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My husband and no longer want to live on base - it costs over a thousand dollars for rent and utilities and we want to save money and pay off school loans and such.
We want a safe area with rent six hundred or less including utilities. There was a cute little town that we stumbled on next to Rio Rancho but I can't remember the name! Wasn't much there but it was close to Rio Rancho.
We'd like a safe area that isn't a hot bed for drugs. My husband works swing shift - contracting to Customs and Homeland Security - at the hanger on base - near the airport. So he likely wouldn't hit traffic, still he doesn't want too much of a commute.
We aren't interested in the night life, but wouldn't mind being close to hiking trails and fairly close to restaraunts or movies if we want to treat ourselves. We do have a baby so nearby reliable childcare would be nice as well.
There was a cute little town that we stumbled on next to Rio Rancho but I can't remember the name! Wasn't much there but it was close to Rio Rancho.
I imagine you are talking about Corrales, which is between the river and Rio Rancho, and typically has a quaint, rural feel to it. The only other towns near Rio Rancho are Bernalillo, where the Santa Ana casino and the Hyatt resort are, and Placitas, which is across the highway from Bernalillo. Placitas and Corrales are safe and mostly pretty nice, but that comes with a price, and homes in both those communities are typically on the pricier end. Depending on how far north you are in Corrales, it can take quite a while to get out of there, as the speed limit is 25 in most parts of town, even 15 in some neighborhoods. There are hiking trails in both Corrales (near the river) and Placitas (foothills). Restaurants would be in Bernalillo and Rio Rancho. I think there is a new theater in Rio Rancho, but I imagine one of the several residents of Rio Rancho who post on this board will be able to confirm that. I don't know about child care. At any rate, I hope this helps a little. Good luck in your searches!
EDIT: I meant to touch on renting in these areas - I have heard of people who own second homes in the west part of Corrales who do rent them, but I wouldn't be able to quote accurate prices. Again, maybe someone who lives around there will be able to go into more detail on this.
I imagine you are talking about Corrales, which is between the river and Rio Rancho, and typically has a quaint, rural feel to it. The only other towns near Rio Rancho are Bernalillo, where the Santa Ana casino and the Hyatt resort are, and Placitas, which is across the highway from Bernalillo. Placitas and Corrales are safe and mostly pretty nice, but that comes with a price, and homes in both those communities are typically on the pricier end. Depending on how far north you are in Corrales, it can take quite a while to get out of there, as the speed limit is 25 in most parts of town, even 15 in some neighborhoods. There are hiking trails in both Corrales (near the river) and Placitas (foothills). Restaurants would be in Bernalillo and Rio Rancho. I think there is a new theater in Rio Rancho, but I imagine one of the several residents of Rio Rancho who post on this board will be able to confirm that. I don't know about child care. At any rate, I hope this helps a little. Good luck in your searches!
EDIT: I meant to touch on renting in these areas - I have heard of people who own second homes in the west part of Corrales who do rent them, but I wouldn't be able to quote accurate prices. Again, maybe someone who lives around there will be able to go into more detail on this.
Wow so much info. We're not ready to buy yet - we want to live below our means for awhile - to afford visits to my mom 73 with two kinds of cancer - and t pay off school loans and eventually buy land and build. So we'd love to find rents for 600 or less - including utilities... There's a dollar theatre in Rio Rancho- ideal for us as we don't want to spend a lot on these things right now. Corrales is the place I was thinking of - and its fairly close to ABQ and really close to the Presbyterian our baby goes to on High Resort.
If you have to live out of town (plenty of great places in town that aren't that expensive tho) for working on base, try the east mountains: Tijeras, Cedar Crest, Sandia Park, (rolling eyes) Edgewood.
While it's more miles, many people like the easy-on, easy-off, only two or three lights to the Eubank gate.
Carnuel is just outside of Albuquerque to the east, but I have no idea how the renting is there. It's 15 minutes tops to the Eubank Gate.
You would probably like Tijeras. It's out of Albuquerque, but not far. It's only about 20 minutes to the Eubank Gate, and there is a lot of outdoor activities within 20 minutes drive. It's also fairly nice scenic wise, and is pretty much forested all around.
Edgewood is nice too, though it is a bit further drive. They are building a Wal-Mart Supercenter there now, so you wouldn't have to go far for the necessities and the new releases. It's about a 30 minute commute to the Eubank gate. Edgewood is getting a little further into the boonies and you will meet some people there who aren't necessarily bad people, but weird. (Trust me, I lived in Edgewood for 15 years, and technically my residence is still there).
