enchanted lands
Compatible neighbors, a strong sense of community, and recreation—from golf to horseback riding to gallery hopping—set apart these varied land developments.
With stunning views of the north end of the Sandia Mountains, Alegria offers access to a wide range of activities for its “55 or better” residents.
Alegria Active Adult Community
A conservation easement project, Deer Canyon Preserve offers homesites in a protected setting near archaeological ruins.
Deer Canyon Preserve is set near the vast wild lands of the Manzano Mountains.
El Corazon de Santa Fe
Fractional ownership units at El Corazon wed downtown Santa Fe charm with the convenience of fractional ownership.
Residents at Jubilee Los Lunas can take full advantage of panoramic views, 1,400 acres of dedicated open space, and miles of mountain trails.
This Tuscan style home is one of seven single-level models at Jubilee Los Lunas, ranging in size from 1,400 to almost 3,000 square feet.
Home by Desert Sage Building and Development at Picacho Mountain in Las Cruces, New Mexico.
Picacho Mountain includes a range of lots and housing alternatives in a dramatic desert setting, with lovely nighttime views of nearby Las Cruces, New Mexico.
Golf is the main attraction at Turtleback Mountain Resort, near Elephant Butte Lake.
Five communities at Turtleback Mountain Resort in Elephant Butte, New Mexico, offer a range of styles and pricing.
This article first appeared in Winter 2008 Su Casa
The backdrop to a New Mexico land fantasy can be as varied as the rooftops of Santa Fe or the piñon and juniper of the mountains. You might prefer the open desert of Las Cruces or lakeside at New Mexico’s largest body of water. Whichever suits you, New Mexico’s developers have a land project underway for which you’ll be tempted to sign on the dotted line.
It may have been Internet connectivity that seemed important five years ago, but demographics, and desires, have changed. Today we’re talking about neighbors, community, and activities. Builders stress recreation among companionable neighbors with whom to share a latte or a dip in the lake. It’s the promise of connectedness, the back-porch-at-sunset-with-the-neighbors lifestyle that’s designed to draw you in.
Big sky country
Deer Canyon Preserve is a conservation easement project developed by Heritage Preserve and Verde Realty out of El Paso, Texas. The 17,000-acre project sits two miles south of Mountainair, New Mexico, a town with a population of around 1,000. This ranching community at the base of the 10,000-foot-plus Manzano mountain range has seen an influx of artists and retirees.
Deer Canyon’s primary mission is conservation. As such, the building envelope on each of the 20-acre homesites is only one to three acres. Within the envelope, homeowners can build whatever they like—barn, casita, stable, workshop, home—provided it follows the architectural edicts set forth by the developer. At the time of this writing, 8 to 10 homes have been built, 14 are under construction, and 140 have been sold out of a total of 400 lots. Yet for every 20 acres sold, another 20 acres goes into a conservation easement in perpetuity. Adjacent is 180,000 acres of public lands.
True to its conservation ethos, Deer Canyon has its own former National Park Service employee on site—both as a point of contact for homeowners and as a community resource. Robert Bully leads a nature hike every Tuesday morning at 7:30. “He’s definitely one of our amenities,” says sales and marketing director Justin Ruby. “It’s like living in a national park only without the tourists.” An equestrian center has a 12-stall barn and an arena and is surrounded by 25 miles of trails, organized in loops of 1, 3, 5, and 7 miles for avid hikers, bikers, and riders. The trails have destination points, such as historic sites, interesting geologic formations, or even a quiet bench for meditation. Although still three to five years from completion, a community resource center is planned for one of the highest points of Deer Canyon Preserve.
Lots sell for $119,000 to $249,000, depending on the exact acreage, the view lines, and the site plan. The preserve recommends two builders, Debbie Reynolds of Homescapes New Mexico and J. C. Anderson Construction Co., both of which are familiar with the site’s architectural guidelines. Although there’s much leeway, the guidelines specify homes that blend in with, rather than detract from, the landscape. Traditional Pueblo style with a low profile is encouraged to match the area’s historic character (there are several archaeological ruins nearby).
Ruby notes that most buyers are retirees or second-home owners, but many are younger than you’d expect—in their late 40s or early 50s. “One of the things that’s been really nice about this project is how few resales we have,” he says. “This is the true end user—we’re not dealing with speculators but with users.” Besides just building their dream homes, the current residents have become engaged in Deer Canyon’s various conservation programs. “Our homeowners, they’re doing something more than just for themselves,” Ruby says. “It’s a different feeling when you’re involved in a place that’s really doing something special.”
