Help on relocating (Albuquerque, Las Cruces, Santa Fe: sales, real estate, rental)

[pchie26]

Hi, my husband and I want to move to New Mexico from Wisconsin. We are looking to get away from the snow and the cold. We have three small children so we are looking for and affordable area with low crime rate. My husband being able to find a job is also a factor(he is a mechanic). If anyone has any advice we would greatly appreciate it.

Thanks so much.

[Zoidberg]

There's always need for mechanics in Albuquerque; most good-sized mechanic shops are within 1 mi of the railroad tracks, and most are north of I-40.

There's more of a premium for truck mechanics, or certified dealer-type mechanics. Probably all the work you could want.

Almost all of NM gets snow and gets cold, and some parts even start to approach Wisconsin in snow and cold (mainly along Colorado border).

You'll need to decide whether you want 1/2 as much snow, 1/4 as much snow, or zero snow. That will determine. Good mechanics are always in demand in this state pretty much everywhere.

[Pintada Kid]

The East Mountains Close to Albuquerque and Santa Fe and in the Center of N.M. which has low Crime, Friendly People and they had the Best Schools i havent kept up lately. A country way of life cool summers and cool winters with snow. Read the East Mountain Telegraph and the Independent. I myself prefer the country life with low crime and little smog and no Traffic and low rent to the City life of high crime, high rent and smog and traffic plus i think the Smaller Schools are better for kids. Also being in the center of N.M. and renting or renting to own can give you time to explore N.M.and find out where to live. If you want warm weather Roswell is my Preference and lots of work for Mechanics there and lots of Car Dealerships looking for Mechanics. pintada kid at webtv.net

[TerraSol]

Hi, my husband and I want to move to New Mexico from Wisconsin. We are looking to get away from the snow and the cold. We have three small children so we are looking for and affordable area with low crime rate. My husband being able to find a job is also a factor(he is a mechanic). If anyone has any advice we would greatly appreciate it.
Thanks so much.

Hi pchie26,
New Mexico is my native state and I'll be happy to try to help. First of all, I'm sure you already know that New Mexico doesn't get anywhere near the kind of snow that Wisconsin gets. However, if you want to get away from snow completely you won't find that here in New Mexico, but to get the least amounts of snow I'd say to look into the lower parts of Southeastern NM, such as Alamogordo and Carlsbad, and the lower parts of Southwestern NM, such as Las Cruces and maybe Deming. Las Cruces is the second largest city in NM (my hometown), and would probably offer more opportunities in the way of your dh's line of work, but the other cities I've mentioned are still of good size with Deming being the smallest. Of all these cities Las Cruces has the most expensive real estate and the least expensive is probably Deming. However, IMHO, I'd say rent first, because if for whatever reason you're not happy with the city that you decided on, you won't have to worry about trying to sell your property. I hope you find your special place real soon! Hope this helps a bit

Rebecca

[GregW]

pchie26 - You found the right board to ask about NM relocation.

[ajzjmsmom]

I wouldn't recommend Carlsbad or Roswell. Carlsbad's housing market is very high priced. The only good factor of Carlsbad is the river running through it so unlike the majority of NM is has water. Roswell is about 60 miles from Carlsbad and we considered moving there but it was less than desirable to us. Las Cruces is nice if you want to keep away from the snow, however their housing tends to run high to. Alamogordo has better housing prices and okay schools, lots of rental properties but not to sure about jobs. If you get to missing snow, from Alamogordo you can drive to Cloudcroft which always gets snow when winter hits. It is 16 miles from Alamogordo. Here is the website for the newspaper and from it you can link to the Las Cruces and Carlsbad papers to look at jobs. www.alamogordonews.com

[norm]

Prices are relative. We found the house prices in Las Cruces to be very reasonable and a bit below ABQ. You might want want to consider El Paso or living on the Texas/New Mexico border and your husband working in El Paso.

[ajzjmsmom]

Just wanted to add that El Paso has the same climate as Las Cruces and Alamogordo, it is however on the Mexico border, housing is very affordable for renting, they have no state income tax, however they do have a higher property tax and higher sales tax than NM. I would imagine there are probably alot of jobs for your husband.

[Devin Bent]

Originally Posted by Zoidberg

You'll need to decide whether you want 1/2 as much snow, 1/4 as much snow, or zero snow. That will determine. Good mechanics are always in demand in this state pretty much everywhere.

I came here from Stowe Vermont and Madison Wisconsin. My experience is that even at 7,000 feet -- eg, Ruidoso or Santa Fe -- you find snow and cold but much less than in Vermont and Wisconsin. Also the winter is much shorter and the snow melts amazingly faster -- if you are not in the shade, the snow is often gone by noon. I got a place with good southern exposure, bought a bag of melting crystals, and haven't opened the package three years later. (I'm at 6,000 feet.)

AS you go lower -- you get even less snow and cold, but it also gets hotter in the summer -- the lower, the hotter -- a dry heat but still hot with a fierce sun compared that anemic thing you see in Wisconsin. Some people don't mind the heat at all -- others do. It is a personal thing and you should check it out for yourself.

[lisdol]

Many communities in the "East Mtns" are within commuting distance of Albuquerque, if you work there. With small children, I prefer this area to living in Albuquerque, for schools and just plain open space. The detraction for living out here with kids is depending on the extracurricular activities they do, you may have to drive into Albuquerque. Its not for everyone, though, and I suggest checking out the towns in the area and what you can get for what you want to spend. This area has a HUGE variety of housing. There is also a HUGE variance in road quality as you travel around our area. You could live on paved roads, or maintained gravel roads, or dirt roads that become near impassable or impassable during spring mud or August rains. Names of towns to check out would be Tijeras, Cedar Crest, Sandia Park, Edgewood, Cedar Grove, Moriarty, the area referred to by RE Agents as South 217, and possibly Estancia (which is a far commute to ABQ but half decent if you work on this side of the Mtns). Not sure what the job market for mechanics is in the E. Mtns. There are dealerships and truck stops but not along the lines of in Albuquerque.

We do get snow, more so than ABQ, but its different from back East.