You have to take a look at this wonderful condo I just listed. Minutes from the mega mall and the airport. Close driving distance to both downtowns. If you don’t need it, please pass it along. This is a steal.
Every month, the Minneapolis Area Association of Realtors compiles these video presentations of the Minneapolis real estate market statistics. They are just a thumbnail sketch of the market info. GREAT NEWS for the month of June is that housing prices are up!!! Definitely getting us back on a more even keel. Bad news is that sales are down for May and June. No big surprise there. Ever since the tax credit expired, it’s understandable that we wouldn’t have as many buyers out there. And, summer is usually another lull time in the market, even in robust times.
Now this video has just the bare essentials. For more detailed information about YOUR specific area, don’t hesitate to contact me. Better to have too much information than not enough!!!
I heard from a past client the other day. They have fallen on some hard times. Their financial situation has become dire due to a variety of factors. They have experienced job loss and a significant health crisis in just over a year. They bought their current home with me back in 2004 when the real estate market was still quite robust. At the time, they asked me if their house would be a good investment. As always, my answer was, “Real estate has proven to be a good long term investment. We are experiencing crazy appreciation right now, but, the market will soon level off. So, don’t expect your house to appreciate every year as much as it is right now. If history is any indicator of future events, there will be a market adjustment coming at some point in the future. Historically, normal appreciation has been 2-3% per year.” I also used to talk about how, historically, real estate really didn’t depreciate. It has, according to the records throughout the better part of the 20th century, either been flat or appreciated slightly. From 2000 through 2005/2006, we saw the statistical graphs shoot up like a hockey stick! This was atypical, based on the history of the market. Then, all hell broke loose!
But, the contact from these past clients was not a positive one. They were very upset that I was not able to advise them better about the decrease of their property value from 2004 to now. Their words, “How could you NOT have known that this would happen! We cannot sell our house for anything close to what we paid for it. We really needed to rely on the appreciation of real estate and now we’re upside down in our value.” I know these folks are in a really bad way right now, so I tried to explain to them that, while I’m well versed in the historical market information, I cannot see in to the future. They are not alone in this boat. There was no way for me to know how significantly this real estate market would reverse itself. Nor, was there any way for anyone to know how long lasting it would/will be. While all of us in the industry knew there would be an adjustment, we just didn’t have the “crystal ball” to be able to predict this.
After chatting for a while, they did realize that this isn’t my fault (thank goodness) and that we, as agents, are only able to know what’s going on from day to day just like everyone else. They calmed down and apologized for blaming me. And, felt somewhat relieved to know they are not alone in their situation. We are an important cog in advising anyone about how to conduct a real estate transaction, but, I haven’t met an agent yet that can predict with 100% accuracy what’s going to happen in the future! Keep in mind, most real estate agents are not out to cause anyone harm. That would be completely counter productive to building a business, ESPECIALLY since we rely heavily on client referrals.
A HUGE thank you to all of my good clients who believe in me!!! You honor me with your confidence. Please tell those in need of real estate advice or services to contact me today. I can give them the benefit of my historical perspective as well as a financial overview of what’s happening now!!
Susan Hofflander is a seasoned real estate professional, providing real estate consultations for home buyers and sellers in the Twin Cities since 1994. Susan specializes in homes for sale in Lake Calhoun/Lake Harriet, Minneapolis, Plymouth, MN, Minneapolis Western Suburban Cities and Downtown Minneapolis Lofts.
| 04/10/2010 | ||
| 9:00 am | to | 12:00 pm |
It’s important to protect yourself. As you probably already know, there are those who will steal your private information for their own gain with no consideration of the impact it has on your life. 
That kind of identity theft can prevent you from obtaining new credit, buying a car or even a house. In some cases, the perpetrator has committed illegal activities with the “new identity” and the victim of this identity theft has been arrested!!! You can do things to make it more difficult for these thieves to obtain your sensitive information.
Make sure you always log off of your online accounts for anything, especially if you’re using an unsecured internet connection or if you’re logging on from a public computer. And, when it’s time to dispose of old paper work, don’t just throw it all in the recycling! That’s like posting it on a bill board! Take it to a professional shredder. There are many free shredding events around the Twin Cities for potentially buyers and sellers of Minneapolis homes for sale can take advantage of to destroy their sensitive information.
M & I Bank hosts such events regularly. Click here for a location and date near you. And, here’s a list of all of the Cub Foods locations that are hosting paper shredding provided by Shred It on Saturday, April 10, 2010, from 9:00 am – 12:00 noon. Don’t miss it!!
Need more info about the real estate market in the Twin Cities? Contact me to make me your real estate consultant for life. I’m up on all the latest info on homes for sale in Minneapolis cities, including Lake Harriet/Lake Calhoun.
