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My husband and I have been wanting for several years now to move to a different (at least slightly more progressive) part of the country. Where we live now in the deep coastal south, there are a lot of things that we don't particularly like. I've researched a lot of different areas of the country so I have come to the conclusion/realization that there is no perfect place and that much of this is a matter of perspective. But some of the things that we don't like about this area are heat, humidity, allergens, mosquitoes, hurricanes, OIL spills, lack of emphasis on education (our state traditionally ranks 49th or 50th in state rankings). Our particular city also tends to have a lot of pretentiousness. When my daughter was in preschool one of the other moms literally quit talking to me when she found out that my other child was in a public school. (Gasp, oh the horrors!)
What we've liked about the area -- well we're used to it I suppose and we've enjoyed being near the beach, although, oops, I guess that's a thing of the past (Thanks, BP!) My husband has a pretty good salary here (healthcare) and the cost of living and property taxes are relatively low (although homeowners insurance is getting ridiculous, local sales tax is 10%, and our A/C pretty much runs 24/7 for approximately 7 months out of the year and I ship in a lot of natural foods that are probably much more easily acquired in parts of New Mexico).
So now that we've given up on schools and homeschool, school rankings are no longer my top priority. But we would like to get in an area where our quirky, artsy, differently dyslexic? kids (and their slightly geeky parents wouldn't feel quite so out of step and where people are generally more accepting. We'd eventually just like to get in a place where it is possible to live more simply: bike more without fear of being run over, have access to more natural/green living, without being viewed as freaks, and walk outdoors without melting!
Q: So one of my questions is: is there a prevalence of simple living (Adobes?). What are utility costs like? How do you actually heat and cool an adobe? And what about WATER? If we were to make this move in a few years it would probably eventually turn into a retirement move for my husband and I (although he plans on working for several more years).
My other concerns are snakes (although it seems? that in the cities these don't appear to be as much of a deal and to be fair we've seen probably ~5-6snakes in our yard in the past 15 years, including a water moccasin and one snake in January), other pests (scorpions, etc), and cost of housing which seems to have gotten ridiculous in any nice city in the US! We're to the point where we'd actually like to see some snow during the winter although we're not keen on the Great Lakes/Northeast hobbies of digging out the driveway each year! Quite honestly the politics don't scare me much because I live in the most conservative state in the US (per Gallup poll) and it is just as comical/ridiculous -- although a moderate place would be nice, however I seriously doubt one even exists these days!
Q: So one of my questions is: is there a prevalence of simple living (Adobes?). What are utility costs like? How do you actually heat and cool an adobe? And what about WATER? If we were to make this move in a few years it would probably eventually turn into a retirement move for my husband and I (although he plans on working for several more years).
My other concerns are snakes (although it seems? that in the cities these don't appear to be as much of a deal and to be fair we've seen probably ~5-6snakes in our yard in the past 15 years, including a water moccasin and one snake in January), other pests (scorpions, etc), and cost of housing which seems to have gotten ridiculous in any nice city in the US! We're to the point where we'd actually like to see some snow during the winter although we're not keen on the Great Lakes/Northeast hobbies of digging out the driveway each year! Quite honestly the politics don't scare me much because I live in the most conservative state in the US (per Gallup poll) and it is just as comical/ridiculous -- although a moderate place would be nice, however I seriously doubt one even exists these days!
Hi,
It sounds like you're in an awful place... I hope you can get out before it's too late!
I'm not sure what you mean by the "simple living/adobes" -- can you clarify that? What you find here is a lot of adobe-style housing (frame and stucco, sometimes with adobe accents), but not many authentic all-adobe houses except in historic or custom construction. You pay a premium for a labor-intensive authentic adobe custom house, not sure if that goes with "simple living", whatever that means.
Water is an issue, snakes and scorpions are not. I was trying to find the definitive statement on Santa Fe's water use restrictions but couldn't locate it online. Anyone? There are restrictions and fines for inappropriate watering of yards/landscaping.
You'll get along fine in SF if you're quirky, artsy, different and slightly geeky. Homeschooling is big, as are alternative private schools. We have multiple natural food stores and even the basic chain groceries sell some organic and natural items. Property taxes are low, sales tax is high, and you don't need A/C. In fact, my house doesn't even have it.
What you won't find is a low cost of living or short winters. It's COLD here and it snows. My husband shovelled snow at least 8 times last winter - but usually it was just a few inches, and he did it so we could walk to the cars without getting our feet wet. Only two snow storms were the type where you *have* to snow in order to get out your front door. You'll run your heat 6 months a year, at least at night. But it's sunny and lovely and if you can handle the cold and some snow, SF is a great place to spend a winter.
Like the previous posters, I don't know anything about living in an actual Adobe building. They're pretty rare. You can live simply in one of the regular houses here, though. Utility costs are on par with the rest of the nation (or so I've heard), and if you live in the country you can have your own well for water and propane for heat.
Don't worry about snakes. Sure, we have them here... but the only ones you're likely to see (infrequently) are bull snakes, a non-venomous kind that keep the mice in check. We're out in the country and have seen 4 in 18 months. My friends downtown have never seen a snake near their houses.
Thanks. I've heard that some people in the area build elaborate "adobes" but that wasn't what I was referring to.
Too bad it costs so much to build!
Are you referring in your original post to non-elaborate adobes?
When the train started coming through in the 1880's (?) making midwestern/eastern construction materials more readily available, traditional adobe construction fell by the wayside. The new mass-produced materials made construction much lighter, cheaper, and faster. Now adobe construction is considered "nostalgic", and it's very expensive to build the "old-fashioned" way, making mud bricks by hand, and hand-plastering on top of that. Much of modern New Mexico architecture tries to imitate the adobe style.
Have you been on craigslist? I found a lovely house to rent in Placitas for a very good price, the view is spectacular.
Everyone here is saying scorpions are not an issue, but I found one on my living room floor hiding within the first week here (I'm on number two now).
I came here from Seattle and the lack of trees is upsetting, no shade at all here but my arthritic body is loving the climate.
Have you been on craigslist? I found a lovely house to rent in Placitas for a very good price, the view is spectacular.
Everyone here is saying scorpions are not an issue, but I found one on my living room floor hiding within the first week here (I'm on number two now).
I came here from Seattle and the lack of trees is upsetting, no shade at all here but my arthritic body is loving the climate.
Gambit - Santa Fe is pretty different from Placitas. They're only 45 minutes apart by car, but the climate and weather patterns are different, and we don't have scorpions in Santa Fe. Also, we have tons of trees!
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wouldn't feel quite so out of step and where people are generally more accepting. We'd eventually just like to get in a place where it is possible to live more simply: bike more without fear of being run over, have access to more natural/green living, without being viewed as freaks, and walk outdoors without melting! 
