Arizona Real Estate & Relocation Guide

Catalina Foothills, Arizona

Population: 53,794

Located in Pima County

Catalina Foothills, Arizona

It's not much of a stretch to consider the Catalina Foothills the Beverly Hills of Pima County. The southern foothills of the Santa Catalina Mountains have been drawing the nation's wealthy to them for more than 80 years, building huge luxury homes with spectacular views of the Tucson valley.

The area's rolling hills are home to three of the state's most exclusive resorts, Loews Ventana Canyon, which features incredible canyon and mountain views of the city of Tucson, the Westin La Paloma, which boasts some of the most panoramic views of the city of Tucson, and Hacienda del Sol Guest Ranch and Resort, one of the world's most highly rated guest ranches. The cuisine in the resorts' restaurants have been the subject of gushing reviews in many food and travel magazines.

Homes here, some having sold for more than $10 million, are frequently featured in Architecture Digest and other prestigious publications. However, despite its reputation for opulence, not everyone who lives in the Catalina Foothills community is dripping with gold and jewels.

More than 50,000 people live in this unincorporated community sprinkled with fine dining and fast food establishments, banks, galleries, grocery stores, specialty shops and indoor and outdoor entertainment venues. Though property values are high, there a number of apartment complexes and smaller, affordable homes in the Foothills that make the community more egalitarian than its reputation implies.

In the late 1920s, native Tucsonan John W. Murphey bought nearly 8,000 acres of federal and state land in the foothills far north of Tucson. Over the next 50 years, the legendary land speculator developed his land, building roads, homes, churches, schools and shopping centers. Murphey occasionally sold parcels of land, but imposed 50-year deed restrictions that limited architectural styles, colors and building heights that laid the foundation for the affluent suburb.

Expansive lots and preserved natural vegetation allow bobcats, coyotes, deer, javelina, rabbits and other desert-dwelling critters to thrive here as well. It's not uncommon for Foothills residents to have to shoo-away pesky javelina rooting up gardens, or to quickly get out their camera to snap a photo of a mountain lion taking a drink from the pool.

While the area boasts man-made jewels like the sculpted greens and fairways of La Paloma's championship golf course, or St. Philips in the Hills Episcopal Church, perhaps the finest example of Spanish Colonial Revival by renowned architect Josias Joseler, the Foothills is also the home to one of nature's jewels.

More than one million people a year visit the breathtaking Sabino Canyon Recreation Area, at the community's northeastern edge. Its 3.8 mile paved road into the canyon offers access to Sabino Creek and a number of swimming holes, picnic areas and trailheads. Visitors can travel by foot, horseback, bicycle or shuttle (the road is closed to private vehicles). The shuttle operates year round and guides offer a history of the canyon and identify the flora and fauna, birds and rock formations.

Whether it is fabulous architecture, championship golf, five-star dining, or the transcendent hikes through Sabino Canyon, the Foothills is easily a match for any of the country's high-dollar communities, including Beverly Hills.

Courtesy http://www.the-chamber.com/catalinafoothills.htm

Tucson Metropolitian Chamber
520-792-1212
Average home price: 418,732
Low home price: 219,000
High home price: 926,300