“Wasn’t That House Interesting!” — Compliment or Dis? At least outside of Minnesota, “interesting” actually can mean . . . “Interesting.” As in, “unique” (in a good way), “provocative,” or “stimulating.” By contrast, when Minnesotans say it — especially in the context of house-hunting, and they enunciate the word slowing (“i-n-t-e-r-e-s-t-i-n-g”) — they invariably mean...Read More
Listing Agents Who Call the Buyer’s Lender As a Buyer’s agent, how can you tell if the listing agent (representing the Seller) is taking your client’s offer seriously? They call the Buyer’s lender — specifically, the lender on the Buyer’s Pre-Approval letter — and verify key information. Like, whether they’ve previously worked with the Buyer;...Read More
“I’ll List Your House for $700k $750k $800k!!” Anxious Buyers aren’t the only ones bidding up home prices this year. So are some Realtors, including at least a few who should (and do) know better. Housing Market Icaruses One of the things that can happen when prospective home Sellers interview lots of agents in an...Read More
What’s More Than a Full Bath? By convention, Realtors call a Bathroom with a sink, toilet, bathtub and shower a “full” Bath. Because each of those items counts as .25, a Bathroom missing one or more of them is considered a fractional Bath. So, a Bathroom with a sink, toilet, and shower (but no tub)...Read More
Dual Agency Dilemma #14 [Note to Readers: The views expressed here are solely those of Ross Kaplan, and do not represent Edina Realty, Berkshire Hathaway, or any other entity referenced. If you need legal advice, please consult an attorney.] Never having represented both the Buyer and Seller in the same transaction (I consider it a...Read More
Overwhelmed Listing Agents Improvise to Communicate with Buyers’ Agents Once upon a time, the “Agent Remarks” field on MLS was used to supplement the marketing verbiage in the “Public Remarks” field.** That is, if it was used at all — listing agents (representing Sellers) often simply copied-and-pasted their Public Remarks into Agent Remarks. Now? Especially...Read More
