Call us at (575) 650-7060 today to start your relocation process!

ABOUT ARLENE

Specialization
Arlene Ehly has over 15 years experience in the fields of real estate and interior design. She can expertly assist you any where in Dona Ana County with the purchase of a new home. She specializes in new home construction, particularly in Sonoma Ranch and The Boulders and the NEW Del Prado Condominium Project, located within Sonoma Ranch. Arlene works closely with her clients and builders in new construction site planning and design.

Personal
Arlene is a native of Thunderbay, Ontario Canada having moved to the United States in her early youth. Her early years were filled with extra-curricular activities and organizations centered around school, church, and athletics. She graduated from West Texas State with a Bachelor of Science degree in Education. Her current hobbies include spending time with her family of two children and their extended family, her adopted Greyhound, Top Gun, and playing golf with her husband Phil, a N.M.S.U. graduate and former Aggie football standout.

LAS CRUCES HOMES

A majority of the homes in Las Cruces have a stucco exterior. If you are from New England, the Northwest, or South regions of the country, there were very few stucco homes. In the Southwest, however stucco is an ideal medium for covering exteriors.

What is Stucco?

Traditional stucco is a cement mixture used for siding, usually on Mission or other Spanish style homes. The cement is combined with water and inert materials such as sand and lime. Usually, wooden walls are covered with tar paper and chicken wire or galvanized metal screening. This framework is then covered with the stucco mixture. Sometimes, the cement mix is applied directly to specially prepared masonry surfaces.

Although stucco-sided homes became popular in twentieth century America, the concept of using cement mixtures in architecture goes back to ancient times. Wall frescoes by ancient Greeks and Romans were painted on fine-grained hard plaster surfaces made of gypsum, marble dust and glue. Stucco techniques were elaborated by the Italians during the Renaissance and spread through Europe. This marble dust compound could be molded into decorative shapes, polished to a sheen or painted.

Many homes built after the 1950s use a variety of synthetic materials which resemble stucco. Mock stucco siding is often composed of foam insulation board or cement panels secured to the walls. Although synthetic stucco may look authentic, real stucco tends to be heavier. Walls made of genuine stucco sound solid when tapped and will be less likely to suffer damage from a hard blow. Also, genuine stucco holds up well in wet conditions. Although it is porous and will absorb moisture, it will dry easily, without damage to the structure.