Newspaper Headline: “Motivated Buyers Sparked Twin Cities Home Sales to a Record Pace in June” Once again, Twin Cities Realtors are going to have to explain to their clients brandishing the latest housing news headlines why all is not as it may seem. Specifically, even in a Seller’s market — which continues to characterize the...Read More
Leading vs. Lagging Real Estate Indicators The headline news about the housing market this week was the latest Case-Shiller numbers: nationally, housing prices are up over 12% the last year. Meanwhile, closer to home (and in the trenches) . . . Twin Cities agents listing upper bracket homes (over $1.2 million) are bemoaning the lack...Read More
(Mis)Reading the Signs Pricing real estate is fundamentally precedent-driven. In other words, if you want to establish an estimated fair market value for “Property H,” you first need to determine what Properties E, F, and G sold for. In Realtor (and Appraiser) lingo, E, F, and G are called Comp’s (“Comparable Sold Properties”), and the compare-and-contrast process...Read More
“I Heard it on the (Realtor) Grapevine” I just got a heads up from an acquaintance about an upper bracket home in Minnetonka that will be coming on the market shortly as a “For Sale By Owner” (“FSBO”). The home reportedly needs work, was last on the market decades ago, and the homeowner has no residential...Read More