The Tucson real estate market.
Human habitation in the Tucson valley dates back thousands of years. Modern day Tucson (aka, “The Old Pueblo”) has grown from its founding by Spanish soldiers in 1775 as Presidio San Augustin del Tucson, to a modern metropolis of more than one million people. Surrounded by picturesque Sonoran Desert mountain ranges and vast saguaro forests, its residents enjoy an enviable, active lifestyle with a distinct cultural tincture.
Residents of Greater Tucson have a substantial variety of amenities at their disposal, from museums, artistic venues and other enriching civic assets to recreational activities like golf, tennis and snow skiing just a short drive away. In the winter, you can ski in the morning and play golf in the afternoon.
Host to the one of the world’s great research universities – The University of Arizona, Tucson is a big city with a comfortable, relaxing pace. Readers of Conde Nast Traveler once rated Tucson as America’s “friendliest city” and dubbed it one of the Top Ten US cities to visit. The Wall Street Journal described the city as a “mini-mecca for the arts.” Zagat rated it the number one city in America for resorts and spas. (The Ritz-Carlton, Dove Mountain, with its world-class spa, undoubtedly helped raise the bar.)
Residents can enjoy almost every conceivable art form, including visual and performing arts like opera, symphony, ballet and theater. The Pima Air and Space Museum is the largest aviation museum west of the Rockies. Sports fans enjoy highly-regarded major intercollegiate athletics following The University of Arizona Wildcats as they compete in the challenging Pacific 12 Conference. There is year-round golf, the historic Tucson Rodeo “La Fiesta de los Vaqueros”, the winter horse show circuit and the world’s largest gem and mineral show, held each year in the Tucson Convention Center. The world-famous Kitt Peak National Observatory, the celebrated earth science research facility Biosphere 2, the Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum, Mission San Xavier del Bac and the Vatican Observatory on Mount Graham are all nearby – and fascinating.
Of course, the climate is one of the biggest reasons people choose to live here. Virtually every day is a sunny one and the fall, winter and spring seasons are pretty much incomparable. With elevations in the area ranging from near 2,700 feet downtown to 4,000 feet (the Dove Mountain community is more than 3,000 feet above sea level), Tucson winters are perfect and the summers are cooler than other Southwest desert cities.
