Kendra Ruminer's Two Cents of Real Estate

Take A Peek At Los Alamos, New Mexico

Tag: Los Alamos New Mexico (Page 15 of 15)

What’s With White Rock?

December 10, 2020 /
View into the Rio Grande Valley near Hell’s Hole in White Rock.

Los Alamos County is unique. No doubt about it. There are bits and pieces of local life that are so “normal” to those of use who have lived in Los Alamos County for a long time. Those same bits and pieces make the newbies scratch their heads with wonder. No doubt one of those “bits and pieces” happens to be White Rock itself. How on earth did a town that isn’t a town spring up on a scrap of land that is so difficult to develop that modern construction methods have spent the last several years blasting the ground and missing deadlines just to put a few fairly simple houses on the acreage between the White Rock Visitor Center and the Grand Canyon/State Road 4 intersection?

Here are few things to keep in mind:

White Rock began life in 1949 as a hastily slapped together development to house construction workers. No kidding folks, there were around four hundred prefabricated houses, spaces for privately owned trailers, and some dormitories. Homes weren’t wired for phone service and one of the big bragging points was that they had a gas range for cooking!

(photo courtesy of Craig Martin)

In Craig Martin’s fascinating book, Quads Shoeboxes and Sunken Living Rooms, he relates a story about a young boy who was burned in a kitchen fire. The poor mother couldn’t call for help, couldn’t access the family car because it was with her husband at work, and waited hours for her child to get treatment. “In the Los Alamos News the next day town managers said the proper way to summon emergency help in White Rock was to pull the nearest fire alarm.”

And yet, even in this rural “overnight town”, there was a commercial section of town that included a grocery store, a beauty shop, a barber, a doctor’s office, and a jail. There was also a school and a post office. Why did the 2400 residents of 1950’s White Rock get all the good stuff? Because the construction crews didn’t have a clearance and therefore could NOT get into Los Alamos to shop on the hill.

The entire development was situated on the land between Joya Loop, Rover Blvd, and State Road 4. The single family homes were literally referred to as “shoeboxes”. Yep. That’s right. Shoeboxes. By the winter of 1957 the new construction at the National Laboratory was done and there was nothing left of White Rock but a few empty streets. The prefab houses had been sold and moved elsewhere.

By 1959 the “critical housing shortage” in Los Alamos brought the Atomic Energy Commission back to the idea of developing White Rock. This time they proposed to Washington that they sell the property to a private developer. Two hundred acres to start, a thousand acres more in the future at (this will make you cry) a whopping $25.00 per acre. Houses were supposed to be in the $15,000 range to accommodate lower income home buyers. (Talk about appreciation!)

Sounds brilliant, right? Wrong! The FHA deemed White Rock to be too rural to offer mortgage insurance to home buyers. The whole project would have been scrapped if it weren’t for a bill introduced to Congress by then NM Senator Clinton Anderson. John McCone, chairman of the Atomic Energy Commission, pushed hard and in November 1960 President Eisenhower signed a bill to offer FHA mortgages in remote areas to promote growth and development. By the end of the month, developers were making bids to make White Rock a reality.

Noxon’s original plans for White Rock. Those who picked up the building contracts after Noxon bowed out have kept to the same general idea except the golf course out toward the right.
(photo courtesy of Craig Martin)

By January 1961, the contract was awarded to Los Angeles based Noxon Construction and folks here locally were perusing floor plans and looking at options for exterior and interior finishes. The cost of the homes was $19,000, but an agreement from the local utility companies to pay for the installation cut the costs by $4,000. But that was only the beginning of the story. See if this doesn’t sound familiar.

Craig Martin writes, “the Noxon construction project was fraught with troubles from the start. The dense, hard basalt just under the surface proved more difficult and expensive to work with than first expected. Street and utility construction progressed slowly. Noxon soon felt that meeting the 200-house stipulation of the contract would be impossible.”

Martin goes on to talk about Noxon barely breaking even on the homes and eventually being fined by the AEC for failure to complete his promised 200 homes. Noxon gave up the contract, two other builders from Santa Fe and Roswell took up the torch in 1964, and White Rock was eventually considered a permanent development and an alternative to living in Los Alamos.

