About Albuquerque's High Desert

I've got a new website with a really funny name, www.AshleySellsHouses.com. Well OK, that web address isn't really that funny except my name isn't Ashley. Not even close!

You see, my friend and social media adviser Ashley Drake Gephart has left real estate and become a full time social media/internet consultant. with Drake Intel Group. When she left the business I was excited to have the opportunity take over her excellent website.

The site offers excellent tools for consumers including a popular Albuquerque Open House page, a really helpful Albuquerque Neighborhoods page, a New Listings page and of course a fully functional Albuquerque MLS Search. This is one of the most helpful Albuquerque Real Estate Websites that I have ever seen, and believe me, it's my business so I've seen them all.

You can still find me on my other sites, but please check out the links above!

Just don't call me Ashley!

There are many good reasons to be a blogger here on ActiveRain, not the least of which are the backlinks you can create to boost your website traffic.

Now I don't pretend to be an SEO expert, but I have spent some time learning about and analyzing my backlinks and I wanted to share what I've found.

There are four main ways you can create backlinks here in the Rain.

• In your profile
• In the sidebar of your blog
• In your post signature
• In the body of your post

My question when I started analyzing my backlinks was "Are all the backlinks I create here the same?"

I don't know how other people analyze their backlinks (although I'd like to hear in the comments section from real SEO experts), but I've started using something called Market Samurai. Here's how it works: You put in your keywords, then using the SEO Competition feature you run a search for the top sites that come up for those terms. Hopefully your site(s) come up in the first ten results, but if they don't you can add your website manually. From here you can see your indexed pages and backlinks-and your competitors too-and you can see how strong or weak your links are.

The links are assigned a rank just like webpages are.

So here's what I've found:

• Links in my profile are the absolute best, according to Market Samurai they have a rank of 3.
• Links in the sidebar are the next best, according to market Samurai they have a rank of 2.
• Links in my posts and in my signature have a rank of 0.

I've heard experts say one link with a rank of 3 is worth 100 links with a rank of 0, so if you don't have links in your profile you're missing a great opportunity for some real SEO oomph!

One more thing, it seems like links in really popular posts do get a little more weight, which is great. Good content should be rewarded!

Before I go I can hear someone out there shaking their head saying something like "backlinking for SEO is so 2005." Indeed, I've been hearing more and more about the importance of social media interaction and of course, video. However, in a smaller market like mine, backlinking still seems to be a viable strategy and one that's relatively easy and cheap (except for the time it requires).

If you haven't already done so, put your links in your ActiveRain profile!

Today I was up at Wilderness Village at High Desert. I can't help but snap at least a few photos of High Desert whenever I'm up there showing homes. Here's a few pictures from today.

Wilderness Village is located next to the Wilderness Compound at High Desert.

I love how the two neighborhoods are set back in the foothills of the Sandias. I also love the way many of the homes blend in with their surroundings and limit the impact housing has on the beauty of the foothills.

The homes in the neighborhood are built by Scott Patrick Homes. Scott Patrick is one of Albuquerque's more popular high end builders.

Currently there are 4 homes on the market in Wilderness Village. The average list price is approximately $720,000. Two sales have closed recently. The average home sales price is around $740,000.

For more information about Wilderness Village at High Desert or other areas visit Albuquerque Neighborhoods Information.

Wilderness Compound at High Desert is a luxury gated community nestled in the foothills of the Sandia Mountains.

The homes in Wilderness Compound all have outstanding views. There is an abundance of open space between the different neighborhoods in High Desert insuring unobstructed mountain views from the backyards in the compound.

High Desert is one of the most prestigious communities in Albuquerque. The gated neighborhood provides security and keeps the neighborhood extremely quiet.

The rugged terrain is beautiful and peaceful.

There are beautiful views to the west too. In this photo you can see the five old volcanoes on Albuquerque's west side and Mount Taylor (The Turquoise Mountain in Navajo lore).

If you are looking for a luxury home in a gated neighborhood in one of Albuquerque's most desirable neighborhoods, The Wilderness Compound may be the right place for you. Contact me, Rich Cederberg, for a list of homes available in the compound or in one of the neighboring communites such as Wilderness Village or Wilderness Estates.

Start your search for Albuquerque NM Luxury Homes or Luxury Homes in Placitas NM today.

I was up in High Desert yesterday looking at a property in the Wilderness Compound and I decided to swing by and take some more photos of another favorite gated neighborhood of mine in High Desert, The Legends. See my original post about the Legends at High Desert.

I love the setting of the luxury homes in The Legends. There are some terrific views from these scenic homes!

New home construction is still going on and there are still some lots available as you can clearly see:

Don't worry. most of the neighborhood is completed and it looks beautiful:

The houses are beautiful inside, and the neighborhood has a nice clean look:

There aren't many homes available in The Legends on the resale market, but there are a few. Contact me, Rich Cederberg, if you'd like to know the details or to make arrangements to view one of these lovely homes.

Visit my website to search for other Luxury Homes in Albuquerque NM or Scenic Homes for Sale in Albuquerque NM.