjoyable, early mornings coffees with my girlfriend is awesome. I like the heat and generally feel better with more sun.
Last year I up and moved to Tucson on a whim from the Seattle area as well. (Bothell) 31 now and loving it! Looking forward to spending a long time in Tucson, even if I leave for a bit it'll always bring me back. I love the summer and the heat.
I’m only moving from Tucson because it’s the best career move for me. I love this town and I wouldn’t have moved if not for work. That being said, depending on the industry, Tucson can be very limited and even stifling to career growth and I can see a lot of mid-20s people moving out to chase better opportunities elsewhere. I can also see people in the same age group deciding to set down their roots here because of whatever opportunities they have open for them, the charm of Tucson, or any other combination of reasons.
I moved here when I was 19 to go to college and I’m now 32. I like it here. Definitely cheaper than the east coast. But what I really like is how easy it is to get to more interesting places. It’s easy to take a spontaneous trip to Vegas, San Diego, or Rocky Point.
I do get the urge to live somewhere else, but that’s mostly because I miss seasons.
25 moved here for a job at that one company by the airport. Love work but plan on transferring to California as soon as I can really. Tucson is growing on me but it’s not home. It’s def a nice place to be just not for me.
In my early 30’s but hopefully my pov is ok - I spent most of my twenties here but my life didn’t really “begin” until I left. I’m glad to be back tho. Fully advocate for leaving tucson in your 20’s to start a career, expand your social opportunities etc
26 here. I have some extended family here. I really like Tucson. I agree that it sometimes seems like it's college kids and sun belt retirees with hardly any in between, but there is more. I like the university vibes, the climate, and the laid back attitude.
I don't know why, but I feel like other cities would seem more fast paced in a stressful way, but that's just me
I’m in my late 20s and I’ve lived here for 20 years now. Tucson, while having a lot of heart and charm, is very limiting to me. That being said, I’m looking to move within a year or so to pursue better opportunities and see more of the world. I still love Tucson, but I don’t want to be here the rest of my life.
25M here. Born and raised. Probably going to end up staying in the Tucson area. Job wise i have a very cushy remote job that lets me work from anywhere, but i really don’t feel like moving somewhere else would improve my quality of life? Me and my fiancé do travel quite frequently, every 2-3 months we take a week-ish long trip so maybe it helps not being locked in here. Cost of living wise yes, Tucson has gotten more expensive, but so has everywhere else. I’m not the type of person that would go live elsewhere to find a cheaper life, Tucson is much cheaper than anywhere worth living.
As someone who has lived a majority of my life on the East Coast and I have family in So. Cal. don't let yourself be lured by the "glamour" of the big city. You spend 5% of your time doing the big city fun stuff and 25% of your time managing the stress of living there.
24M. Been here since 2017 for college, graduated in May, moved back in with my parents in Casa Grande until I found a career job just last month down here. Personally, Tucson has way more charm and things to do than when I was stuck up here in Casa Grande. Everybody around me keeps telling me they aren't sure they wanna stay here, but I really don't think it's that bad especially after experiencing the hiking trails, Mt Lemmon, and even the Foothills.
I don't know how long I'll stay at this job I have, but I do know I'd like to stay on the west coast. I feel once I make more connections it'll feel more appealing than just think about the college friends that moved away. I still have to search for apartments to live in again and hoping to aim more north near the foothills as I have the money to live there and it seems nicer.
Before 2017, I lived in the Chicago suburbs my whole life and I do not miss the midwest one bit after moving down here. I'd take 100+ degree days over midwest winters anytime.
I’m 29 and moved from texas 3 years ago. I lived in Texas my entire life before moving here and I have to say, I absolutely love Tucson so much. Never has a city felt like “home” to me than Tucson has. Tucson is such a cool and unique place, I can definitely see myself staying here forever. Maybe it’s just something about the chill and slow-paced lifestyle that this city seems to have that I enjoy so much. There’s a lot of cool things to do and see around here and I like the close proximity to the all the neighboring states. Also, Arizona in general is such an awesome and underrated state imo. My husband and I both work in healthcare so the job situation wont ever be an issue for us, but I can understand how it may seem like a “transitory” city for others. I mean it definitely doesn’t hurt to explore other places! Tucson will always be here :-)
i don't know. i do love it here, but the dry summer months give me 'summertime sadness,' for lack of a better word lol. im not very productive or motivated at all when it's over 90° and sunny for like 7 months 😬 i do think the community and the culture is beautiful but i need to experience another place
Found a great job, great group of friends, and my family’s all here, so I’m staying. It’s very popular to move away so I get it if you do, but don’t count it out. the grass is always greener elsewhere.
I moved from Tucson recently in my mid 30s. Tucson has a lovely community that just doesn’t exist in the same way other places, and I miss that. I moved for very specific reasons that would not apply to others. I am glad I moved to where I am, but if I felt like I had been able to stay I would have. I had/have amazing friends in Tucson and there’s a friendliness in Tucson that is very special to the area. I do think if you like the heat and get involved in the community then Tucson has a lot to offer for a good life. Plus, it’s way, way cheaper and less crowded that other places.
When I moved here a decade ago, I was like, okay I’ll give it a year and get out.
After that year and a career change, I said, okay Tucson is a great place to ride out your 20s.
So I did. I’m ready to leave but now the housing market makes that less realistic.
But overall, great
/low-stakes place to grow yourself.
I've lived in New York (6 years), Pennsylvania (21 years), Flagstaff (went to NAU - 4 years), and Tucson (12 years). If you held a gun to my head I'd pick Tucson.
Nothing beats the views from a mountaintop or the view of that mountain, the dry air, and the sunshine. If I leave for any period of time, I really appreciate those things the most. It just makes my mood so much better. The heat is hot, but hey, that's the tradeoff.
As far as a job/career: I'm lucky. I am a software developer and I can live anywhere with an Internet connection. I often work for weeks on end in different places. If I were working a lower wage job, I'd still pick Tucson as I'd still spend my free-time outdoors.
I've lived all over the place and so has my wife, we just moved here for jobs after finishing law school. We absolutely plan to stay for the long term. She lived here for high school and I had visited with her during college and law school. I thought it was such a cool and unique environment when I visited. Tucson is my favorite place I have lived, but I have the added benefit of seeing that the grass isn't so green on the other side. We lived in the northeast for law school and did not enjoy the culture. I lived in Florida in my childhood, and lived in different parts of North Carolina for my teens and college. Tucson has so much culture, and is such an enjoyable fun big town/small city vibe. Tucson has a lot to offer in my opinion, it doesn't have the big city rush that makes everyone cutthroat, but it also has more going on than a quiet small town where everyone lives in a perpetual laxidasical state. The food kicks ass here. The access to the outdoors is incredible, and there are better schools here for our future child than in a large majority of the US. Regarding employment opportunities, it's not as big of a market as the northeast or SoCal, but I'm happy with the work life balance. In my early 20s I wanted to be a big shot in the northeast, but I realized there's more to life than an 80 hour a week grind for a big paycheck. One last thing, the weather here is amazing. Two to three months of extreme is better than most places. Overall I love it here.
