Best PlacesWestgate Hts, Albuquerque, NM Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood in and around Westgate Hts, Albuquerque, scored on 40 measures of daily life and ranked to fit what matters to you. This page is for people who live here or already know they want to. To work out which city fits you best, start with the best places to live tool.
Westgate Hts, Albuquerque ranks 3,658th of 5,983 U.S. neighborhoods on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on low disaster risk by a wide margin, and tree cover ranks lowest.
The best neighborhoods in Westgate Hts, Albuquerque
BestNeighborhood is the only ranking that scores 40 measures of daily life neighborhood by neighborhood and lets you re-weight every one of them yourself.
Westgate Hts, Albuquerque's strengths and weaknesses
Where Westgate Hts, Albuquerque ranks high
- Disaster safetyBetter than 92% of neighborhoods
- Low vacancyBetter than 87% of neighborhoods
- Local economyBetter than 82% of neighborhoods
- Nice weatherabout 166 pleasant days a year, better than 82% of neighborhoods
- Cheap childcare$853 a month, better than 81% of neighborhoods
Where Westgate Hts, Albuquerque ranks low
- Tree shadeBetter than only 3% of neighborhoods
- Healthcare accessBetter than only 6% of neighborhoods
- Internet speedBetter than only 8% of neighborhoods
- Educational attainmentBetter than only 12% of neighborhoods
- Big-city accessBetter than only 14% of neighborhoods
What it costs to buy a home in Westgate Hts, Albuquerque
A household needs to earn about $54,000 a year to comfortably buy the median Westgate Hts, Albuquerque home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That is below the area's own median income of $63,532, so a typical household can afford the median home outright.
Where the monthly payment goes
Assumes a 20% down payment, a 6.6% 30-year fixed rate, and a 28% share of income going to the payment. The rate is the 2026-07-23 30-year fixed average, series MORTGAGE30US from the St. Louis Fed, which publishes Freddie Mac's weekly survey. Against the median home value, property tax uses Westgate Hts, Albuquerque's effective rate of 0.84%, and insurance is estimated at 0.4% of home value a year.
Renting versus buying
At today's prices, buying tends to cost more than renting for about the first 4 years, then pulls ahead as rent keeps rising and the mortgage builds equity. The chart tracks the running cost of each.
Who lives in Westgate Hts, Albuquerque
Westgate Hts, Albuquerque runs younger than the country, and households here run larger than average.
Residents by age
Racial and ethnic makeup has its own map. See the race and diversity map for Westgate Hts, Albuquerque.
Who works in Westgate Hts, Albuquerque, and how
Work in Westgate Hts, Albuquerque centers on health care & social and retail trade. Unemployment is close to the national rate, and jobs are growing.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 90%
- Work from home 9%
- Transit, walk, or bike 1%
Life in Westgate Hts, Albuquerque
Westgate Hts, Albuquerque has more parkland per resident than 66% of neighborhoods. That concentrates in some parts of Westgate Hts, Albuquerque and thins out in others, which the map shows.
What the weather is like in Westgate Hts, Albuquerque, month by month
Westgate Hts, Albuquerque sees roughly 166 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 92 degrees. January highs sit near 47, with lows near 20. The comfortable stretch runs May, June, and August through October.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 47° | 33° | 20° |
| April | 71° | 54° | 36° |
| July | 92° | 77° | 60° |
| October | 72° | 56° | 39° |
Flying in and out of Westgate Hts, Albuquerque
Albuquerque International Sunport sits about 8 miles away. It is a medium hub and boarded 2.6 million passengers in 2025, with 69 nonstop destinations.
The best schools in and around Westgate Hts, Albuquerque
Schools across Westgate Hts, Albuquerque average a C+, better than 65% of neighborhoods.
Top middle schools
- Solare Collegiate Charter SchoolD · 23% proficient
Top high schools
- Nex Gen AcademyA · 75% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every Westgate Hts, Albuquerque school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
Westgate Hts, Albuquerque measure by measure
Cards are ordered by how much each measure matters to you, so the ones you weighted highest come first. Expand to see every measure. Percentages compare Westgate Hts, Albuquerque against the other 5,982 neighborhoods.
Who Westgate Hts, Albuquerque suits
Retirees
The weather beats 82% of neighborhoods and it is quieter than 67%.
Common questions about living in Westgate Hts, Albuquerque
Is Westgate Hts, Albuquerque a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, Westgate Hts, Albuquerque ranks 3,658th of 5,983 neighborhoods. It scores highest on low disaster risk, few empty homes, and a strong job market, and lowest on tree cover and thin health care access. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is Westgate Hts, Albuquerque expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $204,241. The overall cost of living runs about 14% below the national average. Set against a $63,532 median income, cost of living beats 38% of neighborhoods.
Is Westgate Hts, Albuquerque safe?
Yes, Westgate Hts, Albuquerque is safer than 68% of neighborhoods. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $474 per resident a year.
What is the weather like in Westgate Hts, Albuquerque?
July highs average about 92 degrees, and January highs near 47 with lows near 20. That works out to about 166 pleasant days a year, more than 82% of neighborhoods.
Is Westgate Hts, Albuquerque good for families?
Schools beat 65% of neighborhoods, crime safety beats 68%, and childcare runs $853 a month.
Compare Westgate Hts, Albuquerque with other neighborhoods
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to Westgate Hts, Albuquerque. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in Westgate Hts, Albuquerque represents the same real quantity as a 60 anywhere else, and the ranking is a weighted average of those absolutes. The map colors come from a national scale calibrated against a population weighted random sample of 5,000 neighborhoods. That absolute scoring is what no other places-to-live ranking does: it puts a single neighborhood, a town, a metro, and a state on one scale, so the same 40 measures answer both which metro to move to and which street inside it to buy on. Read the full methodology.
Westgate Hts, Albuquerque detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for Westgate Hts, Albuquerque: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in Westgate Hts, Albuquerque: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of Westgate Hts, Albuquerque: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in Westgate Hts, Albuquerque: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
Westgate Hts, Albuquerque detail on related sites:
- CrimeGrade: neighborhood crime rates behind the crime safety score.
- ISPreports.org: provider by provider internet availability and advertised speeds.
- CoverageWatch: the car insurance premiums behind the cheap car insurance score.
Federal and public data:
- U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey: income, home value, rent, vacancy, commute time and mode, educational attainment, home age, age structure, household type, industry, and race.
- NOAA Global Surface Summary of the Day: the daily station record behind the monthly temperatures and the pleasant-day count.
- FAA Passenger Boarding Data: airport size and annual passenger counts.
- Freddie Mac Primary Mortgage Market Survey: the 30-year fixed rate used in the cost-to-buy estimate.
- FBI Crime Data Explorer: reported offenses behind the tangible crime cost estimate.
- U.S. EPA Air Quality System: five year average air quality index.
- FEMA National Risk Index: expected annual loss from natural hazards.
- CDC PLACES: disease burden, preventable risk, and barriers to care.
- National Center for Education Statistics: school enrollment and assessment inputs behind the school grade.
- FCC National Broadband Map: internet and wireless availability.
- U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics: employment and job growth behind the local economy score.
- Religious activity uses a proprietary religious signal measurement.
Your priorities
Move a slider to say how much a measure matters. Zero turns it off.