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Cost of living, pay and housing

35.60° N · 105.92° W · GEOID 3575650

Sunlit Hills

Santa Fe County, New Mexico · part of the Santa Fe, NM metro

Limited data population under 5,000, core figures borrowed from county or metro: median_household_income

New MexicoSunlit Hills, NMSunlit HillsSunlit Hills

The short answer

Sunlit Hills is home to 899 people. Median household income is $79,071 a year and median rent is $1,354 a month, 20.5% of income (a ratio of two medians, not any one household's burden). Rent pressure is lighter than in most places. The median home is valued at $1,001,300, about 12.7x annual median household income.

Median gross rent
$1,354
1% below the median place
Median household income
$79,071
2% below the median place
Median home value
$1,001,300
213% above the median place
Unemployment
5.3%
8% above the median place

Compared with the median of the 6,645 places we track. The bundle was checked 2026-11-14; each measure may refer to an older release.

What stands out about Sunlit Hills

  • The median home is worth 12.7 years of the median household's income, more than in 99% of the 2,480 places under 10,000 people we track. It is the highest of 46 New Mexico places.
  • Household income has grown -2.2% a year across the last five survey releases, slower than in 98% of places its size. It is the lowest of 46 New Mexico places.
  • Owning with a mortgage costs about $1,532 a month more than the median rent, a wider gap than in 95% of places its size. It is the highest of 46 New Mexico places.
  • The median resident is 55.7 years old, older than in 96% of places its size. It is the 3rd-highest of 46 New Mexico places.
  • 68% of adults hold a bachelor's degree or higher, a larger share than in 93% of places its size. It is the 3rd-highest of 46 New Mexico places.
01

Moving to Sunlit Hills

Santa Fe County gains about 0.7 residents per 1,000 a year to moves between counties.

Moved in6,901
Moved out6,813
Net+88

Where people come from and where they go, top counties

Bernalillo County, NM8551,123−268
Torrance County, NM129137−8

Within New Mexico, other states or abroad

Arrivals
Leavers
Within New MexicoOther statesAbroad

Income per tax return

Arrivals$94K
Leavers$83K

People on tax returns who moved between counties, from IRS migration data, 2022 to 2023. Figures are for all of Santa Fe County; flows under 20 returns are not published.

Who moves here
5.8% of residents arrived from another county in the past year, 3.4% from another state. County figure.
Who arrives and who leaves
Households moving into Santa Fe County report $93,600 a year in income on average; those leaving, $82,700, so newcomers earn more than leavers.
Income you would need
$54,200 a year to rent the median home at the 30% line. From your city
Rent or buy
Median rent is $1,354 a month; owners with a mortgage pay $2,886 a month including taxes and insurance, on a median home of $1,001,300.
Getting to work
24 minutes each way on average; 18.4% work from home.
If it is close but not quite
Ocean City, NJ matches it on character. Compare the two
Moved from another state1
3.4%
70% above the median place
Income of households moving in7
$93,607
33% above the median place
Income of households moving out7
$82,671
18% above the median place
All 5 moving measures
MeasureSunlit HillsAmong 6,645 placesVs median
Moved here in the past year1County figure5.8%1% above
Moved from another state1County figure3.4%70% above
Net movers per 1,000 people7County figure0.7above (median -0.6)
Income of households moving in7County figure$93,60733% above
Income of households moving out7County figure$82,67118% above
02

What it costs to live here

Home price to income is 12.7x, 233% above the median place.

Sunlit Hills20.5%
Typical place20.4%

Share of the median household income that goes to the median rent. Above 30% is the usual stress line.

Income needed to rent
$54,160
a year, at the 30% line
Rent to income
20.5%
0% above the median place
Home price to income
12.7x
233% above the median place

Could you afford it?

The median rent would take
21%
comfortably under the 30% line
Left after rent, in US prices
$64,800
a year
Vs the typical household here
Same
as the median household

Uses the median rent in Sunlit Hills, $1,354 a month, and local prices for everything else (96.9 against a US average of 100). It runs in your browser and stores nothing.

Moving from somewhere else? Work out the salary you would need in Sunlit Hills.

