Once you purchase your dream home, selling it may be the last thought on your mind. Today, with homebuyer sites such as Zillow.com, claiming your newly purchased home is a savvy first step to securing a profitable resale.

Zillow uses public records to relay information to potential homebuyers, such as:

• Property Details
• Property Value Trends
• Tax Assesments
• School Districts
• Walkability
• Neighboring Home Values*

What Zillow cannot do is put this information in context. This is where homeowners jump in. Once you purchase your home, claim it as your own on Zillow. It’s as easy as visiting the site, searching for your new address, claiming it, and answering a few verifying questions.

Now, the fun part begins. As the homeowner, you’re able to edit the details of your home for accuracy. For example, your address may indeed show up as a 2 bedroom/2 bath, but are the bedroom sizes correct? Is one of those bathrooms actually a master bathroom with a walk-in closet?

Once the nitty-gritty details are ironed out, you can describe your home in detail. The best part is that you don’t have to exaggerate! You purchased this property for a reason and now you’re sharing your reasons with others.

For example, you may mention that the backyard is fully landscaped with local plants, which are both low-maintenance and easy on your monthly water bill. Perhaps you adore the view of the fully-fenced backyard from the kitchen and dining area because you can keep an eye on your kids and cook dinner at the same time. Maybe there’s a gem of a tea shop within walking distance to your home that isn’t yet on WalkScore’s radar. This is the time and place to share.

Be sure to update your Zillow listing periodically to include any upgrades and additions made to your home. What homebuyer doesn’t appreciate a consistently maintained property? Just remember, updates add value, but before and after pictures tell a story. Don’t be shy. Post a photo or two!

The truth? Homebuyers crave a house that displays its value in more ways than one. When you’re ready to sell, you may be surprised at how little it will take to generate the interest that your home already deserves!

*Many states are non-disclosure states. Property sale prices in these states are not available publicly.

Do you have any advice about selling a home or using Zillow? Please leave your thoughts in the comments below. And if you have any questions about selling or buying a home in metro Albuquerque, be sure to contact me today!

As June approaches Albuquerque soon and residents prepare for (undoubtedly) temperatures near triple digits again, now is the time for homeowners to utilize every resource at their disposal to keep cool. So let’s take a look at eight things homeowners can do to help keep their indoor temperatures down this summer.

1. Keep your blinds closed.
Up to thirty percent of unwanted heat comes from your windows, so make use of blinds, shades, and curtains to save up to seven percent on your cooling costs and lower your indoor temperatures by up to twenty degrees. Using white or light-colored window treatments will help reflect away some of the light and heat as well. Further cooling enhancements can be made by using insulated window films.

2. Close off unused rooms.
This will obviously keep heat away from your living areas. And make sure your doors seal properly. Of course, if you have refrigerated AC, you should keep your windows closed anyway.

3. Let the night air in.
Many New Mexico summer nights are pleasant because of our typical low humidity. Cracking open windows on opposite sides of your house will create a cross breeze – even across considerable square footage. Enhance the effect with window fans. If you have evaporative AC, you should be keeping your windows cracked anyway, especially in heat-prone rooms.

4. Set your ceiling fans to rotate counter-clockwise.
And speaking of fans, by setting them counter-clockwise in the summer, the airflow produced will create a wind-cooling breeze effect that will help everyone feel more comfortable.

5. Utilize other fans.
Turning on bathroom fans to pull out steamy air and stove exhaust fans to pull out hot kitchen air can help as well. Just make sure you don’t overdo it by letting any cool air escape.

6. Eliminate incandescent lights.
You should only use energy-efficient CFLs. Incandescent bulbs waste about ninety percent of their energy in the heat they emit, so throwing them away will make a nice difference in your energy costs.

7. Cook wisely.
There are so many things you can do to minimize heat output with food preparation. Avoid the oven, especially during PM hours. Use a crock pot. Start grilling. Use the microwave whenever possible.

8. Make outside changes.
Adding awnings and planting trees or vines in front of or around light-facing windows will shield your home from the sun’s rays and reduce the amount of heat your home absorbs.

So by implementing just a few changes, you can help keep indoor temperatures down and your utility bill as well.

Do you have any summer cooling advice to add? Please leave them in the comments below.

And if you’re thinking about selling or buying a home in metro Albuquerque, be sure to contact me today!

With temperatures pushing over 80F in the Duke City lately, I hope you’ve given thought to preventative maintenance on your air conditioners for this summer. But many homeowners turn on their air conditioning unit without an inspection, cleaning, or maintenance checkup. Not only can this damage your unit and make it inefficient, it could cost you in the long run. I recommend having an AC “tune-up” done.

Getting a Tune-Up saves you money in the long haul!

