Do I need a Realtor?

Real estate transactions involve one of the biggest financial investments you will make in your lifetime. Considering the small upside cost and the large downside risk, it would be foolish to consider a deal in real estate without the professional assistance of a good realtor.

Here are a few good reasons to use a qualified Realtor:

• Your Realtor has many resources to assist you in your home search. Many time will know of or be able to find homes that you would not have found on your own.
• An experienced realtor will give an objective opinion. Your neighborhood realtor will know about neighborhoods, schools, shopping, and other facts about the community. 
• There are a number of negotiating factors that can be used. Your Realtor will know just what they are and how to approach them.Some of them are price, financing, terms, date of possession and often the inclusion or exclusion of repairs and furnishings or equipment. 
• Your Realtor provides due diligence during the evaluation of the property. Depending on the area and property, this could include inspections for termite, dry rot, asbestos, structural issues, roof condition, septic tank and well tests, to name a few. A good Realtor can assist you in finding qualified responsible professionals to do most of these investigations and provide you with written reports. 
• Your Realtor will guide you through the closing process and make sure everything flows together smoothly and you that you understand it.
• Your Realtor not only markets your property to the public, but other real estate agents, giving you maximum exposure.
• Your Realtor can help you evaluate a buyer's proposal while not compromising your marketing position. This initial agreement is only the beginning of a process of appraisals, inspections and financing. There could be a lot of possible pitfalls. Your Realtor can help you write a legally binding, win-win agreement that will be more likely to make it through the entire process.

This is only a partial list of advantages to using a professional Realtor. Talk to Pete and John to learn more!

Disney Haunted Mansion replica up for sale!

So you have always enjoyed going to haunted houses for Halloween? Well, how would you like to live in one? Now is your chance, as the owner of this 10,000 sq ft replica in Georgia, has put the for sale sign out. The owner built this home and went so far as to even have the ornamental rod iron made by the same company that Disney used on their famous Haunted Mansion attraction. It is being sold through the themeparkconnection.com website and on Ebay for a "Buy it now" price of $873,000. To say this home will need a certain type of buyer may be the understatement of the year. Watch the video below to see what happens when you turn on the faucet in one of the bathrooms! For those of you who are looking for a normal home that won't scare you to death every time you walk in, contact Pete and John. We promise an experience that will not scare you!

Foreclosure filings hit 5 year low.

More good news from the real estate market! For the month of September foreclosure filings have dropped  for a second consecutive month, to a new 5 year low. The exact number of filings was 180,427, the lowest we have seen since July of 2007. We still have a ways to go to get back to the levels of 2005 but we are certainly headed in a better direction. Florida still leads the pack in foreclosures with 1 in every 117 houses in some state of foreclosure.
With 2012 bringing us more evidence every month that the real estate market is on the upswing, now could be the perfect time for you to be listing your home or looking for that perfect place to plant roots. Give us a call or visit our website. We look forward to the chance to serve you!

Pete 651-379-9313 
John 651-379-9312

Fall Home Staging tips.

The Fall season for many of us is our favorite season, and with good reason. The comfortable temps during the day, and the beautiful colors contribute greatly to our enjoyment of this time of the year. Taking advantage of people's love of the season when you are selling your home can be a wise decision. Here are some tips to help you out.

- Add seasonal decor to the outside and the inside of your home. Not overdoing it, but just enough to bring in the fall colors and harvest feel.

- Create some cozy spaces. Put a throw on the couch, some colorful leafs or pine cones on the coffee table, fall colored candles, etc.. Make it look inviting to whoever sees it.

- If you have a fireplace, show it off. If it is not lit, have some nice birch logs that look like they are ready to be lit and enjoyed.

- Hot apple cider with cinnamon sticks creates a wonderful aroma and can be a nice touch to offer potential buyers during their walk through. 

- Put a pumpkin or two on the front step. Inexpensive to do, but can be a nice first impression as people pull up to your home. Some cornstalks on each side of the garage door can look nice too.

I am sure you can probably think of many more ideas, but these will be a good start for you when preparing your home for potential buyers to walk through. Buyers will always remember how a home made them feel when they walked through it. To contact Pete and John to list your home visit our website!

Take advantage of the fall market!

If you are considering selling this fall and want to take advantage of the great weather that brings people out, give Pete and John a call and schedule a time when they can sit down with you and go over your options. Fall brings beautiful weather that most everyone likes and puts us all in the mood to get out and enjoy the great outdoors that our area enjoys. Whether it be picking apples or pumpkins, seeing the fall colors, and yes, for some of us, looking at homes. There is always the thought to wait for Spring when it is real estates busiest time of the year, but listing in the fall has its advantages too, such as less competition. The market is still good and we are looking forward to a great fall season for our clients. Give Pete a call at 651-379-9313, or John at 651-379-9312 and let their experience go to work for you too! To see our listings click here.

Selling your house tip - Kitchen Clutter

A full counter top and items on the floor will say, "this kitchen is small"!

There are many things you will need to pay attention to when selling your home. In this post we are going to cover only one, but it is an important  one. Your kitchen. We all know that the kitchen is one of the most important, and most used rooms in every home. There are some things that you will want to do to that will make a good impression on potential buyers.

Remove everything off of the counters - Find a good place where you can store everything, even the toaster. :) If you don't have the room in your cupboards, maybe start packing up stuff that you  rarely use or can get by without for a bit. You want to avoid stuffing your cabinets because many of the people walking through will open them up to see the inside. You want it to look nice when they do.

Food pantry - In your food pantry let your canned goods and other food inventory go down to the essential goods that you will need. A pantry that is chock full of food may seem that it is not big enough. The less cluttered it looks, the better the impression.

Under the kitchen sink - Here is one many people forget, but is also a place that many people will look during walk throughs. Again declutter. Take everything out and give it a good cleaning. Get rid of anything that you will not need and try to keep just one of what you do need. While you are under there see if there are any signs of leaks that need to be fixed.

Appliances - keeping your appliances clean will also go a long ways towards a good impression. Keep the stove top clean. Every time you use it be sure and clean up any spots or food that was spilled. For the refrigerator, again keep the essentials inside of it. A full fridge may look small to potential buyers. On the outside keep all finger prints cleaned off as well.

It's MN State Fair Time!

It is hard to think of August and not think about the great Minnesota get together, Aka The MN State Fair. The MN State Fair is the 2nd largest state fair in the country attracting over 1.6 million people every year. How many of us have great memories both as a child and as an adult of going to the Fair? If you are like me you find yourself telling your children about what you used to do at the Fair as you walk around the grounds with your family. (Yes, they just roll their eyes, but gosh darn it, they are going to hear it, right? Ha!)
So what is new at the Fair this year? Let's take a look at just a few.

• In the Kidway there are 2 new rides that should be a hit. Jumping Jumbo's and Down on the Farm Tractor Ride. 
• An inflatable sculpture that you can walk through called the "Luminarium".
• In the mighty Midway there are no less than 7 new rides for your older kids and mom and dad.
• There is a giant sandbox now where mom and dad can take a load off while still keeping the little one's entertained.
• Boys and girls ages 5 to 15 can test their skills when they tackle The Boy Scouts Adventure Summit.
• Some new foods to try this year are camel burgers, bacon ice cream, cereal  ice cream,  cranberry wontons, classic walleye roll, and red velvet funnel cake, just to name a few. Are you hungry yet?

Head over to the MN State Fair website if you want to see all the changes, admission prices and shuttle bus service. We would love to hear about your experiences at the State Fair so feel free to comment and tell us about them. See you at the Fair!