$451,528Average Value$306Average Price per Sq Ft21Homes For Sale
Master-planned Santa Fe suburb with area-affordable housing
Around 13 miles southwest of Downtown Santa Fe, Tierra Contenta is a mixed-used, master-planned suburb known for area-affordable housing, family-friendly amenities and Jemez Mountain views. “What really makes Tierra Contenta stand out to me," says Daniel Huberman, a local Realtor with Santa Fe Realty Unlimited, "is that it’s offering homes that are affordable to good, regular people like teachers and police officers within the city limits.” Established in the 1990s, Tierra Contenta aims for 40 percent of its homes to be affordable to those earning 80 percent or less of Santa Fe’s median income. Parks, schools and libraries are scattered among the homes here, and proximity to the Santa Fe Regional Airport and Veterans Memorial Highway attract people from across the city. “It’s really one of the most convenient places to travel from in Santa Fe, because the highway lets you bypass all the traffic downtown,” Huberman says. Tierra Contenta scores a 3 out of 10 on the CAP Crime Index, lower than the national average of 4.
The convenient and safe community of Tierra Contenta is best known for its affordable housing.
A row of Santa Fe Style townhomes found in Tierra Contenta.
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Turn-of-the-century Santa Fe-style homes and townhouses
Set along winding, sidewalk-lined streets, Tierra Contenta’s homes are surrounded by desert plantings and cottonwood trees. All are Santa Fe-style homes from the 1990s to 2020s, set on compact lots with manicured gravel gardens, juniper trees for privacy and short driveways; common features include tan stucco exteriors, flat roofs and bright wood molding around windows and doors. According to Knouse, home layouts here are diverse because of the variety of builders in Tierra Contenta, but most homes have between three and five bedrooms; prices range from $370,000 for a one-story house with three bedrooms to $585,000 for a two-story home with five bedrooms. Attached Santa-Fe-style townhouses from the 2000s to 2020s can also be found here, featuring second-story patios and attached garages. Most have three- or four-bedroom layouts and range from $370,000 to $500,000; newer townhouses tend to be more expensive.
Yucca cacti and a juniper tree adorn the outside of this Santa Fe style home.
New houses and townhomes are currently being built in Tierra Contenta.
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Public and private Santa Fe schools in the neighborhood
Local kids can attend Santa Fe Public Schools, including Nina Otero Community School, which earns a C-minus from Niche, and Ortiz Middle, which scores a C-minus. Set in the neighborhood, the B-minus-rated Capital High offers bilingual programming for fluency in English and Spanish. The private Santa Fe School for the Arts and Sciences serves kindergarten through Grade 8, using the Expeditionary Learning Model to encourage experiential education.
Niche has given Nina Otero Community School an overall C- rating
Santa Fe School for the Arts and Sciences is also nearby, and uses the Expeditionary Learning.
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Neighborhood parks, greenbelts and golf courses in Tierra Contenta
Tierra Contenta wraps around the semi-private Santa Fe Country Club and its 7,100-acre, 18-hole golf course; while the golf course is public, those who become club members can use the pool and enjoy special events. In the neighborhood’s southwestern corner, the 90-acre SWAN Park features a multi-purpose ballfield, a playground, and an outdoor gym painted with Keith Haring murals. “I live on the opposite side of town and still bring my kids here," Huberman says, "because it has equipment to entertain both toddlers and teens.” The Santa Fe Teen Center opened here in 2023 and invites kids between 12 and 18 years old to enjoy its computer lap, gymnasium and lounge area. Smaller pocket parks like Rancho del Sol Park and Valentine Park are found throughout the neighborhood, their playgrounds and fields surrounded by juniper trees and Little Free Libraries. “They’re all connected by these greenbelts in the neighborhood, so kids can ride their skateboards or bikes to get around,” Huberman says. Around 228 acres of undeveloped land also rests south of Capitol High; although the Tierra Contenta Corporation has plans to develop this area into additional housing units and commercial space, much of it planned to remain a natural space of exposed earth and dry arroyos.
Tierra Contenta residents can easily enjoy the outdoors and hiking trails around the area.
Tierra Contenta
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Concerts and art classes at SWAN Park and the Southside Library
“SWAN Park is a hub for concerts and small events during the summer months,” Huberman says. Lensic 360’s Summer Scene Series brings artists like Los Flamantes de Chihuahua and Couch to SWAN Park’s green fields, and Movies in the Park invites locals to watch family-friendly films under the night sky. “You also have to pay attention to the Southside Library, because they’re always putting on something in the neighborhood,” Huberman says. The Santa Fe Library’s Southside Branch hosts weekly arts and crafts events like Create with O’Keefe, as well as story time readings for kids and yoga classes for adults.
Murals and unique sculptures are found throughout Tierra Contenta.
Tierra Contenta's Southside Branch Library is within walking distance to many in the community.
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Convenient to Veterans Memorial Highway and Santa Fe Trails buses
Tierra Contenta sits 13 miles west of Downtown Danta Fe and borders Veterans Memorial Highway; this roadway connects to Interstate 25 around 3 miles south. Although locals need a car to get around the city, they can take to Tierra Contenta’s bike lanes, sidewalks and greenbelts to get around the neighborhood; they can also use Santa Fe Trails buses, which make stops along Paseo del Sol, Jaguar Drive and Country Club Road. The CHRISTUS Saint Vincent Regional Medical Center is 7 miles east, and the Santa Fe Regional Airport sits immediately west of the community; according to Atwell, the Santa Fe Regional Airport is never too loud because it only takes one to two planes at a time.
Tierra Contenta
Tierra Contenta
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Shopping in Southside Santa Fe
“While it’s not in the luxury, famous dining scene of the Plaza, Tierra Contenta is surrounded by an equal number of—if not more—restaurants and retailers than in Downtown Santa Fe,” Huberman says. Less than a mile east, Cerrillos Road is lined with shopping options; the Walmart Supercenter here is the closest grocery store, and the Santa Fe Place Mall further up the road is home to a Regal Theater, Dillard’s and JCPenney. Airport Road borders the neighborhood to the north and is known for its Latino-owned businesses. “It’s almost like Santa Fe’s Little Mexico,” says Steve Atwell, a Santa Fe local and broker with Triad Realty. Less than a mile east on Airport Road, Puerto Peñasco offers taco de carne beside the bodega-bakery hybrid Panaderia Y Tortilleria Sani; the Master Food Truck directly across the street from Tierra Contenta also serves stuffed sopapillas from an apple-shaped truck.
Tierra Contenta
Walmart Supercenter conveniently sits on Cerrillos Road nearby.
GreatSchools:
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On average, homes in Tierra Contenta, Santa Fe sell after 66 days on the market compared to the national average of 52 days. The median sale price for homes in Tierra Contenta, Santa Fe over the last 12 months is $460,000, up 6% from the median home sale price over the previous 12 months.
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