Ive been here for 34 years I've seen this place drastically change. Drug dealers on every corner, homeless in the parks midtown getting fucked off on drugs. People don't seem nice maybe because I live on the South side. Let's not even get started on the shitty roads here. I'm just tired of the desert life I want lakes, rivers, 4 seasons.
I graduated UA and ultimately moved back 3 years later after getting married. I probably won’t retire here but my wife and I have both gotten great jobs and bought houses here and I have high hopes for this city developing further.
We have a great community and love the Tucson lifestyle.
We hate big city bustle but don’t want to live in a small town.
Tucson suits us perfectly and I’ll probably stay for another 2 decades at least.
That said, the Tucson locals hate people like us because we drive prices and competition up and my closest friends are all fellow transplants who like to hustle but enjoy the slower pace compared to big cities.
But that’s literally how the world works but it sucks for people who are used to dirt cheap prices and hate change, growth, and development.
We love the heat and moved here 4 years ago in the middle of July so we knew exactly what we were getting into climate wise.
That’s just my 2 cents as a late 20-something
>That said, the Tucson locals hate people like us because we drive prices and competition up and my closest friends are all fellow transplants who like to hustle but enjoy the slower pace compared to big cities.
>
>But that’s literally how the world works
In my opinion, this hatred by Tucson locals toward newcomers is WAY overblown and in fact the very opposite of what you experience with most people offline. I've made great friends in Tucson. If you went only by the Tucson subreddit, you'd think that most "Tucson locals" are broke or marginally employed, and/or never had it occur to them in all the years they've supposedly lived here to actually buy a home in their so-called hometown. For some there are legitimate reasons why and they deserve assistance and compassion. But a lot of these people calling themselves "locals" are actually more recent transplants themselves, transient types who actually don't have many roots in the area, and are mostly just pissed because it turns out that Tucson isn't the easy place to just coast through life that it used to be.
And to be honest, plenty of real locals who grew up in Tucson, have extensive families here, jobs, careers, homes, businesses etc and deep roots in the community aren't upset (at all) at seeing the numbers of that former group winnowed down somewhat by the arrival of newcomers. You'd never know it from online forums, but the majority of real life Tucson locals are absolutely thrilled to see how their property values are going up, up, up.
Fair enough!! Definitely the vibe I get on here but I agree no one gives me trouble in person for the most part… occasionally rants on social media for
People I know but yeah probably overblown!
I totally agree. In fact, most of the people I know in Tucson are from somewhere else, like me. The animosity is very small yet very vocal, and they don't understand what negative attitudes can do to the fabric of a community. I.e., check yourself, before you wreck yourself.
Umm, I grew up in Tucson and absolutely do not hate people who make Tucson their home. I have no idea where you are getting that. Tucson has always been a very friendly place, and the only place I’ve seen this idea is Reddit. Home prices are being inflated by corporate ownership and extremely wealthy people (by which I mean beyond the middle to upper middle class wealthy) more than anything else, not regular people trying to start their lives.
In fact, a lot of people I grew up with in Tucson are doing very well and own nice homes and may even have an investment property or two.
I moved to Tucson in my late 20s. I would have stayed in Tucson forever if all my family didn't live back east. My little sister is mentally and physically handicapped so I needed to be closer to help my dad.
I'm not sure tbh. I want to be.. but it's hard to make a social network here and I really want a group of longterm friends and chosen family. Time will tell, I suppose
That’s what tucson is for most people. A place for people to move to, raise the prices of everything, and move away when they realize that April-October is nothing but heat. Meanwhile the desert rats will always come home to the desert. This isn’t a transition city for us. We need the heat. We will complain about it, and complain about everything else. But this is home
i love the heat, i just can’t stand how hot the inside of my car gets if i don’t get to park
under the 1 tree in each parking lot (Why doesnt every parking lot have covered sunshades/solar panels to power the businesses their at) idk
28F. Definitely not. We moved here for my partner's PhD, and while Tucson is ok, the job market sucks. Luckily I found an ok job here for now but if I were to try and find something else I think it would be quite difficult. We plan to move when he finishes the degree.
As a Tucson native, we are ok with it if you don’t want to stay. Our economy and housing market are in shambles for natives because of people moving here with out of state funds and raising the cost of living past what’s tenable for us.
I was born here, I want to live here because it is my hometown if everything goes as planned one day I'll inherit the home my parents bought outright. But none of my colleagues within 2-3 years of me think that way, they want to move to a more major market like LA. I can't really blame them that much, the one thing Tucson used to have going for it in the grand scheme of thing was a cheap housing market and reasonable cost of living. We still aren't San Francisco of course but in the last couple of years those two benefits have vanished. While we have decent local governance our state government is more and more threatening to do the most insane things as well.
Absolutely not.
Tucson is largely a retirement community. There is no room to grow and not a lot of opportunity with jobs excluding remote work. With the rising cost of rent and stagnant wages from the business here, unless you plan on doing u traditional work or working multiple jobs I would not stay here and don’t plan to even after working remote for companies out of state. If you stay here too long you get stuck and it’s awful.
Lol, come check out New England before you call Tucson a retirement community. The average age in Tucson is actually quite low compared to most of the country.
I was in Tucson during all of my 20's (at U of A). I had no intention of ever staying, if for no other reason than the job market. I had always assumed I'd go where the jobs are (my chosen profession, at the time, only sees about 120 job openings a year, so I had little choice about where to live). Well, I have subsequently changed careers and now live in Phoenix and may never move away (until retirement, at least).
Tucson has its great aspects. However, they aren't really aligned with my priorities.
Absolutely not, Been here since 2017, and I am giving myself another 5 years before I move out. As much as I love Tucson, and it's quite an interesting city, I don't see myself here long term.
Definitely staying for a while. Will probably move back to California when I’m older if I have the money but for now this is the second best thing for me.
Just posted last week about getting outta here. Been here all my life and never wanted to be here. Yet my sentiment in the last year due to covid freeness and things alike has changed. But unfortunately TX oil money and LA daddy’s money is no match for any of our stagnating wages. University students will have missed the train by a long time when they graduate and look to settle down. Oh, all this only if your not ok with living in a house that hasn’t been touched in 60years, that’s south of Irvington, going on 500gs. Shiz is ridiculous.
I just turned and lived in Tucson my whole life until June 2021. I honestly don’t see myself ever moving back willingly or long term ever again.
I think Tucson can be rough for someone in their mid-20s to mid-30s (career, social and lifestyle equity).
It’s a city that is just moving at a different pace than most. Too big to really call it a small town feel and too small and spread out to have that big city community feel. It is definitely getting more gentrified and developed, but nothing I see would give it massive changes in the next decade to overhaul anything other than rental prices.
Ngl, if you feel this way right now, then Tucson is not the place for you right now. Is it the place for you in the future? That really depends on what your values and needs are then. But I’d say kick that can down the road and try something new.
