Comments on: How Much Will We Save By Moving This Summer?

By: david

david — Thu, 29 May 2008 22:01:03 +0000

Agreed, some places do in fact have those rules. But if your property is either off-grid and outside of town, and/or has existing water rights, there are no problems.

By: Jonny

Jonny — Thu, 29 May 2008 21:42:55 +0000

Be careful with the water collection however….the West has some very old (and strange) water laws. In Colorado, it is illegal to capture rainwater and then use it for outdoor watering! You are “depriving” the downstream users who have acquired water rights (even if you are returning it to the earth eventually)…I know, ridiculous! Anyway, I would not be surprised if NM had similar restrictions.

By: David

David — Thu, 29 May 2008 20:46:01 +0000

Santa Fe is way too crowded for us, we want a small town, thus Taos. As for water, we will have cisterns collecting rain water for all outdoor watering, and we eventually are thinking of going off-grid, using only the rain that falls from the sky for everything. But you are right – too many people living there and not caring is a recipe for disaster.

By: Lise

Lise — Thu, 29 May 2008 20:11:34 +0000

How funny, I just visited Taos! I liked it, but I think I favored Santa Fe a little bit more. Of course, Santa Fe is pricier.

The only problem (not to be a downer) is that *so many* people are moving to the “Sun Belt” that it’s putting a real strain on natural resources, especially water. I was so appalled at how businesses, etc, misused water in what is essentially a desert. I stayed for a few days at New Mexico Tech in Socorro, and the school regularly had something like 10 sprinklers out on one lawn in the morning to keep their grass growing!

I’m not sure if you’re much of a gardener, but I’ll just say that when it comes to landscaping/gardening around your home, you might want to look into xeriscaping. I think cactus and succulent gardens are much more attractive than grass, personally.

But congratulations, and good luck!

By: david

david — Wed, 21 May 2008 02:53:28 +0000

Thanks Funny about Money!

By: Funny about Money

Funny about Money — Wed, 21 May 2008 01:50:38 +0000

To die for!!!!

I’ve looked at Taos and Santa Fe…neither of them look cheaper than lovely uptown Phoenix. Sure wish I could afford to move to either of those venues–and either break even or actually save money.

Congratulations on a great move.

By: Advanced Personal Finance » Blog Archive » Moving to a cheaper city might not save you money

Fri, 09 May 2008 18:14:23 +0000

[...] city to cut expenses. My family just did it earlier this year. Now David at My Two Dollars is planning on moving to a much cheaper area this summer. But there’s excellent evidence from behavioral economics research that this [...]

By: David

David — Tue, 06 May 2008 22:45:01 +0000

Cost of moving will be recouped in 2 months of lower rent, and gas usage shouldn’t go up – we live in LA and my wife commutes 15 miles every day to work. It doesn’t sound like much, but it takes 40 minutes in traffic, so she uses a lot of gas. In Taos, there is no traffic and 15 miles would you in the boonies!

By: Myfinancebutler

Myfinancebutler — Tue, 06 May 2008 22:00:11 +0000

However, one quick counterpoint: you have to factor in the cost of moving (which can be considerable). Not to mention increased gas usage once you’re there (potentially).

By: Myfinancebutler

Myfinancebutler — Tue, 06 May 2008 21:58:51 +0000

A good post, and some good points about moving to a rural place to save some dough. Thanks for sharing. Good luck with the move.