In this hot real estate market sellers are demanding top dollar for their homes but once the inspection report is conducted many sellers will realize that a lack annual maintenance has reduced the value of their property. Here in Puerto Peñasco salt and sea air are highly corrosive breaking down the best materials including stainless steel and yes stainless steel will rust. A typical 3000 sq. ft. home should have an annual maintenance budget of $15,000-$20,000 to fix the common issues that arise living seaside. If you currently don’t conduct maintenance here are some tips for maintaining your home and getting top dollar.
MAINTAINING EXTERIOR FINISHES
It is important to maintain your home’s exterior concrete finish by patching hairline cracks and pops in the smooth at least once a year. We live in a seismic zone and tremors occur often but never feel them most of the time. Those tremors cause the hairline cracking along with the sun and salt air. So, once a year you will want to patch the cracks and defects with cement bond because in the future, they will become larger, and water will enter the home.
In order to maintain that vibrant appearance, you must paint your home at least every two years. Paint takes a beating here in Puerto Peñasco. For example, when the wind blows it contains sand particles that serves as a natural sand blaster that eats away at the appearance causing it to chip, peel, pop and fade. The same goes for any metals, every year any metal gate doors, railings, etc. should be treated with a protective enamel paint to combat rust and corrosion.
SEALING YOUR ROOF ANNUALLY
Most roofs here in Puerto Peñasco are also made of poured concrete and they must be sealed every year, or they will leak during a major rainstorm causing damage inside. The problem with concrete is it absorbs water and slowly erodes your roof from within compromising its integrity and causing it to leak unless you take the steps necessary to protect it.
First, you must professionally seal your roof with a membrane roofing system designed for concrete finishes and once installed it must be maintained once a year by coating it with a special waterproof sealant called Impercool. Many homeowners never perform the Impercool maintenance at least once a year. As the saying goes, when it rains it pours and most homeowners will learn the hard way that this is something that must be done every year. Be sure to recoat the roof each year to ensure a lasting protective finish. Even if the material bucket says it will last ten years, I promise you it will last just one year due to our climate and the sand blasting effect of the wind.
MAINTAINING WINDOWS & DOORS
The staple material for windows here is aluminum framed windows because aluminum is three times stronger than vinyl, it holds up in this intense climate and once properly fitted very tough to loosen or dislodge.
However, the window is only as good as the silicone sealing the window frame to the home. Most silicones will last only 6 months or less because again the intense salt air and sun degrades and dissolves most silicones leaving your windows prone to leaking. You must seal your windows at least once a year and perform a visual inspection of each window up to twice a year. We also recommend using a ready-to-use, single-component, acetoxy silicone with fast cure and good weathering characteristics rated with a 781. These products are good for our climate and suitable for use on aluminum and glass and will last longer than ordinary sealer.
TOP DOLLAR GUIDANCE
This is the time to sell your home and get top dollar, but some owners will list their homes having never conducted maintenance which only causes them to reduce their net profit. My advice to those who want to sell their homes is to hire a home inspector and perform your own inspection before you list the home. This will give you an exact road map of what exactly needs to be repaired. Once in hand, you can hire a local company to take care of all the repairs then demand top-dollar for you home and sell quick. Do this and your home is more marketable by ranking in the upper category of sellable homes available because most homes currently on the market need many repairs.
About the author: Joseph Sanchez is president of Rocky Point Home Builders a design/build contractor specializing in custom home design, construction and engineered renovations and a real estate agent with RE/MAX Legacy. He resides here in Puerto Peñasco with his wife and three children and is originally from Chicago. For more information email him at sales@rockypointhomebuilders.com
