Independent Living Communities in Albuquerque, NM

"I visited The Rio Grande Gracious Retirement Living, and the cost is reasonable. They also take the activities part more seriously. It motivates people to socialize. They have a refrigerator in the apartments. There is also a laundry facility, but not in each apartment. They were all nice people, and the building seemed to be very nice. The only issue is that it's not gated or fenced, so I don't know how the security is or if there is any crime there. If somebody wants to break in, it's not going to be extremely difficult, particularly if you live on the first floor. I don't know if anybody wants to break in, but it's not the same as a fenced and gated community. It appears more open, so anybody can get in easily. That's the only reservation I have."

"The facilities are more than adequate. Everything is clean and well cared for. As soon as I walked in the door, I felt the wonderful, encompassing welcome energy of the place. The staff is loving and caring, and listens! As one becomes infirm, help is available for hire. The attached skilled nursing facility has been really helpful for me, as I recovered from two surgeries. As I was discharged, I was able to walk back to my apartment! The dining room serves three meals a day, and the menu is varied. The cost of food is not part of your rent, so that you can eat in your room, and not feel as though you are wasting money. There is a chapel, a hobby room, an exercise area, along with various offices on the first floor as well as the dining room. The upper floors each have a large lounge area for people to gather and talk, play games, put together puzzles, watch movies, etc. Very nice place, all around!"

"We toured Albuquerque Meadows. We liked it very much, but it was under new management. It's very, very difficult to get into, so we didn't like that. It's a senior community for 55 and over, but it is individual living or individual homes. I only met one person at the office, and she was fine. She was very nice and informative, but really didn't do much to help us get our application through, and that was a problem. We really like the facilities. They have a pool. They have nursing services, plus they have things for people to do during the day. They have clubs and things like that, and I like that. However, they need to improve their application system. It was a great location, but we just didn't get in. It was right at the top of Albuquerque and close to Rio Rancho, which is where my husband works. It just didn't work out."

"The reason we went with Three Fountains Apartments for my mom was that it's economical and it's in a working-class neighborhood. It's close to a grocery store and a shopping complex is within walking distance. My mom doesn't drive anymore. There are three beautiful different-sized fountains in the courtyard. It's like this little veranda that you drive around when you first enter the property. It has activities as well as a library and a community area with an indoor pool, outdoor pool, and exercise room. My mom is in a one-bedroom apartment that had a kitchen. The kitchen is very important to her. Some of the other facilities that we went into did not have kitchen areas where she could do cooking herself. This is not one of those independent where there are meals prepared for you. It's an apartment, so she is more independent and it's close to where her husband was staying at. It's three miles away from the hospice so she could get to see her husband. It is a nice location with a lot of amenities that are affordable, and so that's why we picked it. When you fill out the application, the requirements they asked for are very instant stuff very specific. I don't know if they were being very specific for my mom or if it's very specific for everybody. That's the only part I'm not sure about that. The people in the front office were very nice. They were very gracious and nice every time we went in there. It's a 55-plus apartment. Each apartment has its own kitchen, and my mom will be fixing her own meals. The facilities are beautiful. There are four different receiving areas that are maintained beautifully. It's secured. At each entrance to each set of apartments, you've got to be buzzed in. You can't get in and out of the building if you don't have a key to access it. You have to have a code to get in there, so safety was a plus. The grounds are well kept. They have monthly activities that are on the calendar. They have certain Saturdays where they have socials. They have a gym, an indoor pool, an outdoor pool, a billiards room, a library, and a socialization room. This was the most economical and most affordable."

"I toured Overture Albuquerque. It was very clean, neat, and modern. The residents seemed extremely friendly. I like the activities room. People participated in their activities. They had a lot of variety, so a lot is going on. They have a free happy hour once a week, and they have gatherings. They do not have meals and bus provisions to take anybody to any place. It's totally independent."

"We liked The Montebello on Academy a lot. We thought it was just right for us. The apartments were a good size and our furniture would fit there. I think we'd be comfortable. The menu was excellent and the food was excellent. They offer exactly what I think is the right thing. They'll choose your diet in any way you need to and you get one major meal a day, either lunch or supper, and you always get breakfast. So, having meals twice a day would be perfect for us. Everything seemed to be in excellent condition. It was very clean. We liked how often they do exercise classes. We feel like that's very important to our health. We also have a small dog and we loved their approach to what you're allowed to do with your dog there. They have a nice dog yard. Nicer than any of the other places in town."

"I live in Overture Andalucia, and so far, it is so good. I have no complaints. It has exceeded my expectations. The size of my room is OK. The staff is very nice. They have a pool here and a lounge outside with a nice view, and I go there every day."

"I was very impressed with Camino Retirement Apartments. They were one of the few that took the time to give us a tour. We were having coffee talking to the manager, and my brother spilled his coffee, and the manager jovially asked one of the kitchen help to come in, bring a mop up and clean it up, and that person was very pleasant. Everybody we encountered was so nice. They were interacting with the people coming and going. We even met the bus driver. It was a very enjoyable experience. My brother hung out and asked the residents their opinions. The staff who assisted me carefully explained everything and she gave us a history. We weren't able to meet the activity director that day, but this person was dedicated to giving the tours. She was a little bit delayed with the people she was showing around before we got there, and I didn't mind waiting for her one bit because, when she got to us, she gave us her complete attention. We were shown the cafeteria and they had the chalkboard menu, and it looked very promising. They had a variety of choices for breakfast. They would have two entrees for lunch and then two soups for dinner. For the rooms, my brother can have his own coffee maker and a small kitchen counter with a very small refrigerator, so he was really happy with that. They had food out at all times. They had pastries left over that were individually wrapped, and they offered them to us on our tour. When the manager went to get the kitchen staff with the mop, he came out eating a nice chunk of cake. "

"We felt "at home" when we walked into Westwind. The staff is friendly, caring and go the extra mile in being thoughtful. The food is good and they accommodate dietary needs and if you have a taste for a bologna sandwich they will do that too!! My sister is very happy, feels secure and they LISTEN to her if she has a concern."