The interesting thing about the original “Master Plan” for White Rock was that it included a police station, commercial center, golf course, an elementary, junior high, and high school. These were considered the necessary amenities of a town in post-war America. For those of us living in White Rock, we would heartily agree that those things are necessary. We just can’t seem to get anything to stick around!

Those of you who haven’t been in our area for long might not realize the various amenities that have come and gone from White Rock. The shopping center is where Gordon’s began. In the late eighties kids rode their bikes up to Gordon’s for ice cream and to buy the latest cassette tapes. WaterMills offered gifts and a full selection of Jelly Belly Jellybeans.

At one time we had a bowling alley. In other years residents could enjoy watching a movie at The White Roxy or renting one at The Film Festival. There have been many versions of the drug store, classic supermarkets, a Pizza Hut, a McDonald’s, and dozens of restaurants that have come and gone.

So, as we all continue to ponder the future of White Rock and pine away for things like fast food chains and shopping, let’s take a moment to be glad for what we have. After all, nobody is telling you to pull the nearest fire alarm and wait for the fire crews up in Los Alamos to get here. In fact, we have a beautiful fire station, a fantastic branch of the local library, and a Visitor’s Center that sports a packed parking lot through most of the summer (in normal years of course).

Things will change. White Rock will continue to change. And our remote village will discover a new identity for all of us to enjoy. And if you happen to be looking for real estate in White Rock, give me a call. I’d love to show you around.

The view from a house in White Rock is like no other!

Proving You REALLY Want It

December 2, 2020 /

We talk about the “seller’s market” going on right now in Los Alamos County. But what does that actually mean if you’re trying to purchase a home in a seller’s market?

There’s the obvious of course. When you’re one of several buyers interested in purchasing a home, that seller isn’t going to be likely to offer much in the way of bonuses like repairs or discounts for outdated fixtures, paint, or carpet. But there are several situations you might not anticipate.

Are you ready to really prove that you want that house? One method that might be suggested by your broker is to waive the appraisal.

I know. The concept sounds a little off. After all, the appraisal establishes the value of a home so that the mortgage company – the lender – can lend an appropriate amount of money. The appraisal often affects the amount of a down payment required to purchase the house. If a house does not appraise for the entire listed price, it can be a bargaining tool to lower that asking price.

But when there happens to be a line of buyers waiting to purchase that property, things change. Offers become creative. Think of it as doing your level best as a potential buyer to make YOUR offer stand out from the other ten sitting on the table. How do you do that?

We often hear about “bidding wars”. It might make you shake your head because how on earth do you have a bidding war when at the end of the day, you can only pay as much for a house as the bank says its worth.

Actually, you CAN. Here’s how:

You can agree to waive the appraisal. The appraisal still takes place. After all, the lender needs to know what the value of that house is. But you, as the purchaser, are essentially agreeing to pay enough money up front to bridge the gap between the asking price and the appraisal value.

How does that work?

Let’s say a house is listed for $350,000. You offer $400,000 and you waive the appraisal, because there are a LOT of offers and you REALLY want this house. Your dream home then appraises for $375,000. So as the buyer, you would then have to chip in your down payment plus $25K. 

Regardless of the amount that the purchaser offers, the key is that it no longer matters what the house appraises for. The purchaser is agreeing to make up the difference between what the bank will lend based upon the appraisal value, and the sale price.

This isn’t necessarily as terrifying as it might first seem. If you’ve purchased a house here in Los Alamos recently, you might have noticed that the median home price has been steadily increasing. This means that appraisal values have also been increasing. If you’re looking at purchasing a home that had a reasonable asking price to begin with, then even if you offer more than the asking price, the appraisal might come in higher than originally anticipated anyway.

It is also possible to waive only a portion of the appraisal. The buyer can choose to specify that they would pay $X above appraisal. That way you know that you may or may not have to come up with additional capital up to a certain point. These amounts vary, but can be adjusted based on the financial capabilities and the comfort zone of the individual buyer. There are also ways to anticipate what the appraisal will be. Your broker can assist you in estimating the additional cash you might have to add to your down payment to cover your offer on the home of your dreams.

Of course, once your offer has been accepted, the waiting game begins. Then you’re likely to experience more than a little uncomfortable anticipation as you wait for the appraisal to come in. See, you are now legally obligated to come up with that cash. You made an offer. You have a contract.