Improve Efficiency Heating and cooling make up 48% of a homeowner’s utility costs. According to Energy Star, yearly air conditioning tune-ups can improve your unit’s efficiency and help you reduce costs. In fact, build up from not cleaning your unit can reduce its efficiency by 5% each year.

Prevents Future Costly Problems

When a HVAC professional is completing an air conditioner tune-up, they inspect all the different parts of your unit, including your condenser coils, compressor, electrical connections, refrigerant, motors, and more. If they see a potential problem, they can fix it, or work with you to get it repaired. Having a trained eye looking for issues that could turn into costlier problems if left alone can save you a lot of money in the long run. Also, finding a problem now when the temperatures are more bearable is much better than finding out there is an issue later when the sun is blazing and you can’t turn on your AC! According to HomeAdvisor.com, homeowners spent on average $165 to $507 repairing their air conditioner units. Comparing that to the price of a service call fee, having a pre-season tune-up sounds like a smart choice.

Keep it Running Longer

An air conditioning unit’s lifespan depends completely on how it was installed and how well it is maintained. According to the United States Department of Energy, a well-maintained air conditioner should last 15-20 years, while a survey completed by the National Association of Home Builders said air conditioner units usually last about 10-15 years.

With regular maintenance, you can keep your air conditioner running longer. Even something as simple as cleaning or changing the air filter at least every 3 months can help your air conditioner be more efficient and run longer.

What a good pre-season tune-up includes…:

1. Clean or Replace Filters

If your air conditioning unit has filters that are reusable, the technician will clean out dirt and dust that have accumulated from the winter months. If you use replaceable filters, the tech will switch these for you, if you supply the correct filter for your unit. Cleaning or replacing your HVAC filters should be done every 1-3 months to keep your HVAC unit running efficiently so it doesn’t have to work harder than it should. A filter will specifically keep the condenser coils of your air conditioner clean.

2. Clean Condenser Coils

Even though changing the filter can prevent build-up on your condenser coils, they still accumulate dirt. A technician will professionally clean these coils during a furnace tune-up. Dirty coils can stop the condenser from absorbing heat and cause the coil to fail prematurely. You can also help minimize build-up by removing dirt, bushes, and other foliage near your condenser unit.

3. Clean & Tighten Electrical Connections

When you have an air conditioning tune-up completed, the technician will open up your condenser unit and look inside of the electrical compartment. They’ll make sure the connections are cleaned from any debris that could cause the air conditioning unit to not turn on or stop working throughout the summer.

4. Check Refrigerant Levels

The technician will also check to make sure the Freon in your air conditioning unit is up to manufacturer’s specifications.

5. Check Contacts & Condensation Lines

Plugged condensation lines can cause water damage in your home. Your technician will check to ensure this isn’t happening.

6. Check & Calibrate Thermostat

A technician will change your thermostat’s batteries if it has been longer than a year. The tech will also test to ensure the air conditioner is cooling as efficiently as possible and calibrate the unit with the thermostat.

7. Perform Amp Draw on Condenser Motor, Evaporator Motor, and Compressor.

A technician will perform an amp draw to determine how much energy the condenser motor, evaporative motor, and compressor are pulling from the electrical grid. If they are not within manufacturer specifications, the technician can work with you to determine what’s causing the problem and get it fixed. Otherwise, faulty connections make your unit unsafe and fail early.

So schedule your pre-season air conditioning tune-up right away! If you have a home warranty (and you should), call them and let them contact the technician. Then let a contractor contact you to set up the pre-season service.

Do you have any advice to add about tuning up your air conditioner? Please leave your thoughts in the comments below. And if you have any questions about selling or buying a home in metro Albuquerque, be sure to contact me today!

There’s few bigger buzz words today in real estate than “green”. It’s come to encompass any action that’s beneficial to the environment. That popularity has brought environmental issues to the forefront of home buyers these days.

Going green is always good, and it’s easier to do than ever before. I discussed numerous ways for homeowners to do this in my post, Saving the “Green” with a home energy audit.

But as a home buyer, what other resources do you have? Well, Build Green NM is one of the best. The program was designed to encourage builders to “Go Green” and educate the public about the benefits of buying a green home. To certify the home under this program, builders must meet a minimum BGNM “Bronze Level.” A BGNM checklist allows builders to select a minimum number of “green” or more specifically energy-efficient items that will qualify the home for the certification.

Only homes that are registered and certified by BGNM will be certified. So it’s important to know that every builder can build “green” differently. Because of this, all homes can have a variety of energy efficient items incorporated into their build.

Going green and staying with it doesn’t have to be hard. And Build Green NM can definitely be an aid to home buyers.

If you have tips about home keeping your home green that you’d like to share, be sure to leave them in the comments below. And if you’ve got questions about buying or selling a home in metro Albuquerque, be sure to contact me today!

