Living in El Duende, NM
El Duende is a tiny town of 454 people in Rio Arriba County, New Mexico. It's about 29 miles from Santa Fe, NM and 264 miles from Denver, CO, the nearest major city. Summer highs average 88°F and winter highs 45°F, with about 13 inches of snow a year. The typical home is valued around $244k and rent runs about $740 a month.
454people
$244kTypical home
$740/moRent
88° / 45°Summer / winter
13"Snow
287Sunny days
58Rain/snow days
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Size & setting
- Tiny town of 454
- Its own small hub, not a suburb
- About 309 people per sq mi
- 264 mi to Denver, CO
- 29 mi to Santa Fe, NM
- 6 mi to the nearest town of 10k+
Money
- Typical home $244k (≈$1,537/mo)
- Median rent $740/mo
- Median household income $91k
- Property tax about 0.4% of value
- 3.0% unemployment
Weather
- Summer highs around 88°F
- Winter highs around 45°F
- Dry summers (dew point 41°F)
- 287 sunny days a year (122 totally clear)
- 78 cloudy days a year
- 26 of 90 winter days are gray
- 58 days a year with rain or snow
- 13" of snow a year
- 4 days a year with 1"+ of snow
- Rarely hits 100°F
- 17 nights a year below 10°F
- Usually calm
People
- Median age 38
- 43% of households have kids
- 11% are 65 or older
- 10% have a college degree
- Not very diverse
- 2% of residents are college students
Getting around & homes
- Average commute 26 min
- 2% walk or take transit to work
- 31 mi to SAF airport
- 76 mi to ABQ (major hub)
- 43 mi to the nearest Amtrak station
- 53% single-family homes
- Typical home built around 1995
- 87% of homes have broadband
Outdoors
- Gently rolling terrain
- Elevation 5,903 ft
- 523 mi to the ocean
- 111 mi to a big lake
- 12 mi to the nearest trailhead
- 19 mi to the nearest ski area
- 14 mi to the nearest campground
- 6 golf courses within 25 mi
Things to do
- 24 sit-down restaurants within 25 mi
- Few or no bars within 25 mi
- Few or no coffee shops within 25 mi
- No music venues & clubs within 25 mi
- 14 museums within 25 mi
- No breweries & distilleries within 25 mi
- 6 mi to the nearest farmers market
Everyday
- Schools in the bottom 34% of New Mexico districts (reading)
- 5 mi to the nearest grocery store
- 5 mi to the nearest ER hospital
- 31 mi to a 4–5★ hospital
- 8 mi to the nearest vet
- 15 mi to the nearest dog park
- 6 congregations per 10k people
- 17 mi to the nearest college
Politics
- Rio Arriba County: D+19 in 2024
- New Mexico: D+6 in 2024
Natural hazards
- Very low hurricane risk
- Very low tornado risk
- Moderate wildfire risk
- Low earthquake risk
- Very low flood risk
- High drought risk
- High winter storm risk
- Very low heat wave risk
- Very low volcano risk
Limited data: this place is small enough that most of its Census numbers (rent, home value, income, age) are blended with county figures. Treat its match as a rough guide.