Questions about New Mexico (Albuquerque, Santa Fe: real estate, HOA, crime rate)

[Grailmaiden]

Are there any really green suburb areas near Albuquerque? My husband's parents live there and we are considering a move out of California but we are not sure where yet. I am not a big fan of the desert. I like things GREEN. Lots of trees, cooler weather, lots of rain is fine. Every time I have been to New Mexico all I see is a lot of brown and beige. We would need to be within an hour of Albuquerque for work. Any suggestions?

Also, we are looking for a very safe, family-oriented area as well as just green. I know it sounds more like we should be looking in the Pacific Northwest (we are) but I know my husband would be delighted to be near his family. I am not to worried about schools (I hear that they are really really bad) because we are going to send our daughter to private school.

I have also heard that New Mexico has the second highest crime rate in the nation. Is this localized in one spot? Or is this spread throughout the state? Any help would be much appreciated!! Thanks

[designer]

Much of New Mexico is in the desert and there isn't much green or at
least the type of lush green you are talking about. Now if you live in
the northern part of the state and it the mountains it is a lot greener
but still pretty dry. That's part of the reason for so many forest fires
here in the west. You would find northern california, Oregon, and
Washington state much more like you are describing and in fact it
rains a lot in those states but they are beautiful and if you can take the
gray winters you might love it. For some reason New Mexico does seem
to have a lot of crime for such a sparsely populated state. I have only
lived here for 3 years but I sure here about the crime a lot more than other
places I have lived. Portland, Oregon is a neat city and I think the crime
was a lot lower there than Albuquerque and it is a lot more cosmo. They
even have a very nice light rail system and very good bus system. I will say
however if you were to live in the east mountain area which is just on the
otherside of the hill from Albuquerque it is quite nice and green and I'm sure
lower crime as well. It is a pretty area. You might want to check it out.

[mortimer]

I suggest moving to the Pacific Northwest as has been mentioned
before and picking a city with the best air connections so that you
can come and visit.

I suggest *NOT* moving to New Mexico if you are not a big fan
of the desert.

Much of the people in NM/AZ/etc *are* big fans of the desert and don't
like people constantly trying to re-make the desert to suit themselves.

One of the reasons that summers are less tolerable in PHX and ABQ
is that there are so many pools and lawns and non-native trees that
pump humidity into the air unnecessarily.

In the future there is likely to be more and more water restrictions
that will cause people to take their bluegrass lawns and weeping
willow trees and such and rip them up and replace them with native
vegetation. The sooner the better as far as I'm concerned. We
can start with outlawing HOA regulations that require grass lawns.

If you move to NM you will rapidly become miserable due to the lack
of green. Even in the "greener" parts of NM, you will find it harsh and
dry. As designer said; Portland is a wonderful place and very mild
and green. I like it a lot.

[Grailmaiden]

Thanks so much for your feedback
Well, I have been doing the majority of my research on Washington and Oregon. I used to live in Seattle and loved it. My only concern is that stupid Cascade Subduction Zone. I don't want to move somewhere and be in constant fear of a 9.0 quake or volcanoes erupting or tsunamis.

New Mexico seems to be really livable in that regard. The only natural events I hear about from my in-laws are thunderstorms. No quakes, volcanoes, tornadoes, hurricanes, etc. I can handle thunderstorms LOL

[WLUTZ]

Motimer,

Great post. My sentiments exactly.

[jecc]

With all due respect, you guys have not seen all of NM. There is tons of green in the mountain regions, which are plentiful. They are not sopping wet like the Northwest, but we get 20-30 inches of rain in the summer monsoon season, then snow in winter like Colorado (though not as much).

I moved here from Alaska — very wet and green — and do not feel out of place in the NM mountains at all. Yes, it's drier here, but it is not the miserable desert you might expect in other parts of this region.

Northern NM tends to be pricy, up around Taos, Santa Fe, and Angel Fire. Maybe Red River too, though I have not shopped for real estate there.

But check out the southern mountains, around Ruidoso. It's cool in summer and very green. Forest fires are always a threat, but that's the price of living in paradise. And Ruidoso is like 3 or 4 hours from ABQ.

Just an idea.

[jecc]

Originally Posted by Grailmaiden

New Mexico seems to be really livable in that regard. The only natural events I hear about from my in-laws are thunderstorms. No quakes, volcanoes, tornadoes, hurricanes, etc. I can handle thunderstorms LOL

This is basically true, though storms can do serious damage with hail and flooding. On paper, NM looks liveable as you mentioned, but it can and will kick your butt in ways you would not expect. Alaska was a cakewalk compared with the mountains of NM, and AK is an earthquake zone!

Now, if you stay inside a lot, you may not notice this. I'm in the woods most days, and I have had near-death experiences when I least expected it. I love this. I don't like sleepy, boring places. But if you're just here living a normal life of going to work and shopping, it is indeed very liveable and safe here.