The vast majority of mortgage lenders require that their customers buy home insurance as part of the deal, but many buyers are confused over what is and isn’t covered in their policy. Let’s take a look at three of the most common myths about home insurance.

Myth #1: All of your home’s belongings are covered in the policy.

This is clearly not true, as policies specifically state that certain items are covered while others are not. Each home insurance policy explicitly states what is covered. For example, personal valuables such as jewelry or watches are usually not covered. Instead, if you wish to insure these items you will need a separate personal property policy that covers them.

Myth #2: Coverage is based on the home’s market value.

Some 52 percent of consumers believe that they should buy home insurance policies that are based on their property’s market value, according to a 2016 study by Insure.com. But most insurance policies are instead based on the cost it would take to rebuild the home, rather than its true value. In fact, in most cases, you need less coverage than the market value of your house.

Myth #3: Flood coverage comes as standard in most policies.

Once again, this is totally false. Flood coverage generally isn’t included in most policies, and so homeowners whose building’s are located in areas prone to flooding should definitely clarify this. If their policy doesn’t cover flooding, they will need to get a separate policy in order to protect themselves from this risk. The good news is that it’s possible to purchase inexpensive flood insurance from the National Flood Insurance Program and also some private insurance firms. Some experts say that even homeowners living outside of flood zones should consider buying coverage if they want to have peace of mind.

Do you have any questions or tips about home insurance? Please leave them in the comments below. And if you have any questions about selling or buying a home in metro Albuquerque, be sure to contact me today!

Kitchen renovation is one of the most popular home improvement projects in the United States today. Many homeowners believe it will add value to their homes — not only for themselves, but also down the road if they decide to put their home up for sale. Kitchen renovations can be quite costly and there are many things to consider before starting your project. You’ll want to be fully prepared so that you can avoid making costly mistakes like these five.

1. Lack of Attention to Detail

If you are like most people, you may be concentrating on the big picture version of your kitchen renovation, and not delving too deeply into the project’s details. Don’t assume that your contractor will think of all the details — like hardware for your cabinets, or if your drawers will have built-in storage. Do not rely on the contractor to take care of these seemingly small details. If you don’t communicate what you want, your contractor isn’t going to be able to read your mind. Ensure you are communicating your needs down to the last detail.

2. Not Enough Counter Space

You need to ensure that you are not sacrificing precious counter space for other design elements on your kitchen remodel. You may think you don’t need that much space on a regular basis, but think about the big picture. You may be hosting dinner parties or holiday gatherings, and you want to have as much space as you possibly can, to accommodate this. Aside from having more space for hosting, you can do more with large countertop surfaces, even when they are not being utilized for cooking. Countertops don’t have to be purely functional. They can contribute to your design element and be a focal point in your kitchen. With the various materials that are available for your countertops — like marble, granite, or ceramic tile — your choice in materials will give your kitchen a completely different look and feel.

3. Thinking You Can DIY All the Time

There are some valid do-it-yourself projects that you can take on if you have a basic understanding of home improvements and can classify yourself as handy. There are even some DIY projects that are simple enough to learn if you know how to follow directions and take the necessary safety precautions. On the other hand, major work like your kitchen renovation should be left to the professionals. You may think you know how to rip out your kitchen cabinets and reinstall them because you watch HGTV all day, but the complexity of installing custom cabinetry work is much more intense than it looks on TV.

4. Having an Unrealistic Budget

So, you want your house to look like it’s from “MTV Cribs,” but you want to get that on a shoestring budget. It’s probably not going to happen. You need to be realistic with what you can afford. If your tastes are larger than your wallet, it might be a good idea to wait on the renovation if it is not a necessity right now. Start putting the money aside today, and revisit your plans when you are ready. On the other hand, if you do have a nice chunk of change set aside, you still need to be realistic about what the entire project will cost you. You should factor in materials, labor costs, building permits (depending on where you live), and a little extra for unexpected expenses that may come up along the way. If you have no concrete idea of the cost of granite countertops or kitchen ventilation systems, you need to do your research. If you don’t have the time to devote to research, you should enlist the services of a professional. Make sure you shop around and get a few different quotes from contractors in your area.

5. Cutting Corners to Save Time or Money

A cabinet maker will tell you that cutting corners is not a great idea when it comes to anything, but when you’re renovating your kitchen, it’s even worse. If you have not made mistake #4, you should be in a good place when it comes to budgeting and have the money available to get your renovation done right. If you have made mistake #4, you may find yourself in a bind when you realize you should have planned your budget more thoroughly.

By really focusing on these five commonly-made mistakes, you can greatly increase your likelihood of having a very successful kitchen renovation!

If you have any helpful advice you’d like to add about kitchen renovations, please leave them in the comments below. And if you’ve got questions about buying or selling a home in metro Albuquerque, be sure to contact me today!