Southwest · Updated October 2026
New Mexico in numbers, from the same public data Locustep uses to rank all 50 states: rent, pay, taxes, safety, disaster risk and weather, plus the cities worth a look.
Two-bedroom rent
$1,282/mo
U.S. average $1,759
HUD Fair Market Rents FY2027 (40th percentile, population-weighted across the state)
Rent vs. income
22.7%
of median household income for a year of two-bedroom rent
HUD Fair Market Rents FY2027 ÷ 2024 ACS 1-year estimates (Census B19013)
State income tax
5.9%
top marginal rate, single filer
State revenue departments, 2026 income tax rates (sources listed per state)
Property tax
0.63%
effective rate on owner-occupied homes
Everyday costs
97.6
index, housing excluded (U.S. = 100)
BEA Regional Price Parities, 2024 (released February 2026), housing and utilities removed
Natural disaster risk
49th
percentile, FEMA expected annual loss (lower is safer)
Where New Mexico stands out: the 10th lightest state and local tax bill among the 50 states.
What to weigh: the 2nd highest violent crime and the 8th lowest median household income.
Overall, a married couple on the U.S. median household income would pay about 5.4% of it in state and local income, property and sales tax here, the 10th lowest of the 50 states.
Average afternoon highs and overnight lows in Albuquerque (Albuquerque Intl Airport station), NOAA 1991–2020 normals.
| Season | High | Low |
|---|---|---|
| Winter (Dec–Feb) | 50°F | 28°F |
| Spring (Mar–May) | 71°F | 44°F |
| Summer (Jun–Aug) | 90°F | 64°F |
| Fall (Sep–Nov) | 70°F | 46°F |
$1,384/mo two-bedroom · $1,112 one-bedroom (Albuquerque, NM MSA)
Albuquerque is a high-desert city with strong Native and Hispanic cultures, extraordinary green chile food and 300 sunny days a year. Housing is cheap, the Sandias rise right at the edge of town, and property crime is a real concern.
$1,735/mo two-bedroom · $1,413 one-bedroom (Santa Fe, NM MSA)
Santa Fe is a 7,000-foot adobe city with a major arts market, distinctive architecture and a large retiree and second-home population. Expensive relative to New Mexico wages, beautiful, and culturally singular.
$1,073/mo two-bedroom · $975 one-bedroom (Las Cruces, NM MSA)
Las Cruces sits in the Rio Grande valley beside the Organ Mountains, with a state university and very low living costs. Hot, dry, sunny, and close to both El Paso and White Sands.
$1,292/mo two-bedroom · $1,104 one-bedroom (Taos County, NM)
Taos is a small mountain town with a ski valley, an ancient pueblo and a long-established artist community. Remote, expensive for its size, and dependent on tourism and the arts.
$1,116/mo two-bedroom · $855 one-bedroom (Farmington, NM MSA)
Farmington is northwest New Mexico's Four Corners city, with oil and gas, the Navajo Nation next door and spectacular desert nearby. Cheap and sunny, with an economy that rises and falls with energy prices.
$1,091/mo two-bedroom · $892 one-bedroom (Chaves County, NM)
Roswell is a southeastern New Mexico town famous for the 1947 UFO story, with agriculture, dairies and the New Mexico Military Institute. Very cheap, hot, dry and remote.
$1,070/mo two-bedroom · $825 one-bedroom (Grant County, NM)
Silver City is a historic mining town in southwest New Mexico with an arts scene and the Gila Wilderness on its doorstep. Cheap, mild at altitude and far from any big city.
Rents: HUD Fair Market Rents FY2027 (40th percentile, population-weighted across the state) (metro areas). City notes: Locustep.
Closest on Locustep’s match factors: cost, housing, taxes, safety, jobs, schools, healthcare, outdoors, disaster risk and climate.
Ranks compare the 50 states. Locustep updates these figures when the agencies publish new data.
Yes. New Mexico’s top marginal income-tax rate for a single filer is 5.9% (New Mexico tax law, 2026). Counting property and sales tax too, a married couple on the U.S. median household income would pay about 5.4% of income in state and local taxes (Locustep estimate, 2026).
A typical two-bedroom rents for about $1,282 a month and a one-bedroom for about $1,051, using HUD’s FY2027 Fair Market Rents averaged across the state by population. That is $477 less than the U.S. average of $1,759. Rent in the bigger metros can be well above the state figure.
Leaving housing aside, everyday prices (goods and services other than housing) index at 97.6 against a U.S. average of 100 (BEA, 2024), and the median home value indexes at 77.6 against the U.S. median (Census, 2024). Two-bedroom rent takes 22.7% of the state’s median household income of $67,816.
New Mexico recorded 717.1 violent crimes per 100,000 residents in 2024 (FBI), the 2nd highest rate of the 50 states. Crime varies a lot between and within cities, so check the specific area you’re considering.
The main hazards are wildfires. On FEMA’s National Risk Index, New Mexico’s expected yearly loss from natural hazards sits at the 49th percentile nationally (lower is safer). Risk differs sharply by county, so look up the county too.
Places people most often weigh include Albuquerque, Santa Fe, Las Cruces, Taos and Farmington. Each has a different cost, climate and character; Locustep compares their rent, disaster risk, weather and pay side by side.