buyers representation: Does a Home Buyer need to pay a Retainer for REALTOR in Minnesota?
- 11/19/15 03:58 AM
Most home buyers, even first time home buyers, realize there will be fees to pay over and above the cost of the house itself. There are fees to the lender to originate the loan, fees for homeowner’s insurance and closing costs. Most home buyers also know it is a good idea to work with a REALTOR® to help them find the perfect home. Having an agent to represent you when purchasing a home is extremely important. As a professional real estate agent working in Anoka County, I have knowledge about homes, neighborhoods, taxes, school districts and contract negotiation. All of … (2 comments)
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buyers representation: Do I really NEED a REALTOR when I buy my 1st Home?
- 05/07/15 05:44 AM
Buying a first home is a very exciting time in a person's life. Whether you are coming from an apartment or a basement bedroom in your parent's house. the idea of venturing into owning real estate for the first time is quite an undertaking. With all the online shopping tool and real estate sites, a homebuyer can virtually tour many homes and even be pre-approved for a mortgage without setting foot outside your current residence. Many home buyers might question why a REALTOR® would even be required at all. Of course this course of action could work for you until … (10 comments)
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buyers representation: Love at First Sight is Reality--For Home Buyers too!
- 02/13/15 01:39 AM
I believe in love at first sight. Do you?
Yesterday there was an wonderful story on the national news about the longest married couple in America. The enchanting couple, 99 years young, have been happily married for 81 years. When asked how they met he said he just drove by and saw her on the front porch and that was it.
Decades ago as a handsome 20-something, blue-eyed man walked through the door of a local restaurant, his eyes connected with the sparkling eyes of a young girl. A short while later they talked and their lives changed forever. I still … (4 comments)
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buyers representation: Buying Solo is a Thousand Dollar Plus Gamble
- 11/19/12 06:55 AM
Working with home buyers is fun and rewarding. It can be the best part of my job as a REALTOR® Whether they are First Time Buyers. Move up Buyers. Relocation Buyers--You name it—I love them!That is why when a young, pre-approved couple called for a showing on a home I have listed awhile back, I was excited. I pulled together my Home Buyer’s Packet with information and tips for people in the process of buying a home and headed out. I've been doing this for some time now and realize that most people do not fall in love with the first … (12 comments)
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buyers representation: Going, Going, Gone! Starter Homes Sell Quick!
- 09/17/12 07:41 AM
It seems a bit unbelievable to some homebuyers. After a few years of hearing about a real estate market where buyers were in the driver’s seat now buyers are hearing, "Sorry, that home is SOLD!" That is the very market we are now in folks! There are still homes being listed every day. But with these phenomenally low interest rates (Did you ever think a 15 year mortgage would be UNDER 3%?!), there are many more homebuyers off of the fence and in the market. If you are a first time homebuyer and looking for a home in the $100K-150K range, … (4 comments)
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buyers representation: First Time Homebuyer's Word of the Day is Buyer's Agent
- 01/20/11 12:23 PM
The average home buyer only buys a home once every eight years. That said, even a repeat home buyer can forget some of the simple terms used in real estate on a daily basis. It can be hard to remember whether the earnest money or the money escrowed is a down payment and (if it is, on what?) Often buyers are easily confused by similar sounding terms like easement and encroachment as they both deal with property lines and usage but what do they really mean?
Whether you are a novice, first time buyer or someone who hasn’t purchased a … (19 comments)
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buyers representation: Are You a Rookie Foreclosure Homebuyer? Top 3 Mistakes to Avoid!
- 04/28/09 11:57 PM
As I drive down Lexington Avenue from my Ham Lake home toward Blaine, I often pass a watchful hawk perched on the power line scouting for his next meal. This redtailed bird of prey makes my REALTOR® mind go to thoughts of the some of the buyers I am currently seeing in the Twin Cities real estate market sitting on the sidelines ready to swoop in on a well priced home. In this market that is often a foreclosure or REO home. Unlike the hawk, which is poised for action, instinctively ready to make a kill; a rookie foreclosure buyer is … (48 comments)
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buyers representation: Dream Home SOLD Thanks to My BlackBerry Photos!
- 03/20/09 10:17 AM
Relocating from out of state to Minnesota takes coordination and a little innovation doesn't hurt either...Here's the story: After weeks of narrowing down homes to view and a couple of long days seeing a half dozen or so beautiful properties throughout Chisago and Anoka Counties, my out-of-town buyer, Lyn, had found the perfect home. Unfortunately, someone else thought it was perfect too and an offer had been accepted moments before we had contacted the listing agent with ours. We were back at square one...and out of time! My disappointed buyer had to head back to work and wouldn't be back in … (24 comments)
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buyers representation: Would YOU Hire a Bikini-Clad REALTOR? How about One in a Hospital Gown?
