New MWU CPG students....HOUSING?????

[07pharmd]

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hey i was just wondering for those of you who have been accepted to mwu cpg for this fall, where do you guys plan on living. On or off campus. Just wondering cause i have not decided which would be best

 

[OpticDean]

I am looking to purchase a house with several bedrooms. Anyone interested in renting a bedroom? Under $300 for your own room and a shared kitchen. Located within 10 min of the college. Rooms will be rented to pharmacy/DO/nursing students only, so you get that advantage.

 

[blueclassring]

i think renting an apartment makes sense, particularly the rentals on campus. a house makes sense if you are planning on staying here several years. i believe the appreciation in homes will pay for "rent". at the rate that homes are appreciating in surprise and phoenix as a whole, it may be a good investment.

 

[cwindo]

Hey Blueclassring...have you decided which school you're going? I also got in to MWU-CPG. I got in to another school in my home state, but it's a four-year. And I'm now faced with a hard decision to make. What you think would be the benefits of MWU other than its 3 year program?

 

[Jeddevil]

I am a second year at MWU-cpg. Many of the younger crowd in my class live in the on-campus housing. It sounds like they have a good time over there. Many of the married and married with children students that rent live in several different apartment complexes across 59th ave to the west of campus. I have never been in them, but both appear to be nice complexes. I am betting many single students are in those complexes also since many seem to be crossing the streets when I am driving into school in the morning. Many of the rest of us are located all over the valley, with some driving from the far east valley which is quite a trek.

If you are going to buy a house and rent out a room, I would suggest getting more than 300 bucks a month. Houses are not too cheap here anymore, especially those in the close range to campus that renters would chose to live in. You are not going to touch anything worth a crap under 300 grand within the renters zone close to campus, which I am figuring is probably a 5 mile radius. If you can get homes for under that cost, they are going to be in old town glendale where you don't really want to live.

Good luck everyone, be ready to work hard. MWU-cpg is busy, but very doable if you stay on top of things.

 

[kyt0871]

i havent even started looking into housing yet. blueclassring, you doing on-campus housing? i'm thinking abotu that - the rent's hella cheap compared to what we are used to paying haha

 

[blueclassring]

actually my folks and i just came from Glendale/Surprise area this weekend looking for a house over there. The previous poster said that the houses are expensive and he was right. Houses over there cost around 250000-400000. Many also required that you have employment to purchase a home there. If you are looking for an inexpensive home, I would suggest Desert Oasis in Surprise. There are also some good developments in Surprise Farms on Bell Road. Many of the homes there are gone. They are still developing on the outskirts of Surprise but those hopes will not be ready till next January to March. the commute from surprise by my estimation is about 25 minutes on Bell Road and about 30 minutes on Hwy 303.

It is a nice area and will make a great home for those looking to purchase.

If you aren't looking for a home, I would definitely recommend renting. The apartments on campus look good, and they are still inexpensive. There are many inexpensive rentals in the area spread throughout Phoenix. In my case, I'd rather pay my parents "rent" and not some random landlord. I help them with there mortgage and they get the tax deductions.

 

[blueclassring]

think about the tuition saved with one year. most private schools charge 30K. you'll save that in a year.

housing is inexpensive. rent will set you back about 400-800.

pharmacies are everywhere and i mean everywhere. while driving around last night i practically saw a pharmacy on every block and every corner and not to mention pharmacies in grocery stores(fry's, safeways, osco, walgreens, costcos everywhere) phoenix is huge and they will need tons of pharmacists to man there stores. i was unhappy to see those darn drive thrus though but they are popular. can i have fries with that too???

the area is very well developed. just like any big city, all the amenities are available.

i like hot weather. locals say that it is pretty hot about 3 months of the years. this whole weekend it was a cool 70-80 degrees. (maybe that's why the elderly like to come out there during the winter months)

lots to do in the area. not like we'll have the time to do it but oh well

 

[pharmaz88]

pharmacies are everywhere and i mean everywhere. while driving around last night i practically saw a pharmacy on every block and every corner and not to mention pharmacies in grocery stores(fry's, safeways, osco, walgreens, costcos everywhere) phoenix is huge and they will need tons of pharmacists to man there stores.

...and another good thing is that Phoenix is such a high-demand market for pharmacists, that all the pharmacies here pay their interns pretty well... trying to get their hooks into you early.

