Going through a 1940’s Lake Nokomis home this week, my Buyer spotted something upstairs that raised her (and then my) eyebrows: the floor tiles didn’t match in a couple of places. Especially if the home has an older roof, that can be a sign of previous leaking directly above the affected areas. In this case,...Read More
“EGOT”** Minus the “G” “In “Trumbo,” an ill-conceived take on one of the most famous targets of the Hollywood blacklist, the writer Dalton Trumbo clenches a cigarette holder that juts in the air like a sword . . . Part biopic, part historical gloss, “Trumbo” tells a great-man story with a patchwork of fact and...Read More
Is There Such a Thing as TMI (“Too Much Information”) on the Seller Disclosure? (Hint: “No”) I don’t know about other parts of the country, but here in conscientious, neighborly Minnesota, home sellers are more likely to volunteer too much information rather than too little on the required state disclosure form. As their Realtor, I’m...Read More
Cashing in on Proximity to South Harriet Park; Targeting “In-Between” Edina Home Buyers “Ar·bi·trage” \ˈär-bÉ™-ËŒtrazh\ [noun]: the practice of buying something in one place and selling it almost immediately in another place where it is worth more. –Merriam-Webster Dictionary It may not be the conventional definition of “arbitrage,” but something a bit like that is currently happening...Read More
The Opposite of “Easier Said Than Done” Real estate sales is a field (like many others, I’m sure) where a lot of things are “easier said than done.” Get Sellers to price realistically? “Easier said than done.” Persuade homeowners to spend a relatively nominal amount on staging, that will help sell their home faster, for...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
