Thursday will be the first official day of Fall, so we thought now would be a great time to offer some useful tips to help you prepare your home for the changing weather conditions and temperatures we'll be seeing in the coming weeks.Roofs - A pair of binoculars is invaluable when it comes to making an inspection of the general condition of your roof. You should look for obvious signs of missing shingles/tiles, cracks or other damage, as well as the integrity of flashings around vents, chimneys etc. Remember that even very, very minor leakages or damage can be utterly catastrophic when the really bad weather arrives, so don't hesitate to seek professional guidance if you have any doubts over the condition of the roof.Gutters/downpipes - It's vital to make an annual inspection of your gu... 09/27/2016

My newest listing in Ventana Ranch West is 7619 Jamestown Rd NW, a beautiful Pulte home with 2,150 square feet. 3 bedrooms, 2.5 baths, a 2.5 car garage and and large, oversize corner lot (.22 acres).The popular Scottsdale floorplan features an open floorplan with spacious kitchen with master bedroom down. The master bedroom has a large master bath with separate tub and shower plus a large walk in closet. There's also a office or optional 4th bedroom downstairs. Upstairs you'll find bedrooms two and three, a full bath and a large loft area. 7916 Jamestown Rd NW features extended tile areas downstairs, wood floors in the office/fourth bedroom, an extra half garage bay for either a storage area or perhaps parking for motorcycles as well as a very private feeling backyard with no neighbors ... 09/21/2016

I brought the buyer to a great home in NW Albuquerque's Ventana Ranch!I love to list NW Albuquerque homes for sale, but I also love to show them to home buyers. I love helping them find the best homes, or the best deals, and sometimes both - depending on exactly what they're looking for.That's why I knew that 9700 Canelo Ct NW was the right home for my buyer clients! I've said this many times - a great house starts with a great lot. This house has a great lot. It also has a three car garage (that's pretty rare in Ventana Ranch), radiant floor heating, extended tile areas and an extra large living room.Sorry if the photo isn't great, this wasn't my listing! Here's the story on this one. Buyer's came to town determined to buy a new construction home from the largest home builder in town. ... 09/20/2016

If, as a prospective house buyer, you were to ask us what's the single best piece of advice we could give you right now, we'd not hesitate to say: "get pre-approved for your mortgage".In fact, with low inventory of available homes for sale this has become an even more important pre-requisite.To explain why we say this, imagine for a moment that you are selling a home in the Albuquerque area right now. You're in a great position, because there are many buyers chasing a slimming number of available homes. Indeed it's quite possible that you'll receive multiple offers for your home, maybe even above your asking price.So let's now picture you in the fortunate position of sitting down to consider the offers you've received and let's say you're having to decide between three fairly equal offe... 09/16/2016

It's good to be able to report that recently released Greater Albuquerque Association of REALTORS® statistics for August point towards a very lively end to the summer in the area.Apart from continuing concerns over the level of inventory of available homes for sale, which we'll return to later, there were positive indicators right across the most important statistical categories for detached homes.In line with trends we've been seeing all year, median detached home prices were up by 1.6% ($190,000) on the same period last year, while average prices rose by exactly the same amount ($226,422).A detached home took just 51 days to sell in August - an 8.9% year-on-year improvement. There was also a 9.1% increase in the number of detached homes sold, compared with August 2015.There were also ... 09/14/2016

Low inventory of available homes for sale continues to be a major factor in the Albuquerque area. Despite a couple of slightly encouraging signs during this year to date, in general the trend has been getting worse.The truth is, of course, that a shortage of homes is a mixture of good and bad news, depending on which end of the real estate kaleidoscope your looking through.For buyers, it does mean less choice at any given price point and, quite possibly, some difficulty in finding exactly the right specification of home. That said, however, buyer sentiment continues to be amazing, with a keen awareness that the current very low mortgage rates may not last and compromises may need to be made to lock-in a great deal on a home loan before anything changes.If you're selling, in general the ... 09/12/2016

First of all we hope everyone had a great holiday weekend.Now we're on the other side of the Labor Day break, thoughts are increasingly turning to the fall, which is officially just over two weeks ahead of us now (September 22nd).Rather than wait for it to arrive, we thought we'd set the scene for those considering selling in the next few weeks.Our message is very simple - don't let the end of summer put you off listing. It is a complete myth that homes stop selling when the peak summer season ends.If you adopt the right mindset, you'll be in excellent shape to take advantage of the opportunities that the coming weeks will present to you.People have to move throughout the year and very often, and usually for employment reasons, have very little say in when that move is going to be.Inde... 09/06/2016

