Relocating to ABQ with kids (Albuquerque, Rio Rancho: best neighborhoods, for sale, rent)
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Ok to start off I lived in ABQ for 4yrs before my husband and my daughter. I went to school in NM and became a licensed Massage Therapist in NM. I ended up moving back to Ohio after a bad break up with the intention of moving back someday. Since then I met my husband and now have a 5yr old daughter. I no longer practice massage as my license would not transfer to Ohio. I have missed New Mexico ever since and have always felt like a fish out of water in Ohio. I love the mountains, the sunshine, the food, and the diversity. I really can barely handle the weather in Ohio anymore. My husband and I are thinking of making the move back. He would take a pay decrease but I could begin practicing again as an LMT to make up for it. The biggest issue we are facing is moving our daughter to a state with an education system second to bottom in the country. Currently my daughter is in a great school system and I worry her life in general in ABQ will be limited based on resources and education. I'm looking for some positive encouragement. Any success stories regarding relocating with children?
Childhood education in Albuquerque can be quite good even at the public schools; you just have to pick a neighborhood where the parents tend to raise good peers for your children. About 4 or 5 of the high school clusters in town meet this requirement. There are some parts of town I'd avoid raising kids.
There's also private schools, though I find that you tend not to get much more (if any more) for your money. For some people, beats a poorly performing local public school, I guess.
Charter schools are very popular, and worthy of consideration. Those are all over town as well.
Childhood education in Albuquerque can be quite good even at the public schools; you just have to pick a neighborhood where the parents tend to raise good peers for your children. About 4 or 5 of the high school clusters in town meet this requirement. There are some parts of town I'd avoid raising kids.
There's also private schools, though I find that you tend not to get much more (if any more) for your money. For some people, beats a poorly performing local public school, I guess.
Charter schools are very popular, and worthy of consideration. Those are all over town as well.
Well stated.
As of just now, there are a dozen homes listed for sale under $250,000 in the city's very best school cluster.
Ok to start off I lived in ABQ for 4yrs before my husband and my daughter. I went to school in NM and became a licensed Massage Therapist in NM. I ended up moving back to Ohio after a bad break up with the intention of moving back someday. Since then I met my husband and now have a 5yr old daughter. I no longer practice massage as my license would not transfer to Ohio. I have missed New Mexico ever since and have always felt like a fish out of water in Ohio. I love the mountains, the sunshine, the food, and the diversity. I really can barely handle the weather in Ohio anymore. My husband and I are thinking of making the move back. He would take a pay decrease but I could begin practicing again as an LMT to make up for it. The biggest issue we are facing is moving our daughter to a state with an education system second to bottom in the country. Currently my daughter is in a great school system and I worry her life in general in ABQ will be limited based on resources and education. I'm looking for some positive encouragement. Any success stories regarding relocating with children?
I wouldn't count on massage therapy as much of a supplemental income here given how many MTs there are already. Honestly, your post concerns me. It is great that you want to come back to NM. But if you're going to jeopardize the economics of your family, I would say consider solidifying your financial plan before coming here so you can be happy and your husband will also be happy that you're not struggling. As far as schools...it is what you make of it. Yes, the school system here isn't going to compare with places like the midwest or east in terms of safety or general quality. But I think parental involvement can overcome most of those issues unless you're at the worst of Albuquerque's schools. There are also some alternative public/charter schools. Since your daughter is young, it will probably be more a concern as she reaches middle school age to be very careful about the education choices. If your finances here won't be much different than Ohio, then go for it. You can overcome the 'bad school' thing here in Albuquerque, but you won't be happy if you're not financially secure. That could be worse than an Ohio winter
My husband and I are products of APS. My kids went to public schools in APS for 5 years. We moved out of state this year due to the poor educational quality of the schools in APS. And if you have a kiddo who has special needs like we do, it's terribly underfunded and subpar. (And we are talking about the BEST APS schools that everyone mentions.)
Did my husband and I do ok career wise? Yes. My husband even went to a prestigious university. But there is a reason NM is ranked near the bottom of the states for education. There is limited funding for many things, including the fine arts having to go every other year with art, then music in elementary school. Classroom sizes are large.
I'm blown away by the resources and academic rigor another state provides. We cannot believe the opportunities and challenges available to our kids now because all we knew was APS.
So your kiddo will most likely be "ok" going to school in ABQ, but if you have a great school now, be prepared to be underwhelmed coming to ABQ. If you are moving to NM because it speaks to your soul, awesome! Kids definately thrive with happy parents. Just don't pick ABQ thinking the schools are awesome. They are "ok".
Thank you all for the feed back! It seems I have a few hurdles to cross. My husband is thinking of asking his company if he can relocate (he is in chemical sales) and would take a pay cut based on the cost of travel for him to come back to Ohio once a month. It would basically be cost of plane tickets and meals since he has family to stay with. He is also currently looking for a job in NM but his salary is about 100k a year and I think that is extremely high for his position in NM and for NM in general. We currently live off of one income. I cater but it's usually one to two times a week making anywhere from $120-$400 per week depending on the job and tips. I would like to work around 25 hrs a week in NM practicing massage and there are plenty of places hiring from what I have come across on job search sights. What do you all think is a livable combined income in ABQ for a family of 3 living in say Rio Rancho? Keep in mind in the city we live it's about $275,000 for a 1200 sq ft home that is at least 50 yr old and most definitely would need remodeling. I have found homes in Rio Rancho that I absolutely love, need no remodeling, more sq footage and are under 10 yrs old for $200,000. That being said we currently rent for $1,400 a month but we're planning on buying and would definitely be spending $100,000 more for a house here then in Rio Rancho.
Back to the schooling. I could move once the financial part was in place as long as I know she has a good school to attend not just a decent school and that would obviously have to continue through high school. Basically if we moved to a suburb like Rio Rancho could my daughter recieve a good education in the public school systems? How are the teachers and students there. She currently plays soccer, dances and acts and would love to continue that.
I love NM and I experienced all the good and some bad when I lived there. Unfortunately I lived there as a single woman and never really got to see the schools or activities offered. I also did not mind the bad because I was single but of course I do not want my daughter experiencing crime, poverty and the drug problems ABQ has. I want her to experience all the great parts of ABQ while being able to shield her from the shady under belly that I know exists. If that's not possible then I would wait until she's of to college because that's what being a parent is all about right!! Any more input is appreciated greatly!!
I do not want my daughter experiencing crime, poverty and the drug problems ABQ has. I want her to experience all the great parts of ABQ while being able to shield her from the shady under belly that I know exists. If that's not possible then I would wait until she's of to college because that's what being a parent is all about right!! Any more input is appreciated greatly!!
I grew up around the crime, poverty, and drug culture in New York City and turned out fine. I think kids are too sheltered nowadays and are then unable to cope with the real world as adults. Or they are sheltered from knowing about drugs so never see the danger of addiction, and end up using drugs themselves. Don't worry and be a good role model for your daughter. Let her see the bad as well as the good and learn from both.
The biggest issue we are facing is moving our daughter to a state with an education system second to bottom in the country. Currently my daughter is in a great school system and I worry her life in general in ABQ will be limited based on resources and education. I'm looking for some positive encouragement. Any success stories regarding relocating with children?
Here is a list of Albuquerque area related school threads here at City-Data in the Albuquerque forum. If you click on the HyperText sentence, it should open in a new window:
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