Reasons For Not Buying a Home Now - 06/30/11 12:29 PM
There are plenty of reasons for not buying that new home you've been thinking about, and I hope this post helps you complete the list.  Of course, not all reasons apply to all people.
Reasons For Not Buying a Home Now
Interest rates are way too low.  I'll get a better tax deduction if I wait for them to go up. I love my landlord and want him to continue to pay down his mortgage with my money. My four kids are really close, especially when they're all sleeping in the same bedroom. I truly believe that eggshell white is the … (5 comments)

Buyers Let Your Agent Work for His Commission!! - 06/30/11 10:35 AM
 
Tammie White, a dedicated Franklin Tennessee real estate professional, relates another incident of a buyer doing everything possible to overpay for a new home. 
As your exclusive buyer's agent, I am pledged to do everything possible to help you find the best property, determine its value, and negotiate the best price and terms on your behalf.  Please, for your own well-being, let me fulfill my obligation to you.  Although the seller's agent may be a very nice person, it's their job to get you to pay the highest price they can extract from you. 
 
Via Tammie White Realtor® … (2 comments)

Minnesota Budget Boredom - 06/28/11 11:01 AM
My last update on the lack of activity in the Minnesota Legislature was over a month ago, and there has been quite a lot of stuff take place since then.  First, the legislative session ended with no agreement on how to deal with the results of doing nothing to solve the lack of sufficient revenue problem.  You see, Minnesota, although it is one of the ten best states for business, has done almost nothing to get more business.  Instead, the stuffed shirts in St. Paul continue to dwell on how to patch up the results of their inattention. 
Since the legislature … (0 comments)

CHANGE ~ is it really possible OR is it just comingled with lint in your pocket and useless? - 06/25/11 10:26 AM
 
Lyn Sims, a Schaumburg Illinois real estate professional, has posted a couple videos that offer several possible solutions to the housing log jam that has been upon this country for way too long. Take a look and let Lyn know what you think.
 
Via Lyn Sims - Schaumburg Homes (Schaumburg Homes and the Northwest Suburbs - RE/MAX Suburban):
Think Big Work Small's guys have a few good ideas for this limping economy.  Some good thoughts here I'd like to pass along.  I guess you could say it's a grass roots movement to get some things in gear in a more … (0 comments)

Market Performance Sample for Dakota County, MN - 06/22/11 11:51 AM
According to information gathered from the Regional Multiple Listing Service of Minnesota, Inc., the number of year over year total closed home sales has increased about 0.34% in these six selected cities which represent almost three quarters of all transactions in Dakota County.   Data from the entire county shows a drop of about 0.45% since last year.  Here are the individual year over year changes in number of sales through May 31:
Apple Valley  (0.85%)
Burnsville         2.39%
Eagan                0.92%
Farmington     1.01%
Lakeville           (3.52%)
Rosemount       0.48%
What do these numbers mean for someone contemplating buying or selling real estate today?  Not … (0 comments)

You Will Not Lose Money When You Sell Your House - 06/21/11 10:46 AM
There are a lot of fence sitting homeowners who want to move to another home.  They may want to upsize, downsize across town or across country-size, but they are worried that they will lose money in the transaction.  The fear of financial loss is keeping them from making a decision that they feel would be of significant personal benefit to them and their families.  I understand the anxiety and hesitation, but don't feel that hesitation and indecision is of any benefit. 
My investments include a position in a business development company, and the stock is down over 20% since I bought … (5 comments)

Vice Presidential Hopeful Practicing Fuzzy Math? - 06/19/11 11:46 AM
The convocation of the mudnificent seven last week was an interesting TV watch.  The main differences among the wannabes is visual.  The usual political mantra spewed like pea soup in an old movie.  The other guy is bad and I'm good.  Not only am I good, but, even though I'm exactly like the other half dozen stuffed shirts on this stage, I'm really good.  My three main points of concern are Blah, Blah, Blah.
Of particular interest was the old Minnesota governor who received two of my votes (he ran against losers).  Tim Pawlenty was a mediocre but adequate governor.  He … (0 comments)

We Have More Than One Life To Live - 06/16/11 11:15 AM
We have several lives to live albeit simultaneously.  Our chronological life runs from physical birth to physical death.  It is clearly defined, and it is an item of attention in literature, philosophy, underwriters' mortality tables, etc.  We can affect the length of our chronological life by making good decisions about health and safety.  We will balance those decisions by our understanding that each decision is a calculated risk that requires careful deliberation.
There are other lives that are, to some degree, given attention or being ignored by each of us. Our economic life begins when we get our first job and … (1 comments)

