by G. Sax (@gsax)

I'm not even going to lie. I totally blew the completion of this post last week. Thankfully, due to some late-night Twitter crying, T picked me up with something more "real estatey" and life was grand. My excuse, however, is solid. Something came up that I simply couldn't pass up:

Dinner at The St. Paul Grill.

This is one of those places that a heathen like me is willing to stop everything for in order to exist in its space for an evening. As it turned out, some nice people were in town from California and wanted to treat me and a coworker to dinner there. It's an experience like few others in the Twin Cities, and on par with fine dining establishments across the nation, especially if enjoyed in moderation and with good company.

I had the ribeye. We shared some hash browns, of course, because when you're at The St. Paul Grill, you have to get the hash browns. We mixed in some calamari, because nothing goes with breakfast food like fried squid. A couple of Summit Extra Pale Ales. A taste of Steele Zinfandel. Spoonfuls of a hellishly delectable Ghirardelli chocolate sundae.

I suspect that some downtown mucky mucks and governmental yucks find their way to The Grill with more frequency than I probably do, and maybe some of them are reading this and saying, "Yo, dude, act like you know."

And I say to them, "Oh, I know things, ye suited and shoe-shined professional persons." I know the entire layout of the building. I know the bathrooms and the bars and the lively roundabout and fantastic views of Rice Park and the Landmark Center and the Main Library and the Ordway.

The purest essence of paradise right there in downtown St. Paul. If you haven't been able to tell by now, I recommend both the restaurant and the city.

Absorption rates are a  calculation of how long it will take for all the homes on the market to be sold, or absorbed, at the current rate of sales. I do love numbers, and these are in months, the data used came from the RMLS, (MLS) and is deemed reliable but not guaranteed.  It doesn't come with a warranty either. Maybe an implied warranty but what do I know? I am a Realtor not an attorney. These numbers are for the seven county Metro area. Which is bigger than the four county metro area but smaller than the 13 county metro area. The Metro area of course being the Twin Cities area of Minnesota. 

Anoka County 4.4 Months
Carver County 6.8 Months
Dakota County  4.3 Months
Hennepin County 4.4 Months
Ramsey County  4.2  Months
Scott County  4.9  Months
Washington County 5.4 Months

This is the third month in a row that there have been only minor changes in the absorptions rates, so minor that they are not worth mentioning. The only thing that might be significant is that the inventory of homes on the market continues to drop each month but the absorption rates stay about the same. There are fewer buyers and fewer sellers yet the absorption rate stays the same.  A balanced market is a market where there is a six month absorption rate. The absorption rate is less than six months indicating a sellers market.  It doesn't feel anything like previous sellers markets in some price ranges but with the lowest priced homes it does feel like a sellers market.  Plenty of multiple offer situations and some buyers end up making offers on several homes before they get a yes.  It isn't always wise to offer less than the asking price. Some homes are listed at prices below market value and they are sold to the highest bidder, and usually for more than the asking price.

Everyone has an opinion on the effectiveness of open houses.  They can be an effective way for agents to prospect and sometimes  people see a house at an open house that they end up buying.  Everyone has a story, including me about someone who walked into an open house and bought the house.

Among real estate agents those who do open houses say they sell houses.  Those agents who don't do open houses say they are not necessary if the goal is to sell the house.

There are no numbers that I can find anywhere on what percentage of homes sell through an open house.  Another interesting number would be the number of homes held open on a given Sunday expressed as a percentage of the total number on the market and then the percentage of those opens that resulted in a sale.  It would also be nice to compare the total number of offers on homes that had opens with the total number of offers on all homes for the same period. I love data!

I asked some neighbors of mine who bought their house through one of my open houses if they would have bought the house even if there had not been an open.  They said they would have, in fact they had made an appointment to see it the following Monday.  They first found it on the internet and it was on their list of homes to see. They had been house hunting for awhile.

There are many homes that are never open for an open house and they sell, there are also homes where there are open houses but the house doesn't sell and is taken off the market. 

Some sellers don't think their agent is working very hard if he or she doesn't do open houses and I know several agents who do open houses just because it looks good to their clients.  The point of the open is that it is visible to everyone.  It makes the sellers feel like they are getting value even though they have not paid the agent a dime.  The opens help agents meet potential buyers and sellers and sometimes buyers find the right house at an open house.  I am just not sure if they buy only because of the open house or if they would have bought it anyway. 

