Community

Here in Las Cruces people joke that we have 366 days of sunshine—and that’s when it’s not Leap Year.  Actually, that’s not much of an exaggeration.  With nearly 350 days of sunshine, only 8 inches of rain per year, and low humidity, Las Cruces features a near-perfect high-desert climate.  We’re easy to find at the intersection of Interstates 10 and 25 in southern New Mexico and less than an hour from the El Paso International Airport.

This is a short list of what you’ll experience in Las Cruces: a wide variety of natural beauty (after all, New Mexico is the Land of Enchantment), a relaxed lifestyle, a vibrant blend of cultures, year-round outdoor recreational activities, colorful history (from Billy the Kid to the making of the A-bomb), a major university (NMSU), fabulous sources for Southwest arts and crafts, and world-famous cuisine featuring local green and red chile.  We used to be known as one of the Southwest’s best-kept secrets, but—as the list below will attest—we’ve earned a large measure of recognition lately.

Las Cruces, New Mexico: Top-Ranked

 For more than a decade Las Cruces has been ranked as one of the top cities in the United States.  Las Cruces has been ranked as high as the following:

• Number 1 among “Best Small Metro Areas for Business and Careers” (Forbes-Milken Institute)
• Top 20 among “Top Areas for Jobs” (CNN Money)
• Number 3 among “Top Recovery Cities in the U.S.” (RelocateAmerica.com)
• Number 6 among “Top 10 Cities for Real Estate Steals” (U.S. News and World Report)
• Number 3 among “America’s Top Place for Boomers to Retire” (CNBC)
• Top 20 among “Most Secure Place to Live in the U.S.” (Sperling’s Best Places)
• Among “America’s Top 100 Retirement Towns” (Where to Retire magazine)
• Top 10 among “America’s Strongest Building Markets” (Business Week)
• Top 5 among “Places to Retire” (AARP magazine)