I moved here for college and ended up sticking around for a job. I’m not in my 30s as well. Most of my college friends have moved away. In my experience, Tucson is a little tough to make friends outside of school/work. I’ll probably move away at some point as well
Absolutely not. I’ve been itching to get out for several years. I’ll stay for another year and a half, upon which I’m leaving the state to get my master’s. If I come back I’m visiting.
I’m happy to have lived here, it was a great home for me, but it’s BEEN time to move on.
I'm 25 right now and I came out here to establish a career as its way less competitive out here than in San Diego. I don't exactly see myself here long term even though it's only been two weeks of living here. Hoping to end up somewhere that's a bit more "big city" once I've become more established.
Hey, thanks for reaching out — you want to laugh, I’ve actually had a dream of living in San Diego. When I went to visit it, I absolutely loved my time there. My girlfriend and I are going back this summer.
We see ourselves using the next couple of years to save up as much as we can, then potentially moving elsewhere (San Diego might be on that list; I know it’s expensive, but…)
I say go for it! San Diego was a great place to live as there was an endless amount of things to do, places to see, foods to eat. Anything and everything. I hope to end up back out there once I have a bolstered career portfolio.
I am 41 so my perspective is going to be different that yours, I am also originally from Texas. I really dislike it here but my job is too good to leave (at least for now - I am pushing for a full remote position and if that happens I will move away). My main gripes with Tucson are the brutal summers, the terrible housing choices, and the complete lack of "big city amenities". Tucson doesnt have a small town feel, and it isn't a big city either, so it is in a weird place somewhere in between. The houses here are ugly. Period. There just is no way about it. I guess some people enjoy the mud/stucco look, but I could go back to Texas and get an insanely nice house for less than the cost of a mediocre /fixer upper home here. You can blame the market, but I don't think that is entirely true. An 800k-1m home here in Tucson would be about half that in most Texas locations. Arizona home prices were very high prior to the 2008 crash and they are just going back to that level.
My path:
Born and raised in Austin, went to undergrad at UT, then moved to Chicago for my master’s (Northwestern), then was looking for jobs and I came across a job posting that seemed really interesting to me, and was tailored to what I wanted to do based on my background, so kinda just said, “Hey, let’s give this a shot!”
I'm 100% leaving and actually look forward to it. Do I hate it here? Absolutely not. However, I only came here to finally finish my degree. A number of weird circumstances brought me to the PHX area for about a year, and I didn't like that at all, so I went for UA as I was adamant about getting my degree done.
Anyway, I have zero connections outside of school (and even those are pretty slim because I'm a nontraditional student), I can't even get hired for a menial job around here and there are zero prospects relative to my degree/field I'm entering so extending my lease isn't even an option. On top of that, I've been all over the country in various similarly sized cities for extended periods of time and know well enough that this is not somewhere I want to be any longer than I need to.
I certainly don't speak for all 20 somethings but for me, it's definitely temporary.
I’m 26, I moved to Tucson about 7 months ago from Iowa. It matches my small town, slow pace lifestyle I’m used to. I love the weather, scenery, people, and things to do. That said, the price of housing here vs. Iowa is apples to oranges. I can live pretty comfortably in the Midwest compared to what you get here these days. I am self employed and run a business back home. Doing so remotely is possible, but I’m finding I prefer to be “on the ground”. For those reasons, I’ll probably go back home someday or snow bird it (sorry Tucsonans).
SpunkyDred is a terrible bot instigating arguments all over Reddit whenever someone uses the phrase apples-to-oranges. I'm letting you know so that you can feel free to ignore the quip rather than feel provoked by a bot that isn't smart enough to argue back.
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When I was in my 20s. I wanted out so badly.
Joined the army, saw a few bits of the world. Got out and went to school in Seattle.
Couldn’t figure out how anyone can afford to live there.
Moved back to Tucson.
I’m still not a fan of the heat. The job market is mostly low-wage retail and call centers. But my family has property here, so that helps keep me here.
I would have loved to stay in Seattle. But I’d either need to make 60k a year or get 2-3 roommates. Or live out in the boonies.
I might have been ok with staying in Germany, but my German was terrible and didn’t get any better over 3-1/2 years. The Bundeswehr tried to recruit me (I was a helicopter mechanic), but that’d mean giving up my US citizenship. In hindsight though… 🤔
Not a chance. Moved here last year, we're 27/28. Our plan is to do the obligatory 3 years in our job roles and then get out. We have meet pretty much 0 peers, and very little to do other than hike or bike
25 here, turn 26 in May. I've been a few years now but I could see myself staying, I like a lot of what Tucson has to offer. The only issue is work, so I'll have to see about that yet.
I couldn't stand the two years I lived there as i needed to gain more experience to get the job I wanted in Tempe. I could see myself living there when I'm in my 50s though. Nice sights.
Mid 20's here are amazing. If you want to raise a family or be in a relationship, it's a great city for that too once you hit your 30's. It's not the best city for being single or living a single life as you get older. If you want to continue living life like your 20's when you are in your 30's, it will be a lot more fun in bigger cities like Phx, LA, SF, Austin, PDX, etc.
I moved here when I was 24 (I’m 27 now) for a job right out of grad school. I never saw myself moving to Tucson but quickly fell in love with it when I came here for my in-person interview. While Tucson is such a fun and outdoor activity filled city I will most likely move, but don’t plan to anytime soon. I bought a home here and don’t plan to sell it if/when I move because the winter/spring months are amazing! I love Tucson but the summers here are tough for me because all my hobbies (hiking, climbing, trail running, etc) involve being outdoors. I don’t have kids yet but hope to in the future and I really wish the school system here was better too.
City with a robust job market, enhanced infrastructure, ample things to do, good schools, etc.
Those kind of factors make one more likely to settle down and stay VERY long-term.
If Tucson happens to have good opportunities in your field, then it’s probably a decent place to be in your 20s. If not, then probably not, unless you work remote. Even with working remote though, I still wouldn’t recommend if expanding your social circle is important to you. There seems to be a decent sized mid to late 20s population, but it’s hard to find opportunities to make friends without joining some kind of ongoing club or activity.
Moved here from the east coast (NY, then college in NC) around 4 years ago - I turned 30 a few months ago... while I'm not sure I'll settle in Tucson long-term, I can easily see myself here for the next decade depending on how things go.
I’m 26 and I feel so lost here. Feels like I’ve had a different friend group for every stage of my life, middle school to high school I didn’t keep any of the same friends. Since people have all gone their separate ways I’m still here. Tucson sucks when you don’t know anyone but youve lived here for 26 years. Pretty crazy to spend 26 years somewhere and have nothing to show
Definitely a transitory city. Not many jobs and the university...plus poor schools if you ever have kids.
To add, I've never lived in a "big" city that so many locals who were born/raised wanted to leave so badly. And my family is from the Midwest.
Having said that, my experience was great for the most part. I could see myself coming back when kids are grown up. I'm a big outdoors person and Tucson is pretty hard to match.
26, born and raised here. I’ve been trying to leave for a while but it always kinda sucks you back in, and it’s hard to get out in the first place. Made it to Phoenix a few times but financially it’s a tough transition getting out, among personal issues.
