Waiting for the Next Wave — Part 1 When the economy comes back, where will Twin Cities developers pick up? Most likely, where they left off when the recession and downturn arrived. Here are six now-idled, high profiles sites in the Twin Cities that would appear to have better days ahead of them once credit...Read More
Which City is Most Like the “Mini-Apple?” Notwitstanding a local effort to brand Minneapolis as the “Mini-Apple,” I don’t see much resemblance between Minneapolis and “The Big Apple,” New York City (I’ve lived both places). If I had to come up with a metro area most like the Twin Cities, it would be . ....Read More
Strategic Default . . . Minus the Consequences Imagine you bought a house 4 years ago for $540,000, putting in a (very) modest 2% down payment, or $11,000, and borrowed the other $529,000. Today, your home was worth $180,000 (no, not a typo), yet you were still faced with making payments on the original $529,000...Read More
Bullish on the Light Rail Corridor Just because I don’t make market calls (“How Clear Are Realtors’ Crystal Balls?“) doesn’t mean that I don’t give clients input — and lots of it — regarding neighborhood trends, prospective development, and the like. A good example of that is St. Louis Park and the light rail corridor....Read More
New Bank Disclaimer Chinese drywall may not have made its way to Minnesota yet — but Chinese dry wall disclosures have. I’m currently representing a Buyer interested in a bank-owned property where, in addition to the usual “As Is” disclaimers, there’s a separate disclaimer addressing Chinese drywall. If you didn’t know, tainted Chinese drywall has...Read More
Buy the Lot, Get the Home for Free Beautiful property with west views of Highland Lake! Premier lot close to Interlachen golf course! Home is not available for showing. –per MLS “Home for sale, home not available for showing.” Huh?? It turns out that what’s really for sale here is the land: according to Hennepin...Read More
