Real Estate Snippets

Lights and Houses

Anyone who's spent any amount of time with me knows of my fetishes:  old lights, old thimbles, and old houses.  Old predates 1940 in most cases although 1950's expansion bungalows sneak in occasionally.  These fetishes were not identified in my younger years.  We hadn't been exposed to enough houses and definitely not to enough lights for me to realize how drawn I was to them.

As my rehabbing days blossomed, the light attraction became apparent.  If an old light was in danger of disposal, it went to my house and was rewired for use there.  When we moved, the lights were taken down and replaced with new before the house went on the market.  Three big boxes of old lights joined the precious cargo we packed for our new location. 

Ironically, not just any old light attracts me either.  Art deco lights have the strongest tug.  In the beginning, there was no name for the style which drew me like a bee to honey.  Then an antique dealer gave me a label and wondered if I was also attracted to art deco architecture.  Huh?  I hadn't realized there was such a thing. 

These pictures tell the story completely of why the dealer wondered.

Gratuity Income

Many people who receive tips in service industries choose not to declare the full amount on their income taxes.  We're not going to go into the legalities of this common practice, just the impact it could have on your home buying.

A Saint Paul agent shared that a former client was an "escort" who received huge amounts of "extra" income that was not declared on their income taxes and, of course, did not show up on any pay stubs.  The client was most frustrated when told that she could not qualify for the home she wanted.  "But I make more than $XXXX a month!"  The "tip" income was not declared on the income taxes.  Since there was no proof of the income, it was not considered when qualifying for the home mortgage.

If you're in an occupation where you are being paid "under the table" for your services or if you're not declaring your full amount of tips, remember that may benefit you in the short term by not paying taxes on it, but in the long term, there can be repercussions when it comes time to qualifying for your home mortgage.  The undeclared income does not exist for qualifying purposes.  A stated income loan or "no doc" (no documentation) loan might be the solution, but each scenario is different.  Consulting a loan officer before you plan to purchase can help you decide your best solution.

Call me for loan officer names who can help you with qualifying for your home purchase in Saint Paul or Minneapolis.

St. Paul, My "Kinda" Town

There's a new blog carnival requiring entrants to show a virtual tour of their town!  Carnivals are not my thing.  It's probably because losing is not fun, but my honey and I are new residents of St. Paul (only 29 months now) and weekly say to one another, "Have I told you lately how much I like St. Paul?"  We are hooked.  We have no idea why we didn't settle here when we first migrated from Chicago so many years ago, but we didn't.  Now in our golden years, we see the lighted Capitol framed by our living room window every night as we eat supper.  We walk the dog around the neatly groomed Capitol grounds.  We admire the skill and ingenuity required to build the massive buildings that house our government.  The interiors . . . words fall short of describing them.  But it's not just Capitol Hill that enthralls us.  We can walk ALONG the river and watch the barge traffic.  We can ride ON the river and go through the locks.  We can sit BY the river and relax. 

Every few blocks of downtown St. Paul has a park which smacks of historic town squares.  The workers from the surrounding buildings often relax during lunch hours in the parks.  The hot dog vendor . . . ahhhh, there's nothing like a hot dog piled high with onions and relish, ketchup and mustard savored on a park bench in the shade of a big old tree! 

Nine photos on a virtual tour can hardly do justice to the grip St. Paul has on my heart, but here's my attempt!

Minneapolis Saint Paul Housing Stats

The numbers are in for 2006.  Here are the annual real estate sales figures for the last 7 years in the Minneapolis and Saint Paul metro area. 

The above figures were based on information from the Regional Multiple Listing Service of Minnesota, Inc. for the period January 1, 2000, through December 31, 2006.  Information is deemed reliable but not guaranteed.

Although the total dollar value of closed sales dropped back to what it was in 2004, the median price and average sale price of closed sales did not decrease, only the number of homes that closed took a loss this year placing it back to levels sold in 2003.  All in all, these numbers show that the Minneapolis and Saint Paul real estate market is still strong and a good place to buy.

Real Estate Scripts

Sales people are notorious for having scripts.  The pregnant pause after asking a question seems eternal while a sales caller scans their script for the best response.  I hate scripts, but recognize their value in helping professionals think of answers for different scenarios.  No matter how we try to prepare, there are always questions we didn't anticipate and, therefore, answers we didn't think of!