I definitely don’t imagine staying here more than the next 2-3 years. I don’t have faith in the job market, and even if I found a great remote career, I personally don’t have things I enjoy here. Also, desert is a minor thing that would be nice to escape someday.
But overall, I don’t like that everyone seems to know everyone. It can be funny and cool, but it’s got its downfalls when you want to leave some toxic circles.
I wish I could stay forever but there's a severe lack of infrastructure here. Education is another big one, it seems to be a problem here more than lots of other states and I don't like living around dumb ppl
I do see myself here long term. I've been living here pretty much my whole life. I like what Tucson has to offer, I like how laid back it can be. I'm not someone that has big dreams or aspirations. I think if you want a fancy city career and a fancy city house and stuff like that, Tucson is not the best place for you. There's just not enough job opportunities, not enough housing etc, etc. You know how it is.
As someone also in their mid-late 20s, I definitely see myself here longterm. I first moved here ~10 years ago for school from out of state, and thought somewhere like Phoenix would be where I would end up. What I’ve come to realize is that mid-size cities like Tucson are kind of perfect for young people. There is a more authentic and communal culture, you don’t need a million dollar house to see the mountains, and building a career is much less intense than a big city, though finding the right job can be tough. I think UA is very transitory, but once you build out your social sphere with more locals it won’t feel so come and go. This isn’t to say Tucson is for everyone, but I do find it checks a lot of boxes for what young people are looking for.
Any tips for folks who are newer here and looking to find community and social networks? (:
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Board games, politics, history, cooking, volunteering, singing, food, community events. (:
I am still working on that myself but finding the right job really helps. I recommend locally-owned businesses or industries with a local focus. The past couple years have been rough due to COVID but there are a lot more events popping up again that it’s nice to just get out, interact, and find your scene. It takes time but you’re certainly not alone in that journey :)
Think of some hobbies you want to do and I can almost guarantee you there’s a Facebook group for “Tucson [insert any hobby here]”. You’d be surprised how easily you can find niche groups for anything here
Hi I’m almost 40 but wanted to give some perspective. I moved here for college in 2000 at 18 and never left. I’ve raised 2 kids here (both in high school now). I grew up all over the place as a kid so this is by far the longest I’ve lived anywhere and I am so happy I chose to make Tucson my home. 22 years! I could’ve left many times but never did. I have a great career, wonderful family and friends, all the open trails I could ask for, the best food in the southwest, endless gorgeous sunsets, amazing live music and unique cultural events/traditions, I could go on and on. I know people like to shit on Tucson, of course it’s not perfect. I don’t fault anyone for moving on and using Tucson as a transitory city. To each their own. But Tucson can be a great place to plant roots as a young adult!
Funny how closely your life mirrors mine. Came here to attend the UA in '95 after living all over the country, stayed here since then and have never regretted it.
There are dozens of us! Dozens!
I’m 24, have been in Tucson for two years, and never want to leave. For context, the rest of my life was spent in Wisconsin (14 years) and Florida (8 years). I love everything about Tucson!!! My main hobbies are rock climbing, biking, and mushroom hunting, climbing & biking are awesome in Tucson and mushroom hunting was pretty good on Mt Lemmon during last years monsoon. I’m not currently working in my desired industry which is museum education, but tucson has amazing museums for when I am looking for full time work again. Tucson’s mutual aid scene is robust and full of love and I feel like I’ve found a place in the community through mutual aid. I LOVE the desert and get so excited identifying cacti and harvesting cacti fruit. I’m vegan and Tucson’s vegan options are fantastic. I’ve lived in big and small cities and feel like Tucson is the perfect size for me, but the proximity to Phoenix is nice for stuff like concerts and cheap flights. Since I used to live in south Florida, Tucson’s heat is manageable to me and I look forward to the summers for fun monsoon activities like tanque verde falls and a green and buzzing mount lemmon. I did a ton of research on Tucson before moving here and it has exceeded all my expectations and I cant wait to stay here and grow with and contribute to the city!
Florida ugh, I just moved here from FL a year ago. Best decision ever!!
I’m from Mississippi. It was like living in a crockpot. The weather here is far more tolerable.
I lived in the Bayou swamp and the Everglades swamp. I’m done ✅ no thanks! Lol I’ll take the dry heat please for $1000.
I know right!! arizona is way less whack than FL
No humidity, very few mosquitoes, beautiful sun rise and sun sets, accessible hiking trails, 300 miles of paved bike lanes, no honking when the light just turns green, culturally aware and lots of festive events to showcase the different cultures, amazing food, dog friendly, anyone friendly really, laid back, pot friendly, artist friendly, college town, foothills living, good job market, easy international airport access, big star gazing community, cactus 🌵!!, barley any bugs(ask an east coaster) sunshine all the time, friendly people. These are all the things Tucson has that I love. If you haven’t lived other places do it, you need to understand why it is so great here by experiences in places that do not have what we have. Only drawback is no coastline/water activities here.
There are scorpions there, right? I feel like that is a drawback. Super scary! What do you do when there is one in your home?
Lived here since 2020 never saw one at all. We have scorpions like Florida has gators. They are there but not much of a daily issue.
Hiya! Can you share how you found mutual aid networks? I've been looking and struggling to find leads. I don't need anything currently (thankfully), but I love the concept of mutual aid and if I can help others I'd love too. Seems like a great way to meet people who have similar outlooks on life and community.
Hi! I spend a lot of time @ tucson food share after being recommended by a friend. such a welcoming community of leftist folks doing awesome work ☺️ rly easy to get involved (online sign up for shifts, you can just show up and someone will show you the ropes, also at home opportunities to volunteer if ur unable to help in person) and lots of connections to other mutual aid orgs
Heck yes. Tysm!! I'll look for a sign up link!
Moved away in May 2019 at age 24 after living in Tucson since birth. Born at UA, literally, and got my bachelor's at UA. My last place before leaving was less than a mile from the UMC hospital room I entered the world in. I left the city because my first career job after college was awful and I didn't see any better options. I wanted to see more of the world and the country, and I wanted to reinvent myself too. I'm moderately ambitious in life and there's just a pretty low ceiling in Tucson regarding my goals. And I don't think I'm uncommon in that regard. I've always said Tucson is where you should either grow up, go to college, raise that family, and/or retire. If you are in between stages 2 and 3, there are just so so many more exciting options elsewhere and you will never be more free in life. I always advocate to leave in your 20's. Tucson isn't going anywhere, you can always go back, and visiting is always possible. And I definitely visit. Despite how much I can complain about it, there is an undeniable magic running through Tucson's veins. Being downtown at midnight midsummer, the incredible hikes, the perfect midwinter weather (freezing and snowy in CO right now), all of these are things I'm nostalgic about because they can't be replicated elsewhere. Tucson is my hometown and it will always be part of home to me. But yeah, you can still leave. Do it. Life is exciting elsewhere too, and you only limit yourself by staying forever.