- 02/23/09 12:13 AM
Last Saturday, Valentine's Day, started out for me with an early morning visit to St. John's emergency room in Maplewood after my first ever blackout. No worries, I'm perfectly fine. I found out after a few hours of tests that I tend to faint when in extreme back pain but I digress...While waiting behind the curtain in a gown that opens in the back without much else on but socks, I heard one of the nurses discussing her search to purchase a first home with a colleague. Just a few feet away from me, I could clearly hear the discussion. "Looking at … (23 comments)
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buyers representation: BUBBA—The Flipside of FSBO Revisited
- 08/22/08 12:25 AM
Buying as a BUBBA is down in 2007 though still higher than FSBO. What is a BUBBA you say? It is a Buyer Unrepresented by a Buyer's Agent. In 2006, almost a quarter of all buyers' were BUBBAs. In 2007, according to the National Association of REALTORS® 2007 Profile of Home Buyers and Sellers, that percentage has dropped to 16%. Is this possibly due to all of the short sales and foreclosures that started appearing across the country at that time and buyers felt a NEED for the services of a knowledgeable professional? Maybe...I wonder if the number will drop again … (25 comments)
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buyers representation: Parents of First Time Buyers Say “Thank You!” to a GREAT Realtor®
- 02/09/08 06:41 AM
Back in December I posted about first time buyers I met at a showing that were being advised by their parents to not sign a buyers' representation agreement. The theory was that buyers can make a better deal working directly with the listing agent who would receive both sides of the commission. Since the parents were at the showing, I had the job of explaining why this isn't a great tactic to both the buyers and their parents. Read the whole story in my post: The Thousand Dollar Gamble-Why Buyer's Representation is Essential!
Over the course of a few weeks, I … (39 comments)
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buyers representation: January Thaw Brings Out Home Buyers in the Twin Cities North Metro—Is Real Estate Making a Comeback?
- 01/14/08 10:42 AM
With the Minnesota Vikings out of the playoffs, Sundays are once again a good opportunity to sell real estate. At my first open house of the year yesterday, I wasn't able to sit down for a minute and read a chapter in the great novel I had brought with me. As soon as the sign was placed in the snow bank at the end of the drive, buyers started coming through the door.What?!! Buyers???On NBC's Today Show this morning, a real estate expert implied that there are no buyers to be found. Well that so called expert wasn't in Forest Lake, … (31 comments)
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buyers representation: Sticking with Home Buyers until the Dream is Reality
- 12/08/07 12:46 PM
It's a bright sunny early spring afternoon in 2006, my cell phone rings."Hi my name is Ben Johnson and you worked with my in-laws a few years back. They are in that great home in Scandia.""Sure, Ben, I know who you are. I spoke with your wife, Kim, a few years back but you weren't ready to make a move then.""Well we are now! Could you show us a few homes tomorrow? We are interested in a few horse properties that are on the market in Isanti and Anoka Counties.""Great! I will set them up!"So began the journey to the perfect … (28 comments)
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buyers representation: The Thousand Dollar Gamble—Why Buyer’s Representation is Essential!
- 11/28/07 01:39 AM
I love working with home buyers! First Time Buyers. Move up Buyers. Relocation Buyers. You name it-I love it!That is why a few weeks ago when a young couple called for a showing on a home I have listed, I was excited. I pulled together my Home Buyer's Packet with information and tips for anyone considering making a move and headed off to the home.Now I know that most people do not fall in love with the first home they are shown. But, I am also aware that buyers scour the internet for weeks, even months prior to calling a Realtor. … (26 comments)
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buyers representation: Buyers' Market Dilemma—200+ Homes! How Many Should I See?
- 04/17/07 01:14 AM
Cities across the U.S. are in serious buyers' markets. These markets offers more housing inventory than has been seen in a decade. As a Realtor in the Twin Cities north metro, I have had clients with very loose selection criteria, have hundreds of homes available to choose from. The amount of homes is overwhelming to the buyer going it alone. Work with an experienced agent, to get that list of homes down to a manageable level.
According to the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development website, the average buyer sees 15 homes before writing an offer on a home. In my experience … (8 comments)
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buyers representation: First Time Buyers: Realtors Help to Define YOUR Dream
- 04/09/07 04:35 AM
I love assisting first time home buyers! The opportunity to own their home is exciting and that excitement bubbles right out of these buyers. Many have a picture in their head of what their dream home looks like and it is my job to figure out what that picture is and help them find it. Is it the little bungalow with the white picket fence? A new trendy condo with views of the Mississippi? Or a fixer-upper that they can renovate and build equity?
Everyone has a different dream. As a home buyer's representative, I work with you to define your dream. … (6 comments)
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buyers representation: BUBBA--The Flipside of FSBO
- 03/09/07 12:05 AM
Most people, whether in the real estate industry or not,have heard of the FSBO--A For Sale By Owner seller. The acronym has been used for quite awhile as there has always been a segment of the market that chose to sell their home directly to a new buyer. But, there's a new acronym being used by Realtors these days--BUBBA or Buyers Unrepresented By a Buyer's Agent. It is making it's way into the real estate agent vocabulary because this market segment is growing.
In 2006, according to the National Association of Realtors 2006 Profile of Home Buyers and Sellers, nearly a … (14 comments)
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