Republican candidates' similarity to oysters etc. - 06/14/11 10:39 AM
Since last night's hockey game was lacking in suspense, the magnificent seven Republican hopefuls got my attention during channel surf.  They all fell into the universal politician mantra, "Everything bad is the other guy's fault, and everything good is because I'm great."  There were a few historic distortions, but nothing that surprised me.
This race to be chosen honorary opponent of Barack Obama in 2012 is fairly good entertainment, but little else.  Is anyone surprised that all of them have forgotten that Ronald Reagan entered his first term with much better unemployment numbers than when Obama entered his first term?  Is … (3 comments)

Strategic Default -- The Big Solution - 06/11/11 09:53 AM
Yesterday I wrote about The Big Surprise in which I attempted to make a case for some pre-emptive action by lenders to head off further defaults, specifically voluntary or strategic defaults.  Banks have not publicized anything that indicates that they plan to make any changes in the current way they do business -- they are ignoring the issue.  The anti business, especially anti-bank government is content to wait and watch the problem they foresee as exclusively a bank problem deteriorate.
There are some things that could be done to reduce the number of defaults, and I'll suggest a few.  Please add … (11 comments)

Strategic Default Is the Next Big Surprise - 06/10/11 10:11 AM
Despite conditions that should have been apparent to most of us for years, the collapse of the housing industry took most of us by surprise.  Even when there were obvious signs that the housing ship was sinking, entities like the NAR and the President remained in denial, insisting that the industry was strong.  Even as the downward spiral continued, the talk was that a soft landing was imminent. The three most striking elements of the observations of government, professional organizations, and a fair number of "experts" were, Blah, Blah, Blah.  They denied the issue until it buried us.
Now we have … (46 comments)

Visit Minnesota and Think About Staying Here - 06/08/11 11:27 AM
Consistently chosen as one of the top ten states to do business by CNBC, Minnesota is an attractive alternate to many declining large metropolitan dominated states. With more than its per capita share of Fortune 500 Companies calling Minnesota their corporate home, you will be in good company when you move your business to Minnesota. You may even gain a few proximity advantages with your new corporate neighbors.
While you're checking out our business climate, take a few days, weeks, or months to consider the human benefits of locating in Minnesota as well.
… (5 comments)

Edit PDF files? - 06/07/11 10:50 AM
I found an inexpensive download that allows me to edit PDF files.  The download comes from CutePDF.com and it can add, delete or rearrange pages of a file.  It will also combine files and even make changes to them.
The download is CutePDF Professional, and it is available for free evaluation, with full functionality, but a disclaimer on the first page of the document that you are using a copy for evaluation only.  If you try it and see the value, the price is $49.95.  I used the evaluation copy for a number of months, and then bought the "real" version. 
… (5 comments)

Housing Turnaround Strategy -- Grow More Buyers - 06/06/11 02:03 PM
The only sure way to turn the housing industry around is to make more people, and make them willing and able to buy real estate.  Assuming the continuation of the present sentiment against importing home buyers, it will take about one generation of passionate procreators followed by twenty or so years of nurturing and a touch of financial prosperity.
In the meantime, we continue to ignore the half generation of would-be move up buyers, many of whom have the ability to make substantially larger monthly payments. Unfortunately many of them are stuck in too small starter homes with negative equity, the … (2 comments)

Bottom? Tulips Bottomed 475 Years Ago - 06/05/11 12:59 PM
In an interesting article in the Minneapolis Star Tribune this morning, Eric Wieffering does a nice job differentiating a bottom from a rebound.  He compares the dot com bottom and the bottom in tulip prices to an eventual housing bottom.  He makes a valid case for caution by anyone who expects the eventual end of home price deterioration to be followed by a rapid return to previous levels.  It's difficult to argue against his opinion.
We are not going to run out of houses any time soon, no matter what the price.  Inventory, in most real estate terms, refers to the … (3 comments)

Last Weekend, Minnesota Scored a ZERO - 06/04/11 11:19 AM
According to the Minnesota Department of Public Safety, there were zero traffic deaths during the Memorial Day weekend this year.  This is the first time with a death-free Memorial Day weekend since the state started keeping track of holiday traffic deaths in 1975.  There is apparently a silver lining to the bad weather clouds over the state last weekend, and maybe a collateral benefit from high gas prices.  Certainly, there was a little good luck too.
… (0 comments)

Economy, Unemployment, Housing - 06/03/11 10:23 AM
Alan Greenspan spent an hour on CNBC's Squawk Box this morning and expressed an opinion that borders on the obvious.  He said that the nation's emergence from the economic downturn depends on higher employment levels, and that employment levels cannot return to a reasonable level until the housing industry resumes building a large number of homes.  Until housing recovers, there will not likely be employment recovery. 
There are few who disagree that unemployment levels, the housing industry, and the general economic condition of this country are dependent on each other.  There is some disagreement on which is the cause of what, … (2 comments)