The wonderful news is that you’re going to buy the house of your dreams! Your offer was chosen. You managed to get in there and get the house in spite of the other ten or fifteen offers that might have been on that table. Congratulations!

So when you’re trying to find a way to make sure your offer floats to the top of the pile and looks the most attractive, this might help you succeed. But, as I always tell my clients. Be absolutely sure. Be certain you can financially fulfill this obligation. And be sure that this is the right decision for you and your family.

When you’re ready to prove that you REALLY want that house, give me a call! I’d love to chat with you. We’re still buying and selling real estate through these pandemic times. Drop me an email today to see how we can make the process easy for you with virtual tours, online sales, and no contact showings!

Got A Listing In My Pocket…

November 19, 2020 /

Pocket Listing. The name sounds almost cute. The idea is anything but.

The idea of the pocket listing or “off market listing” is actually rather simple. There is a house for sale. Something about that house, either involving it’s readiness for viewing, the identity of the seller, or perhaps the price range of the property, suggests the house might be better off being sold as an “off market listing”. It might even be that the seller has a buyer in mind. A friend or family member.

Off market listing means not listed in the MLS. The MLS is the multiple listing system. The enormous database that brokers or agents can go to in order to search for homes that are currently listed for sale. It is literally the reason that most sellers want their home listed with a broker. They WANT it out there for people to see. The more potential buyers with an opportunity to see your home, the more opportunity the seller has to sell that home.

Right?

So, why would anyone want their home kept off that MLS?

Let’s say you’re a celebrity and you’ve got a house you want to sell, but you don’t particularly want every Tom, Dick, and Harry tromping through your house taking selfies with your bathroom sink. You can keep that listing in some broker’s pocket and make sure that they only let certain, pre-approved people with an actual interest in purchasing your home through the front door. And let’s face it. Most of the time when we’re talking celebrity homes, we’re probably talking about homes in the more than one million dollar price range. There are significantly fewer buyers in that price range. So it’s not hard for a broker to screen buyers or tap into their network to find the percentage of lookers who actually want to spend that kind of dough on a house.

Here’s the other thing you need to realize about the Pocket Listing. Whatever Realtor has that listing in his pocket is representing both the buyer and the seller. They are working to earn the entire commission. And that puts them in a very tricky situation when it comes to ethics.

Normally, when I work with a buyer or a seller, I’m happy to help them “speculate” (for lack of a better word) about what the other party in the sale might be thinking or planning, or how they might react to a certain offer or request. We spend time talking about the way things “usually” happen or situations I might have seen or experienced in the past. I’m happy to get them as much information as I can because I am working only for them.

Now. When I’m working for both buyer and seller because it is my listing? That all changes. I try to stay out of any speculation. It wouldn’t be speculation. It would be revealing important information about one side or the other and I have to remain neutral. I have to say “these are the facts, please follow your own instincts and do what’s best for you and your family”. It’s honestly a very uncomfortable place to be. I take the ethics of my profession seriously. I want to help my customers and that means not playing favorites.

Apply what I’ve just said to the concept of the Pocket Listing. Not only is the broker involved working for both buyer and seller, but the house is not listed in a way that could make that sale happen in any other fashion. If that seems a bit murky, you’re not wrong.

How This Applies to Our Local Market

Here in Los Alamos we are experiencing a fast moving seller’s market. Houses sell faster than they can be found. They spend very little time in the MLS and often involve multiple offers and bidding situations. This means homes can sell for a LOT more than the seller expected. While this can be painful for the buyer, it can also be a really good thing for someone who once thought they were upside down on their mortgage and would never be able to sell and leave the area.

I’ve seen several recent situations regarding Pocket Listings that have really given me cause for concern. Usually these situations are created by someone trying to do something nice. Something like this:

Example- Seller has a home and they have a decent amount of equity. They also have a friend who is looking for a home and really having trouble finding one in this tough market. Seller agrees to a Pocket Listing so that they can just have the broker do the paperwork to allow their friend to purchase the house. House sells for price X. Two weeks later a very similar house on the same street, with slightly less in amenities, and with a regular MLS listing and multiple bidders goes for $40K MORE than our Good Samaritan Seller got for their home.