The Labor Day weekend is, of course, something of a watershed in the annual calendar.Leading into the weekend, it still feels very much like summer and then, with college football getting under way this weekend and all the other traditions of this much anticipated holiday, we'll suddenly wake up on Tuesday morning with thoughts of the fall, the holidays and year end somehow much closer.If you're undecided about whether or not to sell your home right now, it would be reasonable to assume that, with a bit more time on your hands in the coming days, you'll quite possibly be making up your mind if you want to sell this year or sit it out and wait until 2017.Obviously there are so many circumstances that will factor into your decision process. Here, however, are five great reasons why you mi... 09/04/2016

  What would you say if I told you you could buy a like-new, 3,000 square foot home in NW Albuquerque's Ventana Ranch West neighborhood with brazilian Koa wood floors, granite countertops, refrigerated air and a $40,000 PV (solar) system for under $300,000? Would you think I was crazy?Well that's probably what one lucky buyer was thinking when they bought 8108 Pony Hills Pl NW. And now, while they're sitting in their nicely cooled home (with really low and sometimes non-existent PNM bills), they're laughing quietly to themselves.I'm really surprised this one made it 30 days on the market becuase of how wonderfully it showed. It just goes to show, there are still some pretty good deals on homes in Ventana Ranch West.Home Sales Are Up in Ventana Ranch WestThe homes in Ventana Ranch West w... 09/03/2016

I just sold a home in NW Albuquerque's Riverview Estates in 15 days for top of the market price! It was a beautiful Opel Jenkins home with wood floors and a remodeled kitchen that included a super beautiful hot tub and pool.  Here's a quick video of 4336 Rio Colorado Blvd NE:NW Albuquerque's Riverview EstatesEven though I've been a Realtor for 12 years, this was the first Riverview Estates home I've listed for sale. At first I felt bad about this, but then I realized that not many homes go on the market in the neighborhood! Why is that? Well, they're beautiful homes built by a great builder (Opel Jenkins), they're in a great NW Albuquerque location that's close to Paseo Del Norte to get across town, and the schools are some of the most popular in NW Albuquerque.Oh, and the sellers thoug... 09/01/2016

2016 has been a great year for the real estate market in NW Albuquerque, in fact I recently sold a home in Paradise Hills in 7 days!10336 Rempas Dr NW was lovingly maintained and updated by the owners, and was a 4 bedroom ranch located on a larger, quiet corner lot.  The home was built by Charter, one of Albuquerque's finest home builders known more for building in the popular NE heights part of town, but there are some beautiful Charter homes in NW too!NW Albuquerque's Paradise Hills Neighborhood Paradise Hills is an unincorporated area in NW Albuquerque west of the Rio Grande that's entirely surrounded by the the city of Albuquerque. Paradise Hills was developed before the rest of NW Albuquerque by about 30 years.Paradise Hills homes were built starting in the early 1960's. The origin... 09/01/2016

In last Friday's blog, we looked at new statistics that revealed that 53% of all home sales in 2016 have been to first time buyers.This is, of course, a fact that simply cannot be ignored by any seller whose home might attract those looking to get on the home ownership ladder.It might therefore be instructive to consider some of the questions that will be foremost in the first time buyer's mind, so that you can prepare your home for sale accordingly:Running costs? - Most people who have bought a home for the first time will know that it can be quite a financially stressful period, especially because you are having to populate the house with furniture and wide range of other essentials. The actual running costs of a home can therefore either be very attractive or off-putting to many firs... 09/01/2016

I recently listed and SOLD a home in NW Albuquerque's Las Marcadas neighborhood. Las Marcadas is a small neighborhood tucked away near the north end of Petroglyph National Monument. The homes in the neighborhood were built by a variety of home builders including early RayLee homes by Scott Grady, US Homes, Home by Kim Brooks and Opel Jenkins, perhaps NW Albuquerque's best home builder of the era.I often tell home buyers I meet that the area from Calle Nortena to the south and Paradise Hills Blvd to the north along Golf Course Blvd is the Sweet Spot of NW Albuquerque real estate.Las Marcadas Subdivision Las Marcadas subdivision is right in the middle of that area along with other great neighborhoods like Richland Hills, Rancho Sereno and Riverview Estates.Homes in this area of NW Albuque... 08/29/2016

