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Potential Albuquerque Newbie- HELP!!!
Hi Everyone,
So it is very possible that in the next few months my husband will be transferred to ALB. We know nothing about the area. We are from the East Coast, and although we have moved around a lot, have never left the east coat. We would be looking to buy a home in a suburban, family friendly area with top notch schools (price range not to exceed $400,000). Can anyone recommend a certain area? Also any info about ALB in general would be helpful--I know nothing! What is the weather like? Is it a large city? I grew up in the metropolitan NY area and have lived in Baltimore and Tampa also, so cities are not new to me. What do love about ALB? What could you do without? If you were house hunting what would be your major concerns? Thanks in advance for any info!!
Re: Potential Albuquerque Newbie- HELP!!!
Welcome (maybe) to Albuquerque.
ABQ is the biggest city in NM and is the only city of any size in the vast area between Denver, Phoenix, El Paso and Dallas. The ABQ metro is at 0.75 million, but like all western cities, it sprawls. You're not going to find the high density you find back east in NYC, Boston, etc. out here. Many parts of the city feel more suburban than urban big-city. Elevations range from 4500 feet in the river valley to 7000 feet in the Sandia foothills. We're boxed in all sides by Indian lands or National Forest (Sandia to the north, Laguna to the west, Isleta to the south, and CIbola National Forest/Sandia Mountains to the east).
ABQ sits in the Rio Grande Rift Valley - the river and cottonwood forest )teh Bosque) runs through the center of town. The city is divided into quadrants by Edith and Central Ave, but most people use the intersection of I-25 and I-40. In general, the NE quadrant is more Anglo and was developed in the 1940s-1990s. The SE quadrant is flavored by Kirland being there. The NW quadrant is rural in the North Valley and then sprawls on the west side of teh river. The SW quadrant is the South Valley and is more Hispanic, includes several small communities that are related back to Spanish land grants. But in all the quadrants you have neighborhoods of all flavors.
It really depends on what you are looking for as to what neighborhoods you would want. If you want an old adobe, the South or North Valley, Old Town or Martineztown areas are your best fits. A Victorian/Queen Anne, East Downtown. Something from the post WWII boom, look near UNM (UNM, Silver Hills, Nob Hill, Ridgecrest). More modern construction is on the edges - Far NE Heights, High Desert, Ventana Ranch. Otehr than schools what do you want? Short commute? Public transportation? Stores nearby? Parks, trails, etc. nearby?
Everyone hear complains that ABQ Public Schools (APS) suck. The popular opinion is that the La Cueva or Sandia high school attendance areas are the best (NE Heights in the Academy, Sandia Heights, High Desert, Tanoan areas). But I know people who love sending their kids to El Dorado, Highland, ABQ High and Amy Biehl (the downtown charter school). My one word of advice would be to stay away from the west side unless you plan to send your kids to St. Pious (the private Catholic high school). The west side schools are over-crowded and they can't seem to build schools fast enough.
Some people also go up to RIo Rancho (the town that Intel built). The Rio Rancho school system is separate. RR truly sprawls and is complete suburbia. They're trying to build a downtown, but it's wait and see.
Another factor in choosing where to live is where you will work. There are a limited number of river crossings, so that can be a big factor in where you choose to live. For example, the commute from Ventana Ranch to Kirtland or Sandia Labs would take an hour. Or going from the far heights over to Eclipse and Eagle Tanch would take an hour.
$400k can buy a lot of house in most neighborhoods - the median ABQ home price is just under $200k. A local realtor has a pretty good page that he writes about teh housing market - http://www.newmexicohomesearch.com/content.php?page=marketupdate . I like his write-ups, I know nothing else about him, so this is in no way a refferral. And you can search the MLS and get a feel for houses, prices and neighborhoods. He also has a pretty good write-up about neighborhoods - http://www.newmexicohomesearch.com/content.php?page=relocation.
Now, for what I love about ABQ.
I'm a geologist by training, so I wanted to live someplace where I oculd see rocks. I LOVE that we get over 300 days of sunshine a year. I like that in 15 minutes I can be on a hikinng trail in the mountains. I like that we have a forest in the middle of the city riddled with bike/multi-use trails. I enjoy the arts scene - while Santa Fe is famous for it's arts, we have a pretty big contemportary/modern scene here and we have more artists living here due to COL issues. I like the theater scene, the variety of affordable resteraunts, having UNM nearby, the new train (Rail Runner), and the fierce independence of NM in general. I like that we are a minority/majority state - NM was the first state to be a pluraity race/ethnicity wise. I like that we have a national park (Petroglyphs) in the middle of town. I enjoy our museums and the lectures, exhibits, talks they bring in - National Hispanic Cultural Center, Indian Pueblo Cultural Center, Natural History Mus, National Atomic History Mus, ABQ Mus., Balloon Mus and Explora. I love the balloon fiesta.
The only thing I really miss in my life is an Ethiopian resteraunt, resteraunts being open past 10PM, and a beach.
I could do without some of the uglier sides of life. Poverty is the one that comes to mind - NM is a poor state and there is a history of subsidence living thanks to years of colonial/territorial living and past treatment of Native Americans. The "land of manana" attitude drives me bonkers sometimes.
Flame hit things exactly right regarding ABQ in general. I live on the westside, but we don't have kids - and don't have plans to have kids - but I know plenty of people who avoid this side of ABQ just b/c of the schools. The commute across the river is not something fun, but I've learned to use that 45 mins-an hour to relax and listen to some music...I really don't mind it anymore. I've also lived in the NE Heights and it's nice having everything at your fingertips (we have tons on the westside too, it's just more spread out).
I grew up in NM, about 45 mins south of ABQ in a little town, so I always swore I'd be outta here the first chance I got. The funny thing is that the chances have come and gone a few times and I'm still here, loving the place more and more every day. Like Flame said, the art scene is awesome here and the food is unmatched. My most favorite thing though is the unlimited outdoor activities. The mountains are an easy drive and there's hiking and mountain biking galore up there, running in the foothills, skiing/snowboarding in the winter (although I usually went up to Santa Fe for that). The city itself is becoming more and more bike-friendly, so if you like to road bike, there's that. There's also a few mult-use bike paths throughout the city that don't allow traffic and groups that meet for any almost any activity you can think of. The weather's great, so you can't even really complain about that most of the time. And, unlike Flame, I love the "land of manana" attitude.
Could be b/c I'm a huge procrastinator though...
Bad things - there's really no nightlife, if you're into that. High fashion, it's hard to find. As it's been mentioned, things are spread out so the commute gets to some people. Public transit seems to be in the works, but I've heard great things about the Rail Runner (goes from Belen to Santa Fe...personally, I haven't tried it yet). Also, I've never ridden the buses here, but MH says it's a decent system.
GL and welcome (hopefully)!
.: Diary of a Recovering Runner :.
Land of manana isn't ALWAYS bad. I just get a bit too east coast high strung at times.
And a great thing about the state is that we are so laid back. I haven't worn a suit since I moved here, never wear hose, never wear make-up and it's no big deal. You can go to the fanciest place sin teh state and folks are in jeans, cowboy boots, bolos and cowboy hats. (But as DH jokes, they're the dress boots and jeans, not the ones you actually wear in the ranch.)
And don't let me scare you away from the Westside. I have friends with kids on the Westside who love it over there. Same ofr parts of the South Valley. I love that there really is something for everyone - farm, ultra modern lofts, industrial areas, small communities, etc.
Drop back in and ask us any questions that come up!