Henderson and Las Vegas Real Estate

If you are getting ready to buy a home in the Las Vegas area, one of the biggest decisions you will need to make is whether you want to buy new construction or an older home. This can be one of your biggest decisions in your home selection process. Do you know the differences between the two kinds of homes and why people choose one over the other? Here are some things to consider, to help you compare and make that decision.

You Typically Get More for Your Money With Resale Homes. New construction homes tend to cost more, feature for feature, than older homes since they have the newest features. Additionally, older homes are usually taxed less as well, depending on the local jurisdiction.

New Homes Have Updated Safety Features. When you buy newly built homes, you will find all the current safety features that have been developed with the most current technology and safety guidelines. This means that there will likely be fewer safety hazards and it may be better for your family's safe environment.

New Homes Are Built With New Material. With a new home, you will have new materials and appliances. That means fewer maintenance troubles for you, and less worry about something breaking for the first few years.

Older Las Vegas Homes Tend to Have Larger Lots. When you buy an older home, especially if it was built before 2000, you often have access to a larger yard than with a new home. This is because new construction homes are more frequently put closer together on smaller parcels, with much less space for big yards and recreational space.

New Homes Are More Efficient. Window and appliance makers have made great strides in improving the efficiency of their products. Improved energy efficiency in windows means better insulation Winter and during our hot Summers. More efficient electrical appliances mean better energy efficiency and lower energy bills.

Older Homes Are More Traditional. If you're looking for a traditional home, resale homes are just right. Older homes usually have features like a dining room, a family room and other such features, that were always standard few years ago.

New Homes Have Modern Construction and Design. In addition to having newer appliances, newly built homes incorporate updated features that people today have come to expect. Engineered materials, tile roofs, stone countertops and other features are usually expected on new construction homes.

Resale Homes Are Usually More Easily Negotiable. Buyers can negotiate a better price on older homes than they can on new construction ones. In places where need for new construction is healthy, it is more difficult to negotiate for a lower price. This could result in getting more value in a resale home for the amount you would pay for a small new construction home. The is especially true in Las Vegas with our current Foreclosure inventory.

There are several advantages to buying an older home, but there are also advantages to buying a new home. The final decision is a matter that comes down to one's personal preference. Either way, evaluate your options before deciding. That's always the best way to get the home of your dreams.

To search all new construction that is currently for sale in the Las Vegas area click here. 

Build your own MAP BASED Resale home search! Set you own specific criteria based on your wants and needs. Find everything you have been searching for including; photos, maps, schools, neighborhood stats and more. Click here!

Article made available courtesy of Automated Homefinder, the best Lafayette Colorado home location experts.

Get a Start on Your Energy Conservation by Doing an Evaluation of Your Home Energy Consumption

Before you can possibly begin to make good decisions about your domestic energy usage, you need to give it some dedicated time and start from a solid foundation of pertinent knowledge with some measurements and calculations. Understanding how and when you use energy will let you make the best decisions about updating appliances or changing your home's systems.

The first step is finding out what your base-load energy consumption is. Your base-load consumption is defined as the energy used by those systems and appliances that operate all year. It includes the ovens, computers, refrigerator, water heater, and any other appliances. If your home uses both natural gas and electricity, then you will have to calculate your gas and electricity base-loads in separate calculations. It's not very hard. Here in Southern Nevada electricity is provided by NVEnergy and natural gas is provided by Southwest Gas Corporation.

Let's get on with it. You will need a year's worth of utility statements. If you don't already have them, you can contact the company and ask that they send you the last year's collection of bills. Next, you'll want to take a look at how the amount of usage varies through the year. The shape of the curve will be characterized by the climate in which you are located. If you are located in a cold region, (like Mt. Charleston) your highest expenses will be for heating, and conversely, in a warmer climate your air conditioning costs will be more significant (like the rest of Southern Nevada). Find your months of lowest energy spending. These months will be most likely the months which are composed of mostly base-load consumption. The idea is to identify the months in which there are little or no seasonal uses such as cooling or heating. If there are a number of months that are low and close together, take the average usage. Be sure to measure the actual usage, not just the amount you have to pay. Energy prices fluctuate and are subject to cyclical economies of world and local markets in energy commodities like coal, oil and natural gas. Electricity usage is metered in kilowatt hours and gas is in therms, which is a measure of heat energy, or sometimes in hundred cubic feet. Measure the amount of your usage in these units rather than in dollars and you will have a good profile of your energy consumption at the commodity level.

Now that you know what your base-load usage is, it's easy to find what your seasonal usage is. Subtract the base-load quantity from each month to find out how much of each month's bill is due to heating or cooling usage. Add up the amount for each month and this will give you your annual cooling and heating usage. Multiply the base-load usage by 12 to get the yearly base-load usage. As an optional step, to validate the figures, you can check the figures used so far by comparing them with the actual dollars paid, which of course can be found right on the statements. Then, to get the amount of what your costs are for a year, find out the price you pay for each kilowatt hour of electric power and each therm (or whichever volume unit your utility uses to bill natural gas usage) of natural gas. Multiply the unit price by the annual usage and you can verify what your annual cost is.

Now, for the point of the exercise. You can now use this information to put your home improvement projects in an order of priority. Should you buy a new furnace or replace the inefficient dishwasher? If you know your base-load energy levels versus your seasonal figures, the decision will be easier to make. You will know which project will be worthwhile. NVEnergy has more Money Saving Tips and Southwest Gas has Energy Efficiency Programs to help you make these decisions.  Knowledge is power and a powerful way to save money too!

Article furnished courtesy of Automated Homefinder, your Colorado Boulder real estate specialists.