Picacho Hills

Picacho Hills sits on the west side of the Rio Grande, where the land rises out of the valley toward Picacho Peak. The neighborhood grew up around the Picacho Hills Country Club and its golf course, and many of its streets were laid out to follow the slope rather than a grid.

The elevation is the reason for the neighborhood. From much of Picacho Hills the view runs east across the pecan orchards and the city to the Organ Mountains, and the evening light on the range is hard to match anywhere else in Las Cruces.

The homes cover a wide range. Near the golf course are condominiums, townhomes and patio homes, many of them built in the 1980s and 1990s. Around them are single-family homes on lots of a quarter to half an acre. Higher up, in the newer sections such as Coronado Ridge and Picacho Mountain, are custom homes on an acre or more, some of them recently built and some still to come, since lots remain.

Picacho Hills has more homes priced above $500,000 than most parts of Las Cruces, and it is one of the few places in the area where homes are regularly offered above $1 million.

Much of the neighborhood has a homeowner association, and the rules and dues differ from one section to the next. Country club membership is separate from home ownership.

Town is a short drive east on Picacho Avenue, across the river.