Lenn Harley, a highly respected colleague and REALTOR from Germantown, MD, likens real estate conversations to the "improv".  Only as we have become seasoned agents do we think on our feet and have the answers to unexpected questions.  However, Lenn's focus is what made me so impressed with her comments.  It's not about finding the right script in order to convince the seller or buyer to go ahead with a transaction.  The key is to focus on the client and the client's needs and made sure their questions are satisfied so they can go forward without hesitation.  Part of an agent's job is to be an "answer person", but that does not mean manipulating the conversation so the client's concerns are not met.  Instead, it means to give information the client needs to make the best decision for them!

New Construction Woes

As I've written before, the second home my family owned in Minnesota was custom built for us.  Buyers often think a new construction home, especially if it's custom built, will be perfect.  I was no different.  I had a vision of a beautiful Cape Cod sitting on our creek divided corner lot and a bridge across the creek to the gazebo in the woods.  When the house was built, my vision remained a figment of my imagination!  It never became reality!  I know now that I desperately needed an agent to help me realize my original dream.

We built during Minnesota's new construction boom in the mid -'70's.  It seemed all was right with the world once the lot and builder were found.  We were very clear in our requests.  We wanted a home similar to the story and a half Orrin Thompson model but built in the adjacent development.  During the negotiations with the architect and builder, my original request for a Cape Cod was whittled away without my awareness. I signed the final plans.  I approved every change, but somehow what was on the blueprints did not match what was in my head.  I ended up with a front to back split level home that I hated.  Yes, it had the vaulted ceiling in the living room but that was the only thing that carried over from the original dream.  The hall connecting the bedrooms was open to the living room.  This openness prevented the kids from sleeping when guests were present, and compromised privacy when the kids had to run down the hall to the bathroom in front of guests.  The dining room was closed off instead of open as I had wanted.  The kitchen had no window to see baby ducks swimming in the creek or to watch the kids play in the yard.

My dream house was still in my head.  Somehow, once again I had failed to catch the lack of communication between the architect and myself.  The half flight of stairs didn't look short to me because I wasn't used to blueprints.  As the wood was framed and the plan became visible, I knew it wasn't the house I had wanted.  I wondered to myself, "What happened?  When did I take this wrong turn?"

The Medallion Hunt

To a non-Minnesotan, watching people of all ages scour parks and other public lands in the heart of winter for a silly medallion, seems a bit teched.  Picture the scene.  The tundra is frozen.  There's a known rapist on the loose.  Individuals are walking solo, with their digging shovels in hand, all over St. Paul's public spaces.  They're down on their hands and knees scooping away snow.  Equipped with nebulous clues, they hunt far and wide whether it's 32 degrees or minus 3!  To lifelong searchers it's not the $10,000 prize (although that's nice); it's the hunt!  Getting one's name in the list for all time.  Bagging rights are bragging rights.  "I found  the medallion in 2007!"  Imagine the glory, the honor, of being on the winners' list.

A huge sigh of disappointment spread throughout Minneapolis and St. Paul today as the record breaking winner was announced after only three clues from the St. Paul Pioneer Press.  Only three clues!  But fret not, the Pioneer Press has quickly set up a second hunt for a second medallion this year!  The first ever Medallion Hunt II is on.  Check the Pioneer Press for clues. 

The rest of the nation?  They can lay on their beaches and watch their trees free in the mild climates.  We Minnesotans?  We're having fun at the St. Paul Winter Carnival!

The Unspoken Criteria

Every home buyer has a dream house in mind.  Key features like the number of bedrooms, bathrooms, garage size, and location are all pretty easy to figure out. Many times the most important criteria a buyer wants in a house is difficult to describe.  Sometimes home buyers are not even aware that this unspoken feature is their most important criteria of all. 

Sometimes buyers will look at every house on the market that meets their criteria only to buy something entirely different.  Usually the reason is something like, "It feels so homey" or "This house is just like the one I grew up in", etc.  The unspoken criteria is what has sold the home.  The challenge to real estate agents and to the buyers is to uncover what this unrecognized criteria is.   