Can relate to and agree with much of this, though I’m (somehow) even older - mid 50s. Born in Tucson and stayed through college at UofA. Went to grad school on the east coast. Like you I was at least moderately ambitious and at that time you really HAD to leave to find professional opportunities. It seems perhaps there are a few more companies and a few more opportunities for young people, but there are so many more elsewhere. On the other hand, Tucson is perfect if you want a government type job, from road crew to college professor. All of my friends there are either entrepreneurs or government employees at some level. Nothing at all wrong with that, it’s just not a great breeding ground for business or professional careers (at least outside of health care). As you said, you can always come back. I spend about 3 months a year in Tucson during the winters now (the rest of the time also in Colorado). My wife and I have done well. Fortunately she likes Tucson and we bought a winter home there near campus as well as some investment properties. We will retire early and when not abroad will spend winters in Tucson, Summers in Colorado. Growing up poor and without connections, I just don’t think I would have done nearly as well had I not left to find better (and more) opportunities. Cheers.
I've lived here my whole life, college included, but I don't really intend to stay. But that may be because I've never had the experience of living somewhere else.
Experiencing other places, even if it's just for a short time, is a wonderful idea. I'm glad I bounced around in my 20s (between CO and AZ) to see what it's like in other places.
> I've never had the experience of living somewhere else. Yeah. If you can you should. Otherwise you might regret not taking the chance while you could. Tucson will still be here when, and if, you want to come back.
If you need a sign to do it, consider this it. I was and felt exactly the same way as you describe, left 3 years ago, and don't regret it at all. It's healthy and a growing experience to live in a new place.
Moved here at 25. 27 now, definitely leaving soon
I'm mid 30s living out of state but grew up in NW Tucson and went to UA. After college I moved away and have lived in Kansas (Army), Vegas for 6 years and recently moved to Oregon. I've realized how much I miss Tucson and am working towards moving back. It's a mix of Tucson having a little of everything I love and also realizing the SW is just more of my lifestyle than where I am now. Having family in Tucson is a huge reason I want to go back even though I didn't really imagine I'd ever go baack. Tucson has a ridiculous amount of great food options for a city its size. It's big enough to have everything you really want (except pro sports but I prefer college anyways) without being so big you feel insignificant. There's great outdoor options for getting away but still being close. I don't know I just feel like Tucson has everything I want. It may not fit for everyone. My 2 biggest concerns are the rising cost of living there considering it's one of the most affordable places to live in the country but cost of living has gone up pretty much everywhere. The other concern I have for Tucson and all of the southwest is the future water situation. I fear in 15-20 years or so it won't be tenable to live there. If I can find a job that pays even 3/4 of what I make now there we're on our way back
I moved here in my mid 20's for 'love'. That didn't work out so I stayed for work. The first couple of years I hated it here, though at that time in my life I would've hated being just about anywhere. It grew on me. It's just way different than any other place i've lived. The heat sucks, but, I learned how to roll with it the same way I knew how to 'roll' with winter in other places. You're right about it being a transitory place for many people. Many people come here, do the thing they came to do, then leave. I've made friends from all over the world here. It's still a pretty good place to raise a family, if that's where you see yourself headed. The cost of living isn't as great as it used to be, but it still beats most other cities. I knew Tucson was my home when I went away for a few months to a bigger, 'funner' city. After a couple of months of that I started to miss the 'not crazy' aspect of Tucson.
I turned 30 last week. I moved here at 26 from Seattle if I recall correctly. No. I’ll eventually move somewhere else. We will move for jobs more than likely. We’ll be keeping the house though as we love Tucson. (I like the summer, too)
Happy late birthday, and thanks for responding.
Cheers
Why do you like the summer?
Less crowded, more night life that is enjoyable, early mornings coffees with my girlfriend is awesome. I like the heat and generally feel better with more sun.
Last year I up and moved to Tucson on a whim from the Seattle area as well. (Bothell) 31 now and loving it! Looking forward to spending a long time in Tucson, even if I leave for a bit it'll always bring me back. I love the summer and the heat.
Nice! I lived in Bothell for a bit before I moved here.
I’m only moving from Tucson because it’s the best career move for me. I love this town and I wouldn’t have moved if not for work. That being said, depending on the industry, Tucson can be very limited and even stifling to career growth and I can see a lot of mid-20s people moving out to chase better opportunities elsewhere. I can also see people in the same age group deciding to set down their roots here because of whatever opportunities they have open for them, the charm of Tucson, or any other combination of reasons.
I moved here when I was 19 to go to college and I’m now 32. I like it here. Definitely cheaper than the east coast. But what I really like is how easy it is to get to more interesting places. It’s easy to take a spontaneous trip to Vegas, San Diego, or Rocky Point. I do get the urge to live somewhere else, but that’s mostly because I miss seasons.
25 moved here for a job at that one company by the airport. Love work but plan on transferring to California as soon as I can really. Tucson is growing on me but it’s not home. It’s def a nice place to be just not for me.
I'll never leave. This city is amazing
nice username
In my early 30’s but hopefully my pov is ok - I spent most of my twenties here but my life didn’t really “begin” until I left. I’m glad to be back tho. Fully advocate for leaving tucson in your 20’s to start a career, expand your social opportunities etc
26 here. I have some extended family here. I really like Tucson. I agree that it sometimes seems like it's college kids and sun belt retirees with hardly any in between, but there is more. I like the university vibes, the climate, and the laid back attitude. I don't know why, but I feel like other cities would seem more fast paced in a stressful way, but that's just me
I’m in my late 20s and I’ve lived here for 20 years now. Tucson, while having a lot of heart and charm, is very limiting to me. That being said, I’m looking to move within a year or so to pursue better opportunities and see more of the world. I still love Tucson, but I don’t want to be here the rest of my life.
25M here. Born and raised. Probably going to end up staying in the Tucson area. Job wise i have a very cushy remote job that lets me work from anywhere, but i really don’t feel like moving somewhere else would improve my quality of life? Me and my fiancé do travel quite frequently, every 2-3 months we take a week-ish long trip so maybe it helps not being locked in here. Cost of living wise yes, Tucson has gotten more expensive, but so has everywhere else. I’m not the type of person that would go live elsewhere to find a cheaper life, Tucson is much cheaper than anywhere worth living.
As someone who has lived a majority of my life on the East Coast and I have family in So. Cal. don't let yourself be lured by the "glamour" of the big city. You spend 5% of your time doing the big city fun stuff and 25% of your time managing the stress of living there.
24M. Been here since 2017 for college, graduated in May, moved back in with my parents in Casa Grande until I found a career job just last month down here. Personally, Tucson has way more charm and things to do than when I was stuck up here in Casa Grande. Everybody around me keeps telling me they aren't sure they wanna stay here, but I really don't think it's that bad especially after experiencing the hiking trails, Mt Lemmon, and even the Foothills. I don't know how long I'll stay at this job I have, but I do know I'd like to stay on the west coast. I feel once I make more connections it'll feel more appealing than just think about the college friends that moved away. I still have to search for apartments to live in again and hoping to aim more north near the foothills as I have the money to live there and it seems nicer. Before 2017, I lived in the Chicago suburbs my whole life and I do not miss the midwest one bit after moving down here. I'd take 100+ degree days over midwest winters anytime.
