It’s Not Too Late! Make a Real Estate Resolution for 2013

As 2012 came to a close the media was continuing to exalt the good news of a strengthening real estate market in the Minneapolis St Paul area. Home sellers that have their houses priced right are seeing multiple offers again. Home buyers  hoping to take advantage of the extremely low interest rates are starting to struggle to find the perfect new home. Many were confused because the internet sites are full of affordable listings but time and time again when their agent checked availability of the “PERFECT” home, it was “under contract waiting for third party approval”. Yes there are still short sales on the MLS, along with foreclosures…but the pricing isn’t as low as a few months ago. Town homes, single family, split levels, ramblers, two stories, remodels, foreclosures, short sales and new construction are now starting to slowly rise in cost across the Twin Cities.

As a REALTOR® serving White Bear Lake, Lino Lakes, Blaine, Ham Lake and communities in the Forest Lake School District, I keep a close eye on the Twin Cities real estate market. During the last few months of the year, I noticed bit of a change in the wind. Activity was starting to pick up. Traditional sellers were starting to see their homes being snatched up shortly after listing. Buyers found themselves in multiple offer situations and had to learn that “highest and best” could mean 10-20% above the price listed in the MLS. Negotiations were made and offers accepted. The Minneapolis St Paul metro area’s  real estate market took another positive step toward becoming balanced at the end of 2012.

So what does that mean for those considering purchasing a home or selling their property in 2013? From Ham Lake to Forest Lake and East Bethel to East St Paul we should strive to keep building a strong foundation to our real estate market. Keeping the property value base strong is essential to all Minnesotans. In 2013, we should all Resolve to be Real Estate Savvy!

Resolutions for Sellers

*Team up with a professional REALTOR®

*Price your home right from the start
*Make repairs before listing
*Declutter
*Make each showing count by staging

*Buyers are more educated so be willing to negotiate

Resolutions for Buyers

*Team up with a trusted REALTOR®

*Get Pre-approved and check in with your Loan Officer regularly

*Write realistic offers that encourage negotiation.

*Understand that a well-priced home will sell quickly, often with multiple offers

*Realize that a foreclosure and/or short sale property has many risks that will be assumed by the buyer. Inspections are essential.

Resolutions for Homeowners

*Even if 2013 won’t be the year for you to sell, there are things every homeowner should be doing to retain property value.
*Maintain the interior and exterior of your home by making repairs on a continual basis rather than deferring to time of sale.
*Stay current with your mortgage and discuss any financial problems with lender immediately.
*Be a good steward of your neighborhood.

Resolutions for Investors

*Team up with a professional REALTOR®
*If holding the property, offer a safe and maintained residence at a fair price to the renters.
*If flipping or repairing/reselling the property, be realistic with the numbers. Don’t do cheap repairs and expect big rewards. 2013 buyers are market wise!
*Be a good steward of your properties and the communities in which they are located.
*Maintain the properties to retain value for portfolio as well as the neighborhood.

If home buyers, home sellers, homeowners, investors and real estate professionals alike work together to maintain momentum we saw in the market at the end of 2012, the new year could bring continued recovery for the Minneapolis St Paul real estate market.

Copyright 2013 www.terieckholm.com

Happy New Year 2011! Real Estate Resolutions for Home Buyers and Sellers in Minnesota

During the past decade we have experienced some highs and lows in the real estate market in Minneapolis, St. Paul and the extended Twin Cities suburbs. In the later part of the decade, home sellers began to count market time in months rather than days. Home buyers stayed hidden in the woodwork coaxed out only by extremely low prices on bank-owned foreclosures and tax credits offered by the government. We have been through the proverbial wringer during the past ten years, with terms like short-sale and REO that were once seldom heard when describing Minnesota real estate creep into the media on a daily basis. And then there is that abundant inventory...In every price range and most locations there are several OPTIONS at all price points on the market. Town homes, single family, split levels, ramblers, two stories, remodels, foreclosures, short sales and new construction. No longer flying off the market as soon as they were listed as in the early 2000's. The bubble popped and we are working our way toward recovery.

As a REALTOR® working in Washington and Anoka Counties, including Ham Lake, White Bear Lake and all communities in the Forest Lake School District, I keep a close eye on the Twin Cities real estate market. During the last few months of the year, I noticed bit of a change in the wind. Activity was starting to pick up and inventory is leveling off. Sellers that need to sell choice to price their homes attractively to entice buyers. Buyers balancing for months even years at the top of the fence jumped into the real estate market and wrote purchase agreements. Negotiations were made and offers accepted. The Twin Cities real estate market took one baby step toward forward at the end of 2010.
So what does that mean for those considering purchasing a home or selling their property in 2011? From Ham Lake to Forest Lake and East Bethel to East St Paul we have a strong foundation in our real estate market. Our communities have long been some of the most affordable areas in the country. With continued low interest rates, there will be opportunities to buy a Minnesota home. Even lakeshore and acreage has become more affordable. As we move forward into 2011, we should all Resolve to be Real Estate Savvy!
Resolutions for Sellers
*Team up with a professional REALTOR®
*Price your home correctly from the start
*Make all repairs
*Declutter
*Make each showing count by staging the home for sale.
*Be willing to negotiate.Resolutions for Buyers
*Team up with a trusted REALTOR®
*Get Pre-approved and check in with your Loan Officer regularly to discuss market changes.
*Write realistic offers that encourage negotiation.
*Understand the foreclosure and short sale process—While prices can seem like a deal, the assumed risk to buyers on an as-is sale can be great.
Resolutions for Homeowners

