Albuquerque, NM Real Estate Podcast with The Venturi Team

short-term rental opportunities available to you in the Albuquerque area.

 

Vacation rentals are typically for periods no longer than six months or a year, and people are often curious about whether or not they’re worth it. Today we’ll be answering a few key questions about them so you can make an informed decision about making such an investment.

The ideal short-term rental investor can be just about anybody. Although the property may be vacant 50% of the time, your return is going to be much higher and could generate nearly double the income. Of course, there will be a lot more maintenance that comes with keeping your rental in good condition.

In the Albuquerque area, many of these rental properties are located all over, like a cabin in the East Mountains, a room in a house downtown, a suburban spot in the Northeast Heights, or perhaps in the more popular vacation spots around Albuquerque Old Town. If you look online, you’ll see a huge variety of locations, prices, and types of properties. I once saw 1,900 such properties available in our market. One was for a house for $1,000 per night with room for 16 people. It was mostly used for corporate retreats, family getaways, weddings, and so on. Five hotel rooms might run for about the same price or more, depending.

If you’re a person who owns a property to be rented or you’re thinking of buying a rental property, the income could be double the usual amount. You average 3-bedroom, 2-bath house in Northeast Heights would be around $1,200 to $1,300 a month for a standard one-year lease. On that same house, you might get $150 a night, though you have to take vacancies into account, along with the costs of cleaning it and listing it on sites like VRBO and Airbnb.

In general, people tend to do pretty well with them, especially if they don’t mind doing the maintenance and cleaning themselves; if you’re paying a management company to do it for you, it could cost around $1,000 a month.

“

Although the property may be vacant 50%

of the time, your return is going to be much higher and could generate nearly double the income.

”

An executive rental is a property that someone might stay in for around a month that has all the comforts of staying in a home as opposed to a hotel. They are indeed in high demand.

Right now, we have a shortage of executive rental properties, but with many of the properties listed on VRBO and Airbnb, people can rent by the month. Depending on the time, there may be people who have rented a property for a few days at a time, so finding a month-long window could be challenging.

We’ve looked at some of the properties that have sold in the last year as well as what’s on our MLS for sale right now, and there are many opportunities in the area. We’ve seen a cute little house in the downtown area close to the zoo for $139,900 that has been completely remodeled. There are about 70 listings just in the MLS that would be great Airbnb or vacation rentals, or they already have established clientele as a rental property.

If you’re interested in purchasing a short-term or vacation rental property, please reach out to us. Additionally, if you're interested investing in long-term rentals, you can start your search on Mashvisor. We’d be happy to help you analyze what’s out there and what would be a good fit for you.

 

We recently participated in an interview where we talked about how the real estate market is doing around this time of the year. 

From what we see, the market is still very healthy. In August, our total number of sales was up from the previous year. Although there are some news reports out there saying things have slowed down, it doesn’t mean we aren’t still an active market. We’ve just slowed down from the frenetic pace we saw this spring and summer.

If you look at the charts for closed sales and homes for sale, which show a 10-year trend of closed sales and a 10-year trend of homes for sale, we see that the market consistently peaks during the summer months. For example, in May and June of last year, we saw over 1,300 homes sell each month. This year, we peaked out in May with about 1,360 homes. This chart also shows that we see this happen every year, hitting our low months in January and February, then steadily rising through the spring and summer.

What we’re seeing year over year is a trend of more homes selling overall since the market bottomed out in 2011. The slowdown we’re seeing is typical of this time of year.

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Sales are still up 7% from last year
and show no signs of slowing down.

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For homeowners who are in the market to sell, it’s important to know that homes are still selling and buyers still need to buy homes. If you need to sell as we head into the fall season, we can help get your home staged, marketed, and presented in its best light to the buyer pool that’s out there. People will still continue to buy all through the winter months as well.

As far as homebuyers are concerned, it’s important that you know what’s important to you, what your needs are, and what your financial picture looks like. Then we can discuss your options before we start looking at houses. It’s important to have that conversation so you can best meet your goals.

Finally, we just wanted to make sure we mentioned that although you might be hearing that the market is slowing down, if you look at the data you can see that it’s not. Sales are still up 7% from last year and things don’t seem to be slowing down at all.

