quote:

Originally posted by flashguy:
I thought New Mexico was very Liberal.

flashguy

Not really; it's mostly Santa Fe. It's like the San Fransisco of NM. Lots of retired artsy hippies up in the northern part.

Good food, though.

quote:

Originally posted by flesheatingvirus:

quote:

Originally posted by flashguy:
I thought New Mexico was very Liberal.

flashguy

Not really; it's mostly Santa Fe. It's like the San Fransisco of NM. Lots of retired artsy hippies up in the northern part.

Good food, though.

And those that can't afford Santa Fe are starting to infest Silver City.

Santa Fe, Bernalillo, And Dona Ana counties shift the state to blue.

I drove through Springer NM in May. A beautiful town, about 30 minutes NE of Santa Fe.

I know far more about New Mexico and Albuquerque then I would like. Crime is on the rise. The westside has cheaper housing, but is a mess. Northeast heights has the most expensive property and best resale value. Santa Fe and Taos are really expensive. Los Lunas is ok, but avoid Meadow Lakes. PM me if you want more info.

Vince

Thanks for the insights. As I get further along in my research I will probably reach out to you,vmtz and flesheatingvirus.

Just a thought, Kirtland AFB and a number of test and evaluation entities are near Albuquerque. Those are people with some money and potential clients for a repair shop

I'm one who thinks he could do better than NM. No reason to be afraid of a little cold weather & snow, it keeps the rif-raf down.

I live outside Farmington. I actually like this area. The biggest problem right now is that the economy is very dependent on Energy and as the market is down, the economy is a bit depressed. Not horrible but not great either.

Being close to Durango is a plus. The place is crazy expensive to live but a great place to visit. Great restaurants, amazing number of brew pubs, tons of bands, etc. We go up every other week. We are 5000 feet but Durango is close to 7000. So when it gets hot here, it is still nice up there. We are high dessert, they are alpine.

It can get really hot here, but it is a really dry heat so very tollerable.

We also have one of the best fly fishing destinations in the world about 45 minutes away. Lots of outdoor activities.

The Farmington community is pretty conservative, Durango very liberal.

I had inlaws that lived in Las Cruces. Winter down there is nice but man summers are killers. It gets really hot and the winds just blow and blow and blow. I was riding my bike just outside of town, fighting the wind, and a full size gas grill was blown across the street bumbling like a tumble weed.

Las Cruses is a bit more liberal as it is a college town.

Thanks Chance for your info. I'll spend a day in Farmington, any recommendations to do or see?

quote:

Originally posted by OKCGene:
Thanks Chance for your info. I'll spend a day in Farmington, any recommendations to do or see?

Aztec ruins in Aztec is amazing if you are into that sort of thing. The park by the river is nice - I run there 5 days a week. The area around Navajo Dam is a bit of a hike (45 min) but pretty cool.

Let me know if I can answer any other questions for you.

I'd check around with auto dealers in the areas he likes see if they have openings, if he's trained and qualified on say Fords, check the Ford Dealers,

Buddy is in the industry handles many accounts in different dealers regarding the service side of the business, the biggest complaint the dealers have is finding competent techs that want to work,

A lot of the youth today shy away from trade industry jobs and won't invest in the education, but that creates an opportunity.

Some techs are pulling in high 5 to low 6 figures at dealers, of course that means putting in good quality work in as quick a time as possible, but it's out there.

If he finds openings, fly out, interview, look around the area. Good luck to your son, it's a lot tougher to pick up move everything and leave family and familiar places

Another possible employment opportunity:

http://www.sandia.gov/careers/

Don't get stuck believing a mechanic wouldn't find something there. There are also many dealerships and auto shops around the base.

Without knowing the goals of your son, it is hard to offer realistic information as to the suitability of relocation.

Despite some of the best people alive there and great beautiful outdoors in northern New Mexico, he may find it difficult to male a good living there.

NM is a very poor state with a much larger group of low social economic folks than middle income earners. Only a tiny percentage of upper income to wealthy exist.

Crime is rampant. You could play a betting game as to whether the first killing reported on the 6 clock new was by stabbing or gun. IIRC Albuquerque police were/are under Federal control.

Lived in Albuquerque for a year. Would never move back.

This is a very accurate article about NM.

http://markmilliorn.blogspot.c.../rip-new-mexico.html

I have lived in NM for a very long time and there was a time when I would have retired here, but not anymore. Someplace like Prescott AZ area is much more appealing.

I wouldn't ever , move back to Roswell, fwiw....

quote:

Originally posted by nmsu:
This is a very accurate article about NM.

http://markmilliorn.blogspot.c.../rip-new-mexico.html

I have lived in NM for a very long time and there was a time when I would have retired here, but not anymore. Someplace like Prescott AZ area is much more appealing.

He is spot on about the El Paso city government.