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Hi, Allan, i agree, one half acre is plenty to homestead on. However, haven't they already passed the ordinance making 2 acres mandatory? I can't build on my land either, that i have owned for 45 years. What a disappointment.
My husband and I purchased a 1/2 acre lot in Deming, in 2000, and we paid $600 for it. Last I checked, they were asking $1200 for 1/2 acre lots in the same area, but that was about 2 years ago...
As for the blowing wind, yes it does get windy here...mostly from the West....But it's not constant...The blowing dust does bother me, but that's not the main reason we're moving!!
And as for the earth being red, I honestly can't say I've seen red earth in or around Deming. If you go up into the Gilas, then the earth turns a bit red. And as for it being cracked, well you must have been here after a long drought. The earth here is a high-clay mixture, and after it rains it turns into "caliche", which can readily bog down your vehicle if you get in too deep!! This is why we chose to buy land on the West side of the Floridas. The earth on the East side is all caliche, and is prone to flooding, so I've heard.
Taxes on our land run about $11/yr. now - Used to be $7!!
And they have recently moved the County Clerks' office. It is now housed inside the court house. Sorry, don't have the number offhand, but I will look it up tomorrow and post it here.
I have some photos that I'll post here too tomorrow. The view of the Florida's is truely a sight to behold at sunrise! (Not to mention the red hue that is reflected on them at sunset!)
Beautiful country. That's for sure. But like I said, there are lots of reasons we've decided not to make this our home!
Sorry about taking so long to back to you. The property I have is in Sunshine Valley Ranchettes which are different from the Deming Ranchettes. As far as I can tell, DR is scattered all over the place. The map I have shows numbered squares which look to be different subdivisions. I would suggest the first thing you do is get in contact with Luna County and ask for the plot map of your Track. They will probably also send you an area map like the one I have that shows how to get there. While you are talking to them, ask also for a listing of the adjancent Track owners. You can contact them and see if they would be interested in selling their land to get your 1 or 2 acres. If Ord. 37 has dampened your thoughts about moving to Deming, you at least have a list of people that might be interested in buying.
As far as I know, there are three options to build for you:
1. Rush right out there and slap everything in place before the law goes into effect in January.
2. Acquire an adjoining lot to get 1 acre and spend more money on installing the 'advanced' septic system.
3. Acquire 3 more adjoining lots to get 2 acre minimum.
I don't know what your budget is, but it might be a toss-up between spending the money on the advanced septic, or trying to get the 3 other lots.
IMO, the first thing you need to do is get the exact location of your property and determine if town is too far away for your needs. Also, if there aren't a lot of neighbors around, will you be comfortable living in a rural location? If I am reading the map correctly, you are about a mile west of Rockhound State Park.
Ordinance 37 is just another example of regulatory abuse of power which is totally out of sync with foresight for future homesteading. I presently own 2 lots in Unit 20 which I planned on passing to one of my grandchildren. One half acre in my opinion is a reasonable size for a homestead. The proposed ordinance 37 will certainly create great dissention and totally upset the applecart for many landowners. I am totally opposed to ordinance 37
1/2 acre may seem like a lot of land, but that puts your well awlfully close to your neighbor's septic system. Guess I would want more buffer myself.
For what it is worth........
Over time you'll find that 2 acres is about the minimum you will want for a lot. 1/4 acre is way too small unless you want to reach out your window to knock on your neighbors front door. I guess it all depends on how you lived in the past, I was raised in the country and now live on 40 acres which , to me, feels about right but I imagine if I was raised in the city that would be a rediculous lot. I purchased 2 acres in the valley, I'm not sure if I can live on 2 acres or not but I'm going to try lol. Anyways, for you people ready to throw in the towel, there's an old yankee saying; If there's a will there's a way so instead of giving up find a way to make it work. If you own a small lot you don't have to run out there and start building, what you DO have to do is some paperwork. The first thing you want to do is apply for a building permit and septic installation permit and water well permit.It does not matter if you do these things now or 10 years from now because there's no time element involved but what this DOES do is grand-father you to the old ordinances in affect now. Once your permits are State approved you're all set.
Hi, Rainforest,,,,,,I own land in Deming Ranchettes. Was thinking about moving there from South Carolina. Your message frightened me. How can I find out about this new ordinance in Deming. I have owned the land for about 45 years and if I can't build on it for some reason , I need to know. Do you have any resources to recommend that I could research this further? Thanks for your help.
My wife & I own two half acres in the Ranchettes. One in unit 45 & one in unit 4. We are like a lot of people who will be tired of the Northeast weather when we're really old. We visited our land of enchantment in Sept. and saw the beautiful mountain backdrop and a town of friendly folks.
I understand why the county wants to protect our ground water supply from suburban sprawl. We, who are happy to live on half acres, have two options for an "advanced septic system". A leaching field of 2,050 sq. ft. would be required for a three bedroom house, according to the very helpful planning dept. Mr. Charles Lynch(retired). A distribution box serving preforated pipes in a bed of stone lined with durable liner. This type of system will eventually require cleaning. They would like to see the water from the septic system evaporate up and out but not down. It would be nice if the ground water was no higher than 100 feet below ground, too. Good luck fitting that, your house, driveway and the pool on the lot. For the same money ($7,500.00 installed), we have the option of owning our own mini-waste water treatment plant from a company in Las Cruses called Norweco. Talk to ryan at 505-635-1025 and visit their website. A 500 gallon tank that's 9 by 5 by 6 feet high that has three chambers, an small motor that stimulates biological growth, a filter that requires replacement and a end result of clear/grey water for a drip irrigation system. It's triple the cost of a conventional septic system that two acre lot owners can get by on but they won't be protecting the water supply as much as we are. There is a small yearly maintenance cost but the motor is no stronger than a light bulb. I hear that the town has no objections to the system.
I talked to Frank Almanza of the Luna County's planning dept. He's very helpful. You can call him at 505-543-6621 or email him at frank@lunacountynm.net He said they have changed the minimum lot size of 2 acres to 1 acre. That doesn't make our half acres buildable. However, he said the deadline to establish a half acre has been extended to Jan. 21, 2009. What I gather from Frank is if I install a water well thru the State Engineers Office, provide electricity from P & M Electric(or any power co.) and get a permit to install an advanced treatment unit, we can beat the deadline. He said the septic unit did not have to be installed until the house was in place. If any of you didn't know already, the structure setbacks from your property lines are: 25 feet from the street and 15 from the other sides. Frank thought because I owned two half acres that we met the minimum requirement until I said that they were not next to each other. Because we own a total of an acre, wouldn't I be protecting the ground water supply if I could only build on one of the two half acres? Maybe that's a good reason for a variance.
I have a lot in Unit 4 Block 8 Tract 32 that is going up for sale if I find out that I can't put a mobile on it.
I'm trying to build in unit #4 also. I'm in block #2 lot #27 on Capital Dome road. You have electricity crossing your lot already, if you get a well installed and a permit for an advanced treatment unit before the deadline of Jan. 21, 2009, you should be good to go. Please think twice about what a mobile house is going to do to that mountain view.
I bought 1.5 acres a few months back, and the man who sold it to me said that it use to be 2 acres for a conventional septic, but they have changed it recently to 1.5 acres. And as far as I know you can build on a 1/2 acre as long as you have the correct setbacks provided by the local building department. The best thing to do is call the Zoning Department.
Steve
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Size does not matter
More 411 about building on half acres
I talked to Frank Almanza of the Luna County's planning dept. He's very helpful. You can call him at 505-543-6621 or email him at 
