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Pompy im from Ireland and love life in New Mexico. Believe me, its very easy to get used to waking up in the morning and be 99% sure there willb e no rain! Meth is a problem no matter what size it is IMO. Many many people have guns in the US but its not the way the UK media portray it.
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" Charleston South Carolina"
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Location: home...finally, home .
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How about for retirees from New York? How big of a culture shock is that?
I would love to hear from you if you have. Has anyone done it? Do you enjoy the weather ? How are the real estate prices there? Is it a town with activities, hiking trails, malls????
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I relocated from NJ (grew up in NYC). I've met a lot of people here who relocated from NYC and who say it was the best decision for them as it certainly has been for me, but, the desert is not for everybody, so like so many other posters have said, if you can, you've got to come visit and see for yourself
There is one indoor mall, which although on the older side, has, I think, a nice selection of stores. It is anchored by Dillards, JC Penney and Sears. Las Cruces also has two WalMarts, a Target, a Kohls, a Pier1, four Starbucks (I think), Home Depot, Lowes and a good selection of local retailers. Pretty much everything else (eg. Macy's) is available in El Paso, which is a 30-40 minute drive depending on traffic, which exit, etc. El Paso also a huge outlet mall and the closest commercial airport. The only thing we don't have within about an hour's drive is a Whole Foods or Central Market type store. The closest one of those is in ABQ.
I think real estate prices are still good compared to the NY area. As for culture shock, I didn't experience any. I feel more at home here than I have anywhere else I've lived. I don't miss anything about living in the NE, except for family and friends.
pompy: Don't sweat it....LC is a pretty small town and you'll know what's what in a short time. Crime is pretty low, and misbehavior runs to fireworks, drunk driving, teenage stupidity and graffitti for the most part. Your personal safety should not be a concern to you here. Understand that you're in a relatively low income County, though, so the problems of poverty are here in abundance. You won't find the hordes of drug addled nitwits that curse an otherwise nice place like Eureka, though there certainly are drugs here.
That being said, there is a lot to love about LC and environs. Your dining choices will be both a pleasant surprise and a disappointment......you'll learn a lot about chile and the Mexican style food (kind of rancho style, really) here and that is a pleasure. You'll also discover that your options beyond Old Mex/New Mex are somewhat more limited.
This is a good place and a good time to buy a house...while the market here is still pretty strong, housing has come off it's highs....and you'll find that while prices have appreciated, they're still pretty reasonable here. Nowhere near Calif. prices.
Thanks for all the positive encouragement. I am sure we will be fine, its just a big and move for us ... and I habitually over-analyze everything . We should arrive sometime in July -- will it be +100F ?
My son is excited about the "spaceport" and the warm weather! I also hear that football (soccer) is fairly popular in the southwest; if so, that will make my son's adjustment easier.
Yup, I'm afraid it could be. It'll be high nineties for sure and, the irony doesn't escape me, that's when our rainy season (what we have of one) starts. It's sure to be different from the rain in England though. You'll love the smell of wet creosotes also know as grease wood and it only rains in the afternoons for the most part. The autumn will make it well worth it. It's the best time of the year absolutely perfect weather for about three months.
We are a small family from the UK moving to Las Cruces for work and school. My spouse and I are in our late 30’s and my son is 8. Unfortunately, we are not able to visit before the move – airline prices are blinking insane! Thus; I have toiled over the city-data forums for LC information – some seems helpful. I have heard about gangs and crime statistics: are all the negative comments true? I lived in Northern California in the past and the amount of stumblers (drug addicted street denizens) was stunning. Is that going to be a serious problem in LC? Is it safe to walk the streets of commercial areas? What areas should we avoid? We will probably live on the campus of New Mexico State University when we arrive.
We are very excited to have the possibility to buy a house; not a possibility anywhere else we have ever lived ($500K for a fixup). We also like the idea of a diverse community.
Thanks for the info!
There are gangs and crimes but the nice thing about gangs around here is they usually keep their violence between themselves, usually they leave everyone else alone.
It's not like some of the big cities with bad crime, property crime is fairly high all along the border, crimes like car thefts, graffiti, but violent crimes against strangers are not common. I think you can walk around pretty much anywhere.
As for the heat, it's a dry heat -- nothing like what 100 degrees is like in other places, 100 degrees is quite comfortable I think and in the SW, the mornings are downright cool, and the evenings are very comfortable and mellow. Because it's high desert, if it reaches 100, it usually won't be until 2 pm and then by 4 pm it's starting to cool down fast.
I also hear that football (soccer) is fairly popular in the southwest; if so, that will make my son's adjustment easier.
Yeap it's really getting big in the High Schools as it's played in the fall and i believe the Soccer teams are as large as the Football teams as far as number of players on a team during the Fall season. They always have large crowds during the State Championship Tournament every year.
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