Rich Cederberg's Albuquerque Real Estate Blog

The Legends at High Desert, an Albuquerque Luxury Gated Community

Rich Cederberg- Albuquerque RE/MAX Finest Agent (RE/MAX Finest) — Mon, 26 Jul 2010 02:51:00 -0400

After my open house today I decided to stop by and look at the model homes at The Legends at High Desert. The Legends is a luxury gated community located in Northeast Albuquerque near Tramway and Academy.

As you can see, Tramway and Academy is very near the Sandia Mountains and their are some nice views at the Legends.

The exterior of the homes features extensive sultured stone detail, synthetic stucco with complete Tyvek stucco wrap, membrane roofs and really cool copper garage doors.

The homes are nicely appointed on the inside too, with Gourmet kitchens featuring Sub Zero 42" Refrigerator/Freezers with wood or stainless steel panels, Wolf 36" stainless steel 6 burner dual fuel range, solid granite countertops and backsplash and above and below cabinetry lighting.

Stacked stone is also used inside the home along with Acrylic Variance Wall Finish. There are 8' solid wood doors throughout the home and all doors are 3' wide.

Yes, those stairs lead to the basement. All the homes have climate controlled basements. In case you don't know, basements are very rare here in Albuquerque. They are only found in about 3% of the homes here.

There are 29 homes in phase one at The Legends ranging in price from $600,000 to $920,000.

There are many more upgrades in the absolutely beautiful homes. You can visit LegendsofAlbuquerque.com for more information, or call me at 505.803.5012 and I will set up a tour of these beautiful homes in a gated Albuquerque community.

Would you like a nice home in a gated community on a more affordable budget? Check out Albuquerque NM Gated Homes on my website.

____________________________________________________________________________________________________

Albuquerque Realtor Rich Cederberg works for RE/MAX Finest in Albuquerque New Mexico. Previously Rich worked for RE/MAX Elite and the Vaughn Company Realtors for 5 years. He specializes in Albuquerque Real Estate, Northwest Albuquerque Real Estate, Rio Rancho Real Estate and Los Lunas Real Estate. He especially enjoys working with First Time Home Buyers. Call 505.803.5012 or email Rich Cederberg if you need a Albuquerque REMAX agent.

Spaceport America is Making Progress

Rich Cederberg- Albuquerque RE/MAX Finest Agent (RE/MAX Finest) — Tue, 20 Jul 2010 00:49:16 -0400

"The next chapter in space transportation is being written right now in the State of New Mexico. Forward-thinking pioneers are developing both vertical and horizontal launch vehicles using the power of free-market enterprise." Visit SpaceportAmerica.com

Spaceport America may be launching ordinary people (well OK, really wealthy ordinary people) into space before we know it.

I know some Albuquerque Realtors I'd like to launch into space!

____________________________________________________________________________________________________

Albuquerque Homes for Sale with Basements

Rich Cederberg- Albuquerque RE/MAX Finest Agent (RE/MAX Finest) — Sat, 17 Jul 2010 20:01:54 -0400

One of the first things people relocating to Albuquerque notice about Albuquerque homes for sale is that they rarely have basements. To give you an idea just how difficult is to find an Albuquerque house with a basement consider this: Out of over 5,000 homes for sale, there are only about 100 homes with basements for sale.

View Albuquerque Homes for Sale with Basements

Great uses for basements:

Home Office
Kids Play Room
Media Room
Workshop
Teenager bedroom

No matter why you want a basement understand that while they are a rare find here in New Mexico, there are some available.

Follow the link and register on BeautifulNMHomes.com and you'll be able to view Albuquerque Homes for Sale with basements and 60 other saved searches that you won't find anywhere else.

____________________________________________________________________________________________________

Albuquerque Real Estate Report for June 2010

Rich Cederberg- Albuquerque RE/MAX Finest Agent (RE/MAX Finest) — Wed, 14 Jul 2010 23:21:05 -0400

Here's the latest video presentation of the Albuquerque Real Estate Report for June 2010. This report is provided by the Greater Albuquerque Association of Realtors.

Here's a brief recap:

Closed sales were up 11.40%
Pending sales were down 21.86%
Average sales price was down 1.11%
Median sales price was down 2.58%
Average days on the market was down 20%

No doubt at least some of the June closings were due to the first time home buyer tax credit, so we're likely to see a drop off in sales in July as the market returns to more normal conditions.

