Living in Kearny, Arizona: homes, schools and costs

The book's checklist

Lower cost of livingEveryday prices run 3.3% above the U.S. average in the Phoenix-Mesa-Chandler metro area.
More house for the moneyThe Census survey didn't reach enough homes in Kearny to say.
A safer neighborhoodThe FBI has no 2025 figures for Kearny itself. Many small towns are patrolled by the county sheriff, so call the sheriff's office and ask what calls they get most.
Schools in town2 public schools: 1 elementary and 1 high school.
A hospital close byCobre Valley Regional Medical Center in Globe, about 25 miles away, has the nearest emergency room.
Within reach of a big cityTucson is about 62 miles away as the crow flies. The book suggests staying within about 60 miles if you'll miss big-city sports, concerts and theater.

A check means Kearny meets the rule of thumb from Frank and Dave's book. An empty box isn't a deal breaker: it's something to weigh for your family. A question mark means there isn't enough data.

For a lifetime

Homes and money

Typical home value, as owners valued them in 2020-2024: $125,100U.S.: $332,700
Home prices since then: Up 4.8%Pinal County, 2022 to 2025
Typical rent, with utilities: $1,065 a monthU.S.: $1,413
Typical property tax bill: $823 a yearArizona: $1,879
Homes built before 1940: 0%U.S.: 12%
Homes built since 2010: 1%U.S.: 11%
Vacation and seasonal homes: 2%U.S.: 3%
Everyday prices: 103.3U.S. average = 100 (the Phoenix-Mesa-Chandler metro area)

Home values and rents are what households told the Census Bureau across 2020 to 2024, so they trail today's market: county prices have moved up 4.8% since 2022. Everyday prices are the government's average for the Phoenix-Mesa-Chandler metro area, not Kearny alone. Check current listings before you budget.

Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates; Federal Housing Finance Agency, House Price Index for counties (all transactions); U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional Price Parities, 2024.

The people

Population, 2025 estimate: 1,8492020: 1,741
Median age: 38 yearsU.S.: 38.9
Age 65 and older: 27%U.S.: 17%
Under 18: 27%U.S.: 22%
Adults with a bachelor's degree or more: 10%U.S.: 36%
Moved here from another county or state in the past year: 3%U.S.: 6%

Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, Population Estimates (Vintage 2025); U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates.

Work

Biggest lines of work: Farming, forestry and mining (34%); schools, health care and social services (19%); arts, recreation, lodging and restaurants (10%)
Average commute: 25 minutesU.S.: 26 minutes
Work from home: 8%U.S.: 15%
Below the poverty line: 12%U.S.: 12%

Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates.

Health care

Nearest emergency room: Cobre Valley Regional Medical Center, Globe, AZ, about 25 miles away. It's a critical access hospital (a small rural hospital with 25 or fewer beds). Medicare gives it 2 of 5 stars.

Nearest general hospital: Banner Ironwood Medical Center, Queen Creek, AZ, about 40 miles away. Medicare gives it 3 of 5 stars.

Look up doctors, clinics and the hospitals themselves on Medicare's Care Compare. Ask where the most serious cases are sent.

Sources: Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, Hospital General Information.

Schools

2 public schools in Kearny, run by Ray Unified District (4438).

See each school on the federal school search, then check test scores and graduation rates on Arizona's school report card.

Sources: National Center for Education Statistics, Common Core of Data, 2023-24 (via the Urban Institute Education Data Portal); National Center for Education Statistics, IPEDS institution directory, 2024.

Internet

Homes with any internet subscription: 86%U.S.: 91%

Before you buy, look up the address on the FCC's National Broadband Map to see which providers serve it.

Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates.

Weather

January average low: 44°F
July average high: 99°F
Days 90°F or hotter: 129 a year
Nights at or below freezing: 3 a year
Rain and melted snow: 11.7 inches a year
Snow: 0 inches a year
Elevation: 1,915 feet

Weather stations: Superior (20 miles away) and Kearny (1 mile away, rain and snow). Averages for 1991 to 2020.

Sources: NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, U.S. Climate Normals 1991-2020; U.S. Geological Survey, 3D Elevation Program.

Getting around

Cobre Valley Regional Medical CenterEmergency room25

Queen Creek, AZCity of 90,00043

Tucson, AZMetro of 1.1 million62

Straight-line miles. The road is always longer, and as the book says, an interstate at 70 is a different trip from a farm road at 45. Check the real drive: Cobre Valley Regional Medical Center, Queen Creek, Tucson.

Pinal County is in a metro area of 1 million people or more (USDA rural-urban code 1, on a scale where 1 is the biggest metro areas and 9 the most rural counties).

For a day

National Park Service sites within about an hour:

Casa Grande Ruins National Monument36 miles
Tonto National Monument42 miles
Saguaro National Park50 miles
Hohokam Pima National Monument58 miles

Read about Kearny's history on Wikipedia.

Know Kearny?

Tell us what a visitor shouldn't miss, and what living there is really like. Write to Main Street at mainstreet@smalltownguide.com. The best notes from people who know the town will be added here.

Nearby

Straight-line miles.

Small towns

Superior, AZ2,600 people, 19 miles
Miami, AZ1,500 people, 23 miles
Central Heights-Midland City, AZ2,900 people, 24 miles
Globe, AZ7,200 people, 25 miles
Mammoth, AZ1,100 people, 28 miles
Florence, AZ25,000 people, 29 miles

Smaller places

Hayden, AZ510 people, 9 miles
Dripping Springs, AZ (unincorporated)186 people, 9 miles
Winkelman, AZ290 people, 10 miles

Sources

Census survey figures are estimates with a margin of error; we leave out any figure whose margin is too wide to be useful. Data last gathered October 5, 2026. See something wrong? Write to mainstreet@smalltownguide.com.