. . but what does fair housing mean?

Posted on by Teresa Boardman
house
house

Homeowners who are selling their houses this spring have an opportunity to promote fair housing. Here are some things you can do:

  1. Be open to accepting different types of financing, like FHA and VA.
  2. Treat offers that include downpayment assistance the same as you would treat offers where the buyer has cash for a down payment. That cash may be coming from family, which is just another form of assistance.
  3. Do not favor an offer because it is coming from the kind of person you want to sell your house to.  Fair housing means that you don’t get to choose who buys your house based on Race, Religion, Familial status, etc.
  4. Your neighbor does not have a say in who you sell your house to. Be kind to people who wish to purchase your home, and if your neighbors give you a bad time, move out in the dead of night and leave no forwarding address.

If you get an offer and it comes with a letter from the buyers, do not read the letter.  Your agent will be happy to let prospective buyers know that what you want for your home is the best terms possible, not a letter.

Homebuyers should put their best foot forward and let the offer speak for itself. Home sellers appreciate clean, fair offers.

For homeowners, fair housing is all about looking at the buyer’s offer instead of looking at the buyer. It is also about being open to different types of financing.

In Minnesota, there’s a significant racial disparity in homeownership, with white households having a much higher homeownership rate than Black households. While approximately 77% of white households own their homes, only about 29% of Black households do, according to the Minnesota Housing Partnership. This disparity is one of the largest in the nation. Which is why every month should be fair housing month. 

If you are a fair housing nerd, here is some reading: The Color of Law

Fair housing rules and laws in Minnesota, and where to get help if you have been discriminated against.

Fair housing and deed restrictions

Fair Housing and Love Letters

Hire a professional home inspector

Posted on by Teresa Boardman

I see a lot of houses, like hundreds of old St. Paul houses, every year. I have seen hundreds of inspection reports and have attended well over a hundred home inspections. There is always something that needs fixing in an old house, and sometimes it needs so much work that buyers decide not to buy it.

Having a complete home inspection conducted by a pro is an important step in the home-buying process, but those inspections are not free. Sometimes, buyers have friends or relatives conduct the inspection.

What could possibly go wrong? Usually, these helpful friends or relatives miss a few important things. They don’t check the furnace or the water heater. They miss the fact that the garbage disposal doesn’t work or that the new furnace does not have a filter in it.

They might not notice missing window screens or even cracked window glass. They may miss the gaps between the shower surround and the bathroom wall, or that the back door lacks any kind of weather stripping.

The helpful and knowledgeable friend does not use a systematic approach, nor does he give the home buyer a report with pictures and recommendations. Usually, the friend does an incomplete or partial inspection.

If they are not familiar with the older houses in the inner city, they may not know what some of the common problems are, like ungrounded electrical systems and tree roots in the sewer line.

On the one hand, the buyer saves money because professional inspectors will generally charge at least $500. On the other hand, they may end up paying for repairs that they could have had the seller pay for if they had known about them during the inspection period.

Hire a pro. In Minnesota, home inspectors are not required to have a license. Choose an ASHI (American Society of Home Inspectors) certified inspector. 

New Year New Aspirational State Park Sticker

Posted on by Teresa Boardman

It is Friday, and Fridays are for fun. I just put my new Minnesota State Park Sticker on my car. It is my new aspirational sticker because we all need hopes and dreams.

I sold my car last fall with a Minnesota State Park sticker that is good until May 2025. I never used theMinnesota sticker, which is alright.  It was an aspirational state park sticker. I am excited about this year’s aspirational State Park Sticker and hope to use it at least once during the next 12 months.

I feel the same way about my passport, which is good until April 2027, and my TSA pre-check, which is good until sometime in 2028, and hasn’t been used since I renewed it in 2023.  I aspire to use them both.

 

Yes mow in May

Posted on by Teresa Boardman
long grass
Lawn May 2022

No Mow May is a thing. Not mowing your lawn during May will allow the weeds to flower and provide more food for pollinators.  Eventually, the lawn has to be mowed, and the pollinator food will be cut down. Is it really better to let the grass and weeds grow?

I like to let the lawn grow to about three inches and then mow it down. It is easier to mow when it is shorter, and it looks better too. I tried not mowing in May. I found that it is the only month when the lawn grows and needs mowing.

I really if we wanted to provide habitat for pollinators, we would get rid of the grass and plant wild flowers and native grasses.

I’ll be mowing the lawn in the next couple of days. In fact, I would like to get it done before the weekend so that we can enjoy the yard and picnic table.

If your home is on the market, keep the lawn mowed.

April 2025 home sales

Posted on by Teresa Boardman

April home sales for St. Paul, Minnesota, by neighborhood. Home prices continue to rise as the housing market remains contracted. Homeowners are reluctant to move up to higher monthly mortgage payments.

Prices continue to climb as demand remains higher than the supply. We have been in a holding pattern for a couple of years as the housing market contracts.

Data used to create the table was extracted from the NorthstarMLS which is deemed reliable but not guaranteed.  For more local home sales data, see Local Market Conditions and Home Prices.

April home sales
April 2025 home sales

Happy Wednesday

Proposed HUD funding cuts

Posted on by Teresa Boardman

Coins, money

From the HUD, Housing and Urban Development web site: “

God blessed us with this great nation, and together, we can increase self-sufficiency and empower Americans to climb the economic ladder toward a brighter future.”

– Secretary Scott Turner

The federal government never runs out of money for tax deductions for homeowners’ mortgage interest. Can you imagine if the IRS said, “No tax deductions for you; we are out of money?” Spending cuts for programs for the poor are another matter.

President Donald Trump’s administration unveiled its 2026 budget proposal, calling for $163 billion in sweeping cuts to nondefense government spending, including multiple federal housing assistance programs affecting homeowners and renters alike.

According to a 46-page discretionary spending request sent by the Office of Management and Budget to the Senate Committee on Appropriations, the Trump administration is looking to slash the budget of the  Department of Housing and Urban Development by $33.6 billion in the next fiscal year.

The lion’s share of the HUD budget reduction, amounting to $26.7 million, will come from the State Rental Assistance Block grant, which provides tenant-based rental assistance, public housing, and housing for the elderly and people with disabilities.

Look for reductions and proposed reductions on any spending that helps the poor. Look for more tax cuts for the wealthy and funding cuts to programs that help the poor.