Hey Southwest peeps,

I'm hoping to move to either Tuba City, AZ or Dulce, NM working with the Indian Health Services in next couple of months, pay is good so I can't argue.
Anyone near these two places that can give me a quick heads up regarding altitude/weather, housing/cost of living, speed limits/laws, etc?
I know that Flagstaff is about 70 miles south of Tuba City and Albuquerque is about 70 miles south of Dulce, but that doesn't tell me anything.

Thanks in advance,

G

 

If your good looking...Colorado is a great place to live!

 

G- Can't say I've ever been to either of the towns you mention. BUT I've been through much of the SW as I tow to various race tracks, so I have some real life experience. Weather/climate is typical southwest: dry and hot in summer and dry and cold in the winter. Pretty skies and spectacular sunsets.

Housing/cost of living should be relatively inexpensive. I have seen some extreme poverty in those areas and it seems folks are either very wealthy or most are VERY poor. Since there's an abundance of wide open areas, it seems most of the locals cruise the highways at 75-85 MPH without much problem. But if your Z has out-of-state plates, you're fair game, so watch out!

BTW- having lived in Falls Church, VA in the past, this move will be as much a cultural shock for you as moving to the east coast was for me.

Good luck!

 

yea id say dkmura hit the most of it.. i live in albuquerque its not bad.. pretty dry.. doesnt get extremely hot or extremely cold... highway speed limits are 65-75 but you can get away with at least 5 over most of the time.. we are about a mile above sea level so your 1/4 mile will be a bit slower haha.. but we do have our own drag strip that is cheap and easy to get to.. i donno other than that its not a bad place to live..

 

Yes, I'm good looking, love football (Go Broncos!), love sports, and love sports cars, and I'm from Arvada, CO. I moved to DC for law school, and have been here for about 6-7 years.

dkmura and dummingguy, thanks for the heads up. I haven't really been to AZ or NM, so I had no idea. The money is really good, and I'm really looking to buying my first house. I'll probably live near the city and commute 60-70 miles to work. I enjoy driving, and I'm hoping traffic isn't bad as DC Metro, so I'm looking forward to it.

Anyone know any good neighborhood near Flagstaff or Alburquerque? I'm looking at housing cost around or up to $200-$250k.

Thanks again,

G

 

I can't help much, but I have driven through Tuba City a few times on my way to Colorado. There isn't much there and like dkmura said, it might be a cultural shock. Flagstaff actually reminds me of Colorado a lot, and its at 9,000 ft. so you will definetely be dealing with snow in the winter. I don't know much about real estate in Flagstaff, but I hear its gone way up lately as has most of AZ.

 

I just got back from albuquerque. The very north east and west section of town is where most of the newer/better housing seems to be. There is a few areas around the University of New Mexico that are trendy (classic adobe look) but much older. Most of the housing in that area seemed to be in the 250+ range and up, and going up a lot more heading closer to Santa Fe. But i think it was Rio Rancho and Paseo del norte sections of town were a little more modern and nicer. The southern regions of town near kirtland AFB is the old sections of town. Elevation is high in Albuquerque also, similar to denver, i drove all the way to Roswell, just to check it out, didn't see even one highway patrol out there. So yes, the air is dry, but they do get snow and i heard there is a ski/snowboard place you can get to by the tram in the north east side of town near the indian casino. Anyways, that's about all i know, was only there 6 weeks for work.

 

Tuba City, AZ is in the middle of nowhere. But no big deal. About an hour south is the beautiful mountains of Flagstaff. About an hour north is Page and water sports. Its a town of less than 9,000, and 93 percent are Indian. The medium price home is $62,000.

 

I graduated from Arvada HS and lived there my whole life.

Not that anyone would care about that.

Mudd

 

Thanks again for all your help.

I'm leaning toward Tuba City at this time. It turns out I was misinformed. Tuba City is 70 miles north of Flagstaff (1 hr drive), while Dulce is more than twice the distance from Albuquerque (3 hr drive). I was hoping they were same distance because I was liking Albuquerque better than Flagstaff because it was a bigger city.

Thanks again islandsnow for your input. I did some research regarding altitude/weather/temperature, housing, local attractions, etc. And you are all correct, it is very similiar to back home CO. It seems to be out in the boonies, so housing should be very affordable, thanks again davidv. Good news is, I can come back to DC metro after 2-3 years. Also, with housing so affordable, I can get me 2 cars: 1 for summer and another for winter. That means I'll probably get another STI for winter and possible ZR/C6 for summer.

Mudd, I won't tell you exactly where I went (don't want to sound snobby), but I went to one of the Catholic school around the area, and I should be back this summer for my 10yr reunion.

1nate7, thanks for your personal input. I'll probably live slightly north of Flagstaff and commute to work at Tuba City. At least the traffic won't be bad.

Thanks again guys,

G

 

I was just gonna say Dulce is in the middle of nowhere lol. when it comes to the middle of nowhere in NM you might as well be on Mars. My family still lives in the boonies in NM but by no means far out. I grew up in Alb, and it's definately not bad. You'll become very well acquainted with your neighbors that's for sure. If your still relatively young (like less than 60yrs) I'd honestly imagine you getting VERY bored in the boonies. Get ready for dirt roads

I dont think you can really match DC's traffic with any state in the southwest. Even Denver with T-Rex going on isn't even comparible to DC.

I'd probably opt for AZ since it's close to a big city - but that would just be me. Personally I love the hell outta CO, which is where I've lived for the past 6 years. Moved here from Belen, NM for college originally.

Eitherway best of luck on your career and wherever u may settle!

 

You mean you'd like to move back to the DC metro area someday!? Whew, just thinking about being stuck on the beltway makes me think TREX is just a little clean-up job.

G- you should come out to one of our Colorado Z drives or meets this summer when you're back in town. Bring either the Z roadster or your FX45 along!