Wags, on the low end of the spectrum, pays $14 for PS1, $17 for PS2, and $20-something for PS3. ...most other pharmacies here (ie- Fry's, and the pharmacy-formerly-known-as-Osco) pay their interns even more.

 

[cwindo]

...and another good thing is that Phoenix is such a high-demand market for pharmacists, that all the pharmacies here pay their interns pretty well... trying to get their hooks into you early.

Wags, on the low end of the spectrum, pays $14 for PS1, $17 for PS2, and $20-something for PS3. ...most other pharmacies here (ie- Fry's, and the pharmacy-formerly-known-as-Osco) pay their interns even more.

Since you've been in MWU for a couple of years, you should know a lot about the area. Do you recommend getting a house while we go to school there? If so, what area is good enough neighborhood but not too expensive? I want to have a house, but it seems impossible with the house prices that high. In the East Coast, we'll get a much bigger house with a yard for the same or less price. And another thing, what's the average starting salary in Phoenix? Thanks a bunch, pharmaz88!!

 

[pharmaz88]

Since you've been in MWU for a couple of years, you should know a lot about the area. Do you recommend getting a house while we go to school there? If so, what area is good enough neighborhood but not too expensive? I want to have a house, but it seems impossible with the house prices that high. In the East Coast, we'll get a much bigger house with a yard for the same or less price. And another thing, what's the average starting salary in Phoenix? Thanks a bunch, pharmaz88!!

Average starting salary for RPh's out here is right around $100K for retail, w/ a variety of sign-on bonuses. (I've seen from $15K/3yrs to $30K/3yrs, and also $20K/2yrs.) Slightly less for hospital; I'd say around low 90's. There are also a number of mail-order facilities out here, that pay around hospital salary.

I'm probably not the best person to ask the housing question to. I've lived here since I was 3 years old, and currently just rent a room from an old friend for $300/month, including utilities. I'd say if you've got a family, then a house would definitely be a great idea, since 3 years of family apartment living doesn't seem too appealing. If you want anything close to campus, it's going to be expensive to buy, but you can find some halfway decent deals on rentals. If you want to purchase, you're going to have to go out to Surprise to find an 'affordable' house... so count on a 25-30 minute commute. ...I'd actually let JedDevil comment on this more, since he's a homeowner and student at CPG.

 

[blueclassring]

if you are looking for an affordable home(at least by Cali standards) your best best is Surprise. It is about 25 minutes to campus and homes range from 250K-500K.(Mortgage for a 250K home is about 1500-1600 per month, but does not include insurance or property taxes). Another good area for affordable housing is Tolleson. The commute from there is about 30 minutes via the Loop 101. Houses here range from about 240-400K. Some areas of Phoenix are spotty but they are also affordable. By far the most affordable homes in Northwest Valley are in El Mirage. I have seen some homes from 190K-240K. The only problem is nothing is there but it is a convenient drive to Surprise(About 10 minutes via Grand Ave.)

I can say too much about the area since I have only visited two weekends but Surprise appears to be booming. Houses a little further in Surprise are selling. One subdivision for instance opened up in Dec and all 300 homes sold within 2 months. It may just be another housing frenzy. Renting may be a good idea but if intend on settling down in this area then buying a house can't be all that bad either.

pete

 

[ForgetMeNot]

The only problem is nothing is there but it is a convenient drive to Surprise(About 10 minutes via Grand Ave.)

Nothing about driving on Grand Ave is convenient.

Anyway, I just wanted to throw in that Avondale and portions of Goodyear are also options. There are a lot of rental properties due to the influx of Californians who buy 2 houses at once, one to live in and one to rent out. I lived in Goodyear for my last year at Midwestern. The commute isn't so bad on the Loop 101 in the morning. Most of the traffic was going in the opposite direction.

 

[blueclassring]

now that i think about it, there was a lot of traffic on both sides. I don't anticipate the commute on Bell Road to be so great either. There is the Loop 303 which takes you to campus but I have no idea how far that is from Surprise.

 

[cwindo]

now that i think about it, there was a lot of traffic on both sides. I don't anticipate the commute on Bell Road to be so great either. There is the Loop 303 which takes you to campus but I have no idea how far that is from Surprise.

Thank you all for the input. I'll check into those areas you mention. I don't think we can afford 250k+ homes with just one income. So either I need to stay here in the East Coast and have a bigger nicer home or get a condo/rent in Phx. It also depends on where my hubby finds a job. I just wish that the school deposit was not that high. Good luck to you all in house hunting too!!