If you have any questions in the meantime about the market or about anything else related to real estate, don’t hesitate to give us a call or send us an email. We look forward to hearing from you soon.

We recently discussed the topic on Facebook Live.

 

We recently participated in a great Q&A on Facebook Live where we talked about online home estimates, specifically Zillow’s Zestimates, and how accurate they are here in Albuquerque. We had a wide-ranging discussion on the topic. Here’s an outline of what we talked about, with timestamps so that you can skip ahead to the section(s) that interest you most:

0:50 - Are Zillow’s Zestimates accurate in New Mexico?

2:20 - How much are Zestimates off by on average in different areas of the country?

3:45 - The origins of online estimates and their mathematical shortcomings when it comes to valuing homes.

6:00 - A few examples of some real New Mexico homes and the discrepancies between their actual home values and their online Zestimates.

6:30 - When are Zestimates useful? Are they useful at all?

7:45 - Why New Mexico’s county records aren’t a good indication of a home’s true value.

If you have any other questions for us about Zillow, Zestimates, or anything else related to real estate, don’t hesitate to give us a call or send us an email. We look forward to hearing from you soon.

 

If you are thinking about building your own custom home, getting started might seem a little daunting, but we have some advice that will help you get started on the right foot.

Many times, people who want to build their own dream home start by buying land before they choose a builder. Our suggestion is to interview builders while you look at land to buy.

When people look at land to buy, it is tempting to want to buy the cheapest lot, but make sure you look at the full infrastructure cost. What utilities would be available? What about the soils—would you need to add engineered field dirt to build your foundation?

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Finding a great piece of land and a great builder will ensure that you start things off right.

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While you look for builders, it helps if you have an idea of what floor plan you want because builders need to know how much land you need and what its dimensions should be to accommodate the home you envision.

From that point, there will be plenty more plans to be made and decisions to consider, but finding a great piece of land and a great builder will ensure that you start things off right.

If you have any other questions about building a custom home or you have any other real estate needs, please feel free to reach out to us. We would be happy to help you.

Want to buy a home? Search all homes for sale

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We’re back today to discuss the third thing you shouldn’t do when buying real estate, which is underestimating your budget.

Contrary to popular belief, Realtors are there to listen to you and help you navigate you toward the home of your dreams. If you aren’t upfront with your agent from the start, however, you could end up missing out on your perfect home.

Our job is to negotiate the best deal possible for you.

Our job is to work for you and negotiate the best deal possible that not only makes you comfortable, but fits your wants, needs, and non-negotiables. The key to accomplishing this is being honest, open, and upfront as a buyer.

If you have any questions for us in the meantime, don’t hesitate to give us a call or send us an email. We look forward to hearing from you soon.

Want to buy a home? Search all homes for sale

Want to sell your home?  Get a FREE home value report

If you need a loan to buy your home, never pick a lender based on the interest rate they offer. Why?

While interest rates are definitely important, there are many other factors that come into play when it comes to lending that most people don’t realize. The fees that the lender charges to do the loan should also be taken into consideration, as well as their reputation and their ability to close on time.

As you might notice in the video above, I’m standing in front of a pile of leaves. This is because lending these days involves a pile of paperwork, and you need to be prepared for it and know that you’re not being picked on. Every lender has to ask you for lots of documents, and then ask for them again so they can be updated. It takes a lot of effort from you to get a home loan, and that’s the way it should be.

It takes a lot of effort on your part to get a home loan.

Stayed tuned for the third part in our ongoing series providing tips for homebuyers. In the meantime, if you have any questions or are thinking about buying a home in our market, don’t hesitate to reach out to us. We’d be happy to help you.

Want to buy a home? Search all homes for sale

Want to sell your home?  Get a FREE home value report

We're starting a new series today: The Six Things to Never Do When Buying a Home. We're covering the first tip today, "which is to never buy a home without a Realtor to help you."

As you know, us Realtors are specialists in our field and we hope you'll call us when you're ready to buy. However, there's no problem with starting your search online.

Once you get an idea of what you like, call us. We'll talk about what you like, what you're looking for, and put together a great list of homes for you. We want to be like your fairy godmother and make your real estate dreams come true.

Once you know what you’re looking for, give us a call.