As for the crime you asked about, I hear stuff in the news now and then, mostly in the northern part of the state. Down here in the south it's been a nonissue, at least for me. I'm sure it's out there, but I have no crime concerns. I'm more worried about lightning strikes, loose dogs, falling trees, frightened bears, and hungry mountain lions.

[PaddyMac]

Originally Posted by designer

I will say
however if you were to live in the east mountain area which is just on the
otherside of the hill from Albuquerque it is quite nice and green and I'm sure
lower crime as well. It is a pretty area. You might want to check it out.

I'm interested in having a great bird garden, and I found a birding web site that included many pictures of the East Mountains and Sandia Mountains:
http://rosyfinch.com/summerbirds.html

It looked more wooded than the Abq region, and house prices are good value.

I'd like to know more about Tijeras and other towns in the East Mountain area and Sandias. How much snow on average? How bad is the commute to the center of Abq? Sandia Park looks lovely, but I'm concerned how long it would take to drive up there from the main 40 freeway.

Also, how is the drive north to the 25 freeway on highway 14? Is it faster or slower than taking the freeway (40 > 25) if heading to Santa Fe from Tijeras?

thanks for any tips!

[mortimer]

Three posts in one here to save bandwidth.

Grailmaiden worries:

> My only concern is that stupid Cascade
> Subduction Zone. I don't want to move
> somewhere and be in constant fear of a
> 9.0 quake or volcanoes erupting or tsunamis.

NM has mountains and they had to come from
somewhere so I wouldn't be so unworried about
earthquakes in NM. To be fair, there has only
been a few quakes felt in NM recently -

Mag 4.1 - Dec 24, 1973 near Grants
Mag 5.0 - Aug 10, 2005 near Raton
Mag 4.1 - Dec 19, 2005 near Carlsbad

Don't buy a masonry house.

As for Tsunami's - use common sense and don't
live below 100 ft in elevation near the coast.
If visiting the beach and you see the sea move far
off shore - run the other way. (I learned this over
thirty years ago in grade school and am still mistified
how many people didn't know this 12/24/2004.)

For those that don't know, there was supposed to
be a 9+ earthquake on the OR coast that submerged
forests and sent a Tsunami across the sea that
killed 200+ people in Japan. The wave in Japan
dated the quake to Jan 1, 1700.
------------
jecc opined:

> With all due respect, you guys have not seen
> all of NM. There is tons of green in the
> mountain regions, which are plentiful.

You are right. They are beautiful and I love
going there. Really, just outside Albuquerque
above 9,000 ft (give or take) there are thousands
of acres of green.

That being said, you added:

> They are not sopping wet like the Northwest,
> but we get 20-30 inches of rain in the summer
> monsoon season,

My impression is that Grailmaiden would still find
the Northern forests of NM to be too arid for her
taste. One of the great things about the NM forest
is that it is still pretty sparse between the trees
because is it not a "temperate rainforest" which is
what you get in the NW.

There are ferns in NM forests, but nothing like
those found in the Cascades and coastal ranges.
---------------
PaddyMac asked:

> Also, how is the drive north to the 25 freeway
> on highway 14? Is it faster or slower than
> taking the freeway (40 > 25) if heading to
> Santa Fe from Tijeras?

Lots of people commute from the East Mountains
to the valley where I work. They never complain,
but it seems to me like too much of my life
wasted in an automobile.

Going to Santa Fe from Tijeras would be anywhere
from a little bit to much faster going I-40/25 is
79.1 mi vs the 60.1 mi on Rt 14. If you figure
an average speed of 48 mph vs 68 mph it would take
you 1:10 via interstate vs 1:15 on the back road.

Depending on how agressively you want to drive
it, you can alter these times quite a bit.

For me, I wouldn't consider the interstates since
the back road is much more peaceful and the road
between ABQ and Santa Fe is full of people that
are either going 50-something in a 75 zone or who
want to go 90-something.

At night, the equation changes due to drunks
crossing the median strip and wildlife.

[Cathy4017]

Originally Posted by mortimer

I suggest moving to the Pacific Northwest as has been mentioned
before and picking a city with the best air connections so that you
can come and visit.

I suggest *NOT* moving to New Mexico if you are not a big fan
of the desert.

Much of the people in NM/AZ/etc *are* big fans of the desert and don't
like people constantly trying to re-make the desert to suit themselves.

That is EXACTLY right. Even out here in West Texas, new construction now often has desert landscaping installed in the front....and if I were going to stay here, I'd rip out the front lawn and be done with it. After years of drought, it's the only thing that makes sense in arid climates.

I can't wait to have front and side desert/rock/xeriscaping in NM....and one 15 x 30 strip of lawn in back to take care of.....