same $100k income, fresh start from Buffalo

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Albuquerque, NM cityscape

if you left buffalo

Albuquerque

nm · metro 924k

photo: Lad Fury / pexels

a dispatch from

albuquerque

NM

35.08°N

106.65°W

Albuquerque is green chile on everything, the Sandia Mountains turning pink at sunset (the name literally means watermelon), and the Balloon Fiesta in October when 500+ hot air balloons fill the sky. The old town adobes feel like the 1700s, the food fuses Native, Mexican, and Spanish in ways you won't get anywhere else. Breaking Bad fans will recognize half the city, and locals are good-natured about it.

metro924k

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01 · the verdict

the verdict

$119

more expensive each month than Buffalo

Almost a wash on cost. The case for Albuquerque is about what you'd do there, not what you'd save.
landable, recorded on the albuquerque entry

02 · the money

a quick ledger.

01rent

$1,489/mo

8% more expensive than Buffalo(vs $1,374/mo)

02state income tax

5.9%

$4/mo more in state tax than Buffalo

vs 5.85% in Buffalo

03after rent

$6,353/mo

$119 less than Buffalo

gross of federal tax. a comparison, not a paycheck.

04a house here

$351k

26% more expensive than Buffalo

vs $280k in Buffalo

05metro size

924k

vs 1.2M in Buffalo

03 · the life

field notes, weather & such.

205

pleasant days a year, in albuquerque.

Buffalo barely cracks 152 pleasant ones. Summers run hot, though: 34 days above 95° vs Buffalo's 0.

Noticeably quieter than Buffalo. About 38% fewer events on a typical month.
on a typical month
·outdoorscore

81/100

23% higher than Buffalo

vs 66/100 in Buffalo

Closest outdoor draw: Sandia Mountain Wilderness, 13.4 mi.

·walk score®

94/100

3% higher than Buffalo

vs 91/100 in Buffalo

Walk Score® methodology

·nonstops

23

15% more than Buffalo

vs 20 nonstops in Buffalo

04 · see also

neighbors of albuquerque on the map of tradeoffs:

see also

spartanburg

$5/mo cheaper

turn the page

see also

greenville

more things to do

turn the page

see also

spokane

$460/mo cheaper

turn the page

compare albuquerque with:

SpartanburgGreenvilleSpokane