Socorro County

Central New Mexico

Tierra Grande POA info

Rio Grande Estates

Located just north of Highway 60 in the shadows of the Manzano Mountains, Rio Grande Estates is a master-planned subdivision, platted out and pinned back in the 1960's. Sitting just outside Belen and only forty miles south of Albuquerque, this land is perfect for anyone looking to live an "off grid" lifestyle, as Socorro County has no formal zoning ordinance and does not restrict the use of the real property within its county. This fact alone makes the area ideal for anyone with an RV who's looking for land they can vacation to, camp on, or park and live on for lengthy periods of time without being hassled by local officials. This also makes the area fitting for other types of "unconventional" dwellings such as earth ship homes, tiny homes and shipping container homes. Best of all is that because this enitre subdivision was platted into thousands of 1 acre lots, this means the minimum "3/4 of an acre building threshold" will be met by all of the individual lots within this region, allowing owners to both install a well and a conventional septic system on the each piece of land. This will make the cost of building and living in this region far more afforable than what you'd encounter in other subdivisions whose land does not conform to that standard.

All parcels within the Rio Grande Estates subdivison have legal access, as roads and easements were allowed for in the original Plats of the area. Additionally, because this region boasts a largely arid climate, few of the roads have become impassable because of overgrown brush or washed out from rain, meaning that with rare exception, most all of the roads can be driven by any vehcile type. As is to be expected, some areas - particualrly those closer to Highway 60 - are easier to get to than others, and some roads are easier to drive on than others.

Power can be found running the length of Highway 60 and servicing some of the roads and homesites closest to that area. The further north and south you go within the subdivision, the less of a presence those utilities will have, though you will encounter the ocassional homesite being serviced by a power pole and utility box. Because city utilities have not yet been extended into the further parts of the subdivision, solar energy may be a necessary but affordable solution for those electing to live outside the range of local utilities. When the day comes that power lines are extended throughout this area, however, the value of this land will increase immeasurably making this an even better investment.

Socorro County has no formal zoning ordinance, and per their own government website "does not restrict the use of real property" within the county boundaries.

Rio Grande Estates sits just east of the I-25 corridor. From this subdivision, Belen is only ten miles north and Albuquerque only forty miles. The Rio Metro has stops in Belen as well as nearby Los Lunas which may help with commutes back and forth to nearby Albuquerque and as far north as Santa Fe.

* Socorro County New Mexico Info *

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