I don’t know about any of you. I love my friends. I love my family. But not enough to throw away $40K.

I know. It sounds almost mercenary. But friendship goes both ways. There is a lot of wiggle room inside a $40K price difference. Why not list the house the traditional way and have your friend submit an offer just like everyone else. Perhaps you take their offer at a price that is fair to you both or help them out by paying their closing costs or something else to that effect. It’s much better to be fair than to take the chance of feeling bitter about it later.

Regardless of how you want to buy or sell your home or who you think deserves the chance to buy it. Keep a few things in mind when it comes to off market listings in our little close knit community. Pocket Listings are more common in sluggish markets, in markets that have huge numbers of investment properties, or markets that involve multimillion dollar homes and celebrity buyers. They are less of a benefit to sellers when homes are selling like the hottest new Christmas toy and spend very few days on market.

Stay safe and enjoy the holidays in this strange 2020 Holiday Season! And don’t forget, when you’re ready to make a change, even now when everything seems to change every second, call Kendra!

Kitchens Matter

November 11, 2020 /

The kitchen is the heart of the home. Right? So many things happen in a kitchen. Food prep is only the tip of the iceberg. All of those pleasant (or not) family conversations. Homework. Work-work. Phone calls. Coffee with friends (back when we could).

Given that, it’s easy to understand why the all important kitchen reno is a hotly debated topic that can inspire excitement in some and dread in others. As our culture evolves into something that none of us were expecting, I think it’s only fair to talk a little bit about kitchen trends. And yes. You can Google kitchen trends and come up with a million ideas. But let me try to make this applicable to Los Alamos. Because let’s face it. In a good number of homes here in our community, the average HGTV kitchen renovation just isn’t going to work. So let’s look at kitchen trends from three angles that really matter here in Los Alamos. Space. Storage. Resale.

Space

Let’s face it. Even in some of the larger homes in our county, the original home design from the seventies and eighties didn’t necessarily come complete with a big eat-in country kitchen. But at the end of the day, space is really about perception and not square footage. Here are some things to keep in mind when it comes to creating the illusion of space.

Cabinets & Counters

Have a tiny kitchen space to work with? Then modern, clean, bright, white is your friend. Sure. It might seem obvious. But even if your kitchen has cabinets that have been painted white, you’d be surprised how much brighter and bigger a kitchen will look if you get rid of those squeaky, creaky outdated painted cabinets and go with a more modern version.

Afraid of being too white? One rising kitchen trend is to add a dark countertop to offset the white floors, ceiling, and cabinets. Butcher block is becoming really popular and while it takes a little maintenance and sealing to keep it sanitary, the warmth of wood against white cabinets is striking. Or, you could try a dark quartz or stainless steel countertop with a nice shine to add depth.

Another way to add contrast and gain the illusion of space is to add a backsplash made of material with a reflective quality. It doesn’t have to be a mirror. There are plenty of prefab options available at DIY stores like Lowe’s or Home Depot. Some folks are adding a high gloss ceramic tile to really give their kitchen some character.

Windows

If you’re ready to dig into a bigger renovation project, you might consider adding windows or expanding what you have. Is there a breakfast nook in a dark corner? Consult a contractor about adding windows. It might be a way to expand your kitchen without losing other interior space and add some energy saving bonus points to your kitchen design. You could even modernize what windows you have to maximize light. If you have privacy concerns and neighbors close by, consider adding an aftermarket DIY film to your windows instead of curtains. Curtains not only take up space, but they can eliminate light.

Storage

If there’s one thing that tops the list on almost anyone’s home-must-have list it has to be storage space. Maximize your kitchen space by considering floor to ceiling cabinets. Yes. That’s right. A full wall of kitchen cabinets, probably in white, and almost definitely enclosed to provide you a place to pack as much of your kitchen gadgets and cooking utensils away from view.

When you’re planning your wall to wall cabinet system, think of it a little bit like a closet organizer. How can you integrate your appliances? What maximizes your countertop space and gives you plenty of space to prepare and cook meals for your family while still making your kitchen comfortable and uncluttered? While the latest trends in kitchen style don’t suggest knobs or any cabinet hardware, don’t be afraid to add a bit of color or character by finding some vintage or handmade knobs or drawer pulls to your cabinet project.

