Pros and Cons For Downsizing Baby Boomers Surprise, surprise, that stalwart of the ’50’s — the one-story rambler (known as a “ranch” on the coasts) — is making a comeback. They can be especially appealing to downsizing Baby Boomers, who are looking for one-level living, in a smaller home, with the privacy and backyard that go with a detached, single-family...Read More
Stuck in the Middle: the Plight of the “Near Tear-Down” While Twin Cites developers — and their clients — are once again on the prowl for tear-downs, unfortunately for would-be Sellers of such homes, not everything qualifies. In particular, a great many homes fall into a broad gray area, where they’re too expensive for many...Read More
“What’s Up With All Those Colored Flags in the Front Lawn??” When the home pictured above closed six weeks ago for $447,500, everyone’s assumption (including mine) was that the Buyer was going to do extensive updating. After all, the home — located on Basswood Road just two blocks west of Cedar Lake, in St. Louis...Read More
Deciphering Realtor-Speak To non-Realtors, “immaculate” suggests an updated home in mint condition. In real estate sales, however, “immaculate” simply means that the home is exceptionally clean and everything is in working order. So, the mechanical’s may all be functional, but they’re ancient; the Kitchen and Bath’s date to the 1950’s (or earlier); there’s no Master...Read More
“Pride of Owner Builder-ship” Want to know if a home is well-built and in stellar condition? To be absolutely sure, you really need to do a professional inspection. However, the best predictor I know is this: the seller also built the home. Seller-Builder’s The reason that that’s the gold standard — especially for more expensive...Read More
Chain-Reaction “For Sale” Signs It’s one of those anomalies that you see from time to time — and that understandably gives Buyers pause: a block where every other house seems to be for sale. At the moment, that phenomenon seems to characterize Basswood Road, a 3 block-long street just west of Cedar Lake that straddles...Read More
