Rio Rancho Estates in 1970, with theSandia Mountains in the background
The great majority of the territory of Rio Rancho was originally part of the Town of Alameda Grant, which was founded by Spanish colonial settlers in 1710. It was acquired by the United States in 1848, after it defeated Mexico in the Mexican-American War. (Mexico had been independent of Spain since 1821.) The ranches were used for cattle and sheep.
By the early 20th century, much of the land grant had been divided and sold to land investment companies. Its proximity to the city of Albuquerque made it a prime area for suburban development in the post-World War II period. In 1961Amrep Corporation purchased 55,000 acres (22,000 ha) from Snow Homes the original builder and created a housing development called "Rio Rancho Estates". The first families moved into this development in the early 1960s.
Amrep contracted withEzio Valentini, one of the original developers ofCape Coral, Florida, to design and implement a marketing plan to encourage land sales. He organized dinner-parties for prospective customers in northern states through offices in 14 states. Migrants were attracted to this area, and the population grew ten-fold between 1970 and 1980. The City of Rio Rancho was incorporated in 1981. The opening of a largeIntel Corporation plant in 1981 generated numerous jobs and had positive economic effects for the city.
Since the 1990s, Rio Rancho has taken steps to become more independent from neighboring Albuquerque. It established a separate public unified school district and library system. It is seeking to attract more businesses to the area, so that residents might live and work here.
Rio Rancho lies in theAlbuquerque Basin to the west of theRio Grande, which is a boundary on the northeast corner of the city. An escarpment lies to the west of the city limit.
According to theUnited States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 103.7 sq mi (268.5 km2), of which 103.4 square miles (267.7 km2) is land and 0.31 sq mi (0.8 km2), or 0.31%, is covered by water.[6]
Rio Rancho is in anarid climate due to its location in therain shadow of the Sandia Mountains to the east and theContinental Divide to the west. Rio Rancho receives 8.90 inches (226 mm) of precipitation annually on average. The western portion of the city receives slightly more rain and snowfall due to its higher elevation than that of the more densely developed eastern portion of Rio Rancho.
Climate data for Rio Rancho, New Mexico (1981–2010 normals)
Rio Rancho, New Mexico – Racial and ethnic composition Note: the US Census treats Hispanic/Latino as an ethnic category. This table excludes Latinos from the racial categories and assigns them to a separate category. Hispanics/Latinos may be of any race.
Of 18,995 households, 40.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 59.4% were married couples living together, 10.3% had a female householder with no husband present, and 25.7% were not families; 20.8% of all households were made up of individuals, and 7.9% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.70 and the average family size was 3.14.
In the city, the population was distributed as 29.2% under the age of 18, 7.0% from 18 to 24, 32.0% from 25 to 44, 20.1% from 45 to 64, and 11.7% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 35 years. For every 100 females, there were 94.2 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 89.9 males.
The median income for city was $47,169, and for a family was $52,233. Males had a median income of $39,162 versus $27,385 for females. The per capita income for the city was $20,322. About 3.7% of families and 5.1% of the population were below the poverty line, including 5.1% of those under age 18 and 5.8% of those age 65 or over.
In the mid-1980s,Intel established a manufacturing plant in the city.
Rust Medical Center opened in 2011.
Intel is by far the largest employer in Rio Rancho. The services, retail, and government sectors are also major components of the local economy. Rio Rancho is the site of Intel'sFab 11X, one of the largestsemiconductor fabrication plants in the world. The fully automated, $2 billion facility opened in 2002 and was the first Intel plant to manufacture 300 mmsilicon wafers, which can hold almost twice as many chips as the standard 200 mm wafers. Fab 7, Intel's original Rio Rancho plant, which opened in 1980, closed in 2002, but was converted into a test facility in 2005.
In 2005, Rio Rancho became the first U.S. city to offer citywide voice-over-WiFi (VoWiFi) service. Several call centers are located in Rio Rancho.Walmart opened in early summer of 2006 in Rio Rancho, and was a catalyst for related commercial retailers to locate nearby.
An Albuquerque-based incubator and co-working space "FatPipe" opened a satellite office in Rio Rancho.[12] It is intended to spur business innovation and startups within the city.