Sponsored · exampleMoving to Sunlit Hills? Compare quotes from licensed movers. No partner is signed yet. Sponsored offers are always labelled and never change the data.
Property tax rate1
0.3%
64% below the median place
Median home value1
$1,001,300
213% above the median place
Owner costs with a mortgage1
$2,886
54% above the median place
All 16 cost and housing measures
MeasureSunlit HillsAmong 6,645 placesVs median
Median gross rent1$1,3541% below
Rent to income120.5%0% above
Property tax rate10.3%64% below
Home price to income112.7x233% above
Prices vs US average2Metro figure98.82% below
Fair market rent, 2 bedrooms3County figure$1,7357% above
HUD area median income4County figure$118,60011% above
Property tax paid (median)1$3,3513% above
Median home value1$1,001,300213% above
Home prices, 1-year change5County figure0.8%75% below
Home prices, 5-year change5County figure48.3%6% below
Homeownership178.0%18% above
Renters paying 30%+1County figure51.0%1% above
Owner costs with a mortgage1$2,88654% above
Vacant homes1County figure10.2%45% above
Median year built119941% above
03

Work and pay

Commutes by transit is 0.0%, below the median place (median 0.8%).

Commutes by transit1
0.0%
below the median place (median 0.8%)
Income per person1
$77,281
93% above the median place
Poverty rate1
12.3%
15% above the median place
All 10 work and pay measures
MeasureSunlit HillsAmong 6,645 placesVs median
Median household income1County figure$79,0712% below
Income per person1$77,28193% above
Unemployment1County figure5.3%8% above
Average annual pay6County figure$64,3792% below
Pay growth, 1 year6County figure5.2%41% above
Jobs6County figure61,88059% below
Poverty rate112.3%15% above
Mean commute1County figure24 min4% below
Works from home1County figure18.4%48% above
Commutes by transit10.0%below (median 0.8%)
04

Who lives here

Median age is 55.7, 43% above the median place.

Median age1
55.7
43% above the median place
High school or higher1
98.7%
7% above the median place
Bachelor's or higher1
68.2%
113% above the median place

More about who lives here, against the typical place

Born abroad4.8% −46%
Homes with broadband90.2% −2%
Household size2.6 +5%
All 8 people measures
MeasureSunlit HillsAmong 6,645 placesVs median
Population18996646th largest
Median age155.743% above
Bachelor's or higher168.2%113% above
High school or higher198.7%7% above
Household size12.65% above
Born abroad14.8%46% below
No health insurance1County figure8.9%39% above
Homes with broadband190.2%2% below
05

Life in Sunlit Hills

97 sites are on the National Register of Historic Places, 7 of them National Historic Landmarks.

Businesses per 10,000 residents (county figures)

Restaurants and bars25.6 +23%
Shops50.8 +68%
Arts, recreation and fitness10.0 2.4×
Doctors' offices and clinics28.6 +42%
Child care centers1.0 −57%

Counts businesses with paid staff, so small owner-run shops are not included.

Child care centers per 10k8
1.0
57% below the median place
Shops per 10k8
50.8
68% above the median place
Arts, recreation and fitness per 10k8
10.0
144% above the median place
All 9 schools and local life measures
MeasureSunlit HillsAmong 6,645 placesVs median
Public schools10County figure49above (median 9)
Public school students10County figure19,951307% above
Students per teacher10County figure14.09% below
Restaurants and bars per 10k8County figure25.623% above
Shops per 10k8County figure50.868% above
Arts, recreation and fitness per 10k8County figure10.0144% above
Doctors' offices and clinics per 10k8County figure28.642% above
Child care centers per 10k8County figure1.057% below
National Register listings9County figure97above (median 13)
06

Safety, weather and risk

Annual precipitation is 14.8 in, 66% below the median place.

No crime figure yet. Either the city police department did not report to the FBI for the latest year, or our monthly fetch has not reached Sunlit Hills. Larger places are fetched first.

Annual precipitation11
14.8 in
66% below the median place
Tornado risk12
24.5
70% below the median place
Wildfire risk12
98.2
60% above the median place
All 10 weather and risk measures
MeasureSunlit HillsAmong 6,645 placesVs median
July average high11County figure85°F2% below
January average low11County figure19°F26% below
Average temperature11County figure50°F9% below
Annual precipitation11County figure14.8 in66% below
Natural hazard risk12County figure86.07% below
Tornado risk12County figure24.570% below
Wildfire risk12County figure98.260% above
Heat wave risk12County figure53.041% below
Median air quality index13County figure442% above
Good air days13County figure78.4%14% above
08

Sunlit Hills in 2030: where the trends point

If recent trends hold, the median rent will take about 12% of the median income in 2030, about the same as 13% now.

Citytistics projections to 2030: each figure's own trend, blended with the typical trend across the places we rate, eased toward long-run US growth and carried forward from the latest release. The range is where 80% of places landed when we tested the same method on past releases.