The Island

Ahh yes. The kitchen island. This vital piece of kitchen space doesn’t have to be huge in order to be functional. These days, the multi tiered islands are in. That can mean adding a bar height section and a waist high section. Or perhaps even adding a narrow bar in an awkward space to give the kids somewhere to sit and color. And if your kitchen doesn’t come with an island, don’t worry. There is plenty of variety when it comes to what kind of kitchen island you can add to your space. And don’t forget drawers or shelves to add even more storage.

Resale Value

I don’t think we ever do a renovation project on our homes without at least thinking about resale value. It might only be a passing thought, but it’s still present. When it comes to kitchens, upgraded and updated appliances are going to get you a great return on investment. And it might surprise you, but matte black and icy white were the “hot new colors” of 2020. And if you’re really looking to add to the functionality and wow factor in your kitchen don’t forget the Bluetooth and Wi-fi. Want to see some really interesting appliance trends from 2020? This list will get you thinking modern kitchen in a whole new way.

When it comes to resale, here are a few other things to consider.

Granite or marble countertops always add value to a home. From a return on investment perspective, if you have a very small amount of counter space in your kitchen, adding granite or marble will add class and value. Other styles that can increase appeal to potential buyers are stainless steel and concrete. It might not be what you’d expect to find in an average kitchen, but new trends suggest these two styles are both functional and attractive.

Back to those cabinets. Those outdated wood cabinets might have been total trendsetters in the eighties. They might have even been expensive. You could paint them or update the hardware. But you’ll get more resale value out of the clean lines and modern look of inexpensive cabinetry. It doesn’t even matter if they’re DIY specials you found on Overstock.com. As long as they are installed correctly and in a way to maximize storage and functionality, you’re going to add good value to your home.

As always, I hope that when you come up with an improvement project for the place you call home, you do it for yourself! Don’t forget that your house is first and foremost your house! Love your space. And when you’re ready to find a new one, email or give me a call!

FSBO vs Broker: Ready. Set. Go!

October 14, 2020 /

Yes. When it comes to the question of whether or not to use the services of a real estate broker to sell your home or not, I have what you might call a biased opinion. But, having said that, I can also be real with potential clients. And looking at the Los Alamos County real estate market right now, you might be asking yourself, why on earth would you ever need a Realtor to sell your house? Houses are selling like Tickle Me Elmo during the Christmas season of 1996! Everyone you know has heard of someone that they know who has a friend, who has a cousin, whose house had a massive bidding war and went for thousands over the asking price!

Newsflash.

Some of those things are true. But just because the market is moving doesn’t mean the services of a professional broker aren’t needed. In fact, it can mean that you’re more in need of a licensed professional than ever. Here are a few things to think about if you’re considering a FSBO home sale.

FSBO (For Sale By Owner)

The FSBO trend has been around for generations. Stick a sign in the ground, handle all of the phone calls and marketing yourself, and do your own negotiating. You get to find the right buyer willing to pay the right price. You are intimately involved in every aspect of your home’s sale. From the first moment that potential new homeowner gets your number off the sign or the Craigslist ad until you’re handing them the keys and congratulating them on their new purchase. It can sound like a really great idea.

The number one reason why? Well, because you don’t have to pay a real estate commission to the brokers, right?

Let’s think about that for a moment. This can be a big deal. Nobody likes the idea of handing over five or six percent of their home’s equity to a third party. In some markets this can be the difference between breaking even at closing or having to bring money to the table to literally pay someone to take your house off your hands.

But that’s not our market here in Los Alamos. At least not right now. In fact, from a buyer’s perspective, it might be even more tempting to try and purchase a house without using a broker in our local market. It’s tempting to believe that leaving a Realtor out of the equation might result in a lower cost on a house in a market with a hefty median price.

Except those two concepts don’t really go together. Both the buyer and the seller can’t save a big chunk of change. Yes. They can save the commission. I typically charge six percent. On a $300K home that could be $15K. It’s not a small number. And yet, the popular Real Estate Information website, Keeping Current Matters reports that a study by Collateral Analytics suggests that broker listed homes netted an average of 6% more than homes that went for sale by owner.