Remember that real estate is hyper-local. In other words, market conditions can vary not only from town to town but from neighborhood to neighborhood. To fully understand the market conditions in your neighborhood and the effect the conditions may have on your home value contact me, Rich Cederberg, Albuquerque Realtor, for a free home valuation report.

If you're thinking of selling and you should read more about my plan to help you sell your Albuquerque House.

Ready to buy your new home? Search residential real estate in Albuquerque NM or search MLS real estate in Rio Rancho

____________________________________________________________________________________________________

Do You Need to Sell Your Albuquerque House?

Rich Cederberg- Albuquerque RE/MAX Finest Agent (RE/MAX Finest) — Tue, 27 Oct 2009 16:19:14 -0400

If you're getting ready to sell your Albuquerque house you must be wondering how you're going to choose an agent. Let me tell you how I think you should choose.

Three important factors come to mind right away:

Competence: Does the agent have experience?
Character: Will you trust the agent to do the best job possible?
Marketing: What will the agent actually do to sell your home?

Competence

The Albuquerque real estate market is changing rapidly. How agents do their jobs is changing rapidly too. You need an agent who has been in business long enough to know the ropes but who hasn't become complacent about doing their job. The tools real estate agents now use require more technical expertise than ever. You need an agent who stays current with the new way real estate is done.

Character

This is one of the most challenging real estate markets ever for Albuquerque home sellers. You're about to trust your most important asset, your house, to someone. You need to take the time to find an agent who you can trust. You need an agent who will tell you the truth about your home's value, whether it's good news or not.

This is not the market to overprice a home. List prices need to be realistic. Watch out for old-school agents may try to buy your business by over promising how much they can sell your home for. After all, who wouldn't be tempted to pick the agent who promises to sell their home for the most money? In reality what happens to overpriced homes is that they don't sell, which is very frustrating, and eventually you have to reduce to sell anyway. In a market where prices are going down all you've done is wasted your time and then had to settle for less.

Pick an agent you can trust to understand the market. Pick an agent who will help you set realistic expectations. They are the agent who will get you results.

Marketing

Once you've found an experienced agent who you can trust you need to ask about their marketing plan. This is the most important part of selecting an agent. It's crucial that you find an Albuquerque Realtor who knows how to use the internet to market your home. You will find agents out there who are going to do nothing more than hastily slap your house into the local Multiple Listing Service (MLS) then sit back and wait. You should seek out more than that, and the agent you pick should have a detailed, written marketing plan for your house.

Here's the old-school marketing plan:

The agent takes some bad photos.
The agent inaccurately measures the house.
The agent slaps the home on the MLS, frequently with misspellings, other errors or omissions.
The agent puts up a sign.
The agent goes out to lunch with other Realtors and waits while you wonder what else they should be doing to sell your home. Then they call this "networking."

Give me a break, that's not enough marketing to sell a home in the tough Albuquerque real estate market!

Here's what you get with my marketing plan:

A For Sale sign with a toll free 800 number on it so buyers can get info if they are driving by. The buyers can choose to dial through to speak with me, but even if they choose not to speak with me don't my toll free number captures their phone number so I can call them back and offer information.
A For Sale sign with a Text Hotline where buyers can text a 5 digit number on their cell phones to receive a mobile phone website with photos and listing info. My call capture system sends me their phone number so I can follow up.
A For Sale sign with a memorable custom domain name like www.123Maple.com and a custom website that goes along with it.
Monitored placement on popular websites like Trulia, Zillow and Realtor.com
Three times a week ad placement on the super popular Craig's List
Placement on up to 30 other websites
Automated showing feedback system that gather stats on showings
Virtual Tours
Video on YouTube
Ads on Facebook

You'll get maximum exposure online with my marketing plan!

I think I've already got most Albuquerque Realtors beat when it comes to online marketing, but I still have something unique to offer.

I am an expert online marketer
My websitis get 20 times the visits from buyers than my competitors
I know the right keywords to use to advertise your home online
I know how to market online to younger consumers
I know how to market online to relocation buyers
I am an expert at Search Engine Optimization (SEO) to get information about your house onto the first page of Google
I can advertise your listing to 180,000 Realtors across the country who have relocation buyers! Forget about the pretend networking lunches other old-school Realtors pretend to do!

