Surrounded by five mountain ranges in the middle of the desert,
Tucson is an awesome place to call home. However, being the second largest city in
Arizona, things tend to get a little expensive. Fortunately, there are plenty of nearby options that won’t break your bank.
10 Most Affordable Tucson Suburbs
1. Flowing Wells
Key Stats:
- Median household income: $31,800
- Median home value: $57,400
Flowing Wells is both affordable and a great place to live and was awarded the All-American City Award within the last few years. It’s only 20 minutes outside of downtown Tucson and boasts a cost of living score that’s six percent lower than the Tucson average. If you’re looking for an affordable place with a great community near Tucson, Flowing Wells might be the place for you.
2. Tucson Estates
Key Stats:
- Median household income: $47,741
- Median home value: $107,100
Tucson Estates is only 13 miles from the city center, and is another suburb that’s great for commuting downtown. Despite supporting higher incomes than most places on this list, the homes in Tucson Estate aren’t that expensive, with an average value just over $100,000. It’s also got very cheap rent, with residents spending 21.2 percent of their income on rent compared to a national average that’s in the 30s.
3. Picture Rocks
Key Stats:
- Median household income: $56,429
- Median home value: $111,900
Home to 8,000 residents, Picture Rocks delivers a small town feel while still keeping the city of Tucson totally accessible. Much like most of the Tucson area, Picture Rocks is noteworthy for it’s awesome weather, with summer temperatures averaging a warm 88 and winter temperatures dipping to a slightly chilly 58. It’s hard not to be happy when you’ve always got that much sunshine.
4. Avra Valley
Key Stats:
- Median household income: $50,889
- Median home value: $106,200
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Avra Valley borders the Ironwood Forest National Monument and is one of the most beautiful affordable suburbs in the Tucson area. A huge perk of living here is the favorable affordability ratio, meaning that incomes are high and home prices are low. It you’re buying property in this town, you’ll probably be able pay off your house in no time with the proper planning.
5. Summit
Key Stats:
- Median household income: $28,617
- Median home value: $81,100
With one of the lowest cost of living scores on our list, your dollar will go further in Summit. Incomes aren’t quite as high, but neither are other big expenses, like groceries and housing. Plus, its close proximity to the Tucson International Airport makes travel and vacations easier.
Key Stats:
- Median household income: $22,867
- Median home value: $75,900
South Tucson’s town motto is “a pueblo within a city.” It’s known for having a vibrant Hispanic culture, with tons of awesome Mexican restaurants, grocery stores, and shops that make getting everything you need very convenient. It’s also home to an active community that hosts a variety of regular events showcasing the heritage of the local population.
Key Stats:
- Median household income: $52,105
- Median home value: $148,400
Resting in the foothills of Mount Lemmon, Oracle is frequently called a “bedroom community” of Tucson, meaning that it attracts a ton of professionals that commute into the city for work. It’s close proximity to the city also means that there’s usually a lot going on, especially considering it’s small size of only a few thousand residents. Oracle is home to cool natural attractions like Peppersauce Cave, a cave with over one mile of mapped passages, as well as Oracle State Park. It also gets recognized for its annual GLOW show that coincides with the full moon, for being the starting point of the Tucson Marathon, and also for the presence of Biosphere 2, a leading Earth system science research facility that’s the largest of its type ever created.
8. Three Points
Key Stats:
- Income spent on rent: 39.5 percent
- Median home value: $92,900
Three Points makes the cut as an affordable Tucson suburb thanks to it’s great affordability ratio between incomes and home prices. Originally founded in 1882 as a ranching town, Three Points has come a long way since then. A little further from downtown than most of the other suburbs on this list, Three Points is usually about a 40 minute drive from the city. This makes it perfect for someone that prefers the small town life most of the time but doesn’t want to lose all of the benefits that a big city like Tucson has to offer.
9. Drexel Heights
Key Stats:
- Median home value: $114,400
- Income spent on rent: 35.9 percent
On the outskirts of Tucson Mountain Park and right next to another affordable suburb, Tucson Estates, Drexel Heights has a great location that lets you enjoy both the awesome nature around the city, as well as the downtown Tucson scene, only 10 miles away. It’s also very close to several libraries, the Tucson Children’s Museum, and multiple parks that make getting outside easy.
Key Stats:
- Income spent on rent: 21.7 percent
- Median household income: $87,649
Right next to Coronado National Forest in the foothills of the Santa Rita Mountains, Corona de Tucson has both the highest median household income and the highest median home value on our list, with homes priced around $200,000. The cost of living is a little higher here as well, but thanks to incomes that are roughly 4 times as high as other nearby options, if you’re able to land a good job, Corona de Tucson might be in your budget. This area boasts a great education system, with a 93 percent graduation rate, 14 percent higher than the rest of Arizona, as well as a crime rate that’s 39 percent lower than the state average, making this town a great place for the middle-class family.
Our Methodology
To create this list of affordable Tucson suburbs, we considered the following criteria:
- Cost of living
- Median home value
- Percentage of income spent on rent
- Affordability ratio (median home value divided by median household income)
We then averaged those scores into an overall score and the places with the 10 lowest scores made up our list of the most affordable Tucson suburbs.
For this list, we sourced data from
AreaVibes, business listings, and the 2013 U.S. Census American Community Survey.
Want to see how all 20 Tucson suburbs stacked up? Take a look at the table below:
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