Even if we suggest that you’re only breaking even in a financial sense by using a broker to sell your home, you might want to really consider what buying and selling a home actually involves.

No really. How much time do you have? If you’re buying a house, there’s a good chance you’re either out of area, getting settled in our beautiful little town, trying to get your kids situated in new schools, navigating a new job, or dealing with another huge life change. Even if you’re local, you’re probably trying to prepare for a move, which can be a logistical game of Twister.

If you’re selling your home, you’re probably doing exactly the same things in the opposite direction. The market here in Los Alamos has a breathtaking turnaround rate. There is a reason why people make jokes about real estate professionals being constantly on the phone. We are.

Marketing

The amount of money I spend every year on marketing would be absolutely ridiculous if it weren’t for the fact that I work in an industry that is almost entirely driven by my marketing. But in reality, it’s like anything else in our modern world. There are databases and networks and subscriptions. Never forgetting the power of social media. I work with companies and professionals in all facets of this giant machine to create a customized marketing campaign for each home I list. Add in the new pandemic restrictions and the realities of selling real estate in a Covid-19 world and online marketing has suddenly taken on a whole new meaning.

My question to anyone considering a FSBO situation is this. Are you honestly prepared to showcase your home in a digital world? 3D tours, Zillow, Facebook, paper marketing, and every other modern advertising concept that can get your home in front of a potential buyer? For some sellers, the answer might be yes. So many Average Joes out there possess digital savvy that I truly envy. If that’s not necessarily you, I realize that it’s easy right now to comfort yourself with the notion that you could probably skip all of that and just stick a few signs outside and advertise an Open House.

Perhaps. But do you really want dozens upon dozens of people wandering through your home and your family’s personal living space during a time when we’re not even supposed to gather in groups of more than five people whether we are indoors or out? More and more homes are selling sight unseen. Buyers realize what a pandemic means and they’re making adjustments. If you’re selling your home it means getting creative. If you’re buying a home it means navigating the world of airbrushed photos, professionally produced 3D tours, and flowery language as you try to decide if this space is right for you while essentially shopping online for your next home. Let’s just say the return policy on a house can leave a little something to be desired.

Okay. The last thing I want to talk about is the negotiating. Buying or selling a home can be tense. It’s sometimes tempting to think you’d feel better by having all of those little things under your control. After all, if you can see everything that’s happening you might feel less stressed. Right?

It’s easy to forget that part of what you’re paying your broker for is their network of “people to get that done”. Are you ready to negotiate with a potential buyer or seller about home inspections and appraisals? Even if you’re selling your home FSBO, you’re likely to get plenty of brokers calling you about your home. In a market like ours where every house matters, that’s a given. Are you prepared to negotiate with a professional who is working hard for their client? It might be tempting to think to yourself that it’s like paying half the commission you would have otherwise just to have someone deal with the paperwork. But remember that the buyer’s agent is working for them and not you, or vice versa. It’s like representing yourself in front of a judge in a legal matter when the other side has an attorney.

Speaking of legal matters, that’s another thing to keep in the back of your mind. In our modern market, the legalese and requirements surrounding things like disclosure (I’ll talk about that in another blog, I promise) and lending practices can be more than just tricky. Dealing with lenders and title companies can leave the most levelheaded individual spinning in circles. Don’t ask me how much time I spend on the phone making sure someone emailed someone else regarding paperwork labeled X,Y,& Z that is absolutely required to be at Location A before a 3:00 PM closing appointment.

Maybe You’re Ready

I’m not going to tell anyone that they aren’t ready to dive into this process if that’s what they want to do. That’s not my intention at all. If you’re chomping at the bit to try your hand at buying or selling a home without using a broker, then I’m the one standing on the sidelines cheering you on. I’ve known plenty of people on both sides of that equation. Those who have had excellent FSBO experiences and those who haven’t. If you’re ready, do your research and go to it! These are just some things to think about when you’re considering a real estate transaction. If you’ve ever experienced a FSBO situation, you’ve probably got a dozen more bits and pieces of advice to add.

