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	<title>Twin Cities Real Estate Blog &#187; Opinion</title>
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	<link>http://www.twincitiesrealestateblog.com</link>
	<description>Housing News, Opinion, Statistics and Homes for Sale</description>
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		<item>
		<title>Shadow Inventory &#8211; The Housing Market&#8217;s Boogieman</title>
		<link>http://www.twincitiesrealestateblog.com/2012/shadow-inventory-the-housing-markets-boogieman/</link>
		<comments>http://www.twincitiesrealestateblog.com/2012/shadow-inventory-the-housing-markets-boogieman/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Wed, 01 Feb 2012 21:11:25 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Aaron Dickinson</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Community Issues]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Foreclosures and Short Sales]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Info for Buyers]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Info for Sellers]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Market Stats]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Opinion]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Personal Experiences]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Useless Ramblings]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[shadow inventory]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.twincitiesrealestateblog.com/?p=2760</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[For years now we&#8217;ve been hearing housing &#8220;experts&#8221; talk about the shadow housing inventory.  This is apparently all the distressed housing backlog that has yet to make its way through the system. Depending on who you talk to, it may or may not include homeowners that are underwater (but current), people who have jobs now but [...]]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://www.twincitiesrealestateblog.com/2012/shadow-inventory-the-housing-markets-boogieman/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>3</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>The Twin Cities Housing Market Has Bottomed</title>
		<link>http://www.twincitiesrealestateblog.com/2012/twin-cities-housing-market-has-bottomed/</link>
		<comments>http://www.twincitiesrealestateblog.com/2012/twin-cities-housing-market-has-bottomed/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Tue, 17 Jan 2012 06:44:50 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Aaron Dickinson</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Community Issues]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Crystal Ball Projections]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Foreclosures and Short Sales]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Info for Buyers]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Info for Sellers]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Market Stats]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Opinion]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.twincitiesrealestateblog.com/?p=2671</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[After years of price declines, today I am here to say that the Twin Cities housing market has bottomed. Having sold houses for the last nine years I can tell you I&#8217;ve seen both the up and the dramatic down of our market&#8230; it has been quite the theme park ride!  I think we are [...]]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://www.twincitiesrealestateblog.com/2012/twin-cities-housing-market-has-bottomed/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>5</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>Pricing Your Home Right for Today&#8217;s Market</title>
		<link>http://www.twincitiesrealestateblog.com/2011/pricing-your-home-right-for-todays-market/</link>
		<comments>http://www.twincitiesrealestateblog.com/2011/pricing-your-home-right-for-todays-market/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Wed, 23 Nov 2011 05:28:48 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Aaron Dickinson</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Info for Buyers]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Info for Sellers]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Opinion]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Personal Experiences]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.twincitiesrealestateblog.com/?p=1991</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[The housing market is full of a mix of Foreclosures, Short Sales and Traditional Sellers.  Traditional Sellers today have fewer foreclosures, short sales and other traditional sellers to compete with than last year but the competition is still heavy since we still have far more home inventory than we have buyers for it. A while [...]]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://www.twincitiesrealestateblog.com/2011/pricing-your-home-right-for-todays-market/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>5</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>Missed Showing = Missed Sale</title>
		<link>http://www.twincitiesrealestateblog.com/2011/missed-showing-missed-sale/</link>
		<comments>http://www.twincitiesrealestateblog.com/2011/missed-showing-missed-sale/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Mon, 14 Nov 2011 14:23:17 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Aaron Dickinson</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Info for Sellers]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Opinion]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Personal Experiences]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.twincitiesrealestateblog.com/?p=1988</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Two of my clients this year have bought houses that were difficult to see.  The first client was refused only the 1st time.  The second was refused the first two times!  In both cases the buyers had enough interest to try again but I can tell you that often isn&#8217;t the case.  I would say [...]]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://www.twincitiesrealestateblog.com/2011/missed-showing-missed-sale/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>1</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>Garbage In, Garbage Out</title>
		<link>http://www.twincitiesrealestateblog.com/2011/garbage-in-garbage-out/</link>
		<comments>http://www.twincitiesrealestateblog.com/2011/garbage-in-garbage-out/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Sun, 13 Nov 2011 22:04:39 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Aaron Dickinson</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[MLS Compliment & Criticism]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Opinion]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Personal Experiences]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.twincitiesrealestateblog.com/?p=1986</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[In the last couple weeks I have been searching our local MLS for a couple different clients and find myself frustrated by the lack of information provided.  Too many agents today still seem to get away with putting up a photo or two and the barest minimum of information.  This makes it terribly difficult to [...]]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://www.twincitiesrealestateblog.com/2011/garbage-in-garbage-out/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>Twin Cities Homes For Sale Inventory Hits 7 Year Low</title>
		<link>http://www.twincitiesrealestateblog.com/2011/twin-cities-homes-for-sale-inventory-hits-7-year-low/</link>
