Buyer’s Agent Practice Tips “Seller shall provide documentation from licensed HVAC contractor (not gas company) that forced air furnace and central a/c are in working order.” –Amendment to Purchase Agreement At least in my capacity as a Buyer’s agent, whenever my client’s inspection raises concerns about the home’s HVAC system, I’m careful to explicitly require...Read More
“Recent surveys suggest that . . . maybe 40 percent of Republicans are what you might call conservative white identitarians. White identitarians are conservative, but their white identity is quite important to them, sometimes even more important than their conservatism.” –David Brooks, “How Trump Kills the GOP” (The New York Times; 8/29/17). At his best,...Read More
Pre-Labor Day Weekend Housing Market Slow-Down One other variable that can be very relevant for homeowners deciding whether to list now or wait till after the market picks up, post-Labor Day weekend: the availability — or lack thereof — of any needed contractors. The list includes photographers, handymen, and assorted contractors (stagers, painters, electricians, etc.)...Read More
Reviving “The Milkman Model” for the Grocery Business “Costco is the latest retailer to see dips in its stock on the news that Amazon’s buying Whole Foods for $13.7 billion.” –Fortune.com [Editor’s Note: The views expressed here are solely those of Ross Kaplan, and do not represent Edina Realty, Berkshire Hathaway (“Berkshire”), or any other...Read More
Time Zone Trivia One of the quirks of doing business in far Northwest Montana — in this case, with a local logging company — is determining whose time zone applies. The company rep and I had agreed on an 8 a.m. breakfast meeting in tiny Troy, Montana, just 10 miles from the Idaho border (and...Read More
“Two Hour Parking?” Maybe Not Quick! What’s the maximum number of hours someone could park in a space with the restrictions posted above? A. 2 hours B. 4 hours C. 8 hours D. 18 hours **Correct answer: “D.” As helpfully explained to me by the hotel staff directly across the street in Kalispell, MT (where...Read More