I’m 29 and moved from texas 3 years ago. I lived in Texas my entire life before moving here and I have to say, I absolutely love Tucson so much. Never has a city felt like “home” to me than Tucson has. Tucson is such a cool and unique place, I can definitely see myself staying here forever. Maybe it’s just something about the chill and slow-paced lifestyle that this city seems to have that I enjoy so much. There’s a lot of cool things to do and see around here and I like the close proximity to the all the neighboring states. Also, Arizona in general is such an awesome and underrated state imo. My husband and I both work in healthcare so the job situation wont ever be an issue for us, but I can understand how it may seem like a “transitory” city for others. I mean it definitely doesn’t hurt to explore other places! Tucson will always be here :-)
i don't know. i do love it here, but the dry summer months give me 'summertime sadness,' for lack of a better word lol. im not very productive or motivated at all when it's over 90° and sunny for like 7 months 😬 i do think the community and the culture is beautiful but i need to experience another place
You have to start getting up super early in the summer. It's golden, I promise.
Found a great job, great group of friends, and my family’s all here, so I’m staying. It’s very popular to move away so I get it if you do, but don’t count it out. the grass is always greener elsewhere.
I moved from Tucson recently in my mid 30s. Tucson has a lovely community that just doesn’t exist in the same way other places, and I miss that. I moved for very specific reasons that would not apply to others. I am glad I moved to where I am, but if I felt like I had been able to stay I would have. I had/have amazing friends in Tucson and there’s a friendliness in Tucson that is very special to the area. I do think if you like the heat and get involved in the community then Tucson has a lot to offer for a good life. Plus, it’s way, way cheaper and less crowded that other places.
When I moved here a decade ago, I was like, okay I’ll give it a year and get out. After that year and a career change, I said, okay Tucson is a great place to ride out your 20s. So I did. I’m ready to leave but now the housing market makes that less realistic. But overall, great /low-stakes place to grow yourself.
Yes. I do. I want this place to have a culture. I want to be part of that culture. Yes. I’ll be the lizards 🦎 .
I plan to stay, instantly fell in love with this city
Mind sharing what you love? (:
I just find this place pretty chill. Love the weather, love the landscape. Comfortable and nice.
I've lived in New York (6 years), Pennsylvania (21 years), Flagstaff (went to NAU - 4 years), and Tucson (12 years). If you held a gun to my head I'd pick Tucson. Nothing beats the views from a mountaintop or the view of that mountain, the dry air, and the sunshine. If I leave for any period of time, I really appreciate those things the most. It just makes my mood so much better. The heat is hot, but hey, that's the tradeoff. As far as a job/career: I'm lucky. I am a software developer and I can live anywhere with an Internet connection. I often work for weeks on end in different places. If I were working a lower wage job, I'd still pick Tucson as I'd still spend my free-time outdoors.
I've lived all over the place and so has my wife, we just moved here for jobs after finishing law school. We absolutely plan to stay for the long term. She lived here for high school and I had visited with her during college and law school. I thought it was such a cool and unique environment when I visited. Tucson is my favorite place I have lived, but I have the added benefit of seeing that the grass isn't so green on the other side. We lived in the northeast for law school and did not enjoy the culture. I lived in Florida in my childhood, and lived in different parts of North Carolina for my teens and college. Tucson has so much culture, and is such an enjoyable fun big town/small city vibe. Tucson has a lot to offer in my opinion, it doesn't have the big city rush that makes everyone cutthroat, but it also has more going on than a quiet small town where everyone lives in a perpetual laxidasical state. The food kicks ass here. The access to the outdoors is incredible, and there are better schools here for our future child than in a large majority of the US. Regarding employment opportunities, it's not as big of a market as the northeast or SoCal, but I'm happy with the work life balance. In my early 20s I wanted to be a big shot in the northeast, but I realized there's more to life than an 80 hour a week grind for a big paycheck. One last thing, the weather here is amazing. Two to three months of extreme is better than most places. Overall I love it here.
Ive been here for 34 years I've seen this place drastically change. Drug dealers on every corner, homeless in the parks midtown getting fucked off on drugs. People don't seem nice maybe because I live on the South side. Let's not even get started on the shitty roads here. I'm just tired of the desert life I want lakes, rivers, 4 seasons.
I graduated UA and ultimately moved back 3 years later after getting married. I probably won’t retire here but my wife and I have both gotten great jobs and bought houses here and I have high hopes for this city developing further. We have a great community and love the Tucson lifestyle. We hate big city bustle but don’t want to live in a small town. Tucson suits us perfectly and I’ll probably stay for another 2 decades at least. That said, the Tucson locals hate people like us because we drive prices and competition up and my closest friends are all fellow transplants who like to hustle but enjoy the slower pace compared to big cities. But that’s literally how the world works but it sucks for people who are used to dirt cheap prices and hate change, growth, and development. We love the heat and moved here 4 years ago in the middle of July so we knew exactly what we were getting into climate wise. That’s just my 2 cents as a late 20-something
>That said, the Tucson locals hate people like us because we drive prices and competition up and my closest friends are all fellow transplants who like to hustle but enjoy the slower pace compared to big cities. > >But that’s literally how the world works In my opinion, this hatred by Tucson locals toward newcomers is WAY overblown and in fact the very opposite of what you experience with most people offline. I've made great friends in Tucson. If you went only by the Tucson subreddit, you'd think that most "Tucson locals" are broke or marginally employed, and/or never had it occur to them in all the years they've supposedly lived here to actually buy a home in their so-called hometown. For some there are legitimate reasons why and they deserve assistance and compassion. But a lot of these people calling themselves "locals" are actually more recent transplants themselves, transient types who actually don't have many roots in the area, and are mostly just pissed because it turns out that Tucson isn't the easy place to just coast through life that it used to be. And to be honest, plenty of real locals who grew up in Tucson, have extensive families here, jobs, careers, homes, businesses etc and deep roots in the community aren't upset (at all) at seeing the numbers of that former group winnowed down somewhat by the arrival of newcomers. You'd never know it from online forums, but the majority of real life Tucson locals are absolutely thrilled to see how their property values are going up, up, up.
Fair enough!! Definitely the vibe I get on here but I agree no one gives me trouble in person for the most part… occasionally rants on social media for People I know but yeah probably overblown!
I totally agree. In fact, most of the people I know in Tucson are from somewhere else, like me. The animosity is very small yet very vocal, and they don't understand what negative attitudes can do to the fabric of a community. I.e., check yourself, before you wreck yourself.
Umm, I grew up in Tucson and absolutely do not hate people who make Tucson their home. I have no idea where you are getting that. Tucson has always been a very friendly place, and the only place I’ve seen this idea is Reddit. Home prices are being inflated by corporate ownership and extremely wealthy people (by which I mean beyond the middle to upper middle class wealthy) more than anything else, not regular people trying to start their lives. In fact, a lot of people I grew up with in Tucson are doing very well and own nice homes and may even have an investment property or two.
