Round Rio Rancho

So, you’re up for a little drive in the mountains… If you head west out of the northern end of Rio Rancho on Hwy 550, within a few minutes you’ll hit New Mexico Route 4 and San Ysidro. Route 4 is the 64 mile long main road through the Jemez Mountains connecting the Albuquerque / Rio Rancho area with the Jemez Pueblo, Los Alamos and the Bandelier National Monument.

A few miles north of San Isidro you will find the Canon de San Diego region, with its stunning red rock formations and dirt, rich with iron. The Jemez Pueblo is located here, although tribal laws do not permit photography of the pueblo or its people.

A few miles north of the pueblo, if you’re really paying attention, you will see a turnoff to the left (west) for Highway 485 – a 1 ½ – 2 lane back way into the Jemez Mountains. Although Route 4 is a quicker and wider road than 485, I find myself taking the road less traveled almost every time. The road crosses the Jemez River and goes up a narrow, steep rock canyon, following the Rio Guadalupe. A few miles in you will encounter the Gilman Tunnels. These 2 tunnels were originally built in the 1920’s to accommodate a logging railroad. Just past the tunnels, the pavement ends. In fact, there is a gate across the road at that point which is often closed well into May because of snow and poor road conditions until the spring and summer heat dries things out. The road is rough, but the vistas of the mountain meadows are worth the bumpy ride.

Once you complete the loop and rejoin Route 4, you will be within a short distance of 3 more of the region’s star attractions – Fenton Lake, Battleship Rock and Soda Dam.

Battleship Rock is easily seen from the road and is worth a stop. The large exposed rock face emulates the bow of a large ship – hence the name. The striking, 200 foot tall natural formation of welded volcanic ash is studded with glass-like obsidian rock. A river runs through the day-use picnic area at the base, and hiking trails abound.

3 BR 2 BA 1700 Sq Ft

This was already the nicest home in the neighborhood when the Sellers bought it a few years ago…. Since then they have added Gorgeous Crown Molding, Wood Laminate Flooring in the main living area, New French Doors, New Light Fixtures and Ceiling Fans. Out back they built a Beautiful Wood Pergula over the patio. Do you have more than a couple cars? They also poured a 3rd Car Pad on the driveway. With quick access to Hwy 550, you can be in Albuquerque or Santa Fe in minutes. Come take a look!

For more info and photos, go to MarkandSheilaTeam.com .

The City of Rio Rancho was named #51 in the Top 100 Places to Live and Launch (a business) by Money Magazine in their latest issue. In 2006, Rio Rancho was #56 on the list, and was #83 in 2008. While there is some controversy about the magazine’s methodology in selecting their top 100, there is no denying that many things have been going right in Rio Rancho in the past few years…. Economically, Rio Rancho has been attracting a number of new and well known companies to settle here. Housing prices have remained moderate compared with much of the country, and the ups and downs of the national economy have had a lesser effect locally. You can see the statistical results for the latest rating below.

Shepherd of the Hills Lutheran Church is a small but growing congregation in Rio Rancho, NM. The church debuted as Rio Rancho Lutheran Mission in 1994, and adopted its current name when it joined the the Lutheran Church – Missouri Synod in 1996.  After holding services in a school cafeteria and a store front for several years, they built the first phase of their current facility on a hilltop near Pasilla Rd. and Highway 528. Reverend Kenneth DeSoto has been Pastor of the church since 2008.

In the Fall of 2002, the church opened a Christian Preschool, keeping the enrollment low, and quality high. Children 2 1/2 years through 5 years old are eligible for admission.

The address is 2400 Monterrey Road NE, Rio Rancho, NM 87144. The phone number is 505-867-9554. Visit their website for a schedule of services and events: http://www.shepherdofthehillsrr.org

The Music in the Park series put on by the Rio Rancho Parks, Recreation and Community Services Department runs late Spring through the Summer at the Rotary Club Barbecue Pavilion at Haynes Park.
The activity is free, and people are encouraged to bring chairs, blankets and snacks. Sorry, they don’t allow anything harder than lemonade to drink. Most nights an ice cream truck shows up to offer cold treats. The video above features the Mudd Brothers Band.

