Speechless Sunday (Almost)--It's Hard to Hide an Elephant

You know the old saying about ignoring the elephant in the room, right? It goes to say, that an elephant can be hard to hide too.

This translates to real estate when selling your home. If you need to make a repair, don't just gloss over it. A buyer (or buyer's inspector) will find it. I have shown homes where substandard repairs were made by unskilled homeowners. It doesn't help. You have to make the repair correctly or "the elephant" will be easy to spot!

Copyright 2013 www.terieckholm.com

Almost Speechless Sunday--Waiting their Turn in the Canal!

All though I live Ham Lake in Anoka County about 2 hours south of Duluth, we travel up quite often to see the ships come into the harbor. This was the first time I have witnessed anything quite like this...but then this has not been an ordinary spring for Minnesota. We should have green grass and flowers by now but sadly we are snow covered this year.

After an unseasonable spring snow fall of over nine inches in Duluth, Minnesota this last week, ships coming into port though the canal had to wait for an ice breaking ship to guide them in and avoid damage. The snow in the foreground is chunks of floating ice & snow on the lake. There are two ships waiting in this photo but we could actually see two more waiting further out. The news reported this morning that at one point yesterday, there were NINE ships waiting to pass through the canal under the famous Duluth Lift Bridge.
This never-ending winter continues to frustrate us...Time for spring!

Don't Let this Unusual Spring Snow Keep You From Making a Move to Minnesota...

Copyright 2013 www.terieckholm.com

Time to make a move to a bigger home?

Time to make a move to a bigger home? Call Teri at 651-336-7073 for FREE Market Analysis!

If your home is a bit too crowded maybe it's time to make a move. Interest rates are still at record lows and starter homes are selling quickly in the Minneapolis/St Paul north and east metro! Your perfect little starter home could sell for top dollar due to the record low inventories on homes for sale in the Twin Cities. It's the perfect situation for a move up buyer. 

Copyright 2013 www.terieckholm.com

The Right Treat is no Trick in the Halloween Capital of the World!

Halloween is on the minds of many this time of year and at a real estate closing there's no exception. In the "Land of 10,000 Lakes" we are known to be "Minnesota Nice" so when a home is sold by a traditional seller to a new home buyer, all parties sit down in the same room for the closing transaction. After all the signing is done, the title company representatives  leave the room to make copies of the documents and to prepare the checks from the final settlement. During this time,  home sellers take a few minutes to explain some idiosyncrasies of the home and pass over the keys, Often these are expected concerns like how to change the code for the electronic garage door opener, which is the best cable company in the area or where the water shut off is located. Buyers will question what day the trash is picked up and what the schools are like.

As a REALTOR in Anoka County, Home to the Halloween Capital of the World, I have seen the  the questions and necessary information traded between the seller and the new homeowner become a little more festive in the days before the big holiday. New homeowners from neighborhoods big and small often want to know how many kids are in the neighborhood  which quickly translates to how many bags of candy will be needed.

A few years ago I attended a closing for a home in Anoka County. The seller lived on a dead end street with only a handful of neighbors as is quite normal in this area filled with acreage homes. The seller made certain to pass on the request of the  the 6 year old (and recently front-toothless) girl next store who had already come over and let it be known that  "Reethe's Pee-thes"  were her preferred Halloween Candy. The seller made sure to add the necessary lisp for effect. It is good to share a light-hearted moment after all the stress of buying/selling is complete!

Have a festive, fun and safe HALLOWEEN!

Copyright 2012 www.terieckholm.com

Wordless Wednesday (Almost) Divine or De-Vine?

I have always loved the look of ivy growing over a trellis and marveled at the beauty of home covered in vines. But when is a creeping ivy just too much of a good thing? 

This photo of a store front in Stillwater, Minnesota shows this ivy almost completely covers the brick. One has to wonder whether the vine growth could be damaging the bricks underneath. So, what do you think? Is it divine or time to de-vine this building? 

