$100k salary, packing up from Lexington

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Albuquerque, NM cityscape

from lexington

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

$117

more each month than Lexington ran you

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

0% more expensive than Lexington(vs $1,488/mo)

02state income tax

5.9%

$117/mo more in state tax than Lexington

vs 4.5% in Lexington

03after rent

$6,353/mo

$117 less than Lexington

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

04a house here

$351k

8% more expensive than Lexington

vs $324k in Lexington

05metro size

924k

vs 520k in Lexington

03 · the life

field notes, weather & such.

205

pleasant days a year, in albuquerque.

Lexington barely cracks 171 pleasant ones. Hot stretches show up, though: 34 days above 95° here, 1 in Lexington.

Things to do run about even with Lexington.
on a typical month
·outdoorscore

81/100

35% higher than Lexington

vs 60/100 in Lexington

Closest outdoor draw: Sandia Mountain Wilderness, 13.4 mi.

·walk score®

94/100

7% higher than Lexington

vs 88/100 in Lexington

Walk Score® methodology

·nonstops

23

77% more than Lexington

vs 13 nonstops in Lexington

04 · see also

same energy as albuquerque, different zip code:

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