Located southeast of Phoenix, Gilbert is an affluent city in Maricopa County, Arizona. Part of the 11th largest metropolitan area in the United States – the Phoenix Metropolitan Area – Gilbert is the sixth-largest municipality in Arizona, and the fifth-largest in the Phoenix metro area, covering an area of 69 square miles. It is the largest incorporated town in the United States. 

What is the community of Gilbert like?  

Home to around 254,000 residents, Gilbert has grown at an extremely high rate over the last four decades, increasing its population at an average annual rate of nearly 13% between 1980 and 2010. Ranked by Niche as the best suburb to raise a family in the Phoenix area, Gilbert was once known as the “Hay Shipping Capital of the World” due to its large farming community.  
From a humble agricultural community, Gilbert has trodden a path of rapid transformation in becoming an economically diverse suburban center located in the southeastern valley of the Greater Phoenix area. Today, Gilbert is home to an outstanding recreational landscape, renowned museums and art centers, as well as incredible educational facilities. 
The town is home to the picturesque Riparian Preserve at Water Ranch, which is a well-maintained lake that was created by the city in 1999 to preserve and protect precious water sources and wildlife habitats. Spanning over 110 acres, the preserve is home to more than 300 species of animals, birds, and insects, and features over 4.5 miles of hiking trails, a paleontology dig site, various vegetative zones, and an observatory. 
if you are curious about history or want to learn more about Gilbert’s path, head to the Gilbert Historical Museum, which is a community museum with a mission to preserve and showcase the history of Gilbert and the surrounding region. The museum is housed in the original Gilbert Elementary School, which was built in 1913, and plays home to an array of artifacts, photographs, documents, as well as a gift shop. 
Another unique attraction in Gilbert is the Gilbert Rotary Centennial Observatory (GRCO), which is a community observatory that is owned by the Town of Gilbert and hosts a Public Star Party every second Friday of each month. The party includes astronomy-related talks as well as viewing of the stars with additional telescopes supplied by members of the East Valley Astronomy Club. 

What is Real Estate like in Gilbert?     

Real estate in Gilbert has shown an average growth of 3.91% per year since the year 2000. since 2000, the prices of homes in Gilbert have appreciated by a strong 123.56%. National real estate firm, Homesmart, categorizes Gilbert’s housing market as ‘very competitive’. The sale prices of homes in Gilbert have experienced incredible growth of more than 27.8% over the last year.   
The median home price in Gilbert is $469,000. Currently, there are 717 active homes for sale in Gilbert, and normally it takes just 35 days for a listed home to sell. The average cost to rent a house in Gilbert is $2,368 per month. At present, there are 77,632 homes and apartments in the city, 73.6% of which are owned, and the remaining 26.4% are rented.      

How is the economic landscape of Gilbert?    

Over the last year, Gilbert’s job market has grown by 3.3%, while its unemployment rate stands at a decent 4.5%. Also, the city’s job market is expected to grow by 33.1% in the next ten years. Some of the largest employers in Gilbert include Banner Health, Mercy Gilbert Medical Center, Fry’s Food and Drug, and Go Daddy.
On average, a Gilbert resident earns around $31,500 per annum, decently higher than the US average of $28500. The city’s median household income of almost $81,400 per resident is, however, much greater than the US average of approximately $53000. Most of the residents of Gilbert work in construction, manufacturing, retail, finance, professional and technical services, education, accommodation, and healthcare.    

How are the schools in Gilbert?     

Gilbert is covered by 4 school districts, with Gilbert Unified District being the city’s major school district encompassing 43 schools and 37,852 enrolled students. Gilbert also lies in proximity to many colleges including Gilbert Community College, Mesa Community College, and International Baptist College.  
Gilbert lies just 14 miles from one of America’s largest public universities – the Arizona State University. Founded in 1885, ASU presently has nearly 90,000 undergraduate and 20,000 post-graduate students across its five campuses and four regional learning centers throughout Arizona. The university's faculty of more than 4,700 scholars has included 5 Nobel laureates, 6 Pulitzer Prize winners, 4 MacArthur Fellows, and 19 National Academy of Sciences members.     

Gilbert in a nutshell        

To sum up, Gilbert is a bustling city in the heart of the greater Phoenix area. The city has grown at an unprecedented rate over the last few decades and plays home to a thriving community that enjoys the highest quality of life. If you are mulling over moving to Arizona, Gilbert would make an exceptional place to raise your family.