“Build It and They Will Come” Real Estate Development “Silicon Valley Spec House Seeks $42.8 Million.” —Headline, The Wall Street Journal. For the uninitiated, a “spec” or “speculative” house is a home that a developer first builds, then tries to sell. That’s opposed to a home that’s commissioned by/for an existing client, and built according...Read More
Realtor “Atta-Boy”: “Nice Listing!’ A new listing has a surprising number of parallels with the opening of a Broadway play. There’s the opening night anticipation. There are the hopes (and fears) about whether the audience (prospective Buyers) will like it. And there can be a sense of dread about what the toughest critics will have...Read More
Setting the Bar (Way) Too High One of my favorite Op-Ed page cartoons shows an unconscious patient being operated on by a team of surgeons. Suddenly, there’s a spike in the patient’s vital signs, whereupon he bolts upright, and loudly announces to the laboring surgeons: “You should know that I’m the most successful personal injury...Read More
More than WHAT? My short answer to the question, “can I get more for my house if I put on a new roof?” is, “yes, you can.” That is, if by “more,” you mean, “more than what you could have gotten for the home without a new roof ” especially if the current one is...Read More
“Old Wine in New Bottles” [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 entity referenced. Edina Realty is a subsidiary of Berkshire.] It turns out that, of the first wave of new Twin Cities listings to hit the market...Read More
Quick Answer: “It Depends ” But Usually Less Than Buyers Think” “At the closing table, the Seller will walk away with a check ” and whether the money comes from the Buyer or the lender doesn’t matter.” —”Do Home Buyers Who Pay Cash Get a Discount?”; The Wall Street Journal. The answer to the question,...Read More