On the other side of Albuquerque is Rio Rancho, Corrales, Bernalillo, Placitas. Those are all mostly north of Albuquerque. Directly East is Carnuel, Tijeras, Sandia Park, and Edgewood. Directly south is Los Lunas, which may not be a bad choice if you don't mind a 45 minute commute. Directly west of Albuquerque is just about nothing, though there are a few small communities popping up out there.
In all honesty, if you want to rent, your best bet is to stay in the Albuquerque area. In the heights (a very good part of town) are some nice houses and apartments in your price range, and it is pretty close to the Hiking trails up Sandia Mountain. Reliable child care is everywhere in Albuquerque, so that shouldn't be a problem. Just be aware that Albuquerque, Rio Rancho, Corrales, and Placitas have all spread pretty well, and are very close to being all one big city-like area (Sort of like Pheonix is).
Again, I do really recommend staying in Albuquerque. You'll like it because you won't spend so much on gas, and you will be close to everything you need. Also, if you go out to the East Mountains, there is the chance of you being snowed in. I-40 from Tijeras Canyon to Moriarty tends to get pretty bad in the winter months. This is coming from a guy who has commuted to work in Albuquerque from Edgewood for several years.
> My husband and no longer want to live on base - it costs
> over a thousand dollars for rent and utilities ...
Rent and utilities included for $1,000. That doesn't sound bad
if you have a decent place.
> We want a safe area with rent six hundred or less including utilities.
That's not going to happen unless you are renting a room in someone's
house.
> ... still he doesn't want too much of a commute.
later, you wrote:
> Corrales is the place I was thinking of - and its fairly close to ABQ ...
Try this: Drive from Corrales at the time you think you will be going to
work. Then drive from the base to Corralles at the time you think you
will be getting off. Corrales is only close if your commute hour is late in
the eveing or very early in the morning.
While you are testing the drive make sure to track the miles you are
putting on your car. Since you live frugally, I assume you are not nuts
enough to have a car payment, but in any case, assume it will cost you
50 cents a mile to make the approximately 20-mile trip one-way $20 per
day, $100/week, so more than $400 per month.
You also lose, at the very least, an hour of your life every day commuting.
> My husband and no longer want to live on base - it costs
> over a thousand dollars for rent and utilities ...
Rent and utilities included for $1,000. That doesn't sound bad
if you have a decent place.
> We want a safe area with rent six hundred or less including utilities.
That's not going to happen unless you are renting a room in someone's
house.
> ... still he doesn't want too much of a commute.
later, you wrote:
> Corrales is the place I was thinking of - and its fairly close to ABQ ...
Try this: Drive from Corrales at the time you think you will be going to
work. Then drive from the base to Corralles at the time you think you
will be getting off. Corrales is only close if your commute hour is late in
the eveing or very early in the morning.
While you are testing the drive make sure to track the miles you are
putting on your car. Since you live frugally, I assume you are not nuts
enough to have a car payment, but in any case, assume it will cost you
50 cents a mile to make the approximately 20-mile trip one-way $20 per
day, $100/week, so more than $400 per month.
You also lose, at the very least, an hour of your life every day commuting.
There is an article in the paper today about construction from Zuzax to Sedillo that is starting Thu 08 May.
Construction will be from Zuzax to Sedillo. (My map shows Zamora, not Zuzax.) It's about six miles of construction.
Speed limit will be set to 45 mph.
Phase 1 - Traffic limited to one lane each way for 75 days
Phase 2 - July 20 - Oct 05th - back to two lanes each way
Phase 1 - Oct 06 - Nov 16th - Sedillo interchange construction
Traffic on that stretch is 56,600 vehicles per day (that's 2,350/hour and 1 car every 1.5 seconds. I would guess that this construction job will make going into Albuquerque in the morning easier for those coming down Route 14, but going back might be more trouble.
The reason I'm posting, mostly, is that there *is* a shuttle bus that runs from the East Mountains to the Uptown Center and the downtown Alvarado Transit center.
For the construction (May 05 - Jul 18, there will be an additional shuttle that takes commuters from the two dropoff places mentioned to the Eubank entrance to the base.
There are a lot of regular shuttle routes in NM. You can go from Albuquerque to both Santa Fe and Los Alamos.
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I-40 reconstruction in East Mountains