In the aftermath of the collapse of the 2008 housing bubble,foreclosure activity increased in the city. The economies of Sandoval, Bernalillo, and Valencia counties suffered markedly in thelate 2000s recession.[13]
As of the late 2010s, housing had entirely recovered. A number of new housing developments were restarted. Real estate sales were robust in 2020 in many areas of Rio Rancho, driven by low interest rates and relatively low housing prices ($250,000 - $350,000 for most new construction).[14]
In May 2025, theECHL (East Coast Hockey League) announced the addition of a new expansion team based in Rio Rancho, marking the return of professional hockey to New Mexico. The team, temporarily named theNew Mexico Goatheads, is scheduled to begin play in the 2026–27 season at the Rio Rancho Events Center.
The franchise is owned and operated by Rev Entertainment, with the Dallas Stars serving as hockey operations consultants.
A fan poll to determine the team's permanent name is expected to conclude in late 2025, with an official name announcement to follow.
Rio Rancho was home to theNew Mexico Scorpions minor-leagueice hockey team, which relocated from Albuquerque in 2006, until the team ceased operations in 2009. The Scorpions played atSanta Ana Star Center.
In the spring of 2008, the Star Center became the home of theNew Mexico Wildcatsindoor football team. They lasted two seasons, folding at the conclusion of 2009.
Since 2015, Rio Rancho has been the location of theDuke City Gladiators, a professional indoor football team. They play home games at the Santa Ana Star Center, with whom they signed a five-year contract.
Mayor Gregory Hull ranat-large for mayor in 2014. He was re-elected for a second term in March 2018 and a third term in March 2022. City council members are elected from sixsingle-member districts. The judge for the Municipal Court is also elected.
Portions of Rio Rancho in Sandoval County extend into theJemez Valley Public Schools school district.[22] Sections of Rio Rancho in most of Bernalillo County are zoned toAlbuquerque Public Schools. A portion of the Rio Rancho Public School District extends into Bernalillo County.[23] In addition, Rio Rancho has two public charter schools called The ASK Academy and Cyber Academy, serving grades 6–12. They both focus on science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) education.
Rio Rancho is home to the Albuquerque metro area's only oldies-format radio station,KDSK (AM). It moved into this market in March 2015 and licensed its newest FM signal, 92.9 FM, to Rio Rancho in April 2016. The station is named "Rio Rancho Radio". The station features Rio Rancho area events and airs a weekly talk/discussion show on Sunday mornings with the Mayor of Rio Rancho (now Greg Hull). The station signal, broadcast on three frequencies (92.7 FM, 93.7 FM, and 1240 AM), serves the entire Albuquerque metro area, and six counties in central and western New Mexico. Residents also have access to television and radio broadcasts from Albuquerque.
The weeklyRio Rancho Observer is the local newspaper. Residents may also subscribe to the daily newspaperAlbuquerque Journal, which has a localized weekly version calledRio West.
Rio Rancho is served by agovernment-access television channel available only through the city's only cable television providerCable ONE. This channel shows all of the government meetings multiple times.
In late January 2011, ABQ RIDE extended two additional routes (96 Crosstown Commuter and 155 Coors Blvd), and introduced an additional route (551 Jefferson/Paseo Del Norte Express) into Rio Rancho. The northern terminus of these routes is at Southern Blvd and Unser Blvd.
The Rio Metro Regional Transportation District operates Rio Transit, a door-to-door paratransit service for senior citizens 55 years of age and older, and disabled adults 18 years of age and older, for residents of Rio Rancho. The service is operated from the Meadowlark Senior Center, and provides service Monday-Friday from 7:30 am to 3:00 pm. Riders must register with the service prior to using it and reserve time slots well in advance.
Rio Metro RTD also operates a commuter bus route serving the Enchanted Hills neighborhood in Rio Rancho. This service connects residents of Enchanted Hills to the US 550 New Mexico Rail Runner station and provides service during the morning and evening commutes. Rio Metro Bus connections are available at the US 550 Rail Runner station for Zia Pueblo, San Ysidro, Canon, and Jemez Springs. A Rio Metro commuter bus route provides service to and from the Cuba NM area, with a Park and Ride designated at Home Depot, which is located near the corner of NM 528, NM 550. Rio Metro's website and schedules may be viewed at: www.riometro.org