"My mother has moved into Palmilla Senior Living. We looked at 10 facilities, and it was hard finding a good place, and this one just stuck out. We went to go and visit Palmilla Senior Living like four times, and it was the right fit. Palmilla Senior Living is wonderful. They don't just hire anybody. They hire licensed nurses, and they better not have a record. Their employees are wonderful, and they are there for the residents. My mother is paying like $2900, but they have a maid that comes in once a week, and they clean her room. They have meals, and they take them places. It's amazing. My mom was depressed and suicidal, and that went away. She is happy now. She is not sitting there watching TV; she is interacting with everybody. It's what my mom needed. It was hard to get her into a place because she did not want to go, and she just wanted to die, and now she doesn't want to die. She has over 10 friends; she is living her life. Every day, they have an activity. My mom went to movie night and game night. They have dancing and music, and she has gone to every one of them. The residents are so nice. They have emergency necklaces for all of them, free of charge. In case they fall, they hit that button. My mom accidentally hit it two days ago, and they were there within five minutes. Their food is gourmet. I met their chef, and it's good food, like fresh veggies and fresh sauces, and stuff. Everything is made from scratch every day. It's amazing. It's very good for their health. If you have an allergy to something, they will mark it, and they'll make you something special without that. The director is so understanding and works with each family on any concerns. She even talks to the ones who are depressed and scared. She takes her time and talks to them, and ensures that they're in the best of hands. She is wonderful. She helped me with my mother because it was so hard. My mom did not want to move. I'm moving out of state, and she didn't want to. She tried everything to get me to stay, and the director helped me out. She went above and beyond to help me get my mom there and change her mind. The director turned my mom around to live her life, not being depressed and not wanting to die. She made her feel so comfortable. The residents there all love each other. It's like a family there. I would suggest people go there. I met all the nurses there, and they locked it down at night. You have to buzz in and buzz out. They close the doors at 7. They're secure, and that's another thing, because the nurses at night are 24-hour care. They don't let just anybody in. They have the best security."

"We chose Buena Vista Apartments for my parents. They fell into their income requirement, and it's a great location. It's right next to the senior center and shopping center with all the amenities, supermarket, and pharmacy. They're waiting for their particular apartment. The staff during the tour was very professional and friendly. She dropped everything. She was very attentive and gave us all the information very quickly. It's an older building, but they keep it very clean and very pleasant. The apartment has a stove and a refrigerator, it's air conditioned, and it has a washer and dryer hookup."

"I will be moving into Fairwinds up in Rio Rancho. I toured it many times. It's good. When you go in, it's really beautifully lit by natural sunlight, because the ceiling is high, and there's a lot of windows. So that's the first thing. You get a great feel for it when you come in. They're just really wonderful. The apartment that I'm going to be in is beautiful. It's a one-bedroom apartment and it's on the first floor with a patio and beautiful views, and then the common areas are so bright. You just feel like you are part of a good community, and there are people to talk to, and there's lots of events. Overall, I'm just extremely excited to be moving there. It's a good place. They also have 24/7 nursing care. I'm a quadriplegic and I just need more attention. However, I'm still going to be allowed to have my private caregivers and nurses come and visit me there, too. And another wonderful, wonderful thing is my wife is going to stay in our house, and it's only ten minutes away, so she will be able to see me every day. And there are just so many good things. I'm very, very pleased. They're so accommodating, and they answered all our questions. I'm extremely pleased with those people. I have tried their food, and it's all very, very high-end, and delicious. There's a bistro, which is open 24/7. Late at night if I decide I want something, I can get food and drink, so it's excellent. The building is beautiful, and they attend to it beautifully. It's absolutely clean and friendly."

"We went to Avamere at Rio Rancho. It's beautiful. It's in a safe location. It's very clean. It's a huge complex. They have independent living as well as the dependent living. They had a two-bedroom that was available that had a kitchen and everything. It's a beautiful apartment, but it was very expensive, and we couldn't afford it. The nice thing about Avamere at Rio Rancho is that they have memory care. They specialize in dementia and Alzheimer's. We looked at them only because if my stepfather came out of hospice, my mom and he could live together. The only thing was that they would not be able to handle his cardiovascular issue, so he couldn't have 24/7 care there. The one-bedroom apartment that we liked was $3589 per month, and that was not including utilities. But transportation and meals were included in that cost. It is a beautiful facility. It's up on a hill. It's got a little walking area. They have transportation, thank God because they are kind of away from everything, but it's peaceful and very quiet up there. It's worth visiting the facility. Everyone we came in contact with was very nice. We spoke to their skilled nursing lady. The place is very well maintained. It's very clean, very bright, and airy. It's expensive, but you can see definitely what you're paying for."

"I toured The Neighborhood in Rio Rancho I. You can do aging in place and never have to move to another facility. The staff was very nice. It was very nice. It's a fairly new building. They're one of the very few retirement places that have a swimming pool. I felt like it's a very nice place and that it would be comfortable there. The sizes of the rooms are average, too. The biggest drawback is you have to buy in and the cheapest buy-in is like $300,000. You buy in for $300,000 for a one-bedroom in independent living, and then you pay a monthly rent, for like $3,500, but if you have to go into assisted living or nursing care, your monthly rent does not go up."