Archive for January, 2009
In North Minneapolis, This Guy Tried to Stop Us.
January 30th, 2009 Categories: Cool Girls, North Minneapolis, Real Estate News, That Flippin' House
Jennifer, my client who rehabs homes in North Minneapolis, and I found a great house that we just knew would be a great rehab project. As we left the property, we came upon this cute little guy with knives in each fist ready to fend us off. (You’ll need to click on this picture a couple of times to get the full effect.)
Well, it worked! We almost missed him. We only saw him as we were leaving. We put an offer in on this diamond in the rough, but we were outbid, leaving us to search for other great properties.
Here’s a picture of Jennifer checking the little guy out. I don’t know what character this is, but I’m sure somebody out there does.
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Reason #4 Why Plymouth, MN is Rated as Best Place to Live in the U.S.
January 21st, 2009 Categories: Plymouth "News", Plymouth Current Housing Statistics, Real Estate News
There are several reasons why Plymouth, MN was chosen as the Number One Best Place to Live in America. I’ve mentioned some of them in past posts.
Here’s my very favorite reason…especially, since I live in Plymouth. The values of our homes remain high compared to other communities in the Twin Cities and the rest of the nation. Only Edina and St. Louis Park fared better than Plymouth. Here’s the low down on the entire year for Plymouth.
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Jordan Neighborhood…The Best Is Yet To Come! Here Comes 2755 Russell Avenue North!
January 20th, 2009 Categories: North Minneapolis, Real Estate News, That Flippin' House
It took a lot of hard work to get this absolutely beautiful home to be Jennifer’s (Flipper Girl) property. We’ve been dinking around with this property for quite some time now. The details are not pretty.
But…we got it! Woo hoo!
You’ve seen the before pics. You will now see some of the fun stuff that her crew found behind the cupboards today. I will just say that this home will be her best rehab so far. She’s got an awesome crew and the know-how to get the job done. She has a reputation in the City of Minneapolis of being one of the best in the business and I am proud to be her Realtor.
Above is just one of many pieces of memorabilia that were found at this wonderful property. More to come!
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More Good Real Estate Market News (In Case My Last Post Didn’t Convince You…)
January 13th, 2009 Categories: National Real Estate News, Real Estate News
Each month, This Month in Real Estate provides expert opinion and analysis on real estate trends across the nation. The aim of the consumer-oriented segments is to help agents combat the “doom and gloom” messages of the national print and television media with real information on real estate.
Check this out:
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Minneapolis Area Real Estate Trends for 2009 Revealed by Mark Allen, CEO of MAAR
January 13th, 2009 Categories: Mortgage Stuff, Real Estate News, Twin Cities Home Buyers, Twin Cities Real Estate Economy, Twin City Sellers
The market is what you make of it. There are always opportunities in every economic situation. History demonstrates that real wealth is made in the worst of times.
I read that somewhere and copied it. I keep it in my desk drawer whenever I start feeling down about the recent real estate market.
Yesterday was a learning day for me. I was fortunate enough to hear Mark Allen, CEO of the Minneapolis Area Association of Realtors, give us Realtors his take on the market for 2009 and beyond. The following are a few key points made by Mark. Read the rest of this entry »
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Move Over, Folwell (and a Few Other Neighborhoods in North Minneapolis), Hawthorne’s Got a New Plan!
January 11th, 2009 Categories: Minneapolis Home Buyers and Sellers, Mortgage Stuff, North Minneapolis, Real Estate News, Twin Cities Home Buyers
How many times do we hear of blighted neighborhoods trying to revitalize themselves only to fall back into the “we tried this and it didn’t work” mentality?
We may hear it again from some naysayers, but this time there is a VERY ATTRACTIVE incentive program that should raise a few eyebrows! The Hawthorne Neighborhood in North Minneapolis has just voted on the creation of a new program to assist home buyers with a purchase of a home in Hawthorne. It’s called the “Hawthorne Advantage”.
Here are the details without going into too much detail:
- You must live in the home after purchase (owner-occupied).
- 3% of the purchase price of the home will be granted to you and subtracted off the price of the home on the HUD-1 statement at the closing.
- An extra $1,000 will be granted to you if you purchase a previously foreclosed property.
What’s the downside? You will have to pay back the loan if you do not stay in the home for a minimum of five years to begin to “pay back” the loan up to ten years. After the ten years, the lien is removed and the loan is 100% forgiven. The idea is that you will want to stay and commit to the betterment of this community.
This program is brand spankin’ new, so it is not up on the Hawthorne website yet. Now is the time to start buying those diamonds in the rough in Hawthorne. Interest rates are at record lows, you can use grant money from the City of Minneapolis and, now, the Hawthorne Neighborhood’s Hawthorne Advantage.
Take advantage of it!
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Long Story Short: Short Sales Take a Long Time!
January 3rd, 2009 Categories: Mortgage Stuff, My Listings, Real Estate News, Twin Cities Real Estate Economy
Short sales are commonplace these days and they are a force to be reckoned with. To be honest, I don’t care to delve into these transactions, but every once in a while it is inevitable.
Currently, I have a beautiful “short sale” listing in Minnetonka that clearly states in the agent remarks of the MLS there is a third party negotiator and to call my co-lister for more information. There are a team of professionals who assist me in working with short sales as well as other tedious and difficult transactions.
Here are the nuts and bolts of a short sale:
- A short sale means that you will sell your home for less than your mortgage amount.
- Sometimes you can work out payments with your mortgage company or bank, sometimes not.
- Sometimes your mortgage lender will not agree to even process a short sale.
- Short sales will have a negative effect on your credit score, however, less destructive than a foreclosure.
- There are third party negotiators, in some cases, who will take over the administrative portion of the sale, such as, ordering a broker price opinion (BPO) and coordinating the purchase agreements that come in for the property. This is coordinated through your Realtor.
- The process can be very long and it is important to let the sellers and the buyers know that they had better have some patience if they want to keep the transaction together.
- Get a good Realtor who has a strong team behind her to make the transaction as smooth as possible.
Even though short sales are an ugly part of life, the process can be made a bit more palatable when you have the people working for you and keeping you abreast of what is happening every step of the way. We know what we’re doing and are here to help!
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A Silly Property Repair in North Minneapolis - A New Use for a Pie Tin
January 1st, 2009 Categories: Minneapolis Home Buyers and Sellers, North Minneapolis, Real Estate News
Let’s see…maybe the homeowner didn’t want to get water on the socket so as not to electrocute himself or to short out the circuit. This pie pan is between the socket and the junction box. I just can’t figure out Read the rest of this entry »
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