Human vs. Wildlife Squatters Why do a walk-thru inspection of a (very) vacant Minnetonka home that the Buyer intends to tear down after closing? After all, the primary purpose(s) of a walk-thru — usually done within 48 hours of closing — is to make sure there have been no material changes in the home’s condition...Read More
Moot Unless Something’s Happened to the Home It’s not what I recommend to my Buyer clients, but there are plenty of Buyers who put off doing their walk-thru inspection until just before closing. Like, on the way. At least in theory, the Owner has an ongoing duty to update their Seller’s Disclosure up to and...Read More
Fill Out the Form and Forget it? Not Necessarily OK, there’s no such thing as a “living, breathing document” — with the possible exception of the Declaration of Independence, the U.S. Constitution, etc. What I have in mind, though — at least in the context of residential real estate — are contracts/disclosures where one party...Read More
Not Getting What You Don’t Pay For It won’t show up in my 2012 sales statistics (or my bank account), but one of the more protracted deals I was involved with this past year was helping a good friend (and repeat client) buy a $63,000 St. Paul foreclosure. Why no record of the deal? Because I...Read More
Penny Wise Foolish, Pound Foolish, or, “Minnesota Not-Nice” When it comes to real estate transactions, graciousness begets graciousness, and pettiness begets . . . lack of graciousness. In the vast majority of deals, whatever tensions may have accompanied the negotiations are long forgotten, clearing the way for a warm and amicable closing. Which is only natural: ...Read More
The Real Estate Walk-Thru OK, so it’s not as dramatic as the point in the wedding ceremony where the officiating clergy asks the assembled guests to “speak now or forever hold your peace.” But functionally, the walk-thru performed by the Buyer just before closing plays much the same role in a residential real estate deal....Read More