As always, happy house hunting! And if you’ve got questions, please give me a call! I would love to chat with you and sometimes the first part of making the choice to work with a broker or go with a FSBO is to talk to a local real estate professional and see what your options are. You might be surprised how much information you can get from one phone call…

Winter Survival Tips (For Your Yard)

October 7, 2020 /

Winter in the desert. It actually sounds like a break, right? People typically think of the desert as being hot and dry and maybe windy. So, winter would be cooler and maybe include some moisture. Not that we’re going to get rid of the wind…

But the reality of winters here in Los Alamos County isn’t always about cooler temperatures. I don’t think I have to remind anyone of that crazy 2018-2019 winter when you couldn’t even entice a tow truck to come up here to pull your car out of a snow drift and we were suddenly learning about things like “back up snow removal storage sites”.

Snow might or might not be on the horizon. If you’ve been a long time resident of Los Alamos or even someone who has gone through several winters here, you know that predictions are rarely spot on or even close. Some winters we have moisture, others are dry as a bone. But somewhere in all of those maybes are a few good thoughts about how to get YOUR yard ready to weather the coming winter whether it is wet, dry, or other.

Mulch

Many people have a bit of a love hate relationship with mulch. It’s not as polished looking as rock. It comes in a variety of qualities, colors, sizes, etc. You can get it for free at the Transfer Station here in Los Alamos (and they’ll load it onto your truck or trailer for $3.00/yard). But no matter how you feel about mulch, there is a good chance you can use it to help your outdoor plants survive the winter looking their best.

For starters, mulch is all about insulation and moisture. Because of this, you want to apply mulch BEFORE the ground freezes for the winter. Now. I realize that we had that bout of snow already, but the ground has warmed sufficiently that you could get out there and mulch around your shrubs and trees before the winter weather is here to stay. Applying mulch to your plants is only the first step though. After that you want to soak the ground as much as you can (while remembering the water rules) up to the point where the mulch and the soil freeze. The idea is to promote as much root growth as possible and to keep the plants from doing the freeze and thaw cycle. Adding mulch too late or too early in spring, can cause the ground to thaw and the plants to start their spring heave toward the surface only to be smacked down by another cold front.

Pruning

I have to say that I can totally understand the desire to clip off all of the dead growth on your plants in the fall. But you can increase the health of your plants and help them better survive winter by waiting until late winter or early spring to do your pruning.

Exception!

If you have a tree or large shrub that has limbs in danger of breaking off during a heavy snowfall, then you should certainly get out there and take care of that. Another situation that requires pre-winter pruning are rose bushes or other flowering shrubs with long stems or “canes” that get whipped around in the wind. Trim those back so the plant doesn’t damage itself in bad weather.

For the most part though, the long stems, even though they’re dead, are used by the root system to stay healthy in bad weather. Stems and dead foliage can also catch and hold excess snow to promote insulation of the core of the plant during severe cold spells. So as much as you might be tempted to whack everything off in the fall, you might want to consider putting off that chore until spring.

Leaves

Here in Los Alamos, we don’t necessarily have an excess of leafy trees like you might have seen in others areas such as the Midwest. But we do have some. Here is a thought when you’re trying to decide whether or not you want to bother with raking up the mess. A thick bed of leaves might work as an insulator for your plants, but it also makes a fantastic breeding ground for plant damaging insects. While mulch tends to harbor a “healthier” variety of insects dedicated to the decomposition process and adding nutrients to the soil, leaves provide a great place for problem insects to winter. Their eggs and larvae stay cozy and fed and erupt in the spring to become an even bigger nuisance.

Soil Deficiencies

If you have any fruit trees on your property, you might want to think about iron deficiencies in your soil. An iron deficiency can be responsible for not only yellowed foliage on certain plants and shrubs, but also poor tasting and sparse crops of fruit on fruit trees. Fall is the perfect time to add something like Greensand to the area around the base of your plants. Check out the information here for more about iron deficiencies.

No matter how you choose to get ready for winter, I hope you enjoy this gorgeous fall weather that we’re having. And remember, for all of your local real estate tips, questions, and especially answers, feel free to contact Kendra via email or phone.

Holidays in Los Alamos

September 30, 2020 /

I know. You’re thinking to yourself that it’s ONLY the very beginning of October. You don’t want to think about how many shopping days are left before Christmas and you REALLY don’t want to think about the kids being off school for the holidays either.