		<comments>http://www.twincitiesrealestateblog.com/2011/twin-cities-homes-for-sale-inventory-hits-7-year-low/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Thu, 10 Nov 2011 18:14:08 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Aaron Dickinson</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Info for Buyers]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Info for Sellers]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Market Stats]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Opinion]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.twincitiesrealestateblog.com/?p=1979</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[The Minneapolis Area Association of REALTORS has just announced October&#8217;s housing numbers and surprises us with a whopper:  In October 2011 there were fewer homes for sale than any October since 2004! &#160; The inventory of Twin Cities homes for sale has seen a progressive decline since its peak in 2007 and that decline I [...]]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://www.twincitiesrealestateblog.com/2011/twin-cities-homes-for-sale-inventory-hits-7-year-low/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>Twin Cities Real Estate Market Update &#8211; October 30, 2011</title>
		<link>http://www.twincitiesrealestateblog.com/2011/twin-cities-real-estate-market-update/</link>
		<comments>http://www.twincitiesrealestateblog.com/2011/twin-cities-real-estate-market-update/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Sun, 30 Oct 2011 22:23:08 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Aaron Dickinson</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Crystal Ball Projections]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Info for Buyers]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Info for Sellers]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Market Stats]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Opinion]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.twincitiesrealestateblog.com/?p=1972</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Halloween marks the beginning of the significant seasonal slowdown in real estate activity that we see each year.  As days get shorter and the weather gets colder, many home buyers and sellers settle in where they are for the winter. Buyer activity and homes for sale have both seen about a 10% decline in the [...]]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://www.twincitiesrealestateblog.com/2011/twin-cities-real-estate-market-update/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>3 Home Buyer Financing Lies</title>
		<link>http://www.twincitiesrealestateblog.com/2011/3-home-buyer-financing-lies/</link>
		<comments>http://www.twincitiesrealestateblog.com/2011/3-home-buyer-financing-lies/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Wed, 21 Sep 2011 14:06:42 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Aaron Dickinson</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[city grants]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[General]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Info for Buyers]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Media]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Opinion]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[special financing]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.twincitiesrealestateblog.com/?p=1952</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[#1 &#8211; Buyers need 20% cash down to buy a home Did you know that some buyers can still buy a home with NO DOWN PAYMENT?  The USDA Rural Development and Department of Veterans Affairs loan programs both offer 0% down payment options.  In the case of the USDA, it is income and location restricted. [...]]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://www.twincitiesrealestateblog.com/2011/3-home-buyer-financing-lies/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>1</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>MLS Misinformation</title>
		<link>http://www.twincitiesrealestateblog.com/2011/mls-misinformation/</link>
		<comments>http://www.twincitiesrealestateblog.com/2011/mls-misinformation/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Mon, 29 Aug 2011 12:58:57 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Aaron Dickinson</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Community Issues]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[MLS Compliment & Criticism]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Opinion]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Personal Experiences]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.twincitiesrealestateblog.com/?p=1911</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[One of the sayings that I retain from my years in the technology is one that is applicable in so many things every day: &#8220;garbage in, garbage out.&#8221;  In this circumstance, I speaking about some of the data that is input by real estate agents into our local MLS. It seems almost any time I&#8217;m [...]]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://www.twincitiesrealestateblog.com/2011/mls-misinformation/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>1700+ Short Sales Stuck Waiting for Bank Approval</title>
		<link>http://www.twincitiesrealestateblog.com/2011/1700-short-sales-waiting-bank-approval-minneapolis-st-paul/</link>
		<comments>http://www.twincitiesrealestateblog.com/2011/1700-short-sales-waiting-bank-approval-minneapolis-st-paul/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Mon, 15 Aug 2011 12:33:41 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Aaron Dickinson</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Community Issues]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Foreclosures and Short Sales]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Info for Buyers]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Market Stats]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Opinion]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Personal Experiences]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Short Sales]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.twincitiesrealestateblog.com/?p=1893</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Short Sales By The Numbers: 5,000 We have just under 5000 short sales currently for sale in the Minneapolis/St. Paul area. 1,700 In the Twin Cities, we now have more than 1,700 short sales that have received offers and are waiting for the seller&#8217;s lender(s) to provide a response, 100&#8242;s more than we had a year [...]]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://www.twincitiesrealestateblog.com/2011/1700-short-sales-waiting-bank-approval-minneapolis-st-paul/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>MN Government Shutdown Means Fewer Real Estate Agents</title>
		<link>http://www.twincitiesrealestateblog.com/2011/mn-government-shutdown-means-fewer-real-estate-agents/</link>
