Twin Cities Real Estate Blog

Question: I’ve been reading in the newspaper and seeing on TV that houses are not selling for what they are listed for.  How much can I take off the asking price?
Answer: Houses are selling on average for 91% of their original list price, which is to say that this is an average.  Homes that are [...]

Question: I submitted an offer on a listing where the seller needs to get approval of a short sale from their bank(s)…how long will it take to hear back?
Answer: Responses from banks on short sales is typically taking anywhere from 2 weeks to 2 months, with 1+ months being the most typical.  Most lenders are [...]

Question: How do I know what is considered “finished square feet” in a home?
Answer: The typical definition of finished square feet includes all of the following:

A permanent heat source (i.e. not a portable heater)
Permanent lighting
Finished walls (painted concrete block is ok)
Finished ceiling (but not necessarily ceiling tiles or drywall, as in a loft)
Finished floors
Ceiling height [...]

Question:With houses having fallen in price over the last few year, will {Minneapolis / Brooklyn Park / Crystal / Apple Valley / Chaska / St. Paul / Woodbury / etc} going to see appreciation in the next 5 years?
Answer: There is no crystal ball that will foretell the future but based on what I’m seeing and [...]

Question: “I own a smaller home and am thinking about buying a bigger one… is now a good time to buy up?”
Answer: Part of the answer depends on where/what you are selling and where/what you are buying.  The general rule of thumb is that this is a good time to make a move if you’re [...]

I’m going to start regularly posting questions I receive from clients and the answers I’ve provided them.  If you have questions you’d like answers to, please do not hesitate to ask!
Each Q&A will be a separate blog post and there is now a category called: “Questions and Answers” as well, which will contain all the [...]