Copyright 2012 www.terieckholm.com

Speechless Sunday(Almost)--Even Walt Would Have to DECLUTTER to Sell

Staging is essential when staging a home and as any good REALTOR would have to suggest decluttering and packing a collection is essential before putting a house up for sale.

For the record, this isn't a potential client's home...it is just a quick photo we took on vacation of a display in One Man's Dream in Disney's Hollywood Studios in Orlando, FL...Yes, even Walt would have to declutter this room!

Copyright 2011 www.terieckholm.com

Almost Speechless Sunday--Going Above the Crowd at the Minnesota State Fair!

RE/MAX real estate professionals are known to go above the crowd...usually in the famous red and white balloon. (Okay, if you want to see the balloon pictures I took in White Bear Lake last year, click here.) But I took the opportunity to take a quick trip above the crowd on the Skyride, one of the permanent fixtures at the Minnesota State Fair, last summer. Quite a view that shouldn't be missed if you are going to the fair this summer!

If you are buying, selling or relocating to Minnesota and need help from a professional REALTOR®, give me a call or visit my website for a FREE Relocation Packet. I specialize in acreage and lakeshore properties in the north and east Twin Cities metro area including Ham Lake, Lino Lakes and all communities in the Forest Lake School District! Serving Anoka, Chisago, Ramsey and Washington Counties in Minnesota.

Copyright 2011 www.terieckholm.com

Real Estate 101—Eyecatching Advertising if You Do Cows!

The first time I saw this billboard as I travelled the four hours stretch of 94 to Fargo from the Twin Cities earlier this year, I almost died laughing. It was kind of a WTF-moment (or “What The Heck” to non-texters who don’t like bad language). When I stopped laughing enough to catch the small print, for wedocows.com, I realized what a perfect marketing campaign this was! A three word tagline that makes everyone laugh (and never forget it) plus it says exactly what the company does…WeDoCows.com is a veterinarian supply company that has products for the care of farm animals, hence they really DO cows!

Now in real estate, some of the marketing used by agents really can leave something to be desired. Some REALTORS® do come up with things that make us laugh…It seems like every other Monday night Jay Leno is sharing a real estate agent’s ad that was poorly written in his Headlines segment of The Tonight Show. Once it was a house for sale in the “hysterical” district of town and another time ad showed a dirt yard with one large boulder as professionally landscaped. Typos and puffery can be funny but it is doubtful that these ads sold the homes

The real estate ads that really bother me are the proclamations to “Sell in 90 Days or We Buy It!” Granted, "I'll buy your house," is an attention getting statement in this sloooooow market. But I caution a potential seller to read the fine print. In most cases, the agent/broker making the claim are headed to the poorhouse with a load of deeds to homes that are un-sellable. No, they are getting people to list their houses but don’t expect too many takers on their buyout offers when all is said and done. They simply don’t have to buy too many houses as few sellers choose to sell to the agent at the outlined terms. (i.e. The homeowner must list the home at what the agent/broker believes to be the market value. If not sold in 90 days, the agent/broker will buy the home for 80-90% of appraised value where the appraisal has been done by an appraiser selected by the agent/broker.) The home is listed at a very competitive price from the start because the guaranteed amount is significantly less than what the home owner would comfortable accepting. It is a rare case where the agent/broker has to actually buy the home. It is a great ploy for getting a listing but not always the best deal for a homeowner.
So what as a home seller what would you prefer… A marketing scheme that gets you to list your home? OR A Good Marketing Plan to get YOUR home SOLD!
Don’t take everything at face value. It is important to ask questions, read the fine print and avoid the gimmicks when deciding who you want to market your most prized possession, your home. Make certain that your home is listed with an agent who has a PLAN to get your property priced correctly and marketed with the expertise necessary to SELL your house in this changed market. Because in reality when it is your home on the market a SOLD sign is the only sign you care about!

Copyright 2010 Teri Eckholm