Performances start at 7pm and end around 8:30. The rest of the 2010 season offerings are below:

July 11: Placitas Mountain Band (Bluegrass and Old Time Music)
July 18: Michael and Donna Coy (Folk)
July 25: Bosque Blues (Acoustic Blues Duo)
August 1: Rudy Boy Experiment (Hot Rockin’ Blues)
August 8: Dennis Higgins & The 2010 Band Folk (Folk, Blues & Contemporary Jazz)
August 15: Saints and Sinners (Classic Rock and Blues)
August 22: Twisted Mojo (Classic Blues, Rock and Soul)
August 29: Rio Rancho Symphonic Band (Symphonic Music)
*Musical acts subject to change

Haynes Park is located at 2006 Grande Blvd., which is across the street from Intel on N.M. 528/Pat D’Arco Highway.

For additional information, please call the city of Rio Rancho’s Parks, Recreation and Community Services Department at (505) 891-5015.

When we visited Straight Chiropractic in Rio Rancho, we found it to be a really first-class operation.  Their philosophy is that chiropractic care is not just about occasional adjustments, say when you are hurting, but is a part of a larger process of overall health care, including good nutrition, exercise, limiting the use of drugs and medications, etc. Dr. Brad Fackrell owns Straight Chiropractic, although other doctors practice alongside him as well.  He offers weekly classes in the evening on a variety of subjects for patients and visitors who are interested in improving their health.

When patients commit to a program, they can come in for adjustments at times convenient to them, from very early to some evening hours. Dr Brad’s use of technology in his practice helps patients get in and back out quickly, while keeping the quality of care high.  His office staff is friendly and knowledgeable, most often greeting patients by name on sight.  We had the opportunity to sit in on a staff meeting at day’s end when filming there, and the positive attitude, the supportiveness  and conviction of all the employees and doctors was astounding.  In January of 2010, the practice moved into larger quarters within the same shopping center off Southern Blvd.  You can reach Straight Chiropractic at 505 507-9355. They are located at 3301 Southern Blvd. Suite 105 (next to the Albertson’s Grocery Store)

(Note) On the first day we were filming at Straight Chiropractic the staff was holding a special event where everyone was wearing matching T-shirts.  Although the office atmosphere is casual, Dr. Brad is usually dressed more conservatively than shown in parts of the video. The fact that he went on camera wearing the special T-shirt speaks to the fact that his focus is on patient health and wellness, which we believe is to his credit…

We’ve been keeping an eye on the construction site for the new Green2V Solar factory, which was announced about 8 weeks ago.  A construction office trailer, storage container, and a generator have been sitting on the large, cleared site for many weeks. Construction was projected to begin “June 1, 2010 or soon after” on the 125,000 sq ft 1st phase of the project, which could eventually hire 1500 local employees. Rio Rancho administrators have been waiting for the company to produce funding before the city completes the $6.9 Million land purchase for the factory.

This week there was some activity at the site – the generator was on, running the A/C for the building. Later, telephone equipment was being installed in the trailer, so it appears that the construction management company (Reid and Associates, it appears) is moving ahead with preparations to start work soon. We’ll keep you informed as further developments occur.

The chart above shows the trend of list prices of homes in Rio Rancho for a year (ending May 31, 2010). As you can see, the Southern half of the city (87124) was slightly worse off than the Northern half (87144), with the average price being down about 10% year over year.  My guess for the reason that prices in 87144 did not drop as much, is that they had already dropped a lot more in the previous couple years due to a much higher inventory, and they are nearer to hitting bottom than the Southern half of the city.  Most home owners, when they see numbers like this would not consider this a good time to try and sell their home.  However, our analysis shows that we are probably 18 months away from hitting the bottom price-wise in Rio Rancho, or on the West side of Albuquerque. Although the exact number is hard to predict, an additional slide of 10% in market prices over the next year and a half in those areas would not surprise us.

Once we hit bottom, we believe the market will linger there for about a year. From then on, we predict modest increases in prices of 2%, 2.5% or 3% max per year for the following 4 years. If you were to graph that trend, it would look like a valley, with our current prices on top on one side, and prices just reaching the same level on the other side in 5-6 years! So, when trying to decide if it’s time to sell (or time to buy), you really have to look out several years. In many cases, the best time to Sell would be right now, vs another time in the next 5 years! It may seem counter-intuitive to sell when prices are down from their peak, but it’s still the best time we’ll see for some years to come….

