Located just north of Highway 60 in the shadows of the Manzano Mountains, Rio Grande Estates is a master-planned subdivision, platted out and pinned back in the 1960's. Sitting just outside Belen and only forty miles south of Albuquerque, this land is perfect for anyone looking to live an "off grid" lifestyle, as Socorro County has no formal zoning ordinance and does not restrict the use of the real property within its county. This fact alone makes the area ideal for anyone with an RV who's looking for land they can vacation to, camp on, or park and live on for lengthy periods of time without being hassled by local officials. This also makes the area fitting for other types of "unconventional" dwellings such as earth ship homes, tiny homes and shipping container homes. Best of all is that because this enitre subdivision was platted into thousands of 1 acre lots, this means the minimum "3/4 of an acre building threshold" will be met by all of the individual lots within this region, allowing owners to both install a well and a conventional septic system on the each piece of land. This will make the cost of building and living in this region far more afforable than what you'd encounter in other subdivisions whose land does not conform to that standard.

About Rio Grande Estates:

• All parcels within the Rio Grande Estates subdivison have legal access, as roads and easements were allowed for in the original Plats of the area. Additionally, because this region boasts a largely arid climate, few of the roads have become impassable because of overgrown brush or washed out from rain, meaning that with rare exception, most all of the roads can be driven by any vehcile type. As is to be expected, some areas - particualrly those closer to Highway 60 - are easier to get to than others, and some roads are easier to drive on than others.


• Power can be found running the length of Highway 60 and servicing some of the roads and homesites closest to that area. The further north and south you go within the subdivision, the less of a presence those utilities will have, though you will encounter the ocassional homesite being serviced by a power pole and utility box. Because city utilities have not yet been extended into the further parts of the subdivision, solar energy may be a necessary but affordable solution for those electing to live outside the range of local utilities. When the day comes that power lines are extended throughout this area, however, the value of this land will increase immeasurably making this an even better investment.


• Socorro County has no formal zoning ordinance, and per their own government website "does not restrict the use of real property" within the county boundaries.


• Rio Grande Estates sits just east of the I-25 corridor. From this subdivision, Belen is only ten miles north and Albuquerque only forty miles. The Rio Metro has stops in Belen as well as nearby Los Lunas which may help with commutes back and forth to nearby Albuquerque and as far north as Santa Fe.


• Elephant Butte Lake, the largest body of water in the state, is located only ninty miles south of Rio Grande Estates along the I-25. This region boasts excellent recreation opportunities such as fishing, boating, jet skiing, camping and RV'ing and may provide excellent weekend getaways for you and the family.


• The nearest Walmarts can be found in Belen, Los Lunas and Socorro and the nearest Home Depot in Los Lunas.


• Our one acre lots are priced at $1,500 and our two acre lots are priced between $2,500 and $3,000. Based on all available comps both on the MLS and the internet, these are the lowest priced and most affordable lots within this area. Owner financing with affordable down payments and easy monthly payments are also offered on most of our Rio Grande Estates inventory.


• The Hemingway Land Company has recently acquired a number of parcels within this subdivision and plans to acquire more in the interest of recombining adjacent acreage, and hence, create more value for our buyers. Linked below is a list of the properties we own in this subdivision as broken down by Legal Description of Unit/Block/Lot. This list will be updated as time goes on to reflect which lots have been sold, and what properties are Under Contract or Coming Soon. Should you already own land in this area and are looking to expand your property boundaries, we encourage you to review this list or call our offices to see if the land you're looking for is one we may be listing in the weeks ahead.


• DISCLAIMER: Because Socorro County is one of the few counties in the country that does not interface with our software, the GPS coordinates given on each of the listing pages and in the spreadsheet linked below come directly from the county GIS office and NOT from our typical software. Because of this, we will not be able to supply buyers with corner points for the individual lots. As with all the properties we sell, buyers are encouraged to hire a surveyor to tell them exactly where the lot begins and ends, particularly if they intend to build on the property.

Property Specific Notes:

• Road Conditions: This property is a corner lot located where Juanita Avenue meets Lozano Street in the eastern portion of the subdivision. The road conditions are very good and can be navigated by any vehicle type.


• Power: The nearest power is more than a mile south of the subject property. While there a few neighbors in this area, it's difficult to discern which structures are occupied and which are abandonded. Anyone looking to build here should consider an alternative form of energy such as solar.


• Additional Notes: This property is a combination of two adjacent 1 acre lots. Finding even this many adjacent lots in a subdivision like this is incredibly difficult.