So far I have not found a serious buyer who will only buy a home that has open houses but there are probably some buyers like that.  They may not understand that they can see a home most any time.

There was a time when the only way people could find out what is on the market was through an agent, or an open house or a for sale sign.  That is no longer the case and I have talked to buyers who never went to an open house.

A lot of people have opinions on what it takes to sell a house.  There are more experts on the subject than there are houses that have sold. Some of the opinions seem to be influenced by marketing from the real estate industry. Many of my opinions come from my experience and as time goes on and the market changes so do my opinions.

I wish there were some statistics on how many homes are sold through opens.  For now there are just opinions and everyone has one.    I like real facts, supported with data.

For sellers it is probably best to work with an agent who has the same opinion as you have. When interviewing agents ask them if they will do open houses.  There is less friction in the relationship that way. Don't let an agant talk you into or out of open houses. It is your house, you will pay the comission so ask for what you want.   I don't do open houses and am honest with my clients about that.  Some agents that I work with will do the open houses for my sellers if the need arises and they are better at it that I am.

by Erik Hare

Autumn arrived on Tuesday, and right on cue it started to get just a little bit cooler at night.  It’s the season to get a good night’s sleep after finishing up the last projects of the summer – or, if you’re lucky, the last daze of loafing around.

The leaves are starting to turn a little early this year, probably because this was a dry summer.  Typically, we have another few weeks before the maples start to turn, but the Sugar Maple in my yard is already bare.  We won’t have the glorious color we are lucky to have some years, but we’ve been greeted with some bright clear skies that are typical of early fall.  There’s plenty of time for the storms that come with the arrival of cold weather later on. 

Saint Paul is a good city for fall.  The city has a kind of empty feel much of the summer as everyone heads out to a lake for the weekend.  Once things cool off, people tend to stay in town and maybe head out to the local restaurants for fun.  When there’s a ton of snow on the ground, things get a little too hazardous to venture out at times, so this is the season to find your neighbors at the coffee shop or local bar.

Another change that is in the air is, of course, the fact that the kids are in school.  Routine starts to hold everything together so there’s a bit less running around and more time to enjoy life.  The cooler weather always brings a slightly more relaxed pace that says, “It’s time to enjoy what’s left.”  It’s not as though life revolves around the approach of Winter, but we all know when things are good.  The end of September is one of those times.

It’s not as though there’s anything especially magical about Autumn, it’s just our season.  I plan to enjoy as much of it as I can, and I hope you do too.

What do you do on the weekend?  I work a lot of weekends but like to take Wednesdays off. This weekend I will be working at home and if it all goes well I will have something to blog about. I have a totally empty room and I am pretty excited about it.  How many people have empty rooms? The possibilities seem endless and it seems a shame to ruin it all by putting something in it. I am sure the novelty will wear off but for now I am in no hurry to clutter it up. I am interested in fixing it up. 

On Sundays I like to take photos. I guess I like to do that everyday but on Sundays I can usually get an earlier start.  got this one last weekend at lake Como. I was there to photograph buildings but when I saw the sun rise I decided to head for the water so I could get a good shot of it.  The last two weeks the sun rises have been amazing and the sunsets too. It seems like they are prettier this time of year, and in the spring too.

This is a photo of the Como Park lake side pavilion. That is what I was planning on shooting. Como park is beautiful with the lake and golf course but it also has interesting architecture. 

Yes it is Friday and Fridays are for fun, or maybe for a little peace.

I posted these in Flickr a couple of days ago and was surprised at how many people who live in St. Paul did not know where these statues are located.  When I explained that they were in the Upper Landing Park, also called River Park along the Mississippi river I had to explain where that is. Not the river but the park.  Most of the park is fairly new, and I have taken quite a few photos of it.  The statues and fountains are close to the walkways by the river and the statues are probably not visible from Shepard road or the bike paths that run along Shepard road.

There are four bronze statues of birds, called the "Mississippi Guardian Birds" by Douglas Freeman and they are next to four fountains. The sculpture on the top is my favorite. It is more of an action shot.