The truth is that if you choose me to list your house for sale it will get maximum exposure which means a quicker sale for more money!

Please contact me today if you are considering selling your home. I'd love to sit down and talk to you in person to see if I can help.

____________________________________________________________________________________________________

A Testimonial for Albuquerque Realtor Rich Cederberg

Rich Cederberg- Albuquerque RE/MAX Finest Agent (RE/MAX Finest) — Sun, 11 Jul 2010 16:26:59 -0400

Happy past clients are the reason I enjoy being an Albuquerque Realtor.

That's because I'm not in this job for the money, I'm in Albuquerque Real Estate because I want to have the opportunity to help people. Nothing brings me greater joy than meeting new clients and watching them change before my eyes from skeptics to raving fans when they realize that they can trust me, that I am watching out for their best interests and that I'm not just trying to make a quick sale.

Here's a testimonial from two of my happy homeowners in Albuquerque's Tanoan neighborhood:

"Rich was not only knowledgable and very professional, he was also patient and kind. This combined with his sense of humor and good nature turned a potentially daunting task into an enjoyable event.

I house hunted in New Mexico while my husband sold our old house in Colorado. This was not easy but Rich was a trusted ally in this lofty endeavor. He tolerated last-minute travel plans, participated in coffee-shop conference calls, helped make house videos, and shared contracts via email. Rich made a concerted effort to ensure my husband felt like a valuable part of the search. His hard work resulted in our finding a great house that my family now calls home.

We would recommend Rich to anyone who wants the ultimate realtor to help in their relocation."

I am so thankful for the people who will take a few minutes after their transaction is completed to write down a few nice words about me and the job that I have done for them.

I am humbled and inspired by testimonials like these. Humbled that I was given the chance to help them, inspired to continue doing business the right way, always keeping my clients best interests in mind.

If you're looking for an Albuquerque Realtor, won't you please call 505.803.5012 and give me a try?

Click here to see more testimonials for Albuquerque Realtor Rich Cederberg or click here to start your search for residential real estate in Albuquerque NM.

____________________________________________________________________________________________________

Buying Your First Albuquerque Home is as Easy as 1-2-3!

Rich Cederberg- Albuquerque RE/MAX Finest Agent (RE/MAX Finest) — Sun, 11 Jul 2010 01:56:27 -0400

Buying your first Albuquerque home is as easy as 1-2-3!

Meet with a lender. Not all lenders are the same, pick someone that is friendly, helpful and will take the time to answer all your questions. Once you find that person you'll need your last two years tax returns, paycheck stubs and W-2's, so start looking for those things now. Be sure to ask them about the MFA loans that require as little as $500 to get into a home.
Shop for homes. Find a buyer's broker who knows how to help you with all the latest internet tools like the Albuquerque MLS Client Portal. Identify homes you want to see online, then go see them with a buyer's broker.
Make an offer and get ready to close.Once you find the home you want, make an offer, then let your Realtor help you get to the closing table 30-45 days later.

Oh yeah, step four? Get the keys and start moving in! Search the Albuquerque MLS

If you're a first time home buyer the process can seem complicated, but really it's as easy as 1-2-3. To make it go even smoother make sure you find your own Realtor to represent you. You wouldn't go to court without your own lawyer and you shouldn't buy a home without your own Realtor! The one with the sign in the yard is working for the seller-not for you!

Read my Albuquerque First Time Home Buyer Guide

____________________________________________________________________________________________________

10008 Vista Cantera LN NW, Albuquerque NM OPEN HOUSE SUNDAY JULY 11

Rich Cederberg- Albuquerque RE/MAX Finest Agent (RE/MAX Finest) — Thu, 17 Jun 2010 02:13:11 -0400

10008 Vista Cantera Lane NW is For Sale and it's Priced to Sell!

This is not your typical Ventana Ranch home!

10008 Vista Cantera Lane NW is a beautiful RayLee built home with 1954 square feet, 3 bedrooms, 2.5 baths and a 2 car garage. The home was built in 2005 and is located in Vista Cantera Subdivision at Ventana Ranch in Albuquerque NM.