		<comments>http://www.twincitiesrealestateblog.com/2011/mn-government-shutdown-means-fewer-real-estate-agents/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Tue, 12 Jul 2011 23:58:43 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Aaron Dickinson</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Community Issues]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Ethics]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Market Stats]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Opinion]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[department of commerce]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[government shutdown]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[mnshutdown]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.twincitiesrealestateblog.com/?p=1882</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Of the many things that are affected by the Minnesota Government Shutdown is a majority of the Department of Commerce.  The Department of Commerce does things like well, regulate commerce.  With it largely shut down, investigations and enforcement are hampered and any businesses that rely on licensing cannot make changes or additions until the doors [...]]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://www.twincitiesrealestateblog.com/2011/mn-government-shutdown-means-fewer-real-estate-agents/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>3</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>Foreclosures and Short Sales Don&#8217;t Matter to House Prices</title>
		<link>http://www.twincitiesrealestateblog.com/2011/foreclosures-short-sales-dont-matter-house-prices/</link>
		<comments>http://www.twincitiesrealestateblog.com/2011/foreclosures-short-sales-dont-matter-house-prices/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Tue, 05 Jul 2011 15:14:24 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Aaron Dickinson</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Crystal Ball Projections]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Foreclosures and Short Sales]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Info for Buyers]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Info for Sellers]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Market Stats]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Opinion]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Short Sales]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[foreclosures]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[median sales price]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[short sales]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.twincitiesrealestateblog.com/?p=1875</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[While foreclosures and short sales continue to be around 40% of our sales, when looking at housing prices I believe they should be completely ignored. When looking at all Twin Cities housing sales, here is how the Median Sales Price stacks up: &#160; When we split it out to look at Foreclosures, Short Sales and [...]]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://www.twincitiesrealestateblog.com/2011/foreclosures-short-sales-dont-matter-house-prices/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>7</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>Fannie Mae Gets Smart, Adds Electronic Lock Boxes to Houses</title>
		<link>http://www.twincitiesrealestateblog.com/2011/fannie-mae-gets-smart-adds-electronic-lock-boxes/</link>
		<comments>http://www.twincitiesrealestateblog.com/2011/fannie-mae-gets-smart-adds-electronic-lock-boxes/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Tue, 21 Jun 2011 17:02:35 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Aaron Dickinson</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Community Issues]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Foreclosures and Short Sales]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Opinion]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Personal Experiences]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[electronic lock boxes]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[fannie mae]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[foreclosures]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.twincitiesrealestateblog.com/?p=1873</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Fannie Mae, the mortgage giant, will begin requiring electronic lock boxes on their listings. This means that showing agents will use these boxes instead of the current practice of push button lock boxes. Some may ask, &#8220;so what?&#8221;  Foreclosure properties are occasionally mistreated by real estate agents &#8211; some will or let their buyers pull [...]]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://www.twincitiesrealestateblog.com/2011/fannie-mae-gets-smart-adds-electronic-lock-boxes/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>Twin Cities 2011 Housing Market Prediction: Party Like It&#8217;s 2009</title>
		<link>http://www.twincitiesrealestateblog.com/2011/twin-cities-2011-housing-market-prediction-party-like-its-2009/</link>
		<comments>http://www.twincitiesrealestateblog.com/2011/twin-cities-2011-housing-market-prediction-party-like-its-2009/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Mon, 04 Apr 2011 12:44:16 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Aaron Dickinson</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Crystal Ball Projections]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[General]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Info for Buyers]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Info for Sellers]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Market Stats]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Opinion]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[2011 housing forecast]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.twincitiesrealestateblog.com/?p=1822</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[At this time last year the housing market was heating up as the first time home buyer tax credit was nearing its expiration.  Just as soon as that tax credit expired, the Twin Cities housing market went into the meat locker for the rest of the year.  Now that we&#8217;re finally past both the tax [...]]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://www.twincitiesrealestateblog.com/2011/twin-cities-2011-housing-market-prediction-party-like-its-2009/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>0</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>Stupidly Slow Short Sales That Seldom Sell</title>
		<link>http://www.twincitiesrealestateblog.com/2011/stupidly-slow-short-sales/</link>
		<comments>http://www.twincitiesrealestateblog.com/2011/stupidly-slow-short-sales/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Thu, 17 Mar 2011 03:27:32 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Aaron Dickinson</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Community Issues]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Foreclosures and Short Sales]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Info for Buyers]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Info for Sellers]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Market Stats]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Opinion]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Personal Experiences]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Short Sales]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[short sales]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.twincitiesrealestateblog.com/?p=1793</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Here we are, years into the housing crisis, and it seems like while banks have become pretty good at selling foreclosures they are still horrible at closing short sales.  On average, short sales a have substantially lower chance of closing than traditional or bank owned listings, which means a huge number of short sales fail [...]]]></description>
		<wfw:commentRss>http://www.twincitiesrealestateblog.com/2011/stupidly-slow-short-sales/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>2</slash:comments>
		</item>
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