Close ups of leaves, pod, trunk would help. But for now my guess would be Royal Poinciana.

Thanks waterbug, this is the best picture I can get. The tree is at a neighbors backyard. Three is twice the hight of the brick wall, from what I can see the trunk is thin. The house is a rental so I doubt the occupant knows the name of the tree. Thanks again.

it's interesting that my Sunset gardening book doesn't list it for our zone (only two warmer so cal zones and a hawaii zone)

It's hard to tell from the pics. Can you get a picture of the leaves nice and close, sort of like if you were doing a close up of your hand??

Waterbug could definitely be right, or it could be Lysiloma (fern of the desert tree), or Jacaranda, or even a silk oak/Grevillea. A close up of a leaf, showing leaflets etc would help. Fun mystery though!

Happy gardening!
Grant

Bloom color is a good clue too.

Because you can see better than a photo can ever be you would still need to confirm the id. For example when I guess Royal Poinciana you could say what fit (leaf, pod, bark) and/or what didn't because you can view lots of photos and info online and check those against what you see.

I'm guessing just on what I think the leaves look like and the seed pods...but for all I know the seed pods I'm seeing aren't even on the tree or I'm looking at the wrong tree, etc. Hopefully others will have better guesses you can track down.

I wouldn't let Sunset throw you off. I threw out my Western Garden Book when I moved to Phoenix, it just didn't apply imo. I have 4 zones in my one yard.

When trying to id a plant there are all the common plants you see over and over. Then there are the plants you almost never see but can be grown here by either a good gardener or someone just getting lucky and planting in just the right spot with just the right amount of water and frost protection.

I think Grant is on to something. I think it might be a Lysiloma too or feather tree.

I was thinking Jacaranda because of the leaves, but the seed pods didn't look right...if the seed pods I'm seeing are even on the tree in question.

Could be a Albizia julibrissin a.k.a Mimosa tree a.k.a Silk tree. Those things sprout like weeds around Phoenix, I have several large volunteers on my property. The ones I have are definitely mimosa trees but they flower yellow rather than the more typical pinkish white.

Also could be Acacia dealbata a.k.a Yellow Mimosa, which is what I think I have.

This could also be White Popinac - Leucaena leucocephala. It can grow in the most severe environments and produces tons of seeds. Sometimes called White Leadtree its from South America but has naturalized across the southern US and is now considered invasive.

Here is a link that might be useful: White Popinac tree

Looks more like Lysiloma - they have the pods and the feathery leaves AND grow to that size easily.