Advice please!!! (Las Cruces, Hobbs, Lovington: fit in, renting, insurance)

[Morph]

I would appreciate any advice on our situation.
I will try to make this as short as possible!

We have a strong possibility of getting a transfer to either Grand Junction, Co or El Paso, TX. We have already decided that if we get the TX job we will most likely live in Las Cruces, NM.

We have three kids still at home. Two in high school and one in middle school.

Our housing budget would be 325k tops. Taxes would have to be lower than where we are now (Tampa bay area, FL). Home insurance has to be better in either of those places!!

Obviously we want a good school district with little crime. We used to live in the panhandle area of FL and it is a different world compared to down here.

I have never been to either CO or NM so can only go by what I read online.

I am a Brit and hubby is from NY, although he spent 14 years in England so is almost a Brit LOL.

Both places look nice, and we are so tired of the south FL weather!

My only worry about NM is that I don't speak Spanish and neither does my hubby, although we are willing to learn.

Any advice please?

Thanks!

[WildWestDude]

You don't have to know spanish in Las Cruces
Remember that there is no state income tax in Texas.
With 300K + in El Paso you can buy a small mansion, if you consider El Paso look at the west side for best schools and neighborhoods
That said , Las Cruces is also a nice town, see "looking to relocate...." and other threads

http://www.city-data.com/forum/new-m...not-issue.html

Las Cruces is my favorite city in NM


A small city with lots of character. A college town and one of top five places to retire and live. Best weather in NM. Very scenic and lots of outdoor things nearby or an hour away. El Paso in only 40min away if you want to get away in a bigger city and also has a major airport. Don't overlook Las Cruces and nearby La Mesilla, you WILL love it

Las Cruces, New Mexico Convention & Visitors Bureau]

El Paso Convention and Visitors Bureau / Day Trips

[bqtchef]

We just relocated to Texas from Las Cruces. We tried to sell our home for 6 months but no bites (414900 listing) we ended up renting the home for a year then we'll see what the market is like, so don't plan on moving right away. It takes about 5 years to make a profit in the housing market (the typical home owner)
don't know Spanish? that could be a problem if you plan on working most employers want Spanish as a second language.
school district, the best school district would be north valley, and the homes in north valley have a traditional backyards (safe for kids) if you look in area's like behind A mountain the yards are all Xeriscaping, and all roads are gravel except the main road.
If you do end up buying in NM watch out for the arroyo, don't live by one. I don't care what others say if they say anything at all there dangerous. Just search for hatch valley 2006 and you'll see what i mean.

commute: 1 hour minimum and thats from Las Cruces to El Paso airport, and while you are on Highway 10 in El Paso Tx wave to the 3rd world county you can't miss it.

[KimK]

I left El Paso to go to Dona Ana County (includes Las Cruces). I drive to El Paso every day 17 miles to the north west border at 7:00 a.m. It takes 17 minutes. The traffic you will encounter is once you hit that area and proceed to your destination in El Paso. So even if you were to start driving in El Paso, traffic is an issue at certain times of the day. My home in the upper west side of El Paso just sold for slightly under 300,000.00. My property taxes were 5800.00 per year. You are reading that correctly. I feel like a broken record here but the property tax situation is out of control. It increased 50% in five years. I would much rather face a state income tax as I can impact that tax with deductions, etc. My insurance is about the same (about 900.00 per year). My taxes here on a 375,000.00 house are going to be about 2700.00 per year. As for the schools, I don't think they are good in either El Paso or Las Cruces for various reasons. Spanish, again, I never have had a problem with that but I don't work in a field like construction or landscaping or painting where I would be in a position of communicating with a workforce that is largely Spanish speaking. School employees seem to speak both languages, doctors, lawyers, government, retail stores....not an issue as far as I can see. I love this area, the hot weather, the cold weather, the wind, all of it. When I weighed the factors, New Mexico seemed to come out on top for me.

[WildWestDude]

Spanish might be an issue with lower lever working environment.
If one has a good education and a good job, spanish is less of an issue.
Don't give in. Speak you mother tongue, refuse to speak spanish.

[ngarcie]

I am researching Hobbs, New Mexico b/c I had a great job offer. It seems not very many people suggest living in Hobbs. How is Lovington ? Does anyone live in Seminole, Texas and drive to Hobbs ?

[TKO]

Thing to keep in mind when comparing property values in TX vs NM is that while TX doesn't have state income tax, they make up for it in property taxes. They're about four times what they are here in Cruces. While values might be lower in EP your annual tax bill will be about three to four percent of value. So on a $300K you property tax bill will be some where in the neighborhood of 9K. Same value house in Cruces your bill will be about 3K. In comparison, I make mid 50's and my NM income tax is about $1500 a year. Cheaper in NM overall IMO. Also, you don't have to worry about speaking spanish, it's a plus but not at all required. I'm biased, but I think Cruces is far nicer/cleaner and friendlier city than EP.

[WildWestDude]

Originally Posted by TKO

Thing to keep in mind when comparing property values in TX vs NM is that while TX doesn't have state income tax, they make up for it in property taxes. They're about four times what they are here in Cruces. While values might be lower in EP your annual tax bill will be about three to four percent of value. So on a $300K you property tax bill will be some where in the neighborhood of 9K. Same value house in Cruces your bill will be about 3K. In comparison, I make mid 50's and my NM income tax is about $1500 a year. Cheaper in NM overall IMO. Also, you don't have to worry about speaking spanish, it's a plus but not at all required. I'm biased, but I think Cruces is far nicer/cleaner and friendlier city than EP.

I agree.
I guess the income tax case depends on ones individual needs and situation
For some it might be worth to live in El Paso, for others in NM

[nm_photojournalist]

I've lived in both Las Cruces, and El Paso, and because of my profession, I've visited the Grand Junction area many times.
I would just want to reiterate that the "average" driving distance from Las Cruces to El Paso is 45 miles, that would make for a 90-mile roundtrip every work day. If that doesn't bother you, then that's fine.
Before dumping El Paso though, I'd certainly recommend you consider the far east side of the city...where most of it's growth has been in recent years. There are nice neighborhoods, and pretty good, new schools out there. The housing market has slowed to a crawl in the Southwest also, but at least it's not dead as in some parts of the U.S.
Grand Junction is a nice sized community of "about" 35,000. It is situated in an area of mesas, just on the edge of the higher mountainous country. To the south however are the San Juan Mountains, often called the "Little Switzerland of America" between Montrose, and Durango. Just gorgeous. Grand Junction would be much colder in the winter than El Paso/Las Cruces also. Good luck!

[TKO]

Originally Posted by WildWestDude

I agree.
I guess the income tax case depends on ones individual needs and situation
For some it might be worth to live in El Paso, for others in NM

Your right! For those above my lower middle class status that formula would change in a hurry. LOL! I also think the same money probably buys you a little more in EP which, to be fair, would impact the equation as well.