Bluffing — or Not — About a Backup Buyer True or false: if a home Seller receives and accepts a more attractive backup offer from another Buyer (“Buyer #2”), they’ll tell Buyer #1 about it. Answer: false (usually). 2+ Birds in Hand In my experience, when the Seller has a more attractive backup offer already in hand,...Read More
“We Can Always Drop the Price, Right?” Yes, But . . . Don’t leftovers come after Thanksgiving, not before? Not when it comes to the housing market. In my own neighborhood close to Minneapolis’ Cedar Lake, I’m aware of at least half a dozen very nice homes which came on the market as far back as...Read More
Losing the Battle AND the War The talk of my office the last few days is a certain suburban deal that fell apart literally at the 11th hour, due to a walk-thru inspection issue. The problem? A suddenly wet basement. The Seller overplayed their hand, and grudgingly offered the Buyer only $5k to address the...Read More
No 2nd Chance to Make a 1st Impression It’s always a judgment call whether to go ahead with a scheduled “Broker open” — held for fellow Twin Cities Realtors from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m each Tuesday — when winter weather intrudes (the Twin Cities is digging out from a fresh 8″ or so overnight)....Read More
“The King Deal is Dead, Long Live the King Deal!” As expectant high school seniors (and their anxious parents) know all too well this time of year, colleges have waiting lists. But so, too, does residential real estate. They’re called “backup offers.” First in Line Such offers are increasingly popular in a Seller’s market (Pssst!!...Read More
Consider This a Little Big Sign With the usual number of homes temporarily taken off the market over the holidays, plus “For Sale” homes that simply expire without selling (something like one-third of all listed homes), a home’s status this time of year can be a question mark. So, here’s a BIG hint: if there’s a large post...Read More
