Copying Goldilocks I’ve written previously about the various mistakes that I’ve seen amateurs make. See, “FSBO Mistake #1 (and #2, #3, etc.)”; “FSBO Mistake #4“; “FSBO Mistake #37.” Does that mean the pro’s — professional Realtors — are perfect? Hardly. It’s just that their mistakes tend to be more subtle (and presumably, fewer). See, “Jumping...Read More
Under Off the Radar In theory, to do a market analysis for a given home, you (“you” being a Realtor or Appraiser) log on to MLS, and do a search for similar, nearby homes that have sold within the last six months. Those are called “Comp’s,” and the magic number is three, good ones. Step...Read More
Test your knowledge of current Minneapolis property taxes, and guess what tax bill goes with this 5 BR/5 BA Kenwood home just north of Lake of the Isles, listed at $799,900: A. $6,479 B. $9,123 C. $12,815 D. $24,286 Answer: D. Yup, depending on how much they put down and what kind of mortgage they...Read More
Hurry Up and Wait Every day you see one more card You take it on faith, you take it to the heart The waiting is the hardest part —”The Waiting“; Tom Petty, lyrics In my original post, “The Waiting (is the Hardest Part),” I discussed the various kinds of waiting that people frequently have to...Read More
“Expired’s,” “Cancelled’s” Loom Larger Until a few years ago, I never spent much time looking at Expired or Cancelled listings when I was preparing a Comparative Market Analysis (“CMA”). Today? Depending on the part of town and property type, that’s often where I start. If you don’t take unsold listings into account these days —...Read More
Wanna Bet I’m Not the Only One? The number of people whose thoughts about the business and investing world I consistently and truly enjoy makes up a very short list; it includes Michael Lewis, Warren Buffett, Thomas Wolfe (when he writes about the subject), Matt Taibbi (ditto), Barry Ritholtz (when he’s not in rant mode and bothers to spellcheck), and...Read More
