National Center for Healthy Housing

Phoenix, AZ

Location Summary

Positive Findings: Compared to the national average, the Phoenix area has fewer homes with signs of rats and mice, water leaks from outside, lack complete plumbing, have heating equipment breakdowns, room heaters without a flue, and siding problems. Central city have, compared to the national averages, were less likely to have open cracks in walls, signs of rats and mice, water leaks from outside, heating equipment breakdowns, and foundation problems. Areas outside the central city had fewer units which had problems with signs of mice, water leaks from outside, lack of complete plumbing, heating equipment breakdowns, room heaters without a flue and siding problems. Rental homes had fewer signs of rats and mice, water leaks from outside, heating equipment breakdowns, and foundation problems compared to the national averages. Owner-occupant homes are less likely than the national average to deal with signs of mice, water leaks from outside, lack complete plumbing, have exposed wire in the unit, and siding problems.

Areas for Improvement: Compared to the national average, Phoenix-area homes, especially the central city and rental units, have more water leaks from inside, water supply stoppage, flush toilet breakdowns, sewage disposal breakdowns, lack of adequate kitchen facilities, and window problems. Central city homes are also more likely to have roofing problems. Areas outside the central city were more likely to have problems with water supply stoppages and window problems. Owner occupied homes were more likely to have water leaks from inside, water supply stoppage, flush toilet breakdowns, lack adequate kitchen facilities, and have roofing and window problems.

Community Information: The Phoenix MSA includes Maricopa County, Arizona. In 2002, the MSA included 1,165,700 occupied dwelling units, 46.3% of which were located in the central city of Phoenix. The housing stock of the MSA ranks among the youngest and least heavily rental of the cities surveyed. The percentage of post-1940 homes ranked the youngest for both the MSA (1.5%) and the central city (2.1%). The median house age in the Phoenix MSA was 1984. The percentage of rental units ranked 3rd-least heavily rental (21.2%) for the MSA and 12th-least heavily rental (41.3%) for the central city. Compared to other locations, Phoenix had a lower poverty rate. Its poverty rate ranked 11th (9.8%) for the entire MSA and 7th (12.5%) for homes in the central city.