Prospective Sellers can (and do!) spend thousands improving their home’s curb appeal. Most popular items: new landscaping, cement steps and walk, and fresh paint. However, less ambitious Sellers may want to consider a more limited (and inexpensive) tactic: a new front door and/or door color. While it can be tricky to get right, a well-chosen,...Read More
Gutter Extension Camouflage I usually associate “staging” with the inside of a home. But, when it comes to selling a house, few things matter more than curb appeal, and a key ingredient of curb appeal is landscaping — specifically, in front of the home. Ergo, the advice my stager gave to a Southwest Minneapolis client...Read More
The Best Adjective for “Home”? “Sold!” What do you call an Edina rambler that — at least according to my open house traffic the other weekend — was “too big,” “too small,” “too open,” “not open enough,” “too dated,” “too expensive” . . . and about 10 more fussy comments in a similar vein? Give up? Try, “Sold!” “Too, Too ....Read More
Learning to Love (OK, Like) Split-Level’s What’s so great about opening the front door of a home and finding yourself standing in the middle of the Living Room? Or maybe Kitchen? That’s been my experience in any number of newer, upper bracket homes — homes that supposedly boast the latest and greatest of everything, and...Read More
Real Estate Marketing Rule of Thumb: Play Down the Garage, Driveway Just like people often have a more and less flattering side for photos, so do homes. Looking at the photos of this currently “For Sale” Minnetonka house (not my listing), it’s pretty obvious which is which. The top photo is from the current listing; photo...Read More
“The Preference for Pottery Barn” (Decor) Contrary to popular perception, not every Twin Cities home new to the market is immediately getting snapped up in multiple offers right now. What kind of home is? Here are the four attributes that such homes seem to most often share: One. Price point, i.e., they occupy the lower...Read More
