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Originally Posted by theavrock
On a great note, we have decided on Albuquerque. It was a really tough decision between Austin and Albuquerque but in the end ABQ won out. We came to the decision a little less than two weeks ago and I already had a second phone interview for a position down there. Also my lady has a great lead on doing some dancing in Santa Fe so it seems that all signs are confirming that this was the right decision for us.
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Congrats!! Wow, I am jealous! However, if it can't be me, I am happy another Milwaukeean gets the exciting move! Austin seems to be a nice town in many respects...I have never been there, however, am going for a professional conference this fall for the first time and look forward to it. I do know though that I would far prefer the year-round weather / climate in Albuquerque, and the vistas / views with the mountains and valleys of ABQ too. Plus, the size of ABQ seems to be more congruent with my strong desires, as well as cost of living.
Just give ABQ a real chance and get excited about its possibilities. It is very unique, and very different than Milwaukee and many other related towns. It is so great...for the right people.
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Originally Posted by theavrock
Enjoy EP said previously that if one were considering Nob Hill then one could also conceivably consider Downtown as well. What are the pockets of downtown that are residential with things to do?
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Well, Downtown isn't massive in ABQ, so I wouldn't look for "pockets" per se. Hopefully someone else here could better direct you on specific areas or developments to look into Downtown if you were considering living there. One area that always struck me as being a very nice part of Downtown to live near would be in the area of the Flying Star Cafe Downtown.
I wish I could be more specific, however, old boring EnjoyEP and his wife / family ended up settling in the Northeast Heights and only frequented Downtown as a guest, traveler, businessman, consumer, etc., etc., etc., not as a resident.
To me, outside of panhandlers (which you'll always get in city Downtowns, especially in southern towns), ABQ's Downtown was always quite residential-friendly, quite safe, very manageable and walkable, etc. However, again, without having lived there, I wouldn't want to give specifics and steer you wrong where others might be a bit more valuable.
There was a front page article in the Albuquerque Journal in around 2006 that gave a statistical breakdown of the percentage of residential areas in Downtown ABQ in comparison to residential portions in the Downtowns of other Western / Southwestern towns (I know they had Denver comparatively, and I am sure other towns in there would've also included likely El Paso, San Diego, Phoenix / Tucson, likely Austin, etc.). And ABQ's percentage of Downtown residents was shockingly high in comparison - per capita - to the percentage of Downtown residential areas in most of the other towns.
The point of the article was simply that ABQ's Downtown is far, far more residential than many other more-commercial-friendly Downtowns of other cities.
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Originally Posted by theavrock
I was intrigued by the Old Albuquerque High Lofts but after reading some horror stories of the property management company and lots of crime in this area it led me to reconsider. Also leads me to ask about the more or less desirable parts of downtown as all major metro cities seem to have.
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Hmmmm...again, I hope maybe someone else here might be able to better help you. I am trying to visualize offhand the ABQ High Lofts that you reference, and OFFHAND, to me, they would've seemed pretty darn reasonable and doable too. However, I don't want to say, "ah, those would be very safe" or what have you (even though offhand I think they'd be), and then be completely wrong.
Thus, hopefully someone with better knowledge of living Downtown could better help you. Certainly, I couldn't offer anything on the property management company unfortunately.
As for the good / bad portions of Downtown, ABQ's Downtown just isn't massive - it is a city of currently roughly 500K residents, so it isn't exactly Chicago or even quite Milwaukee. So it isn't like there is a "Third Ward portion" and then a "6th and Vilet portion" like is so disproportional in Milwaukee.
Overall, most anywhere in actual Downtown I would feel very comfortable and fine to live, but I don't want to absolutely swear to it since I haven't actually lived there.
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Originally Posted by theavrock
We are looking in the NE Heights primarily because if the lady ends up dancing in Santa Fe it would make for an easier commute I would think. Can anyone confirm this?
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I would concur with this. Certainly, the farther north you'd reside in ABQ (be it the Northeast Heights, the Northwest, or even a Rio Rancho - northern suburb), the closer you'd be to Santa Fe and the easier the commute. I know many people such as Santa Fe cops reside in Rio Rancho because it is too pricey to reside in Santa Fe and they wish to take use of ABQ's/RR's more mild weather but still want to be a bit more reasonable in their commuting distance.
To me, this depends upon how often she'd head up there. If only sporadically, I would probably (just me) live wherever in the heck I felt like it in ABQ and not worry about the extra 10 or 15 minutes driving up to ABQ. However, if she'd be going there more frequently / regularly, then yes, the time (and gas money) factor of commuting up to SF may push you farther north.
