General

Finding a house to buy and buying a house are not the same thing

Posted on by Teresa Boardman

porchFor the last 25 years or so people have been able to search the internet and find houses that are for sale. The internet is a wonderful tool and I use it every day to stay on top of the real estate market.

Finding a house that is for sale is just one step in the home-buying process. It is the easiest step because in most cases all a buyer has to do is search the internet to find a home for sale.

Most of the houses were put on the Internet because they were listed with real estate agents who are required to put them in the MLS. The listings are then fed to sites like Zillow and Realtor dot com.

Knowing that a house is for sale is one thing but buying it is something else.

People want to see the house and they want to know how much they should offer and they want to know how to write a winning offer.

Often sellers require some proof that the buyer can perform. Most offers are accompanied by a pre-approval letter from a mortgage lender.

The buyer might want to have the house inspected and ask for repairs. How long should an inspection period be? Which repairs if any should the buyer ask for?

Even with the internet, I spend hours giving people advice because they ask a lot of questions.

Real estate agents also help people get ready so that if they do find that perfect house that they want to buy they can buy it.

If you decide to work with a real estate agent, experience matters. We learn something from each client we work with. Experience is all real estate agents have to sell because anyone can find a house for sale by searching the internet.

I have over 22 years of experience selling real estate and have helped hundreds of clients successfully buy and sell residential real estate.

2024 has arrived

Posted on by Teresa Boardman
Happy New Year
Happy New Year

Happy New Year to all. No, I didn’t stay awake and ring the new year in. Sleep is too precious, and I fight for every Z I can get.

With that said I’ll make a few predictions for 2024.

  1. Mortgage interest rates will go down.
  2. Mortgage interest rates will be too high.
  3. Home prices will continue to rise.
  4. There will be fewer home sales than there were in 2023. (This prediction is for the Twin Cities Metro area only)
  5. There will be more lawsuits against the National Association of Realtors and they will lose most if not all of them.
  6. We will see a new organization emerge from the ashes that the National Association of Realtors will be by November 2024.
  7. The new organization that replaces NAR will be run by men but they will be younger and more diverse.

If you have a house to sell in 2024 you can sell it. If you would like to buy a house in 2024 there will be fewer to choose from and they will be expensive. Please take advantage of downpayment assistance programs. 

If you have not purchased a home in the last three years ask your lender about first-time home buyer programs. If the lender can not help you with that choose another.

Also, home buyers should get their paperwork in order and file a tax return for 2023 early in the year.

The Holidays & Recycling

Posted on by Teresa Boardman
Cat and tree
Cat helping with the Christmas tree

I just discovered this myself last year. Those pesky strings of lights that are not on the tree this year, because they don’t light anymore, can be recycled.

I took mine to the Ransey County household hazardous waste site Bay: West
5 Empire Dr, Saint Paul. They can be brought to any Ramsey County Hazardous waste site.

You can also bring them to the library, or so they say.

Between Nov. 27- Jan. 22 string lights and miscellaneous electrical cords can be dropped off to be recycled at any of the following locations:

LOCATION ADDRESS
SP Regional Water Services 1900 Rice St.
Arlington Hills Library 1200 Payne Ave.
George Latimer Central Library 90 W. 4th St.
Dayton’s Bluff Library 645 E 7th St
Hamline Midway Library 1558 W Minnehaha Ave.
Hayden Heights Library 1456 White Bear Ave.
Highland Park Library 1974 Ford Pkwy.
Merriam Park Library 1831 Marshall Ave.
Rice Street Library 1011 Rice St.
Riverview Library 1 East George St.
Rondo Library 461 North Dale St.
Saint Anthony Park Library 2245 Como Ave.
Sun Ray Library 2105 Wilson Ave.
West 7th Library 265 Oneida St.

Accepted items: Holiday lights, electrical cords, telephone cords

NOT Accepted: Cord adaptors, battery packs, plastic rope lights, CFL lights

Looking to dispose of a live Christmas tree in St. Paul?

One live holiday tree is included in the Citywide Collection program between January 2 – January 15 each year. You do not need to call your hauler to schedule collection during this period. Place your tree next to your garbage cart on your regular collection day.

Prepare your Tree for Collection

  • Remove all decorations and stand.
  • Place the tree next to the garbage cart. Do not place upright in the snow or lean against your cart.   Make sure the tree is not obstructing your carts.
  • Limit 1 seasonal tree per household (1 tree per unit for multi-unit properties).

Trees can also be brought to some Ramsey County Yard waste sites.

Add recycling to your list of things to get done before year-end.

Christmas 2023 recap

Posted on by Teresa Boardman

It was a brown and rainy Christmas. A great day to take a walk. There wasn’t much traffic and everything was closed.

a look down west 7th street
West 7th Street near Grand Avenue

NOAA’s data shows that in the past 123 years, there have been 36 Christmases in Minnesota without snow or just a trace. Christmas 2023 was the warmest on record with temperatures in the lower 50’s. The previous record for Christmas Day in the Twin Cities was 51 degrees in 1922.

chart of christmas

 

Are Real Estate agents over paid?

Posted on by Teresa Boardman
Coins, money
Money

Are real estate agents overpaid? I can’t tell you how often I have read comments and articles about how real estate agents are overpaid.

First of all, I think people are asking the wrong question. People who use the services of real estate agents should be more concerned about paying too much for the services they are receiving.

We don’t know how much money a real estate agent makes after expenses and after the broker gets his cut.

Most real estate agents I know are not wealthy. Those who are often have spouses who have jobs that provide health insurance.

The Internet is supposed to make buying and selling real estate less expensive. I can not think of anything that has become less expensive because of the internet. The internet has eliminated some jobs but the costs of goods and services keep going up.

Consumers should be asking if they are paying too much for real estate services. In some cases, people are paying too much.  Experience is the most important thing real estate agents are selling. New agents usually charge as much as experienced agents charge and people pay it.

Using the services of a real estate agent is optional. All Commissions are negotiable. Don’t hire an agent who is overpaid and don’t overpay real estate agents.

As for real estate agent pay, most are independent contractors who work on a 100% commission basis and only get paid after a sale closes. As someone who has recruited real estate agents, I can tell you that most people will not work on a 100% commission basis. It is considered too risky.

My advice is to work with a real estate agent if you believe you need one. Choose an agent with experience and negotiate the commission.

When to call a pro

Posted on by Teresa Boardman
drain cleaner strip
Used to remove hair from a clogged drain

It makes me smile every time I see posts on Facebook from people who are looking for advice from “friends” on how to solve electrical, plumbing, and heating problems in their homes.  Sure some folks have friends who are licensed plumbers, electricians, or HVAC experts but responses usually come from people who had similar but not identical issues.

As a homeowner myself I just want to say that I like to use Google to do a little research before I call a professional. I do that so that I can get an understanding of what might be wrong. I have a rudimentary understanding of all of the mechanicals in my house and can sometimes perform minor repairs myself. Those repairs usually involve replacing gaskets or washers or maybe cleaning out a drain or a hose.

I generally won’t touch anything that is electrical and always call a pro when the furnace or AC is not working correctly. With appliances, it is a crap shoot. Often in makes sense to replace older appliances rather than trying to get them repaired.  Again a little research online can help diagnose common problems with major appliances.

Hiring a pro can be expensive but in the long run, it can also save money.  I have seen my share of botched home repairs over the years.

If you live in an old house like mine it is important to always have an emergency fund available. At a minimum that fund should have $1000 in it.  The holiday season tends to attract costly repairs. I can not remember a time in my life when I did not have to pay for an emergency car repair or household repair in December. Last year it was the car battery on Christmas Eve.