*Even if this isn’t the year for you to sell, there are things a homeowner should be doing to maintain and retain property value.
*Maintain the interior and exterior of your home and make repairs on a continual basis rather than deferring to time of sale.
*Stay current with your mortgage and discuss any financial problems with your lender immediately.
*Be a good steward of your neighborhood.Resolutions for Investors*Team up with a professional REALTOR®
*Take advantage of the abundance of foreclosures that are continually hitting the market.
*If holding the property, offer a safe and maintained residence at a fair price to the renters
*If flipping or repairing/reselling the property, be realistic with the numbers. Don’t over invest in materials and curb enthusiastic inflated resale estimates. 2011 buyers are market wise!
*Be a good steward of your properties and the communities in which they are located.
*Maintain the properties to retain value for portfolio as well as the neighborhood.

If buyers, sellers, homeowners, investors and real estate professional alike work together to maintain slight momentum in the market, 2011 could be another babystep forward toward recovery in the Twin Cities real estate market. 

Copyright 2011 terieckholm.com

Frugal Resolutions~~Save Your Way to a New Home!

As we celebrate the beginning of 2010 many are asking, “How will I ever be able to afford a new home, new car or vacation?” I was taught by my grandmother, if you take care of the pennies, they will become dollars. The New Year is a perfect time to assess spending habits and make a few frugal resolutions. Here are few ideas of where waste could be occurring in everyday spending. By making a few small changes now, you could build a big down payment by 2011!

1. Brownbag It! The average American spends an average of $6 when they go out to lunch at work. I don’t remember a lunch out with the girls to be less than $10 myself. But if you chose to brown-bag at lunchtime, the average cost drops to $2! That works out to $4 a day, $20 a week, or over $1,000 a year.


2. Check it Out at the Public Library People forget all of the publications that are available in the public library. A person can save on books, magazines, and DVD rentals. If your family buys an average of 2 books, 2 magazines and 3 DVD rentals a month, that can add up to nearly $500 a year. If you are like my family and like to OWN your books and DVD’s, consider buying at a used book stores where prices are 50% off the list price.


3. Ask for Discounts Most people would never consider paying sticker price for a car but forget to ask about discounts and sales at other stores and restaurants. If you belong to AAA or employed by an organization offering a MERSC discount, this can save $3-5 and more on every day purchases like oil changes, haircuts and lift tickets at Wild Mountain. Many companies provide discounts but only for those customers who request them. The total annual savings can be significant depending on the number of offers that your family takes advantage of.


4. Declutter and Sell Don’t wait to spring clean! Go through your closets, garage, basement and attic now and find the items you no longer use. In the spring have a garage sale. Or locate stores which buy and sell used merchandise for cash or will do consignment sales on EBay for you. My family has held periodic garage sales over the years and sold hundreds, sometimes thousands of dollars of unwanted stuff during each sale. We pack up what hasn’t sold and donate the rest to charity. A clean house, money in our pockets and a donation to boot…what more can you ask for?


5. Print and Clip Coupons Many store have coupons and discounts online that other shoppers are not aware of. By registering for emails from favorite stores and restaurants, we save hundreds of dollars a month at stores shop at regularly. SuperTarget has weekly coupons that you can select and print to take to the store for additional discounts. Sometimes the price is discounted so much it is nearly given away for FREE. A local Forest Lake and Ham Lake favorite, Mansetti’s emails a new coupon to registered customers weekly to print out and bring in. My family is also registered with TGIFriday’s in their Give Me More Stripes program which sends out coupon special s in a similar way. It may seem like only a few dollars here and there but when I tracked our savings for a few months, it was several hundred dollars EACH month!


6. Shut off the Lights…And Turn Down the Heat! If you haven't already switched over to lower energy, long lasting light bulbs, now is the time. By installing a programmable thermostat in your home, you can save gas by having the heat turned down automatically when you are not home. When we first had a programmable thermostat installed decades ago, we saw a 25% drop in our heating bill! Pretty significant money was kept in our budget.

Simple changes in your shopping patterns and daily life can mean huge money in your bank account over time. And then you can use the money for that trip to Hawaii, new car or as a down payment on your new home!

 

Copyright 2010 Teri Eckholm http://www.terieckholm.com/