Show me a “For Sale” home that’s open Sunday after Sunday, rain snow or shine, and I’ll show you a house where: a) the home is likely overpriced and going nowhere in the market; b) a frustrated Realtor is trying to placate an impatient owner; or most likely c) both “a.” and “b.” In my...Read More
Real Estate Euphemisms 101 It’s purely anecdotal, but I don’t think I’m wrong: something like >95% of the time, when a listing agent touts that a home has a “low maintenance yard” . . . there isn’t a yard (or at least, not much of one). Of course, if there’s only a postage stamp-sized yard...Read More
Official Beginning of Winter 2017-2018 in Twin Cities: Yesterday! (Dec. 5) “Welcome to Stanford! Last year, 95% of you were in the top 5% of your class. Today, 95% of you are in the bottom 95% of your class.” –Stanford Dean of Admissions Fred Hargadon, to each year’s entering freshman class (including mine a long time...Read More
The Limits of Delectable Food I know the about-to-follow sentiments place me in a distinct minority of Realtors, but here goes: If scrumptious refreshments on Broker Tour** actually sold homes, then that nice Contemporary by Cedar Lake should have sold in a heartbeat. Proffered to visiting agents: home-cooked shish-kebab (delicious!), flutes of champagne, and chocolate...Read More
Combine a bigger house (say, over 3,000 square feet) and 20 — or 50(!) — photos just emailed to you by your ace, professional photographer, and it’s not unusual for a Realtor just getting up-and-running on a new listing to be temporarily stumped by what they’re looking at. Like I was yesterday. Wrong Wall So, I recalled...Read More
Is it Halloween Yet? I’m a big fan of dramatically lit homes. And with the seasonal change, we’re heading into ever-shorter Fall days. And yet, the technique doesn’t work all the time ” and can even backfire: especially for smaller homes, interior lighting at night can produce an (unhelpful) “Jack-o-Lantern effect.” The (kind of) scientific...Read More