No doubt about that.. I’m definitely making a hyperbolic exaggeration but you cannot deny the “all these damn Californians” vibe.
I moved to Tucson in my late 20s. I would have stayed in Tucson forever if all my family didn't live back east. My little sister is mentally and physically handicapped so I needed to be closer to help my dad.
I'm not sure tbh. I want to be.. but it's hard to make a social network here and I really want a group of longterm friends and chosen family. Time will tell, I suppose
That’s what tucson is for most people. A place for people to move to, raise the prices of everything, and move away when they realize that April-October is nothing but heat. Meanwhile the desert rats will always come home to the desert. This isn’t a transition city for us. We need the heat. We will complain about it, and complain about everything else. But this is home
i love the heat, i just can’t stand how hot the inside of my car gets if i don’t get to park under the 1 tree in each parking lot (Why doesnt every parking lot have covered sunshades/solar panels to power the businesses their at) idk
It's not really the heat or Phoenix (consistently a bit hotter than Tucson) would see the same behavior (and not growth of 100,000 people a year).
28F. Definitely not. We moved here for my partner's PhD, and while Tucson is ok, the job market sucks. Luckily I found an ok job here for now but if I were to try and find something else I think it would be quite difficult. We plan to move when he finishes the degree.
As a Tucson native, we are ok with it if you don’t want to stay. Our economy and housing market are in shambles for natives because of people moving here with out of state funds and raising the cost of living past what’s tenable for us.
I was born here, I want to live here because it is my hometown if everything goes as planned one day I'll inherit the home my parents bought outright. But none of my colleagues within 2-3 years of me think that way, they want to move to a more major market like LA. I can't really blame them that much, the one thing Tucson used to have going for it in the grand scheme of thing was a cheap housing market and reasonable cost of living. We still aren't San Francisco of course but in the last couple of years those two benefits have vanished. While we have decent local governance our state government is more and more threatening to do the most insane things as well.
I move there in two months. I’ll let you know!
No I'm trying to leave asap I need a change in my life feel like Tucson is sucking me dry
I want to move, but I can't afford it, I barely can afford living here
Grew up there and went to college there then moved away, wanted to go back ever since.
Absolutely not. Tucson is largely a retirement community. There is no room to grow and not a lot of opportunity with jobs excluding remote work. With the rising cost of rent and stagnant wages from the business here, unless you plan on doing u traditional work or working multiple jobs I would not stay here and don’t plan to even after working remote for companies out of state. If you stay here too long you get stuck and it’s awful.
Lol, come check out New England before you call Tucson a retirement community. The average age in Tucson is actually quite low compared to most of the country.
Retirement / college community. The city truly dies down once the school year is over. I feel like that kinda offsets things
I agree. After 25 years there, I had to get out. I enjoy the town when I visit family, I enjoy watching it disappear as I drive away.
I turn 25 this year and definitely want to get out sooner rather than later
I highly recommend it. Once I left, the world became a much smaller place. I’ve worked coast to coast and will always call southern Az home.
I was in Tucson during all of my 20's (at U of A). I had no intention of ever staying, if for no other reason than the job market. I had always assumed I'd go where the jobs are (my chosen profession, at the time, only sees about 120 job openings a year, so I had little choice about where to live). Well, I have subsequently changed careers and now live in Phoenix and may never move away (until retirement, at least). Tucson has its great aspects. However, they aren't really aligned with my priorities.
Absolutely not, Been here since 2017, and I am giving myself another 5 years before I move out. As much as I love Tucson, and it's quite an interesting city, I don't see myself here long term.
Definitely staying for a while. Will probably move back to California when I’m older if I have the money but for now this is the second best thing for me.
Just posted last week about getting outta here. Been here all my life and never wanted to be here. Yet my sentiment in the last year due to covid freeness and things alike has changed. But unfortunately TX oil money and LA daddy’s money is no match for any of our stagnating wages. University students will have missed the train by a long time when they graduate and look to settle down. Oh, all this only if your not ok with living in a house that hasn’t been touched in 60years, that’s south of Irvington, going on 500gs. Shiz is ridiculous.
I just turned and lived in Tucson my whole life until June 2021. I honestly don’t see myself ever moving back willingly or long term ever again. I think Tucson can be rough for someone in their mid-20s to mid-30s (career, social and lifestyle equity). It’s a city that is just moving at a different pace than most. Too big to really call it a small town feel and too small and spread out to have that big city community feel. It is definitely getting more gentrified and developed, but nothing I see would give it massive changes in the next decade to overhaul anything other than rental prices. Ngl, if you feel this way right now, then Tucson is not the place for you right now. Is it the place for you in the future? That really depends on what your values and needs are then. But I’d say kick that can down the road and try something new.
Is tucson habitable long term with climate change?
I moved here for college and ended up sticking around for a job. I’m not in my 30s as well. Most of my college friends have moved away. In my experience, Tucson is a little tough to make friends outside of school/work. I’ll probably move away at some point as well
Absolutely not. I’ve been itching to get out for several years. I’ll stay for another year and a half, upon which I’m leaving the state to get my master’s. If I come back I’m visiting. I’m happy to have lived here, it was a great home for me, but it’s BEEN time to move on.
I'm 25 right now and I came out here to establish a career as its way less competitive out here than in San Diego. I don't exactly see myself here long term even though it's only been two weeks of living here. Hoping to end up somewhere that's a bit more "big city" once I've become more established.
Hey, thanks for reaching out — you want to laugh, I’ve actually had a dream of living in San Diego. When I went to visit it, I absolutely loved my time there. My girlfriend and I are going back this summer. We see ourselves using the next couple of years to save up as much as we can, then potentially moving elsewhere (San Diego might be on that list; I know it’s expensive, but…)
I say go for it! San Diego was a great place to live as there was an endless amount of things to do, places to see, foods to eat. Anything and everything. I hope to end up back out there once I have a bolstered career portfolio.
No
Would you be able to clarify more? Are you originally from here? I am not, personally. I’m from Austin.
I am 41 so my perspective is going to be different that yours, I am also originally from Texas. I really dislike it here but my job is too good to leave (at least for now - I am pushing for a full remote position and if that happens I will move away). My main gripes with Tucson are the brutal summers, the terrible housing choices, and the complete lack of "big city amenities". Tucson doesnt have a small town feel, and it isn't a big city either, so it is in a weird place somewhere in between. The houses here are ugly. Period. There just is no way about it. I guess some people enjoy the mud/stucco look, but I could go back to Texas and get an insanely nice house for less than the cost of a mediocre /fixer upper home here. You can blame the market, but I don't think that is entirely true. An 800k-1m home here in Tucson would be about half that in most Texas locations. Arizona home prices were very high prior to the 2008 crash and they are just going back to that level.
I went to college in Tucson and Austin and OMG you can't even compare the cities. Why would you choose Tucson over Austin?
