Gay Albuquerque (Rio Rancho, Placitas: renting, loft, condo)

[zeb]

We're headed to ABQ this weekend to loft/apt hunt. Looking in Nob Hill/UNM area. SOunds like it may be place to be. Leaning heavily toward ABQ High School Lofts. Anyone know any specifics about that place or, better yet, have experience living there?

Special thanks to ABQsunseeker. Your tips are great! We especially want to explore NE Heights and find Huning Hts.. And try some of the restaurants you mentioned. May even try to find ABQ Social Club. Maybe we'll see you there.

And PS: We're from the Gulf Coast originally. ABQ will be the northernmost place we've ever lived. So, yes, the winter does sound extremely frigid to us.

[yukon]

zeb, I moved here from over 20 years on the Gulf Coast (Houston to Tampa and points between). You'll LOVE the weather here. The "frigid cold" doesn't even feel that cold most of the time.

[trailtramp]

Last few months here in San Diego before we rent out our house and buy in Albuquerque. Partner and I, mid 40's males have been coming to NM for years to visit friends in Abq and Santa Fe. Partner lived in SF for a few years in the early 90's. So we are torn about where to buy. Bar scene is not important to us, been there done that, only go occasionally, and we make friends gay or straignt wherever we go, so we are not tied to Nob Hill/UNM areas. Actually prefer Sandia Hts or Placitas. Price not an issue. Question though, even though Placitas is only a 15 mile drive, do people in Abq think its too far to drive and visit friends. Like here in SD, unless you live in gay but rathole trendy Hillcrest, even a few miles feels like an eternity to some people. Love the open spaces, brilliance of stars in the evening, proximity to ABQ and SF....but don't want to feel isolated. Anyone know people living there, how they like it, and any thoughts?

[ABQSunseeker]

Funny you should ask.... My partner and I live in Sandia Hts and will be moving to Placitas this winter. We have friends in both areas and we love both areas. Like you we love the wonderful, wide open vistas, the starry nights, and the quiet.

It's true, though, that there is a common mindset that Placitas is a bit too far out and is not very convenient, so friends joke they will have to come for the night when they visit in Placitas. Coming from a far larger metro area (NY) we don't find the extra few minutes to Placitas any bother at all. To me it's amazing that such a great area is still so close to most things in Albuquerque.

At least half of Placitas is fairly close to I25. You can get to Santa Fe in 40 minutes, or downtown ABQ and the airport in 25 minutes. There are plenty of restaurants, shopping, movies within an easy shot of Placitas. But there are parts of Placitas which are really tucked in and quite far from I25 and shopping, etc. You can spend as much as 20 minutes from these parts getting to I25. So that's worth considering when you look for property. Nothing in Sandia Hts is quite so far from things.

I'm no real estate agent, but it seems at the moment that real estate is much quieter in Placitas, and my feeling is that you can get a better buy and more bang for your buck right now in Placitas rather than Sandia Hts. Both areas are expensive though, but they are wonderful areas, and you really can't go wrong in either area in most ways, especially if you don't mind commuting a bit.

Another consideration might be the weather. In both Sandia Hts and the upper parts of Placitas (where the old village is) there is more snow and rain and lower daytime highs in the winter. But if you know the area already then you know that there is still lots of sunshine and the differences are fairly minimal.

[ABQSunseeker]

Trailtramp, by the way, I couldn't really equate Nob Hill with Hillcrest in SD. Nob Hill is a lot smaller, somewhat raffish and quirky still (changing upscale somewhat). More like Melrose in LA maybe? More hetero than homo, but mixed. NOT the Castro, Chelsea, Hillcrest, West Hollywood, South Beach, etc.

And it does have a cluster of some of the better restaurants in ABQ. It's a pretty interesting and likeable area.

If I can be of any more help, just let me know. We're fairly new here and can relate experiences.....

[trailtramp]

ABQSunseeker,
I agree, Nob Hill is not Hillcrest, I actually like Nob Hill, and do like the area east on central down by the theaters, etc. Just don't want to live there. I have friends that live in Four Hills, some at Oxbow on the West side, others around Tanoan, more near Holly Ave just west of Tramway. All like their areas so encouraging us to check their areas out. And yes my friends have joked that evening dinner parties in Placitas require sleepovers to avoid the drink and drive, but thats fine with us.

So what is taking you from the Heights to Placitas?

[abqsunport]

Ok, I am going to have to recommed Sandia heights over placitas simply because SOME (not all) people really do view it as too far, so you will never get the offer of having some of your friends pick you up or just drop by.

[veggggies]

I'm not gay and honestly don't have a clue about gay neighborhoods. However, my husband and I visited Nob Hill today to go to a camera shop. There was a Gay Pride parade that altered our route. Honestly, I had a blast watching the parade. It won't make me gay, but I can see why they hang out in Nob Hill. As a married and heterosexual couple, we actually got some rather odd looks. It didn't bother me at all. It made me realize what a close community the gays are. I can respect that! It's not my cup of tea, but hey whatever....

[Shmikker]

Originally Posted by veggggies

I'm not gay and honestly don't have a clue about gay neighborhoods. However, my husband and I visited Nob Hill today to go to a camera shop. There was a Gay Pride parade that altered our route. Honestly, I had a blast watching the parade. It won't make me gay, but I can see why they hang out in Nob Hill. As a married and heterosexual couple, we actually got some rather odd looks. It didn't bother me at all. It made me realize what a close community the gays are. I can respect that! It's not my cup of tea, but hey whatever....

im sorry about the weird looks, my aunt and uncle have been going to the parade for years, i go with them and my cousins, i always see other family's and their children. i think the parade broke a record this year for attendance.
IM GLADD YOU WENT and enjoyed it

[ABQSunseeker]

Trailtramp,
When we first looked for property we were struck by Sandia Hts and Placitas right away---in good part because of the naturalized desert settings. After heavily urbanized NY, they were a beautiful contrast. That's why downtown and Nob Hill don't appeal as areas to live in for us.
I understand property taxes are less in these two areas also.

We're moving to Placitas because we found a more suitable house, not so much because we liked Placitas better. If I could have found an equivalent house in Sandia Hts, I would have tilted towards the Hts. for convenience sake. My partner clearly prefers Placitas though, despite its being further from work.

ABQ has lots of other appealing areas as well. We also have friends in Four Hills, but, curiously, I find it more isolated itself, and I'm not drawn to the look of the area--it sort of reminds me of 70s California retro, and not NM in feeling. That's my subjective take on it.

What brings you from San Diego to ABQ?