What it's like to live in San Elizario
San Elizario is a small city in Texas with rent below the national average, home prices that remain within reach, and crime rates well below the national average. Those factors carry real weight for anyone weighing where to move next.
The tradeoffs are worth naming plainly. San Elizario deals with household incomes below the national average, commute times longer than most cities, air quality that falls short of national benchmarks, and college degree attainment below the national average.
The good
- Rent below the national average
- Affordable home prices
- Low crime rates
The not so good
- Below-average household incomes
- Above-average commute times
- Air quality concerns
- Low college degree attainment
- High student-teacher ratio
- High poverty rate
How San Elizario compares
Median household income
Median rent (per month)
Median home value
What it takes to move to San Elizario
Based on San Elizario's median rent, home value and household income
To rent
$1,834
up front: first month plus a typical one-month deposit
- Income to keep rent under 30%: $36,680 a year
- 27% of San Elizario renters spend 30% or more of their income on rent
To buy
$22,080
a 20% down payment on the median home
- With 10% down: $11,040
- Homes cost 2.2× the typical local household income (US: 4.1×)
Moving costs, closing costs and taxes not included.
The details
Cost of living▼ 35% below US
$917/mo median rent
Rent here is genuinely low, with median rent around $917 a month. Factoring in local incomes, the value gets even better. Money stretches further here than in most of the country. Home prices here are genuinely accessible, with a median around $110,400. That kind of affordability is rare in today's market.
Median home value $110,400 · 27% of renters cost-burdened
Job market
4.4% county unemployment
Unemployment in El Paso County is 4.4%, close to the national average of 4.3%. That's the county-wide rate; BLS doesn't measure a place this size on its own.
El Paso County (county-wide)
Safety▼ 95% below US
20 violent crimes per 100k
Safety is genuinely one of the selling points here. Both violent and property crime run well below the national average, the kind of numbers that fade into the background after a week of living somewhere.
Property crime 138/100k · San Elizario Police Department · 2023 data
Getting around▲ 32% above US
34 min average commute
Traffic is a real factor here. The 34.3 minute average means plenty of commuters are pushing 45 to 60 minutes on a bad day. Proximity to work matters more here than it might elsewhere. 9 in 10 workers drive to work; 7% work from home.
How workers get to work
Climate
Summers run seriously hot, with average highs pushing 96°F, and winters are cold, with lows around 30°F and snow a regular occurrence. It's a dry climate with limited rainfall.
Average month
30-year averages, 1991–2020
Education & workforce▼ 84% below US
6% bachelor's degree or higher
This is a working-class city, and college degree rates reflect that. Trades, manufacturing, and service industries tend to dominate the local economy, which is a strength for some fields and a real constraint for others.
Schools
6 public schools inside the boundary
There are 6 public schools inside the boundary. The student-to-teacher ratio is 19:1, slightly above the national average of 16:1.
Parks & recreation
The nearest national park or historic site is Chamizal National Memorial (17 miles away). There are 4 national parks and sites within a day's drive.
Bottom line
San Elizario's strongest points are rent below the national average and home prices that remain within reach; the main tradeoffs are household incomes below the national average and commute times longer than most cities. A year of median rent ($917/mo) equals 22% of the median household income here, about the same as the 21% typical nationwide. It tends to suit people watching their budget and anyone prioritizing low crime. It may be a harder fit for people who dread long commutes.
Other places near San Elizario
All Texas guides →Moving to Socorro →
4 mi away · pop. 37,123
Rent $1,032/mo · Income $54,744
Compare with San Elizario →Moving to Horizon City →
8 mi away · pop. 23,668
Rent $1,280/mo · Income $65,737
Compare with San Elizario →Moving to Fort Bliss →
19 mi away · pop. 11,460
Rent $1,654/mo · Income $57,111
Compare with San Elizario →Moving to El Paso →
21 mi away · pop. 680,130
Rent $1,073/mo · Income $59,745
Compare with San Elizario →Not sure San Elizario is the one?
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