Rental House in 87105 (Albuquerque: middle-class, credit, new house)

[OutOfLosAngeles]

I'm a single man planning to move from Los Angeles to ABQ soon, and I've been reading messages here for a couple of weeks.

87105 gets mentioned a lot as a bad zip code, but some people have pointed out that it's a huge zip code that covers a lot of different areas.

There's an entry for a rental house on one of the big rental sites for a house in 87105. It sits on half an acre, has a wooded/shaded back yard, and is over 2000 square feet. So I'm wondering how it manages to be in my price range ($1000/month or less).

It's in the area enclosed by Bridge Blvd., Atrisco Dr., Central Ave., and the Rio Grande. Is that in the bad part of 87105, or the good part? What's the neighborhood like?

I'm going to come in to take a look at a few places (including this one) over the weekend, but I thought I'd get more useful answers from the experts here.

[finmqa1]

That can be a tough neighborhood. It's largely hispanic with a lot of old time farmers, but it has also had its share of gang troubles including shootings. Scenery is great, it's close to the Zoo, Bio Park, and 5 or 10 minutes from Downtown. Depending on what your retail needs are you may find yourself driving a good distance. It really could be one of the best parts of town but as it is now, I'd try to avoid it.

Just my two cents

[abqsunport]

I would advise you to perhaps look into a different area of town. Arenal and Isleta, Bridge and Such is a rough part of town (all around Rio Grande High School). It would definitely be towards the bottom of my totem poll.

[OutOfLosAngeles]

Thanks for your warnings about 97105. Sigh. It was such a nice yard.

As for other houses I'm looking at... It seems from reading on the ABQ forum that you'd consider 87111 and 87114 "very good," 87120 "good," and 87121 "not so good." Am I characterizing the discussion-- and more importantly, the real situation --accurately?

[Towanda]

Hi OutOfLosAngeles:

Welcome to the New Mexico City-Data Forum. It's great to have you here, and I hope you will get your questions answered.

ABQ is a great city; you will find the zip that is perfect for you!

[mortimer]

abqsunport warns:

> I would advise you to perhaps look into a different area of town.

finmqa1 also advised:

> I'd try to avoid it.

OutOfLosAngeles lamented:

> Thanks for your warnings about 97105. Sigh. It was such a nice yard.

I have no direct experience with that area. I haven't even walked it which is unusual for an area in Albuquerque.

However, looking at the aerial (satellite) view on a maps page, I am looking at a new development on the river taking up, maybe 20 acres and building maybe 70-80 new houses.

If I were you, I would look at the place and walk the neighborhood both in the morning and the evening on a Saturday and see how it feels. If you don't get much in the way of hostile looks, but you get lots of "hello's" and such, I might be inclined to live there.

Looking at the satellite, there are lots of yards with lots of crap laying all about in them, so you just don't know.

You have to look personally in this case.

You also have to weigh where you are going to be working.
I wouldn't commit to a place without first knowing that bit.

[OutOfLosAngeles]

Originally Posted by mortimer

If I were you, I would look at the place and walk the neighborhood both in the morning and the evening on a Saturday and see how it feels. If you don't get much in the way of hostile looks, but you get lots of "hello's" and such, I might be inclined to live there.

Looking at the satellite, there are lots of yards with lots of crap laying all about in them, so you just don't know.

You have to look personally in this case.

You also have to weigh where you are going to be working.
I wouldn't commit to a place without first knowing that bit.

Thanks for the advice.

I should have mentioned two things: I work from home, and I'm going to be a part-time graduate student at UNM. The address in 87105 looks like an easy jaunt to Bridge, to University, to UNM (at least on the map; I have no idea about traffic).

The house in 87111 is further away, and the one in 87114 further still. The one in 87120, which I've already looked at, was about 15-20 minutes away in the middle of the day (which is probably when I'll be going to UNM), so I don't imagine any of them are too far. (Are they?)

[mortimer]

> ... 87105 looks like an easy jaunt to Bridge, to University, to UNM ...

It's not bad. Central is almost always busy, but it moves well.

It's a cheaper jaunt on the Central Express bus. $1 each way. You'll pay that much to park every day and the bus will drop you off closer to wherever you are going.

Keep your car nice and comfortable in the garage.

[ABQConvict]

Originally Posted by mortimer

It's a cheaper jaunt on the Central Express bus. $1 each way.

And if you are registered for at least 6 credit hours at UNM (2 classes), the bus is FREE.

ABQConvict

[OutOfLosAngeles]

Well, I'm back. I drove by the house in 87105. The neighborhood was really run down. Large lots, but crumbling houses and rusted-out vehicles. The house for rent looked pretty good, and had gated entry, but still, cripes.

Thanks to Imperial Group Property Management, on whose useless assurances that they could show me houses on Monday I based my trip, I only got to see the house in 87111 from the outside. And it's a nice middle-class neighborhood.

Again thanks to Imperial, I only got to see two more upscale-looking houses on Mountainside (in 87111) from the outside. A nice little community of identical houses around little culs-de-sac. I'll bet there are people who've lived there for months who still have to look at the numbers to tell where they are in that complex.

I really enjoy Tyson Properties, because they just Xerox your driver's license, take a $25 deposit, and give you the keys for up to five houses. You don't have the feeling of someone tapping their foot while you look around. This time, I looked at a place east of Tramway (in 87122). And I found out it's in my price range because it badly needs new carpeting and paint. And more than one TV outlet. Like maybe one in the living room.

With someone from GDR, I saw a pretty nice house in 87114 and a somewhat run-down one in 87120. (The latter had wall-to-wall carpeting in all three bathrooms. Obviously, a man didn't come up with that bright idea.) But she turned out to be a key short of being able to show me the inside of another house in 87120, on the appallingly named Yipee Calle Ct.

Many, many houses went off the market just between my printing them out from a rental site, and calling the companies. There was one I quite liked from the outside, east of Tramway and north of Lomas, which would have been a pretty easy 15-minute dash to UNM. Oh, well.

Anyway, thanks for all your advice!