I just recently gave a few other posters kind of a 'run down' of Albuquerque area quadrants, zips, etc., so rather than retyping essentially the whole thing for you, I am just going to more or less paste in my response that hit on what you are alluding to (with a few edits on when I posted this a week or so ago) -
I agree with mortimer in sticking north in the metro (due to the commutes to Santa Fe, plus your desire for newer, more suburban housing stock):
Recommended areas for you:
NORTHEAST HEIGHTS
87109 - Portions...generally more northern and/OR eastern (generally north of Montgomery and/or, east of Louisiana)
87111 -
87112 - Portions...generally more northern and eastern
87122 - (Pricey)
NORTH VALLEY
87107 - Northern areas most desirable, especially near Rio Grande Blvd.
87113
NORTHWEST
87114
87120 - Northern 1/3 or so of this zip
RIO RANCHO (suburb on far North West - Gilbert-esque)
87124
BERNALILLO (suburb on north edge of Rio Rancho)
87004 (the newer-developed portions that look / feel nearly identical to Rio Rancho)
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In terms of quadrants:
Northeast Heights:
Probably my personal favorite area in all of Albuquerque. Older and more established in general than the Northwest, and thus more retail, restaurants, established infrastructure, etc. You will get many decades-old well established residential areas, as well as still some newer areas on the northern and eastern edges.
IN GENERAL, this is a pricier area in the quadrants I mentioned. However, it all depends on the size / age of home, type of neighborhood, etc. I owned a modest sized (1200 square foot) 35 year old (but remodeled) home - 4 bed rooms (fairly small BRs!), in an older neighborhood square in the heart of the NE Heights and I was WELL within your price range. You can find houses like this. And the house I owned actually had a large grass yard in the back (rock / xeriscape in the front) which is more possible in the older developments than in newer ones (which use lawn much less).
But indeed, compared to what you'd get on the Northwest, you'll be paying more $ per square foot.
For all of these things though, who knows? The way the real estate market is still currently, steals / deals can always be found.
The Northeast is to me semi-"suburban" in feel, yet fairly urban still. A wide blend of people - long-time New Mexicans (including native ABQeans), cops, retired military, empty nesters, renters, young families with kids, affluent sorts, working professionals, elderly, families with high school aged kids, some working class / blue collar families, etc.
The
Northwest tends to feel a bit more "new suburbia" with tons of fairly new (or recent) development - both in terms of retail, as well as residential homes and neighborhoods. If you are looking for "bang for you buck" per square foot in a newer home, this is the place to look. For many, it lacks the "authenticity" or "real Albuquerque vibe" that other areas of the town have - and I don't necessarily disagree (I prefer the NE in a perfect world) - however, I likely would buy here due to all of the younger families that reside here. It has its pluses and minuses - big pluses are the home sizes / ages for their dollar. Minuses involve less established infrastructure (eg: more traffic) and maybe less of an authentic "feel".
Rio Rancho is a popular, rapidly growing suburb on ABQ's northwest side, and if you'd consider ABQ's NW side, you probably should throw Rio Rancho in that mix, too, as RR is in feel largely an extension of ABQ's NW side.
I would tend to agree with mortimer in that this may be one of your best bets, due to closer nature to Santa Fe as well as being similar to Gilbert, AZ; you could also throw in the newer, new-development areas of Bernalillo as well, as it is essentially in those portions just an extension of ABQ.
The
North Valley is one of the nicest parts of ABQ...by the Rio Grande. Hotter on summer days and cooler on winter nights due to being in the valley. More "green" than most of ABQ due to its proximity by the river. The nice areas of the Valley are some of the pricier areas, but if you can fit the area in your budget, say, Osuna Rd. or Rio Grande Blvd. in the Valley, it has its real pluses - one of which is being so central in the city to everything. It has a similar urban/suburban kind of mixed vibe that the Northeast Heights has.
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As for:
I say this good-naturedly, however, if you re-read your wishes, you are asking for an acre of land plus a pool and a basement under $200K!! I would imagine that there would be a heckuva lot of competition in the Duke City for such a deal!
Seriously, yeah, the basement in ABQ is like much of Phoenix - it happens, but very, very rarely. Pools are much more common than basements, but again, if you are looking under $200K for relatively newer development on the north end, I would think the pool probably would have to go. Who knows though? Maybe you could catch a real deal due to the market.
As for the acre, again, very hard to do while staying under $200K. I would imagine a city sized lot would be more likely in that range for that kind of house.
That would be very rural. It would certainly be kind of a bit up towards Santa Fe, but isolated and rural indeed. Don't know much about housing / market conditions currently in Algodones. I would probably not choose it, however, who knows? Maybe it would be more your cup o' tea!
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I hope this helps you. Good luck!
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Relocating to NM
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