Recovery in the  Albuquerque / Rio Rancho Metro area residential real estate market continued during April. The 678 sales of single family detached homes closed during the month were a seven percent increase from March. The April sales performance represented a 25% jump from April 2009 and the best April sales figure since 2007. The number of pending sales was 1,271 during April. This was an 18% improvement from March and a 52% increase from April 2009. The 1st Time Buyer Tax Credit expired April 30, providing an incentive for buyers to get offers in place by that date. We believe that the tax credit may have increased April sales by as much as 30% over where it might have been without it. 

 During April, 1,869 single family homes were newly listed for sale, a 10% increase from March and up 28% from April 2009. The total number of single family homes listed for sale was 5,069 during April, down 6.1% from a year ago. Even as the number of new listings has increased, the total number of Albuquerque / Rio Rancho area homes offered for sale has declined during each month of 2010. For townhouses and condominiums, the number of new listings, pending sales and closed sales increased over April 2009. The increases were by greater percentages than for detached homes. A home sold during April was on the market an average of 74 days. That was two days less than during March and 11 days less than April 2009. Average and median sales prices for detached homes held steady as compared to April 2009. For April the absorption rate was 7.9 months, the lowest of the year. This means that at the present sales pace, it would take 7.9 months to sell all the homes currently offered for sale. The April 2009 absorption rate was 9.3 months.  The West Side of Albuquerque and Rio Rancho still have the most inventory.

The Idalia Road Marketplace is an outdoor shopping hub of great food, arts and crafts, music, entertainment, and local and organic fresh produce. The next time you’re looking for someplace different to go on a Saturday or Sunday morning, give IRM a try.  Don’t eat breakfast before you go… you can get a great breakfast burrito, a fruit smoothie, great coffee, and some luscious French pastries there! I visited today, and bought some fresh yellow squash, some HUGE Haas avocados and some fresh corn on the cob – all for about 30-40% less than the price I’d pay at  a commercial grocery store (they were bigger and fresher too)! This is the first outdoor marketplace in the Rio Rancho area, and the owners (Marc and Phyllis Calderwood) have gone all out to provide a great retail space for the vendors, and a pleasant and different experience for shoppers. Give it a try!

So you’re a 1^st Time Homebuyer who has played by all the rules, made sure you were under contract before April 30^th, and you’re scheduled to close before June 30^th of this year. By following the rules, you’ll be receiving the $8000 1^st Time Homebuyers’ Tax Credit. Everything should be perfect, right????  Not necessarily…

 A client of mine in the Albuquerque area went under contract March 3^rd to buy a Menaul Villas condo.  This condo is currently being built and is on track to be completed in time to close before June 30^th.  So what’s the problem?

 The Listing Broker for the Condo Development informed me yesterday about a potential glitch that has come up.  Sometime after our contract was written (around the April 30^th deadline for being under contract), the federal government changed the rules for condo phase approvals for FHA Mortgages.  This approval process used to take 2-3 weeks through FHA, but now they have decided this approval process will be handled by HUD (the Housing and Urban Development Dept.).  Now for the glitch…. The new process will take 4-6 weeks! How does this affect my client?  By doubling the approval time, my Client will most likely not close by June 30^th, losing the $8000 Tax Credit.

 I’ve decided to write NM Sen. Tom Udall to explain our dilemma. I am asking him to look in to this situation to see what can be done. My client has played by the rules, but the rules were changed in the middle of the game!  This doesn’t quite seem fair to me.  Interestingly enough, this only affects Buyers of condos.  If you were purchasing a Single Family Home, this change has no effect whatsoever.

 Why would I go to these lengths to help my Client?  As a Realtor who works specifically with Buyers in the Albuquerque/Rio Rancho area, I am an advocate for my Buyers.  I am looking out for their best interests. Many times potential Buyers will walk into a new Home Builder’s Model and write an offer with the person behind the desk  – who works for the Builder! So if you’re looking for a new home, take your Realtor with you.  That way you’ll have someone there on your side!

 I’ll keep you posted about my progress on this situation in my next blog!

#2 in a Multi-Part Series…

When I first walk into a home that a client is thinking about selling, the previously listed items are just some of the first things I look at. The reason is that all of these things make a big impression on potential buyers when they walk through, and they are all cosmetic items. Without exception, if the condition of any of these items is not good to excellent, they should be brought up to that standard prior to the home being put on the market.