Southern comfort
Long known as a latter-day retirement mecca, Las Cruces is one of the state’s fastest-growing communities. Picacho Mountain developers Robert and Karen Pofahl of Community Builders International see their project as a community within a community. They have broken ground on what will be a nearly self-contained village. Homesites of different sizes, ranging from estate properties to attached townhomes, cluster around a village center that will offer a variety of small retail and services.
In Las Estancias, phase one of a build-out that will eventually include a planned 1,560 units, minimum square footage for an estate style home is 2,200 square feet, with final price ranging from $500,000 to over $1 million, depending on the homeowner’s chosen options and home style. Phase two, The Willows, will be patio style homes on much smaller lots with an appropriately smaller price tag. Eventually, there will also be apartments and more modest premier homes on view lots. Tiffany Etterling, director of marketing for Picacho Mountain, notes that many of the buyers in the community are coming from out of state, looking to purchase their retirement home, although they may not occupy it full time right away.
While all the homes in Picacho Mountain will be custom, the community has fairly strict architectural guidelines that are meant to preserve the natural beauty of the site’s desert environment, Etterling says. For example, while estate lots range from three-quarters of an acre to one and one-half acres, the maximum square footage that can be disturbed on each lot is only 10,000 square feet—the rest must remain in natural condition. In addition, the architectural guidelines specify that no home be taller than one story, or 20 feet, to preserve the views.
While there’s no on-site golf course or recreational facility, Picacho Mountain residents have access privileges at the nearby Picacho Hills Country Club, which Etterling says has golf, swimming, tennis, and a great restaurant. Community retail will be within walking distance of the patio and townhome phases to create a more urban neighborhood. “We’re about preservation and building community,” Etterling says. “We’re very detail oriented, with every detail of the master plan thought out in a way that is excellent for our residents.”
Pied-à-terre
Some dream of a New York apartment, some of a ski house in Aspen, and some of a hideaway steps from Santa Fe’s famous plaza. But who needs all the upkeep? The newest concept in vacation home ownership made its debut in Santa Fe recently.
El Corazon de Santa Fe, an award winner in the 2007 Su Casa/AIA Residential Design competition, is a residence club, according to Steve Dering of DCP International, which markets and advises residence clubs all over the United States. The clubs offer the benefits of luxury second-home ownership without the hassle of absentee ownership. Each unit is fully and luxuriously furnished and comes with a cleaning service and other amenities, depending on the property.
The clubs are structured much like fractional ownership of small aircraft. Each owner purchases shares of the property—in the case of The Residence Club at El Corazon de Santa Fe, each of the 15 units, which range in size from 1,150 to 1,800 square feet, has eight owners who pay between $130,000 and $175,000 for their share. To use the property, owners simply log on to a reservation site and reserve three weeks a year when they know they want to use the property. However, unlike time-shares or vacation rentals, there’s no real limit to how often an owner can use his or her property—if one uses the property less, another can use it more.
Rob Harper, real estate and investment advisor for Unity Hunt, a private investment company that is a principal in El Corazon, says shares are about 50 percent sold, and sales began in spring 2006.
“The greatest amenity of our project is that we’re three blocks from the plaza. Every unit is fully furnished, with slate floors, granite accent features, plaster walls, wood ceilings, and high-end stainless-steel appliances,” he says, adding that authentic Southwestern art decorates the units.
Currently El Corazon offers two different products: a two-story townhome, about 1,800 square feet, and a more modest apartment, about 1,150 square feet. The apartments have outdoor patios, housekeeping service, concierge, and privileges at the nearby La Posada de Santa Fe Resort & Spa, art galleries, and the Towa Golf Resort near Santa Fe. You can leave your skis, winter clothes, and hiking boots in storage without worrying about what the tenants did to your property over Christmas week.