The house is full of natural light provided by skylights and clerestory windows. The sconce lighting gives the house a great warm and cozy feeling after the daylight is gone. The house is clean and in very good condition with fresh paint.

Video tour of 10008 Vista Cantera Lane NW

The kitchen is larger than it appears here, there's a large pantry, tile countertops, raised panel cabinetry and recessed lighting. There's a large laundry room down the hall with a storage closet.

Here's some great reasons to buy 10008 Vista Cantera LN NW

Refrigerated air
Gated community
Quiet neighborhood
Corner lot
Cul-de-sac location
Next to a park w a swimming pool
Desirable Schools
Cool floorplan

The dining area is large enough for a family, yet not so large so that it creates wasted space. Notice the nicho on the very far right of the photo. Faux wood blinds and updated light fixtures too.

Here's a great view looking down from upstairs at 10008 Vista Cantera Lane NW. Notice the tray ceiling with T&G pine, the big windows to let in light, and the latilla accents.

Here's a better view of the ceiling, the latillas and the nice open and wide hallway upstairs. Look at the beautiful wood trim and wood doors.

This is the view off the covered patio of 10008 Vista Cantera LN NW. You're looking at east at the Sandia Mountains. There's no neighbors to block your views, see how far away the houses are across the street?

A closeup of the Sandias on a somewhat hazy day. Imagine sitting on the covered porch in the afternoon with a nice glass of iced tea or perhaps a Margarita?

View 58 More Photos on Flickr

Ventana Ranch Schools

Ventana Ranch Community Center

There are only 23 homes in Vista Cantera which islocated right next to the Ventana Ranch Community Center.

There's a gate that's across the street from the front door of the house. You can see that the playground is just a super quick walk away.

Not only is there a playground at the community center, there's two swimming pools (there is a small additional fee to use the pool), a covered picnic area, a tennis court, a basketball court and a large grassy area to run around in.

Here's a few more pictures of the Community Center that is right across the street.

I hope you've enjoyed the photos on this great house for sale in Ventana Ranch. Contact me for a private viewing.

____________________________________________________________________________________________________

Northwest Albuquerque Monthly Real Estate Stats for June 2010

Rich Cederberg- Albuquerque RE/MAX Finest Agent (RE/MAX Finest) — Fri, 09 Jul 2010 03:21:53 -0400

I have just finished publishing my Northwest Albuquerque monthly real estate stats for Ventana Ranch, Taylor Ranch and Paradise Hills NM. Although the final numbers aren't in for the first time home buyer tax credit, it would appear that the results in June of 2010 in Northwest Albuquerque anyway, were less than stellar.

***Search Residential Real Estate in Albuquerque***

Ventana Ranch Real Estate Market Stats

Total sales were down slightly
Average sales price was down -5% YTD
Average market time was down
Average price per Square Foot was down

Taylor Ranch Real Estate Market Stats

Total sales were up slightly
Average sales price was down -2.5% YTD
Average market time was down
Average price per square foot was down

Paradise Hills NM real Estate Market Stats

Total sales were up slightly
Average sales price was down sharply -8% YTD
Average Market time was down
Average price per square foot was down sharply

Summary

Housing values in Northwest Albuquerque are continuing their decline in spite of slightly increased sales.

This doesn't mean necessarily that your property value is down. These market reports are very general and the only reason that I publish them to indicate trends in the real estate market.

To get a bettter idea what your home may be worth call me at 505.803.5012 and I will be happy to estimate your house's value.

____________________________________________________________________________________________________

La Cueva High School Homes for Sale

Rich Cederberg- Albuquerque RE/MAX Finest Agent (RE/MAX Finest) — Sat, 03 Jul 2010 01:08:11 -0400

Tired of searching through hundreds of listings online to find homes for sale in La Cueva High School district? La Cueva High School is Albuquerque's most popular high school.

Today there are over 300 three bedroom homes in La Cueva HS district for sale, and 229 four bedroom homes for sale in La Cueva HS district.

There is a wide variety of home styles available from more affordable La Cueva homes under $250,000, to more expensive custom homes.

If you've seen a home online and you want to check the schools for that address, go to the Albuquerque Public Schools website and look for the "Find a School" search on the home page. Visit their website to learn more about La Cueva High School.