But come on. Let’s be real. We are ALL looking forward to the end of 2020. Why not focus on one of the seasons that is by far a GREAT thing about living in our community. If there’s something that Los Alamos does well, it’s the holiday season. And I’m here to tell you that Covid hasn’t changed that. Promise.

Monster Madness and Big Time Munchies!

Oh yes. Los Alamos Halloweekend is ON! Scheduled for October 29th through the 31st, the Arts Council has us covered, Los Alamos. Get the full schedule of events HERE. But what I can promise you is that while things are going to look a little different than they have in past years, we are still going to have a Pumpkin Glow, a Scarecrow Contest, and of course, Trick or Treating in the Main Street District. This year will be Monster Munchies to avoid the crush of humanity that we’ve all become accustomed to for Trick or Treat Main Street. Grab a hanging bag or two of goodies from an obliging tree on Friday or Saturday all day long.

Now. I think we’re all waiting to see what traditional Halloween trick or treating is going to be like in this Covid world. So, I cannot promise that the neighborhoods of Loma Linda in Los Alamos or Brighton Drive in White Rock will be offering their usual mega candy treats. But if you’ve never truly experienced Halloweekend in Los Alamos, check out this wonderful article by Kate Nelson of NM Magazine that describes just how awesome it is to celebrate Halloween in “the city on the hill”.

A Place to be Thankful

As the season of thankfulness approaches, it’s a perfect time to be grateful for what we have here in Los Alamos. As of September, our community was ranked the No. 1 Healthiest Community in America. You can read the article HERE, but I’m sure as you look over the criteria and read the testimonials from residents of our beautiful town, you won’t be surprised by what they’ve got to say. We are truly blessed to call this home. Sure. It’s not all wine and roses, but it’s pretty darn awesome.

With this in mind, and also given that it might not be the greatest plan to travel for the Thanksgiving holiday. It might be time to focus on what we have and do some donating or some volunteer work with one of the many organizations here in our community.

Stuck at home? Why not organize the family and put together a Thanksgiving Purge Project? Local Charity Shop Casa Mesita has just moved to a new storefront near the Bradbury Science Museum, which means they have more space for your unwanted stuff. Or, maybe its time to pass on some of the items you might have over purchased during the initial pandemic. CALL LA Cares and check with them about donating paper or canned goods.

This is a chance to come together as a family and talk about priorities and necessities and maybe even have a chat about accumulating too much stuff. Period. Goodness knows we’ve all been stuck at home with our stuff for long enough now that we might have some really new ideas about what’s important and what isn’t. If you want to know my thoughts on stuff, check this blog post from back on August 20, 2020. But seriously, at the end of it all, let’s take a moment to be grateful for our homes and the opportunity to live our lives in this beautiful community.

Winterfest Los Alamos

Never fear, Covid didn’t kill off our beautiful holiday lights parade or Winterfest Los Alamos. Some of the events are still up in the air, but one thing is certainly scheduled. Winterfest has been officially scheduled for December 4-6 with the Holiday Lights Parade on Saturday December 5. The theme this year is Toyland on the Mesa and there’s no doubt that a chance to get outside and celebrate will be more welcome than ever as 2020 draws to a close. Check out the details of Winterfest HERE.

The Holiday Lights Parade, the tree lighting at Ashley Pond, ballets, concerts, and the annual Creche Show at the Church of Latter Day Saints are all part of the Christmas Season in Los Alamos. While it’s uncertain whether or not all of these events will go on or be unchanged by this new Covid reality, there are a few things I think we can probably count on.

Over on Garver in White Rock, there will be a Santa peeking through the attic window in the garage. North Mesa will be lit by the glow of Luminarias on Christmas Eve. And we might even have another bonfire and lights set to music over on Brighton Dr. As we all contemplate the upcoming Holiday Season, I encourage all of you, friends, neighbors, and fellow residents of Los Alamos County, go all out this holiday season. Decorate your homes and businesses, your barns, your cars, and maybe even yourselves (if you’re inclined to wear an elf hat). This will be a year to climb in the family car or SUV and enjoy some hot cocoa as you cruise through the neighborhoods enjoying the displays and feeling warm and cozy as we bid farewell to the Year 2020.

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