Even on the area’s higher pay, Thunder Mountain costs more to live in than 73% of U.S. towns
Home prices around Thunder Mountain have risen about 51% over the past 5 years.
Census 2020–24 home values, rents, tax bills and cost burden, measured against the median household income of the Santa Fe, NM metro area ($79K). How TownRatings grades cost of living
Only 1 sale in September 2026: in a market this size, monthly medians swing a lot, so the typical value is the steadier guide.
The grade measures what housing costs against what households in the area earn. Thunder Mountain’s area earns well above the typical U.S. town ($79K against $74K), but homes, rent and taxes here run higher still. Owners keep up better than renters: 51% of owners pay 30% or more of income for housing (typical U.S. town: 20%), against 100% of renters.
In dollars
- $1,520a month for a two-bedroom, utilities includedHUD Fair Market Rent, 2026
- 99prices across the Santa Fe metro, where the U.S. is 100 (housing 108)BEA Regional Price Parities, 2024
In paychecks the grade
- 5.1 yrsof area income buys the typical home; the typical U.S. town: 3.3$79K, Santa Fe-area income
- 51%of owners do; the typical U.S. town: 20%Census 2020–24
What Thunder Mountain’s housing numbers say
Nearly every household owns
99% of Thunder Mountain households own their home, against 70% across New Mexico. There are only 6 renter households, so rentals are scarce. Property taxes ↓
A low property tax rate
Owners pay about 0.33% of a home’s value a year in property tax, against 0.70% across New Mexico. The median bill is $1,320 (New Mexico: $1,731). Property taxes ↓
Written from the data on this page. There’s no Zillow index for Thunder Mountain, so the typical value is an estimate: the Census median carried forward with the federal house price index; incomes, rents paid, taxes and ownership come from the Census American Community Survey.
What’s behind Thunder Mountain’s grade
Measured against what households in the area earn, Thunder Mountain is more affordable than 27% of U.S. towns. The share of households paying 30%+ for housing pulls the grade down most; property tax holds it up.
Home prices up 51% in 5 years
The federal house price index for the ZIP code around Thunder Mountain rose 51% over the past 5 years, about the same as across New Mexico. Prices were about flat last year. Carrying the Census median home value forward with that index puts the typical Thunder Mountain home at roughly $450,000 today.
Carrying the Census median forward with the index puts a typical home at about $450K.
Federal Housing Finance Agency House Price Index (annual) for the ZIP codes around Thunder Mountain, weighted by land area. It tracks repeat sales of the same homes, so it shows how prices changed, not what homes cost.
A typical home costs 5.1 years of area income
The calculator starts from the area income the grade uses. Switch to Thunder Mountain’s own median, or type yours.
That’s $116K short of a typical Thunder Mountain home.
A two-bedroom rents for about $1,520 a month here, $960 less than owning.
An estimate, not a loan offer: payments of up to 28% of income, a 30-year fixed loan, Thunder Mountain’s typical property tax (0.33% of value a year, from the Census) and insurance of about 0.35%. Mortgage insurance, HOA fees and other debts aren’t included.
A two-bedroom rents for about $1,520
Fair Market Rent a month, utilities included
U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, Fair Market Rents by ZIP code (Albuquerque, NM MSA): the 40th-percentile rent plus utilities for a standard unit. Median rent and renters: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey.
Property tax runs below the New Mexico norm
The median bill is $1,320 (New Mexico: $1,731), 0.33% of a home’s value a year, against 0.70% statewide.
Census American Community Survey 2020–24: the median real-estate tax bill homeowners report, and that bill ÷ the median home value. Bills include town, school and county taxes. The Census reports bills over $10,000 only as “$10,000+”.
The rest of a budget near Thunder Mountain
Only figures published free for the whole country, each labeled with the area it covers: the Santa Fe, NM metro area, or New Mexico. Groceries follow the goods price level; nobody publishes them town by town.
| Cost | Here | Compared with | Area | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Prices overall U.S. = 100 | 99 | NM 92 | metro | BEA, 2024 |
| Goods (groceries, clothing, cars…) U.S. = 100 | 96 | NM 96 | metro | BEA, 2024 |
| Utilities U.S. = 100 | 77 | NM 78 | metro | BEA, 2024 |
| Other services U.S. = 100 | 99 | NM 99 | metro | BEA, 2024 |
Price levels: U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional Price Parities 2024 (metro area and state). Electricity: U.S. Energy Information Administration, Electric Power Monthly, table 5.6.A.
Thunder Mountain vs. its neighbors
Zillow publishes no value for Thunder Mountain.
Cost next door · one source per column
| Town | Cost | Typical home Zillow, latest | Median value Census 2020–24 | Tax rate bill ÷ value | 2-bed rent HUD 2026 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thunder Mountain | C | — | $400K | 0.33% | $1,520 |
| Edgewood | B+ | $380K | $306K | 0.50% | $1,550 |
“—” under Zillow: Zillow publishes no value for that town, so it’s left blank rather than mixed with Census figures.
Questions about the cost of living in Thunder Mountain
Is Thunder Mountain expensive to live in?
Measured against what households in the area earn, Thunder Mountain costs more than 73% of U.S. towns: a C for cost of living. The typical home costs 5.1 years of the median household income of the Santa Fe, NM metro area ($79K).
How much is rent in Thunder Mountain?
HUD puts a two-bedroom at about $1,520 a month with utilities, the going rate for someone moving in.
What are property taxes in Thunder Mountain?
The median bill is $1,320 a year, 0.33% of the median home value (New Mexico: $1,731, 0.70%), from the Census 2020–24.
Neighbors talk housing
What Thunder Mountain buyers, sellers and renters are saying.
Home values: Zillow Home Value Index (ZHVI), Zillow Research. Sales, days on market and supply: Redfin Data Center, September 2026. Income, ownership, taxes and rent: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey. Price trend: Federal Housing Finance Agency House Price Index. Fair Market Rents: U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. The calculator is an estimate, not a loan offer. Regional price levels: BEA; electricity: EIA. How TownRatings grades cost of living.