Community-centric
Two projects in New Mexico don’t offer custom homes, but they do offer a community of like-minded individuals. Both are active adult communities where residents are 55 and older. At Jubilee Los Lunas, residents have limited choices when it comes to home styles, but the community offers an array of activities. “Basically Jubilee is focused on the lifestyle of the community,” says Amanda O’Neill, marketing director for Jenamar, the community’s developer. In addition to one-story patio homes ranging from 1,143 to 2,872 square feet, the true center of life at Jubilee will be Villa Jubilee, a large recreation center with indoor pool, community living room, and classrooms where members can gather for workshops. “That’s where we envision everyone will be,” says O’Neill. Miles of surfaced walking trails wind through the community and just beyond, and the development abuts El Cerro de Los Lunas with its 1,444 acres of open space.
The Tuscan style homes start at $189,000 up to about $341,000, and the builder offers four different elevations for each of its floor plans. California-based Jenamar also operates Jubilee at Hawks Prairie, in Washington. The homes are all two bedrooms, and those larger than 1,700 square feet have an additional den. The kitchens and living areas are larger because the homes focus more on entertaining rather than family life. “You’re not going to find a four-bedroom home in this community,” O’Neill says. The homeowners’ association maintains the small front yards so residents can leave for months at a time without worrying about maintenance. At the time of this writing, 22 homes were under contract, and 800 are planned.
On the other side of Albuquerque, in the town of Bernalillo, Alegria Active Adult Community also prides itself on its community center and activities, plus its “55 or better” population. No kids allowed as permanent residents, but they’re welcome to visit. “We’re catering to the active adult who always wanted to do certain activities but never had the time to do them,” says Julie Karl, community lifestyle director. Karl notes that the typical Alegria resident is active and social and wants to be involved, know his or her neighbors, be in a safe community, and travel.
Homes range from 1,400 to 2,325 square feet and are priced from $247,000 to $318,000. Centex Homes offers several styles, but all are single-level two-bedroom homes. So far, 127 of the 376 lots have been sold since the community’s grand opening in June 2006. Options in the standard floor plans include an additional bedroom or study. “We’re in a great location, just 40 minutes to Santa Fe, a mile south of 550 and 528,” Karl says. “We’re situated right on the Rio Grande with walking trails all around.”
Fore ever
At press time, Turtleback Mountain Resort had no actual homes completed, but 12 of 192 lots in the project’s first phase have been sold, according to Sheila Stagner, qualifying broker. Composed of all custom homes, Turtleback Mountain sits in a valley in Elephant Butte, New Mexico. When completed, it will have five different communities, priced according to the size of the home and the location of the lot—mesa top with views are more expensive than valley sites. Home sizes range from modest patio homes to grand estates looking over the golf course.
The master-planned community has 1,250 lots, although the developer, Whitt Family Partners, is still deciding how many homes to build in total. Five subdivisions have been platted and approved. “We have a long future ahead of us,” Stagner says.
While the community is centered on the Sierra del Rio Golf Course, 30 to 35 percent of resort buyers are not golfers, Stagner says, but they like the quality and lifestyle standard of a resort community. The country club includes a bar, a fine dining restaurant, tennis courts, and a swimming center. Nearby is the Hot Springs Motorplex in Truth or Consequences, New Mexico, for car racing enthusiasts, and of course, there’s Elephant Butte for swimming and boating.
Right now, lots range from $70,000 in the Villa Tuscano patio home section to $399,000 in the Aguila Vista subdivision. Residents or builders have three years to obtain a building permit, and they have four choices of home styles—Tuscan, Pueblo, Spanish Mission, or Territorial. The development now has two preferred builders, Homes by Joe Boyden of Tijeras, New Mexico, and Jim Maddox Builders of Los Lunas. But as long as lot owners meet the architectural guidelines, they can work with whomever they like.
Jack Whitt, of Whitt Family Partners, says he came across the property four years ago. “I chose it because of weather, access to the largest lake in the state of New Mexico, relatively inexpensive real estate, and potential for growth, given everything that’s going on in this part of the world,” he says. There was even an old golf course already on the property, although Whitt says they bulldozed it and started over for the new 18-hole championship course.
“We’re appealing to those who like to live in a complete recreational facility and love outdoor activities like boating, tennis, and swimming,” Whitt says. “We plan on having a large population of baby-boomers who love the high desert but don’t want to have two homes. It’s ideally suited to the retirement couple that wants to have one house that allows them to be outdoors the maximum amount of days.”
A journalist and editor for 20 years, Emily Esterson survived her own home renovation adventures. She’s written for many national publications on topics as varied as small business strategies, art, and architecture.