Buyer’s Temperament — and Timetable Are you a good candidate to buy a foreclosure? To find out, ask yourself these five questions: One. Will you be willing to sign the bank’s “As Is” Addendum and various waivers? That comes with the territory. Which means . . . you’d better have your arms around the property’s condition. Depending on how...Read More
Asking Price: $475,000 (“Yeah, Right!”) I’ve previously documented examples of FSBO (“For Sale by Owner”) mistakes. See, “FSBO Mistake #4“; “FSBO Mistake #37.” So, what’s FSBO mistake #1 (and #2 and #3)? Mispricing (want to guess which direction?). Latest Example Exhibit A would be this 1 1/2 story home a few blocks east of Lake...Read More
How to Make Sure Contractors Will Love You What’s sauce for the goose is sauce for the gander. In previous posts, I’ve discussed what constitutes “model behavior” for contractors. See, “Contractor Etiquette“; “Giving Good Invoice.” So, it only seems fair to spell out the equivalent standards for being a good client. Do the following (or...Read More
How About Calling it a “Wine Shelter?” A colleague of mine has an upcoming listing with . . . yup, a bomb shelter, and is wrestling with how — or whether — to market that to prospective Buyers. Just out of curiosity, I did a quick search on MLS to see how many Twin Cities listings...Read More
Proposal Du Jour I literally got 4 words into James Wilcox’s Op-Ed piece in today’s New York Times before finding something objectionable. That would be the word “make” — as in, “A Way to Make People Buy Homes Again.” To paraphrase a certain character from the movie Jerry McGuire, “James, you lost me at “make.'”...Read More
Telling Buyers What They Know About Their Home’s Condition “Treat people the way you’d like them to treat you.” –The Golden Rule “Home Sellers should tell prospective Buyers anything that they would want to know if they were buying the home.” –The Golden Rule, real estate version Given that 90%-plus of all residential real estate...Read More
