Traditionally, many homeowners “move up”, selling their first home and upgrading to something with more square footage or nicer attributes. Today, as interest rates hover in the 6-7% range, there’s less willingness for homeowners to take on a mortgage payment with more interest and less principal.
Instead, love the home you’re in! Make it more comfortable, more energy efficient – not only will you enjoy living in it now, most home improvements like added insulation or a new, more efficient cooling system will add to the resale value of the home when you do decide to sell.
Rising energy costs are affecting all Albuquerque and Rio Rancho homeowners. This winter, the cost of natural gas has been incrementally more than in the winter of 2022 and our electric rates have also increased. That means this summer, energy bills will likely also be substantially more, and our local electric company has warned there may be brownouts, when demand exceeds capacity. Brownouts can damage HVAC equipment, so we encourage you to be prepared.
So, if you still have a swamp cooler, it may be a good time to convert to refrigerated air. Water rates are also climbing, so moving from a swamp cooler to air conditioning would keep your water usage down and provide much more comfortable cooling as the temperatures rise. Today, refrigerated air conditioning units are more energy-efficient than ever, due to the recent SEER2 requirements. That means they’ll use less energy.
Another option to reduce energy use and make your home more comfortable is to add blown-in insulation into the attic of your pitched roof home. Adding insulation keeps heat from rising through the roof during the winter and in summer, buffers from the heat of the sun entering the home. It also makes the home much quieter!
Affordable Service Plumbing, Heating and Air Conditioning offers free estimates to metro homeowners for insulation as well as conversion to refrigerated air. If we can help make your home more comfortable, use less energy, and add to its value, give us a call! We’re still a locally owned company, and have served homeowners in Rio Rancho, Corrales, Bernalillo, and Albuquerque since 1986.
