Quick! Test your home maintenance IQ, and answer this question: Which of the following items should Minnesota homeowners do each Fall? A. Blow out their sprinkler system (if they have one). B. Remove their window screens. C. Adjust their HVAC dampers for winter (if they have a forced air system with ducts). D. Reverse the...Read More
Who Qualifies as a “Relative?” At least in Minnesota, licensed real estate agents must disclose if they’re related to their client. The logic: agents are presumed to have a negotiating and knowledge edge over non-Realtor “civilians” ” think, “wolves and sheep,” “sharks and seals(?),” etc. — and therefore anyone closely aligned with them does, too....Read More
Is it Halloween Yet? I’m a big fan of dramatically lit homes. And with the seasonal change, we’re heading into ever-shorter Fall days. And yet, the technique doesn’t work all the time ” and can even backfire: especially for smaller homes, interior lighting at night can produce an (unhelpful) “Jack-o-Lantern effect.” The (kind of) scientific...Read More
TWO Duties to Disclose: Owner’s . . . and the Agent’s [Editor’s Note: The views expressed here are solely those of Ross Kaplan, and do not represent Edina Realty, Berkshire Hathaway, or any other entity referenced. If you need legal advice, please consult an attorney.] At least in Minnesota, it’s permissible for Sellers to tell...Read More
The Great Wall of . . . Colorado(?!?) “We’re building a wall on the border of New Mexico. And we’re building a wall in Colorado.” –President Trump (Oct. 23, 2019). “That’s right: [The Trump Administration is] building a border wall in Colorado. Once they’re done with that, they’re building a naval base in Idaho.” –Stephen...Read More
How Big a Premium for Higher Floors? If Eskimos supposedly have 38 words for snow, leave it to New Yorkers to coin the most and best words for anything relating to skyscrapers, views, and the like. Words like “view-break,” defined as: “The price-point at which views in a building clear the treetops or crest above...Read More