My first house shopping experience demonstrated this very problem.  Our budget was limited and, therefore, our pool of houses was also limited.  My only request was "no little boxes".  The REALTOR could show us any style of house but none of those "little boxes".  I was intimidated by our suit clad agent and didn't explain what a "little box" was to me.  He didn't ask for clarification.  As a result we looked at every rambler in the northwest suburbs in our price range.  A rambler was a little box to me.  It was flat and rectangular with no roof line to break up the box.  To our agent the expansion bungalow (a small Cape Cod style) was a little box, because it was usually close to square.  We were not clearly communicating.

In desperation our agent finally asked to show us a different style house.  It was an expansion bungalow.  We entered the front door and instantly said, "Sold"!  It was a little box, but not the kind of little box I was avoiding.  I'm sure our agent went back to the office and shouted, "Buyers are liars!"

So, when you start your house shopping, think about what makes you warm and fuzzy about a house.  Is it the wall colors, the layout, the yard, etc.?  Try to get to the core of what house you want to buy.  Think about how you will use the house.  Do you need openness so you can hear the kids while cooking?  What brings up those warm fuzzies when you're in a house.  Let your agent know what that is, and you can shop together with the unspoken criteria identified. 

Frogtown

Neighborhoods get reputations just like people do and sometimes the reputations are built on old history that is gone.  As my mother would say, "It's easier to keep a good reputation than rebuild a bad one."   Frogtown didn't listen to my mother's advice!

Frogtown, the common name for the Thomas-Dale neighborhood (comprised of 4 smaller neighborhoods) in St. Paul is in a quandary.  The neighborhood has earned a reputation for crime revolving around drugs and prostitution.  Steps have been taken to begin the restoration to a safe neighborhood, but change is slow in coming and takes community involvement.

Brooklyn Park in the northwest suburbs had earned a similar reputation.  During the 1980's the town was in flux going from small to big.  A lot of landlords were not careful in their tenant screening creating havoc in the town.  Big mistake.  When Brooklyn Park's leadership took a stand, many of those landlords were shut down by the city.  Brooklyn Park had had enough.  Rental licenses were revoked for problem buildings and tenants had to vacate. Buildings were condemned and new ownership toed the line.  Today, some 30 years later, the old reputation still stands.  The fact that Brooklyn Park has an elite golf course and has cleaned up its neighborhoods has not hit the media.  Some clients were greatly surprised when I showed them elite golf course community homes with association rules regarding what kind of siding the shed could have, what kind of fence, etc.  These homes and neighborhoods did not fit the "reputation" they had heard about Brooklyn Park.  The bad reputation was having a hard time being rebuilt.

Frogtown's housing prices make it a place where an entry level worker can afford to buy or rent.  The cost of housing may explain why the 2000 demographics show a high percentage of immigrants compared to other areas of St. Paul and a lower median income.  It's a great place for someone to live who wants the American dream of home ownership but has a limited budget.  Will Frogtown's reputation repel a lot of those good prospects?

It's my hope that Frogtown is on the verge of turning around.  Some trouble spots have already been eliminated.  New development along University Avenue on the southern border shows business commitment to the neighborhood.  The light rail development could change the face of the entire area commercially and residentially.  The next 15 years should be a time of exciting transition for the people joining the Frogtown community.  I can't wait to see what's coming.

St. Paul Winter Carnival

Have I mentioned that Minnesotans are die-hard lovers of winter?  The St. Paul Winter Carnival is a perfect example of Minnesota's celebration of what makes us unique: willingness to stay in the cold northland!  Those who don't appreciate cold weather, snow and ice needn't come, but for the adventurous and those with lots of layers of winter clothing, this is the place to be.   

The  Carnival is the oldest and largest winter festival in the nation.  Wikipedia claims an eastern reporter's slur about Minnesota's winter climate was the catalyst for the first celebration of winter in 1886 which included an ice palace built from blocks of ice cut from area lakes.  The tradition has carried on and grown larger with time.  The legend of the Vulcan King chasing King Boreas, keeper of winter winds, away adds to the fun.  You'll find an ice maze, snow slide, ice palace, Klondike Kate performances, Vulcan Krewe appearances, the St. Paul Pioneer Press medallion hunt, the Jamaican dog sled team, ice sculptures, a hot dish tent, Capitol treasure hunts, music, revelry, and good plain fun for all ages at the Winter Carnival.  Most activities are located at Harriet Island in St. Paul although the car racing is on Lake Phalen!  The dates are January 26 through February 4, 10 whole days to do it all!