I recently listed and SOLD 8140 Corn Mountain Pl NW located in NW Albuquerque's Ventana Ranch West.Ventana Ranch is a popular bedroom community known for affordable homes, beautiful parks and good schools.Ventana Ranch West is one of the newer parts of the neighborhood. Construction began in 2005 or so by Pulte Homes and DR Horton.  Popular One Story FloorplanDR Horton built this beautiful single story home in 2007. This was a super popular floor plan at the time, and it remains so today. One of the reasons was its flexibility.It can be built with 2 or 3 garages, and with 3 or 4 bedrooms. There's a lot of value in a newer 4 bedroom single story home in NW Albuquerque, especially when it has a 3 car garage and refrigerated air. However, my favorite version of this floor plan - I think it... 08/29/2016

It now appears that the first time buyer is making a huge comeback this year after all.According to recent survey information revealed by Zillow, 53% of all buyer sales in 2016 have been to first time buyers!And in spite of well-publicized recent concerns to the contrary, millennials are featuring strongly in this purchasing pool.These stats were further reinforced earlier this week when the latest figures for new home starts, traditionally a stronghold for the first time buyer, showed a multi-year high in July, and quite a significant hike on the rest of 2016 to date!And with news today that mortgage rates have ended the week lower and are still at rock bottom levels, here is the key reason behind the amazing current levels of enthusiasm to get on that housing ladder.In last Friday's ... 08/27/2016

We were very intrigued to read an article that appeared on investors.com very recently, showing that, in New Mexico and no less than 41 other states, renting is now more expensive than buying, when looking at median monthly rent prices for single family homes, compared with paying a monthly mortgage, property taxes and any applicable insurance, assuming a 20% down payment has been made and the home loan is at a fixed rate over 30 years.The article quoted data from gobankingrates.com that demonstrated that, in New Mexico, using all the above criteria, it's actually $82 less per month to be a homeowner!We've often touched on the rise and rise in rental prices in this blog over the years. While lower and lower mortgage rates have accelerated demand for home purchase, the rental sector is a... 08/27/2016

With the kids going back to school and football season approaching fast, there are plenty of signs around that summer will soon coming to an end.And what a summer it has been in real estate.As we reported last Friday, the Albuquerque area has seen very good year-on-year growth recently and, as we also reported last week, buyer sentiment is being measured at an all-time high, nationwide.And yet, despite all these, and other great reasons, for listing a home right now, we are still in the midst of a significant shortage of available properties for sale.There are many reasons why inventory has been so low, not least that it has been at least partially kept in check by the aforementioned buyer enthusiasm, with ultra-low mortgage rates as a huge incentive to purchase at the moment.Some peop... 08/27/2016

Figures just released by the Greater Albuquerque Association of REALTORS® (GAAR) should make for very good reading for anyone currently selling their home, or contemplating doing so.These stats contain good news in several key categories.The median price of a detached home rose by 3.2% ($189,900) in comparison with July 2015, while the average detached price showed a year-on-year increase of 6.8% ($226,192).On average, a detached home sells faster by a fifth of the time compared with the previous July. It now takes an average of 48 days to sell such a home.  Pending sales, a good indicator of August performance, showed an annual rise of 7.8% for detached homes. Indeed the levels of pending sales that we have seen in the market in recent months are the best for some years.Unfortunately, ... 08/12/2016

There's been some interesting news already this week from The Federal National Mortgage Association (FNMA), better known as Fannie Mae, the government sponsored, leading source of financing for mortgage lenders.Fannie Mae reports that its Home Purchase Sentiment Index rose by 3.3 points in July to 86.5. This an all-time survey high, indicating a very positive outlook for the housing market nationwide.The Index comprises a number of components, one of which is a the number of consumers who would buy if they were to move house. This figure rose to 67%, with a 26% fall in those who said they would rent when they next moved.A Fannie Mae spokesperson suggested that this could reflect an important shift toward buying among younger people, most probably as a reaction to rising rents and loweri... 08/09/2016

Let's face it, the time you're going to learn the most about the house purchasing process is when you first buy.It's been said that one in five first time homeowners experience some sort of regret after the deal has closed.We thought it would be a good idea to provide some tips on eliminating some of the most common forms of buyer remorse after the purchase is completed:Do your sums - There are a number of potential areas of regret related to the purchase price of the home, including wishing you'd negotiated better, feeling you paid too much or that you should have made a larger down payment. Here's where teaming up with a great agent and loan officer can reap big dividends. Good agents will have forensic local pricing knowledge and be able to advise you on what to offer for any given p... 08/05/2016