Skipping the Starter Home There’s some anecdotal evidence that first-time Buyers in the Twin Cities are making their mark a rung (or three) higher than you’d normally expect to find them. Namely, they’re disproportionately active in transactions around $500k — especially new construction in some of the more affordable ‘burbs — rather than in the...Read More
The Reason to Put the Laundry (Back) in the Basement I just met a client’s plumber, who quoted the cost to move a basement laundry to the first floor in a “For Sale” home my client is considering. According to the plumber, that’s the direction of the move 90% of the time. The other 10%?...Read More
Food Retailing “Bells & Whistles” Upstage the Food If you want to see the latest housing trends — at least in the Twin Cities — you check out new residential construction in Edina above $3 million or so. That’s because homes at that price point are typically loaded with all the latest bells & whistles...Read More
Back to the Future – Housing Edition “One in five people in their 20’s and early 30’s is currently living with his or her parents. And 60% of all young adults receive financial support from them. That’s a significant increase from a generation ago, when only one in 10 young adults moved back home and...Read More
Diminishing Returns? Is a two-year home warranty better than one year? If you weren’t aware, home warranties are fast on their way to becoming a standard feature of residential real estate transactions, at least in Minnesota. The standard Minnesota Purchase Agreement now includes “opt-out” language, making it much more likely that the parties to the transaction will...Read More
Revisiting the “Home” in “Home Office” Want a little educated (Realtor) speculation? Extrapolating the trend for home offices, mobile offices, car(?) offices — in fact, everything but “office” offices — a secondary, follow-on trend seem inevitable. Namely, heightened sensitivity to one’s physical location — and prioritizing of same. Put it this way: if you’re holed up...Read More
