Realtors, Prize Fighters & Hockey Teams Boxing and hockey fans know that records in those sports are tabulated in three columns, corresponding to wins, losses, and ties. So, a fighter who has a record of 38-7-4 won 38 fights, lost 7, and had 4 end in ties. I’m starting to think that a similar scoring...Read More
“Who’s on First?” — RE Edition It’s not quite as confusing as Abbott and Costello’s “Who’s on First?” routine . . . but it’s not exactly clear either. Hopefully, the following definitions shed a little light on real estate’s most confusing terms. “Buyer’s Agent”: the agent who represents the Buyer. “Listing Agent”: the agent who...Read More
Four Questions to Ask, or, “Context, Context, Context” With multiple offers making a comeback — especially bank foreclosures that are “priced to sell” (and then some) — it once again bears asking: ‘how do you know if the property you’re interested in is really in multiple offers?’ Herewith are the four ways to tell. One....Read More
More B.S. (“Bait & Switch”) from the Foreclosure Banks The water cooler is long gone, but that doesn’t mean Realtors don’t engage in “water cooler talk.” One of the hottest topics at the moment is foreclosures. Here’s how it appears to the (above) average Realtor — OK, me — who’s had some passing involvement representing...Read More
“Not a Foreclosure! Not a Short Sale!” Sellers don’t usually start out proclaiming what they’re not. But this isn’t a usual market. In some Twin Cities neighborhoods, the normal ratio of “traditional” sales relative to lender-mediated sales (foreclosures, short sales) has inverted. Furthermore, many Buyers have come to associate lender-mediated deals with extra risk and...Read More
