Question 1

How do I get an address?

Accepted Answer

You can request that the county assign an address once the deed is in your name. They call it a "911 address."  Once the deed is in your name, you can call the Luna County GIS Department (575-543-6502) and let them know you would like to assign an address and they will let you know what to do. Once the address is assigned, you can go to the local post office and request a free P.O. Box. You can also use the address on a New Mexico Driver's License.

Question 2

Is composting allowed?

Accepted Answer

Yes, it is!

Question 3

What are my water options?

Accepted Answer

Cheapest option: Set up a tote or a cistern, and haul water to the property.

Totes: You can find 275 gallon totes (called IBC totes) for a few hundred dollars on Facebook Marketplace or Tractor Supply. Local RV parks often let you fill them up for a small fee (usually around $15-$20).

Cisterns: You can buy a cistern of any size, but they are more expensive than totes. This is a good option if you want thousands of gallons instead of just a few hundred gallons.

Second cheapest option: Water delivery.

You can hire someone local to fill up totes/cisterns and bring it to your property for you. There are also water delivery companies that can bring larger amounts of water but usually cost a lot more especially if they aren't close by.

Most expensive, but most convenient: Drilling a well.

There is water available in the area, it's just a matter of drilling deep enough to reach it. Drillers charge by the foot, so it gets very expensive in desert climates where they have to drill deeper. It could be anywhere from $30,000-$50,000 or more.

Question 4

Can I do rain catchment?

Accepted Answer

Yes, it's allowed! The rainy season here is usually July-September. The rest of the year is pretty dry, so you'll need a place to store rain water that you catch.

Question 5

What does a septic cost?

Accepted Answer

It depends on the size of the system: If you have a small house with only one bathroom, then the septic system will be smaller than if you have 4 bathrooms. It can range anywhere from $7,000-$15,000.

The septic companies don't test soil (perc) to see if you can have a septic like some places on the east coast, but they just test the soil to see what kind of system you will need.

Note: You need at least 0.75 acres to legally install a septic.

Question 6

How much does it cost to run power and/or solar?

Accepted Answer

Grid Power (power lines):

Electric companies charge based on where the existing power lines are, and how far they have to run the lines to connect them to your property. The closer the lines, the cheaper it will be. We can't give you an exact quote, but the local power company will be able to help with that. In this county, columbusco-op.org is the main electric provider in the area.

If power is not close by, we highly recommend you consider solar power - it will probably be a much cheaper option, and you can have someone install it for you if you're not sure how to install it yourself.

Solar Power:

White Mountains Solar is in Show Low, Arizona and even if you have to make a day trip (or weekend trip) to pick up your order, it's well worth it. They offer entire solar system kits that are pre-built, that you can assemble yourself. They can also tell you how much power you need based on what you're planning to do. (At the time of writing this, they also offer no-credit-check financing on their Solar Systems, so make sure to ask them about that.)

Question 7

Do I have to get a survey?

Accepted Answer

No! A property survey is not required by law, but there are certain times when it can be very useful. For example, if you would like to put up a fence along the border of your property, we recommend that you hire a surveyor first to make sure you're not encroaching on the neighbor's property. A surveyor also puts stakes at all of the corners, which can be helpful for visualizing the boundary. Our GPS coordinates are very accurate, within a few feet.

Question 8

Do you offer financing?

Accepted Answer

We don't offer owner financing, but you can still finance it on your own by using a credit card (you can use multiple cards, to spread the amount out over several cards), or a personal loan from your bank.

Question 9

How do I pay?

Accepted Answer

Scroll down to the How To Purchase section just below these FAQs - we have a list of payment methods that we accept and details about how the purchase process works!

Question 10

Do you have any good resources for homesteading or off-grid building?

Accepted Answer

Yes! We (the owners) lived off grid ourselves for many years, and our favorite YouTube channels are My Little Homestead and Our Self-Reliant Life.

Additionally, Geoff Lawton is an excellent wealth of knowledge for learning how to grow food in desert climates, and The Weedy Garden has amazing tips and tricks and practical advice.

For heat, we recommend diesel heaters, propane, or wood stove (electric heaters take up too much power and are difficult to run off of solar power.)

To stay cool, we recommend Swamp Coolers (evaporative coolers) because they take much less electricity than ACs and you don't need as much solar to run them. Shade Cloth is also a great option, because in the desert shade is almost as good as AC because there's very little humidity and the heat is really just from the sun itself, not the air.

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