Let’s say that the carpet is in poor shape. Very often I get asked by the Seller if they shouldn’t just offer a carpet allowance, rather than pick the color and the type of new carpet for the potential Buyers. The answer is NO! If the carpet (and therefore the home) looks shabby, that assessment is applied by visitors to the entire home. Who wants to buy a shabby home? The result is that very few Buyers will consider buying that home. They cannot imagine what the home would be like with new carpet, so they just move on to the next one. If they DO make an offer, they reduce it by $10,000 AND take the $3,000 carpet allowance you offered. This is rarely a good thing for the Seller, who could have installed an inexpensive grade of new carpet (with good padding) for about $14/sq yd or about $2200 for an average 2000 sq ft home, saved the difference of $10,800, AND probably gotten their home sold a LOT faster.

After working in the Albuquerque / Rio Rancho area for over 12 years, we have developed a list of vendors that are well priced and provide quality products and services. They also show up (unlike a lot of contractors). Our wholesale flooring products supplier usually beats Home Depot or Lowes by 25-35% on identical products.  Putting the carpet on a credit card and paying $75/month until the house sells is a great way to cash flow getting the work done, and make another $10,000 on the home sale. 

The above scenario pretty much applies to anything cosmetic that might need doing in the home. $1000 spent making cosmetic repairs or improvements will usually return a $5000 increase in the sale price, and will DECREASE the time on market. When I advise a client about things to be done, that’s my goal – to get them a 5-to-1 return on any investment. Rarely is it to Seller’s advantage to offer their home “as is”, because they don’t want to deal with its flaws. The result of that decision is that the Buyer makes the 5-to-1 return on their improvements after buying the home at a heavily discounted price.

Occasionally I receive pushback from a Seller who doesn’t want to spend the money on a home they are leaving, or does not have the money to spend until the house sells. They may have also received advice from friends, relatives or even from other Realtors to the contrary of what I advise, but my advice is based upon the examination of hundreds of past home sales, and it works.

Next:  Examples of the effect of Preparing a Home For Sale…

#1 in a Multi-Part Series…

There are 3 pieces to the puzzle of consistently getting a home sold. Although our team works in the Greater Albuquerque / Rio Rancho NM Metro Area, I don’t believe that things are significantly different in any other market…

The first step is to Prepare the Home for Sale:

Almost every home I visit needs some kind of attention. Sellers need to take a look at their home with fresh eyes, as if they were a potential buyer making a ten minute visit to the home during a day of visits to a dozen similar homes with their Realtor. Look for the following items:

1. Examine the paint in every room: Are there scuffs on the walls from pets or children doing what they do? Are there areas where the paint is thin? Are there some dings at the corners which need patching and paint? Are there dents in the walls from a door knob where the doorstop fell off last year? Did someone touchup a wall with semi-gloss paint where the rest of the wall was flat? Are there splotches of colored wall paint on the white ceiling where the paint roller strayed too close? How carefully was the cut-in work done near the ceiling or at a corner where there’s a change of color? Do the baseboards need a fresh coat of paint to cover dings from vacuuming? What’s the condition of the trim paint around all exterior doors, especially the garage door?
2. Is there a clean bead of caulk around every sink, bathtub and shower pan in the house? What’s the condition of the counter grout or tub surround grout?
3. Has the backing on a bathroom mirror started to break down near the bottom edge? 
4. Does the carpet look clean and new throughout, or has it seen better days?
5.  Are the kitchen and bath cabinets dry and pasty-looking, or have they been recently cleaned and oiled to rejuvenate them?
6. How does the house smell when you first walk in? Has the family pet been marking territory in a corner of the living room?
7. If there is vinyl flooring in the kitchen and baths, are there cuts, stains, or dull areas in the flooring? If you have tile, what’s the condition of the grout?
8. Is the yard neat and trimmed? Is it landscaped at all?

Next:  What to do when you’ve answered the above questions …

It was a good weekend… 2 contracts successfully negotiated on 2 listings.  The impact of the 1st Timer Buyers Tax Credit is still being felt. Both Rio Rancho homes were in the $140,000 – $165,000 price range. Both homes were only on the market a short time. One for only a few days. Both Buyers are using FHA financing, with little or no downpayment.  This is a fine buying strategy, so long as they stay in the homes long enough to build equity. Too many homeowners have a change of plans long before they overcome the steep costs of selling.

Both of my clients followed the plan – prep the home to be as attractive as possible; price it at market value; let us market the heck out of it.  Great photos are key – that’s why we spend 4 -5 hours or more just on shooting, enhancing, and uploading  still images to the MLS and to various stand alone websites. The goal is to make the home so attractive online that other brokers and buyers will want to see it in person.

Mission accomplished…