A local's guide to the East Valley
Welcome to
Chandler, Arizona
A friendly field guide to the East Valley hometown: where to live, what the schools are like, what to do downtown, and the Silicon Desert jobs that make it all work.
Why Chandler
A city built on sunshine, community and a skyline of cranes
Chandler started as a cotton and ostrich town in 1912 and grew into the tech-forward heart of the East Valley, home to roughly 280,000 people. It pairs top-rated schools and safe, amenity-rich neighborhoods with a walkable historic downtown and some of the strongest job growth in Arizona.
Families love it for the schools and the parks. Workers love it for the short commutes to Intel, Microchip and the finance companies along the Loop 101. And everyone loves the patios, the art walks and those 300-plus days of sunshine.
~280,000
residents call Chandler home
~$540K
median home price in 2025–2026
46+
schools in Chandler Unified alone
50+
Fortune 1000 companies employ here
Median home prices historically sit in the low-to-mid $500s, below Scottsdale but with the same sunshine. Buyers today have more choices and negotiating room than in the frenzy years.
Explore the guide
Six ways into Chandler. Pick a door: homes, schools, the old townsite, this week's plans, where to eat, or where to shop.
01 Neighborhoods & housing
From downtown bungalows to Ocotillo lakefronts, get the lay of the land and the market.
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02 Schools
Chandler Unified, Kyrene, BASIS and more: which districts serve which corners of the city.
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03 Downtown
Art walks, the Center for the Arts, breweries and the old townsite that started it all.
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04 Activities
A weekly roundup of what to do: parks, events, family fun and evenings out in Chandler.
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05 Dining
Breweries, bakeries and patios: the restaurants neighbors actually talk about.
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06 Shopping & style
Chandler Fashion Center, downtown boutiques and the malls and centers locals drive to.
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The Silicon Desert
Careers that keep Chandler growing
Chandler is the manufacturing and research anchor of Arizona's tech corridor. Intel's Ocotillo campus alone employs roughly 12,000 people, and more than 50 Fortune 1000 companies have operations in the city.
- Semiconductors & advanced manufacturing
- Banking & financial services
- Aerospace & defense
- Healthcare & bioscience
This week in Chandler
Plans, updated weekly
Three verified weekend picks, refreshed each week. The full calendar of events, with dates, times and venues, lives on the activities page.
Concerts in the Courtyard, Friday
The free Courtyard series opens with young bands at the Chandler Community Center courtyard downtown, 6–8 p.m. Friday.
City of ChandlerFinal Summer Market, Saturday
The Downtown Chandler Summer Market runs one last Saturday, 7–11 a.m. at Dr. A.J. Chandler Park West: farmers, food vendors and artisans.
Downtown ChandlerMike Epps at Wild Horse Pass
The comedian headlines the Gila River showroom at 8 p.m. Saturday, tickets through Ticketmaster and resort packages available.
Gila River Resorts
Your guide
Your Home is the Heart of My Business
This guide is written and updated by PJ Selby, an Arizona Associate Broker who has called the East Valley home since 1991. PJ raised her family in Chandler, served buyers and sellers across Maricopa and North Pinal counties since 2009, and holds certifications in military relocation, senior real estate and seller representation.
No hype, no pressure: just honest answers about Chandler neighborhoods, schools and market conditions, from someone who actually lives here.
Next step
Thinking about Chandler?
Whether you are relocating for a job, sizing up schools, or planning a move across town, PJ can pull together current listings, neighborhood comparisons and market numbers for you.
- Current listings across Chandler and the East Valley
- Neighborhood-by-neighborhood comparisons
- VA loan and military relocation know-how
- Seller guidance, from pricing to staging to close
Get in touch
Ready to call Chandler home?
Tell PJ a little about what you are looking for, and she will get back to you with honest, current answers about the Chandler market.