We can help you navigate the process and make it a great experience for you. It's what we love to do. If you have any questions for us in the meantime, give us a call or send us an email. We look forward to hearing from you.

Want to buy a home? Search all homes for sale

Want to sell your home?  Get a FREE home value report

On June 14th, the Federal Reserve increased its federal funds interest rate by 0.25%. They’re also widely expected to raise rates once or twice more over the course of 2017. What does this mean for the real estate market?

While any action by the Fed always garners a lot of attention, we believe these increases will not have any significant impact on our market.

First of all, mortgage rates have actually trended lower in the wake of the Fed’s recent announcement. The 30-year mortgage rate recently hit 3.9%, the lowest level in 2017. In fact, it’s a common pattern for the mortgage rate and the Fed rate to move in opposite directions, and the same thing has happened the last two times the Fed raised rates.

Second, the economy continues to do well. The Fed decided to increase its rate because unemployment and inflation are low, household spending is picking up, and we’ve seen steady growth for the past nine years. This is good news for the real estate market. As expected, we continue to see strong demand and a corresponding increase in home prices.

Third, while the Fed’s rate increase is normally meant to cool off the economy, it might actually stimulate it in this case. Because interest rates were so low for such a long period of time, experts believe the recent increases might ease pressure on the financial system and encourage lending.

These increases will not have any significant impact on our market.

Case in point: since the Fed started raising its rate in December 2016, total mortgages are up 2.5% year over year.

In conclusion, while any move by the Fed is likely to lead to a lot of hand-wringing, we believe the real estate market will not be affected and will continue on its own healthy course. Nonetheless, it’s clear that right now is a uniquely good moment for everyone in the real estate market. Today’s low mortgage rates are good for homebuyers because they make homes more affordable.

If you have any questions about our market or you’re thinking of buying or selling a home, give us a call at 877-933-6881 or send us an email at [email protected]. We'd love to help.

Want to buy a home? Search all homes for sale

Want to sell your home?  Get a FREE home value report

Many prospective first-time homebuyers think their first home has to be perfect and that they'll be there for a long time. I encourage you, however, to think of your first home as your first investment property.

If you're saving up to get your first dream home, it might be time to buy your first home that's not necessarily your forever home, but one that's a two- or three-year house that you live in and then keep as an investment when you move to your next home. If you keep it as a rental home, someone else pays the rent while you get the equity.

While someone else pays your mortgage, you might also then be in a better position to buy that dream home as your second property. It's something to consider as you shop for your first house.

Think of your first home as an investment property.

Now, not everyone can buy a house without first selling their current home. In the short-term, it could make more options for you during your home buying process.

If you have any questions about buying your first home or about owning property as an investment, don't hesitate to give us a call or send us an email. We'd love to help you!

Want to buy a home? Search all homes for sale

Want to sell your home?  Get a FREE home value report

Over the years, we’ve been honored to assist many people who’ve flown into or out of Kirtland Air Force Base. If you’re PCSing into the Kirtland Base in the near future, we’d love to help with your housing situation and living arrangements, and there is a lot of information we can provide you with.

Let’s start with housing options. Homes in our area are typically single-family homes on single lots. We do have townhomes and condos available as well. We have lots of land, so our single-family homes are usually on their own lots, and most of their backyards are fully walled-in.

As far as schools go, there are many resources available online, so we can get you links to enable you to research the best option and connect with people who already have their children in schools.

Commute times in our area can vary. Right next to the base there is a newer neighborhood, but most of the homes situated within five to 15 minutes of the base are older. Many of the new homes in Albuquerque are in the northwest quadrant or in Rio Ranch. Depending on where you might find those newer homes, your commute might stretch to 30 minutes or an hour. Prices for new homes range from $175,000 to $250,000.

There are lots of ways we’d love to help you with your PCS into Kirtland.

If you get an opportunity to come to Albuquerque to house hunt, we would be glad to show you around. We also know you might not be able to arrange a trip to pick your house, so we have many resources to complete the process remotely. Once we’ve helped you narrow down your favored areas, we can help show you houses via Skype or Google Hangout.

There are lots of ways we’d love to help you with your PCS into Kirtland. You can also visit our website at www.welcomehomeabq.com for more information. If you have any questions, feel free to give us a call. We look forward to working with you.