MeasureLatest2030 projectionLikely rangeAvg. per year
Median rent$1,354/mo (2024)$1,620/mo$1,330 to $1,980/mo+3.1%
Median household income$126,250 (2024)$156,500$132,000 to $185,000+3.6%
Median home value$1,001,300 (2024)$1,565,000$1,136,000 to $2,156,000+7.7%

The median home would be worth 10.0 years of the median income in 2030, against 7.9 now.

A projection of recent trends, not a prediction of the economy or advice to buy or sell. How we project.

09

Places like Sunlit Hills

The closest matches on income, rent, home value, education and age, and the places nearby.

PlaceRentIncome
Ocean City, NJ$1,683$101,782Compare
Sedona, AZ$1,448$73,738Compare
Estes Park, CO$1,511$85,956Compare
Hilton Head Island, SC$1,479$94,657Compare
Hilton Head Island, SCEstes Park, COSedona, AZOcean City, NJSunlit Hills, NMSunlit HillsOcean CitySedonaEstes ParkHilton Head IslandSunlit HillsOcean CitySedonaEstes ParkHilton Head Island

Common questions

Is Sunlit Hills a good place to live?

It depends on what you need, so here is what the numbers say. The median home is worth 12.7 years of the median household's income, more than in 99% of the 2,480 places under 10,000 people we track. It is the highest of 46 New Mexico places. Household income has grown -2.2% a year across the last five survey releases, slower than in 98% of places its size. It is the lowest of 46 New Mexico places. On cost, space and class size it scores 42 out of 100 for families. See how it ranks with your own weights.

Is Sunlit Hills expensive to live in?

The median rent takes 20.5% of the median household income, against 20.4% in the typical place we track. Housing is a heavier load here than usual. The median home is valued at $1,001,300.

What salary do you need to live in Sunlit Hills?

To rent the median home without spending more than 30% of income on rent, a household needs about $54,160 a year. Work it out from your current city.

What places are similar to Sunlit Hills?

On income, rent, home value, education and age, the closest matches are Ocean City, NJ, Sedona, AZ, Estes Park, CO and Hilton Head Island, SC.

Sources and methods

The small numbers beside each measure point here. Every dataset is public; links go to the publisher.

  1. American Community Survey 5-year estimates · US Census Bureau · 2020 to 2024 estimatesTables B01002, B01003, B05002, B07003, B08013, B08301, B15003, B17001, B19013, B19301, B23025, B25002, B25003, B25010, B25035, B25064, B25070, B25077, B25088, B25103, B28002, S2701
  2. Regional Price Parities · US Bureau of Economic Analysis · Latest release, retrieved 2026-11-14
  3. Fair Market Rents · US Department of Housing and Urban Development · Fiscal year 2027
  4. Income Limits · US Department of Housing and Urban Development · Fiscal year 2026
  5. House Price Index · Federal Housing Finance Agency · Latest release, retrieved 2026-11-14
  6. Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages · US Bureau of Labor Statistics · 2025 annual averages
  7. SOI Tax Stats, county-to-county migration · Internal Revenue Service · Tax years 2022 to 2023Counts tax returns and the people on them; flows under 20 returns are suppressed.
  8. County Business Patterns · US Census Bureau · 2023 data
  9. National Register of Historic Places · National Park Service · Listings through 2026-05-22
  10. Common Core of Data · National Center for Education Statistics · 2024 release
  11. 1991-2020 climate normals · NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information · Series updated 2026-11-05Averages for 1991 to 2020 computed from NOAA's county climate series (nClimDiv).nClimDiv county series
  12. National Risk Index · Federal Emergency Management Agency · Latest release, retrieved 2026-11-14NRI data and maps
  13. Air Quality System, annual AQI by county · US Environmental Protection Agency · 2025 dataAirData download files

Derived by Citytistics from the tables above: rent to income (B25064, B19013); property tax rate (B25103, B25077); home price to income (B25077, B19013).

What stands out compares Sunlit Hills with places of a similar size, using only figures measured for Sunlit Hills itself; county and metro figures never count. Survey figures are estimates with margins of error. Formulas and definitions: methodology. API: /api/v1/places/sunlit-hills-new-mexico

Citytistics. “Sunlit Hills, New Mexico.” Data as of 2026-11-14. https://www.citytistics.com/city/sunlit-hills-new-mexico/

This product uses the Census Bureau Data API but is not endorsed or certified by the Census Bureau.