Relocating.......Maybe???? (Las Cruces, Santa Fe, Farmington: appointed, low crime, homes)

[Karnie]

Hello, I am new to this board, glad I found it!

I have previously been scanning and posting on the AZ board but wanted to check out NM to

I have been reading some of the post here and well to tell you the truth I was excited but now I am not so sure. My husband and I were looking into AZ at first but it seems like that state is just growing way to fast. So we decided to look into NM. The different homepages make most places look like wonderful places to live but after reading post here I'm not sure what to believe.

If anyone could help us out I would greatly appreciate it! This is going to be a big move for us and we would be coming with our 3 children.

We loved the idea of TorC and the Elephant Butte area as we grew up on the water and to be able to move to a dessert state and still have water close by seemed almost to perfect.

I believe this is the Sierra County? would this be a nice area? is there anything good or bad we should know about? is there any particular nasty weather in this area?

Thank you so much for any help you can give us. We live in the North East now and we really are ready to leave the cold behind! but when researching different towns you always seem to to get the good hype....never hear much about the bad

thanks
Karnie

[Chaparral]

While I can't give you any first hand info on the TorC area, there are several threads here that have discussed TorC at length. Check out these threads for starters:

"Searching for truth about T or C", "Where it doesn't snow much and it isn't just desert", "Artist towns?"

Generally speaking, TorC strikes me as more of a potential retirement destination rather than a place to settle with a family.

As for the appeal of Elephant Butte, I just want to give you a heads-up. While EB is the state's largest body of water and very popular with boaters and the like, its water levels are down to historically very low levels. The last I heard it was at about 28% of capacity (the lowest level since 1961) due to the extended drought we've experienced for the last 5-6 years. The state received incredible amounts of rain over the last summer, but the water levels at EB are dictated by the runoff from snow accumulation. And we haven't had a "good hard" winter in quite some time. Additionally, the shores here are quite barren, not a lot of cover from the sun unless you bring it yourself. Not sure if this impacts your decision or not, but thought you might like to know.

Also, not to necessarily discourage you from the TorC area, but are there any other parts of NM you might be interested in?

Chap

[finmqa1]

Karnie - I would take a look at Navajo Lake just outside Farmington. The lake is beautiful and not nearly as crowded as EB. The lake is mostly in NM but a portion is in Colorado. The weather in the Four Corners region will be much cooler than TorC but still better than the Northeast. I don't know if there is housing lakeside but it would be a short commute from Farmington, Bloomfield, or Aztec. You would also have Durango, CO nearby for fantastic snow skiing, shopping, and cuisine. Durango's peak season is actually in the summer, and believe me it is truly gorgeous. If you are looking for affordability I would suggest living on the NM side.

Don't forget to look into Conchas Lake as well. I don't know a whole lot about Eastern NM but I did enjoy the lake when I was there.

[nighthawk2325]

Hey Karnie.., My wife and I just came back from NM. We are in our late 40's looking for semi-retirement/retirement areas to buy land. We where looking east of Ablq. just /onoff Rt.# 40(Moriarty,Estancia,Edgewood,Cedar Crest). We also looked around Albq. We are also from NE(MA) and where looking for hot summers(dry)mild winters...Found out that Moriarty,Estancia,parts of Edgewood are flat and "Hosre country",when I say Flat I mean flat.Parts of Edgewood start to get hilly and work there way towards Mtns with more Greenery(scrub pines). Cedar Crest is more of working into Mtns "beautiful", but along with that go's the price...Albq.(NW) more city like,beutiful homes,close to each other(cluster zoned). Coming from NE your going to be disappointed ,because its not very green ect..more of the SW motif,colors are very warm,people seem friendly,but is Different..If we where to live there we would choose near a major metro area. We didn't go down south or further east or west,but if you go towards Santa Fe area or up noth your going to get back into the more sever winters...Its is a beutiful State..Tuff to seeeverything to make determination.But if your looking for sollitude you can get that easy enough. Good luck in your serch...(We are deff not experts on NM...)

[Blanco]

I would check out Silver City or Alamogordo. They are not on a lake but water is not far. Go to the Chambers page. My husband & myself are moving to Alamogordo as soon as we can sell or home in CA. Silver City is to high in elevation for him with his health problems. Alamogordo is a very family oriented. It has a rec. center with a pool & gymnasium, a small zoo & several parks. It has a low crime rate, nice weather.

You couldn't give me T or C ( ugly) Elephant Butte is way to small and is more retirement. Your family would be very bored there. Not even a super market (you would need to go to the little store in T or C.) Alamogordo has everything your family need and more work avalibility....

Good luck in your search.

April

[Karnie]

Originally Posted by nighthawk2325

Hey Karnie.., My wife and I just came back from NM. We are in our late 40's looking for semi-retirement/retirement areas to buy land. We where looking east of Ablq. just /onoff Rt.# 40(Moriarty,Estancia,Edgewood,Cedar Crest). We also looked around Albq. We are also from NE(MA) and where looking for hot summers(dry)mild winters...Found out that Moriarty,Estancia,parts of Edgewood are flat and "Hosre country",when I say Flat I mean flat.Parts of Edgewood start to get hilly and work there way towards Mtns with more Greenery(scrub pines). Cedar Crest is more of working into Mtns "beautiful", but along with that go's the price...Albq.(NW) more city like,beutiful homes,close to each other(cluster zoned). Coming from NE your going to be disappointed ,because its not very green ect..more of the SW motif,colors are very warm,people seem friendly,but is Different..If we where to live there we would choose near a major metro area. We didn't go down south or further east or west,but if you go towards Santa Fe area or up noth your going to get back into the more sever winters...Its is a beutiful State..Tuff to seeeverything to make determination.But if your looking for sollitude you can get that easy enough. Good luck in your serch...(We are deff not experts on NM...)

Thanks for the input, I really appreciate it. I think this board is a world of info and I am sd glad I found it!! we are also in our 40's looking for semi retirement and we though NM might be nice but to be honest I really am not so sure! Alot of the area is barren, or to cold for us or you need to go to a higher elevation. I havnt checked out Alamogordo but I think if that doesnt peek our interest then I think it;s back to the AZ drawing board for us...or maybe a different state



Tahnks everyone for the input much appreciated!!!!

Karnie

[finmqa1]

Don't forget to look at Las Cruces before giving up on NM. It is a very beautiful and warm part of the state. You'll see pleanty of Palms trees around there.

[Sooner-On-The-Move]

Whatever you do, DON'T MOVE YOUR CHILDREN TO GALLUP!!!!!!!!!!

We moved here last week, and I have a stepson who's still in Oklahoma. When we drove out last month and asked about the education system here, the primary reply we got equated to:

"There are some good private schools here. Public school is, well...public school. Homeschooling's always an option!"

Apparently, when competent teachers are found (which, I gather, is not often) they are so busy working with children for whom English is a second language that they cannot give proper time to other students.

The Farmington area is nice, if you want some grass and trees in your life. But the educational issues abound there, as well.

Now, if I came from Oklahoma (which is something like the 47th state in education) and find Gallup's schools wanting, well...you'll just have to take from that what you can.

[winnie]

I have been up to Elephant Butte, pretty area.

However, you would be much better off living in Alamogordo/Las Cruces and going up to the lake on the weekends...all year long LOL! It is an easy drive, especially from LC.

Check out some posts on those two towns. Definately nice places to live and I will take them any day over any town in AZ. I have written a few posts as well as others here about both areas, enough for you to make a good decision if they are potential towns for your family.

[tomcat]

look at DEMING new Mexico , it,s between Silver city and Las crusas.