El Duende is a community in Rio Arriba County, New Mexico, home to about 454 people across 1.5 square miles. It has no ZIP code of its own: it’s part of 87537.
Homes sold for a median of $249 per square foot in the three months ending August 2026, a buyer’s market.
Mostly Hernandez; part is in El Duende
Each card is that ZIP code’s whole market, including any part outside El Duende. Seller’s market: under 4 months of supply; buyer’s market: over 6. Methodology
We’re writing up El Duende’s story and what everyday life there is like, for people thinking about moving in.
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| Nearest major airport | Albuquerque International Sunport (ABQ)76 miles away |
|---|---|
| Closer regional airport | Santa Fe Municipal Airport (SAF)32 miles away |
| Nearest city of 250,000+ | Albuquerque, NM73 miles away |
| Nearest city of 1 million+ | Phoenix, AZ379 miles away |
Straight-line distances from the center of El Duende; driving is longer.
Source: Airports from OurAirports (scheduled passenger service); city centers and populations from the U.S. Census Bureau.
Source: Members of Congress from the congress-legislators project; districts from the Census Bureau’s relationship files; governor and mayor from Wikidata.
El Duende had 573 residents in the 2020 census, down 19% since 2010.
It’s the 264th largest of 494 towns in New Mexico by population.
Rio Arriba County grew from 13,777 residents in 1900 to 40,363 in 2020.
Rio Arriba County, 1900–2020
Source: U.S. Census Bureau decennial censuses (counties 1900–1990 from the Bureau’s historical county file).
Average highs peak around 88°F in summer, and winter lows average 15°F. About 11.2 inches of rain and melted snow fall in a typical year, with about 11 inches of snow.
Source: NOAA 1991–2020 climate normals, Alcalde, NM weather station (5 miles away).
5,426 jobs at 541 businesses in Rio Arriba County. The biggest industries by employees:
Source: U.S. Census Bureau County Business Patterns 2023 (private employers; jobs counted where people work).
Nearest hospitals
Source: Hospitals from CMS Hospital General Information (ratings are CMS overall star ratings); straight-line distances.
Libraries
Counts are within about 1 mile of the center of town.
Source: Map data © OpenStreetMap contributors (openstreetmap.org/copyright), as mapped by volunteers; it can miss places or include closed ones.
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Shares ZIP codes with Hernandez and Chili.
Town boundaries don’t always match ZIP codes: a ZIP code can cross into neighboring towns, and a town can share a ZIP code with its neighbors. Facts describe the town itself; market figures describe whole ZIP codes.