Don't forget that the NM Railrunner rail line now runs from ABQ up to Santa Fe, so if you did live in Nob Hill / Downtown, that would be an option for her if she didn't wish to drive.
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Originally Posted by theavrock
It also seems to be a "nicer" area.
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Depends upon what your definition of "nicer" is.
Picture much of the large North East Heights quadrant akin to some segments of, say, Wauwatosa, some segments of Bay View or Washington Heights, and some segments of Franklin or Brookfield, and even some segments (right up in the mountains) of a River Hills or a Whitefish Bay - obviously with a strong New Mexican twist. The Northeast has some very affluent areas, many upper middle class to middle class areas, and a few older, smaller home areas that are more middle class. It is quite diverse. However, yes, I would say that the Northeast is one of the more desirable areas of ABQ, largely thanks to its close proximity to the Sandia Mountains and the aged nature of the portion of the town compared to western portions.
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Originally Posted by theavrock
Any particular pockets out there in the NE that are walkable, fun and funky for a pair of mid 20 year olds that you guys can think of? Any areas to avoid?
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Walkable? Depends upon what your definition of walkable is. I wouldn't say much / most of it is walkable in the way that Nob Hill would classically be, or, the East Side of Milwaukee.
Again, if you'd classify Wauwatosa as walkable (which most people wouldn't in its classic sense even though it is sidewalk'd all over), then sure, its walkable. However, for the most part, it is more sidewalk'd / neighborhoods, but cars or bikes are utilized more significantly.
As for fun, for me (a young-30s ish business guy with a wife and kids), absolutely it is fun. Great restaurants all over the place, great views of the mountains, lots of shopping, some great neighborhood bars, etc.
However, to you whippersnappers looking for maybe more of a Milwaukee's East Side or Riverwest scene, feel, I don't know you'd find most of Northeast classically "fun"....I mean, would you classify the Washington Heights in Milwaukee or Whitefish Bay or west side Wauwatosa as fun? Many like me would, however, you might have a different bent.
To me, you seem like more of a Nob Hill kind of guy, but it depends on what you really are looking for and like. I mean, it isn't like if you buy a place in the Northeast, you couldn't be Downtown or Nob Hill for recreation in 15 minutes or so.
Offhand, to me, the most classically "walkable" portion of the Northeast would be the Uptown area, however, that is more of an office/condo/retail/restaurant corridor for walkability - not "funky" eg: Brady Street.
As for areas to avoid in the Northeast, there aren't a ton, however, I would try to - in *general terms* stay a little bit away from Carslisle Ave. / San Mateo Blvd. (staying a bit east of them), I would also stay at least a block or two off of Montgomery Blvd. (west of Eubank...east of Eubank, Montgomery would be fine).
I also might not be hopping at Candelaria or Lomas...trying to stay a bit north of those.
Overall, *in general terms*, excellent street markers to kind of look for (again, these are broad generalizations), Eubank Blvd., Paseo Del Norte, Alameda, Academy, Juan Tabo, Spain, Wyoming (Wyoming on east), Motgomery (EAST OF EUBANK), Osuna, Tramway Blvd. Commanche not too bad either.
Hopefully that should help a bit.
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Originally Posted by theavrock
How do ABQ-ians go about finding new places to rent? Craigslist? Driving around neighborhoods? The classifieds? I'd love to hear your thoughts.
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There are tons of websites that list rentals / apts in Albuquerque (just do a google search) that include reviews, prices, etc. To me, that would be the way to go. I wouldn't be big on craigslist, as you just don't know what would be accurate or not as much.
My wife and I rented before buy in ABQ (of course this was back in the dark ages of 2003) and found an apartment just by online searching. We ended up getting lucky and absolutely loving our apartments and especially their location (The Overlook Apartments on Eubank Blvd. in NE ABQ).
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Originally Posted by theavrock
Finally, on the subject of property management companies. Are there any out there that people can suggest that do things the right way and take care of their tenants? Any specific apartment buildings you have heard good things about? Any good resources to use to research this for ourselves?
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I only rented in one complex before buying a house, so I am not a rental guru.
I do know that my wife and I loved the Overlook Apartments, and especially their geographic location. That place should be cutting me a commission for as many times as I have referred them. However, of course, again, they were in the Northeast.
I can't attest too much about other rentals. I did hear good things about the Pinnacle Apartment complex near High Desert, however, I don't know if they even exist under that name anymore.
For good sources, I would just do google searches on the many websites out there that do listings / comparisons, etc.
Good luck!! Let me know if you have other questions I can help with.
Geez, all of you Milwaukeans getting to hit it down to the Duke City!!! How cool. I hope to join you all someday sooner rather than later.
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