____________________________________________________________________________________________________

Alegria Active Adult Community, Bernalillo NM

Rich Cederberg- Albuquerque RE/MAX Finest Agent (RE/MAX Finest) — Sat, 23 Jan 2010 21:59:29 -0500

Here are some photos of the Beautiful Alegria Active Adult Community in Bernalillo NM.

Alegria is Bernalillo New Mexico's Premier Active Adult Community. When you decide to buy a home here, you're buying more than a beautifully built home, you're buying a lifestyle!

The beautiful community center. There are regularly scheduled activities.

Stay in shape at the fitness center

There's an indoor pool.

And an outdoor pool in a beautiful setting.

Fun things to do while you're living at Alegria

Search Bernalillo New Mexico Homes for Sale

____________________________________________________________________________________________________

Great Deals on Albuquerque Homes for Sale

Rich Cederberg- Albuquerque RE/MAX Finest Agent (RE/MAX Finest) — Mon, 05 Jul 2010 17:01:04 -0400

Tired of searching through hundreds of listings online trying to find the great deals on Albuquerque Homes for Sale only to find out they’re all short sales? Well, you're in luck, because I have hand-picked through all of the current Albuquerque Homes for Sale and found about 40 homes that are priced to sell and under $80 per square foot. THAT'S UNBELIEVABLE! These are not difficult to buy short sales, they are regular listings and much easier to buy bank owned homes.

Click Here to view GREAT DEALS UNDER $80 PER SQUARE FOOT

Why should you buy a home right now?

Affordable prices. We’re at the bottom of the market!
Incredibly low interest rates. They can only go up from here!
Motivated sellers. They want to sell now!

These are the cheapest of the cheap, visit my website if you want to view more afffordable real estate in Albuquerque, or if you are interested in Albuquerque Foreclosed houses.

Call me at 505.803.5012 to schedule viewings of any of these properties

CALL 888.629.8852 and enter EXTENSION 101 to learn how you can BUY A HOME WITH ONLY $500 DOWN

____________________________________________________________________________________________________

Albuquerque Distressed Home Sales

Rich Cederberg- Albuquerque RE/MAX Finest Agent (RE/MAX Finest) — Mon, 05 Jul 2010 01:00:02 -0400

With more and more short sale homes and bank owned homes coming on the market here in Albuquerque, I thought it would be interesting to see what percentage of closed sales in June were distressed property sales.

Of the 581 total sales that have been reported in June 2010, 83 were bank owned listings and 49 were short sale listings. Together that's 29% of total sales. Bank owned homes made up 18% of June closed sales, and short sales made up 11% of June closed sales.

29% doesn't sound that high, but let's look at it another way, 29% means almost 1 out of 3 closed sales were distressed property sales. These numbers are for the Albuquerque market as a whole, and some neighborhoods have fared better than others.

With short sale homes selling for 10% below market value, and bank owned homes selling for even less, distressed property sales are definitely having an impact on housing values in Albuquerque.

____________________________________________________________________________________________________

Free Albuquerque MLS Search

Rich Cederberg- Albuquerque RE/MAX Finest Agent (RE/MAX Finest) — Sat, 03 Jul 2010 00:05:14 -0400

Search the Albuquerque MLS for free!

Use this free Albuquerque MLS Search with the click of a mouse. Click and drag the map to search different areas of town, then click on any of the house icons to view photos and get complete house information including price, number of bedrooms, etc.

____________________________________________________________________________________________________

Volcano Vista High School Homes for Sale

Rich Cederberg- Albuquerque RE/MAX Finest Agent (RE/MAX Finest) — Thu, 01 Jul 2010 22:22:12 -0400

Tired of searching through hundreds of listings online to find homes for sale in Volcano Vista High School district? Volcano Vista High School is one of Albuquerque's most popular high schools. Near Ventana Ranch, VVHS draws students from Ventana Ranch and Taylor Ranch as well.

Three Great Reasons to look for a home in VVHS District

Affordable Prices-Less expensive than La Cueva high School homes!
Newer Homes-Much newer than La Cueva and new construction homes too!
Quality Education-New schools have new facilities and the best teachers!

Today there are142 three bedroom homes in Volcano Vista HS district for sale, and 98 four bedroom homes for sale in Volcano Vista HS. VVHS homes are very affordable, with 119 homes available for under $200,000.

____________________________________________________________________________________________________