So my attempt to buy at Condo in Galveston came to an end. Turns out financing a condo where > 50% of units are vacation rentals leads to a lot of extra headaches and required substantially more down than I was willing to part with. The never ending cost of the HOA and special assessments were also factors that made me give up the attempt to purchase a condo to live in through the winter and rent in the summer. I tried to find a place in Colorado this past summer but I couldn’t find anything that fit my needs and price range. I also looked in Santa Fe, Taos, CloudCroft & Ruidoso NM last summer as well but didn’t find anything. So from my rental Air B&B condo in Galveston after my condo search fell through, I scoured the country for a place I could live in through the pandemic and then rent part time to help defray some of the cost when things normalize. I called my agent in NM and she had a property that the buyers financing fell through at the last minute. I did a zoom tour with her on Saturday morning and made an offer that afternoon. Seller accepted that evening. Now I’m under contract on a small mountain home in Ruidoso that was previously in the AirB&B market. Roof, furnace, paint, windows all replaced in 2018. Kitchen needs some updating but it’s livable and rentable even in its current state. I’ll go see it in person for the inspection as my last chance to back out so I won’t be buying site unseen. My plan is to live and work from there through the rest of the pandemic while updating the kitchen and flooring in the living area. Then when things normalize put it back on the AirBB market to have the property help pay for itself and using Ruidoso as a home base from which to continue exploring the West in my van. I figure a mountain home is a better long term investment than a beach condo and I love that part of NM so its win win in my opinion. Anyone have any NM favorites? Things to see, places to go, things to do?
Careful or I’ll take my Rockets with me. J/K Tillman would never move some place where he didn’t own a couple restaurants or a casino.
Dude, that's gorgeous. We used to have family friends in NM and would visit every few summers. My mother also sent me to live there for a summer when I was 15. That was a -long- time ago, but what I remember the most was just the outdoor stuff. Hiking, riding horses (they had a horse ranch). I wouldn't spend much time inside if I lived there. Protip: Never slap an ornery horse on the rump when you're behind it.
New Mexico is a great place... I'd love to make that move. Ruidoso has a horse race track (Ruidoso Downs). Also skiing in the winter (Ski Apache and Ruidoso Winter Park). Other cool places in New Mexico. The Malpais (a volcanic flow). Carlsbad Caverns. White Sands. Santa Fe and Taos are great places to visit.
congratulations! beautiful place. ive stayed in some air bnbs in southern colorado that look exactly like yours. one of my good friends is up in taos right now putting an offer on a house. they had been looking around that area for about a year now and were initially trying to get one of those earthships (100% off grid houses). im sure theres others more familiar with that area, but youre not far from carlsbad, which is worth checking out. theres a state park close to there called brantley lake that ive camped at a few times on roadtrips. white sands is close. city of rocks state park in the southwestern part of state is amazing! weird rock formations that you can climb all over and explore. guadalupe mountains - theres an entrance through new mexico that ive never been to. i think its like a 2 hour drive from the main one! santa fe is great. i could see myself living there. meow wolf is a must see. and the museum of international folk art. good santa fe-mex food.
Dude that is so cool, I absolutely love that area of NM. Good for you! If you ever plan on hitting up Taos let me know and I can give you all kinds of recs, great friend of mine has been there for a few years.
Good luck to you but I've had terrible experience with wanna be hoteliers who are either cheap, in over their heads, or all of the above. I try to avoid those properties.
I love the Taos area but couldn't find anything to fit my needs and my budget. Next time I head that way I'll reach out for recs. always great to get first hand recommendations.
A, I'm not cheap B. I doubt I'll be in over my head. What kind of problems have you had? I'll be doing a lot of research (and some improvements) before I get to the point where I want to AirBB the property. The property currently has 4.95 out of 5.0 rating on AirBB. I'll be a local host to make things go smoothly but I am interested in hearing on ways renters think the process/properties could be better.