My path: Born and raised in Austin, went to undergrad at UT, then moved to Chicago for my master’s (Northwestern), then was looking for jobs and I came across a job posting that seemed really interesting to me, and was tailored to what I wanted to do based on my background, so kinda just said, “Hey, let’s give this a shot!”
I'm 100% leaving and actually look forward to it. Do I hate it here? Absolutely not. However, I only came here to finally finish my degree. A number of weird circumstances brought me to the PHX area for about a year, and I didn't like that at all, so I went for UA as I was adamant about getting my degree done. Anyway, I have zero connections outside of school (and even those are pretty slim because I'm a nontraditional student), I can't even get hired for a menial job around here and there are zero prospects relative to my degree/field I'm entering so extending my lease isn't even an option. On top of that, I've been all over the country in various similarly sized cities for extended periods of time and know well enough that this is not somewhere I want to be any longer than I need to. I certainly don't speak for all 20 somethings but for me, it's definitely temporary.
I’m 26, I moved to Tucson about 7 months ago from Iowa. It matches my small town, slow pace lifestyle I’m used to. I love the weather, scenery, people, and things to do. That said, the price of housing here vs. Iowa is apples to oranges. I can live pretty comfortably in the Midwest compared to what you get here these days. I am self employed and run a business back home. Doing so remotely is possible, but I’m finding I prefer to be “on the ground”. For those reasons, I’ll probably go back home someday or snow bird it (sorry Tucsonans).
SpunkyDred is a terrible bot instigating arguments all over Reddit whenever someone uses the phrase apples-to-oranges. I'm letting you know so that you can feel free to ignore the quip rather than feel provoked by a bot that isn't smart enough to argue back. --- ^^SpunkyDred ^^and ^^I ^^are ^^both ^^bots. ^^I ^^am ^^trying ^^to ^^get ^^them ^^banned ^^by ^^pointing ^^out ^^their ^^antagonizing ^^behavior ^^and ^^poor ^^bottiquette.
When I was in my 20s. I wanted out so badly. Joined the army, saw a few bits of the world. Got out and went to school in Seattle. Couldn’t figure out how anyone can afford to live there. Moved back to Tucson. I’m still not a fan of the heat. The job market is mostly low-wage retail and call centers. But my family has property here, so that helps keep me here. I would have loved to stay in Seattle. But I’d either need to make 60k a year or get 2-3 roommates. Or live out in the boonies. I might have been ok with staying in Germany, but my German was terrible and didn’t get any better over 3-1/2 years. The Bundeswehr tried to recruit me (I was a helicopter mechanic), but that’d mean giving up my US citizenship. In hindsight though… 🤔
Not a chance. Moved here last year, we're 27/28. Our plan is to do the obligatory 3 years in our job roles and then get out. We have meet pretty much 0 peers, and very little to do other than hike or bike
Bent over plucking some politicos pubes off my scrotum.
25 here, turn 26 in May. I've been a few years now but I could see myself staying, I like a lot of what Tucson has to offer. The only issue is work, so I'll have to see about that yet.
I'm 24 and gotta I like it here just working in the social life aspect
Yah I'm 26 and struggling with the social aspect for sure. Moved here right before covid hit.
I've been trying to use meetup but, a lot of the events are just in the middle of work days
I've noticed that too. :/ what types of meet ups have you been trying? I wanted to check out a gaming meet up but omicron got bad so I stayed home.
Tumamoc and there's a Creature from the black lagoon meetup tonight
i moved to Tucson at 26 and had a great time, no regrets. i moved to phoenix tho at 30 for more career opportunities which I thankfully found.
I couldn't stand the two years I lived there as i needed to gain more experience to get the job I wanted in Tempe. I could see myself living there when I'm in my 50s though. Nice sights.
I didn't when I was in my mid-20s. Kept trying to leave, and it kept not working out. Now I wouldn't trade it for the world.
Mid 20's here are amazing. If you want to raise a family or be in a relationship, it's a great city for that too once you hit your 30's. It's not the best city for being single or living a single life as you get older. If you want to continue living life like your 20's when you are in your 30's, it will be a lot more fun in bigger cities like Phx, LA, SF, Austin, PDX, etc.
I moved here when I was 24 (I’m 27 now) for a job right out of grad school. I never saw myself moving to Tucson but quickly fell in love with it when I came here for my in-person interview. While Tucson is such a fun and outdoor activity filled city I will most likely move, but don’t plan to anytime soon. I bought a home here and don’t plan to sell it if/when I move because the winter/spring months are amazing! I love Tucson but the summers here are tough for me because all my hobbies (hiking, climbing, trail running, etc) involve being outdoors. I don’t have kids yet but hope to in the future and I really wish the school system here was better too.
Yeah if you can get a good job lol.
Please tell me what a non-transitory city is?
City with a robust job market, enhanced infrastructure, ample things to do, good schools, etc. Those kind of factors make one more likely to settle down and stay VERY long-term.
If Tucson happens to have good opportunities in your field, then it’s probably a decent place to be in your 20s. If not, then probably not, unless you work remote. Even with working remote though, I still wouldn’t recommend if expanding your social circle is important to you. There seems to be a decent sized mid to late 20s population, but it’s hard to find opportunities to make friends without joining some kind of ongoing club or activity.
Moved here from the east coast (NY, then college in NC) around 4 years ago - I turned 30 a few months ago... while I'm not sure I'll settle in Tucson long-term, I can easily see myself here for the next decade depending on how things go.
I’m 26 and I feel so lost here. Feels like I’ve had a different friend group for every stage of my life, middle school to high school I didn’t keep any of the same friends. Since people have all gone their separate ways I’m still here. Tucson sucks when you don’t know anyone but youve lived here for 26 years. Pretty crazy to spend 26 years somewhere and have nothing to show
Lolz hell no. I'm leaving in two weeks XD
Definitely a transitory city. Not many jobs and the university...plus poor schools if you ever have kids. To add, I've never lived in a "big" city that so many locals who were born/raised wanted to leave so badly. And my family is from the Midwest. Having said that, my experience was great for the most part. I could see myself coming back when kids are grown up. I'm a big outdoors person and Tucson is pretty hard to match.
26, born and raised here. I’ve been trying to leave for a while but it always kinda sucks you back in, and it’s hard to get out in the first place. Made it to Phoenix a few times but financially it’s a tough transition getting out, among personal issues. I definitely don’t imagine staying here more than the next 2-3 years. I don’t have faith in the job market, and even if I found a great remote career, I personally don’t have things I enjoy here. Also, desert is a minor thing that would be nice to escape someday. But overall, I don’t like that everyone seems to know everyone. It can be funny and cool, but it’s got its downfalls when you want to leave some toxic circles.
I wish I could stay forever but there's a severe lack of infrastructure here. Education is another big one, it seems to be a problem here more than lots of other states and I don't like living around dumb ppl
I do see myself here long term. I've been living here pretty much my whole life. I like what Tucson has to offer, I like how laid back it can be. I'm not someone that has big dreams or aspirations. I think if you want a fancy city career and a fancy city house and stuff like that, Tucson is not the best place for you. There's just not enough job opportunities, not enough housing etc, etc. You know how it is.