“Would Your Client Take $__ for Their Home??” Listing agents (representing the Seller) know that there are three cards you never show the other side: the client’s bottom-line price; terms; and motivation. Which doesn’t mean that Buyers don’t try to find that out. One of the most common ploys, in the early, informal stages of...Read More
Psychology, not Economics, Holds Key to Buyer BehaviorEconomists trying to explain the slow housing market may be barking up the wrong (academic) tree. Rather, it is their colleagues in the psychology department who may have the best insight into what’s underlying buyer’s actions (or lack thereof): a behavioral phenomenon called “loss aversion.” In study after...Read More
[Why (Some) Twin Cities Real Estate is Headed Higher – Part Two] Commodities Boom, Weak Dollar Benefit Twin Cities Companies The Twin Cities may not be Dubai or even Houston, but thankfully it’s not Wall Street, either. As companies like Citigroup and Merrill Lynch write off tens of billions (never mind Bear Stearns) and lay...Read More
Why (Some) Twin Cities Real Estate is Headed Higher — Part OneInstead of focusing on “when” the housing market is going to bottom and start recovering, a more useful (and answerable) question is, “where?” While market turns are notoriously difficult to call, where the Twin Cities (and national) housing market is headed, long-term, is increasingly...Read More
“Before” and “After” Staging in Today’s Star Tribune Want to know what staging is? Check out today’s Star Tribune housing section. It features my listing at 2819 Glenhurst Ave. in St. Louis Park, just two blocks to Cedar Lake. (If you’re looking for a great family home — 3,800 FSF, smashing new Kitchen, huge owner’s...Read More
New-Home Sales Don’t Tell the Whole StoryThe New York Times reported yesterday that sales of new homes fell 8.5% in March compared to a year ago. According to the Times, new home sales are running at an annual pace of 526,000, the lowest since October 1991. Sounds bad, right? It’s certainly not good news, but...Read More