Susan Hofflander is a seasoned real estate professional, providing real estate consultations for home buyers and sellers in the Twin Cities since 1994. Susan specializes in homes for sale in Lake Calhoun/Lake Harriet, Minneapolis, Plymouth, MN, Minneapolis Western Suburban Cities and Downtown Minneapolis Lofts.
For many Minneapolis home owners, this is a tough time. We are experiencing significant volatility in the mortgage arena. The guidelines by which a mortgage may be obtained are much tighter. Actually, the guidelines are back to where they were 15-20 years ago. You actually have to prove you can be a responsible home owner. The paradigm shift that occurred in the early part of the decade, to render anyone who can fog a mirror qualified to be mortgagor (meaning the person who obtains a mortgage and makes the payments toward total ownership) is now shifting back to those who have a proven track record of on time payments and make enough money to pay their bills.
There were people who met such guidelines when they obtained their mortgages, even in the free-for-all days. But, many have now fallen on a hardship of some kind. For example job loss, health crises, divorce, death of a spouse, business failure can all be life changing events that render the Minneapolis home owner unable to honor their commitment to make their housing payments as originally agreed upon. If that happens, the homeowner needs to find alternatives.
There is help available. The new programs that will go in to effect on April 5 have provisions to assist homeowners who are experiencing a genuine hardship. There are many provisions for assistance to forestall the sheriff’s sale until a short sale can be achieved and stricter guidelines that will bring pressure to bear on the banks to provide answers quicker in order to facilitate the short sales to go through. The new program, HAFA, stands for Home Affordable Foreclosure Alternatives, was developed last November and the new guidelines will go in to effect April 5, 2010. Check out the information to see what might help you or someone you love.
Susan Hofflander is a seasoned real estate professional, providing real estate consultations for home buyers and sellers in the Twin Cities since 1994. Susan specializes in homes for sale in Lake Calhoun/Lake Harriet, Minneapolis, Plymouth, MN, Minneapolis Western Suburban Cities and Downtown Minneapolis Lofts.
| 03/07/2010 | ||
| 2:00 pm | to | 4:00 pm |
This property is amazing! Come and view at the open house this Sunday, March 7th from 2-4pm. If it’s not for you, pass this post on to an interested party!
Susan Hofflander is a seasoned real estate professional, providing real estate consultations for home buyers and sellers in the Twin Cities since 1994. Susan specializes in homes for sale in Lake Calhoun/Lake Harriet, Minneapolis, Plymouth, MN, Minneapolis Western Suburban Cities and Downtown Minneapolis Lofts.
As I indicated in Step #1, subsequent to my conversation with the modification representative from Bank of America, I consulted with my good friend Carrie Guarrero from Cornerstone Home Loans. 
She suggested I find out if Bank of America has an online option to fill out the paper work, rather than waiting 45 days or more for it to come in the mail. I was also told to ask what kind of modifications they would be willing to offer.
Turns out, Bank of America DOES have an online process to begin mortgage modification. They actually take you through the steps that I went through over the phone a few days ago. Once the online questions have been answered, a determination is made about whether a borrower is preliminarily qualified for any modification programs. But, from there, the process is the same. A borrower would STILL need to wait for the paper work to be delivered in hard copy. From what I was told, they need actual signatures and copies of things like tax returns and bank statements in order to complete the process. Once they have the signed paper work back, it will be submitted for review before a board. Once it passes the board review, they will assign a negotiator that communicates directly with the borrower.
So, while the online process does not help expedite the actual “nitty-gritty” of the process, it does help borrowers determine if they actually fit the scenario that renders them eligible to move to the next step.
Next: THE PACKAGE and submission of papers.
Susan Hofflander is a seasoned real estate professional, providing real estate consultations for home buyers and sellers in the Twin Cities since 1994. Susan specializes in homes for sale in Lake Calhoun/Lake Harriet, Minneapolis, Plymouth, MN, Minneapolis Western Suburban Cities and Downtown Minneapolis Lofts.
| 01/09/2010 | ||
| 9:00 am | to | 12:00 pm |
I post a fair amount on this blog about the importance of identity protection. I’ve recommended many times for consumers to protect themselves by shredding old documents that contain sensitive information. M & I Bank has hosted several free shredding events at their location. 
They haven’t had any since November. So, I’ve been searching high and low for other entities that will host free shredding events. Found one!! Saturday, January 9th you can bring your sensitive documents to American Bank at 1578 University Ave., St. Paul (it’s in the Midway). Shred Right is providing these free services in the next few months. There’s no charge, but they are taking donations for these services if you feel so led. It’s still cheaper than trying to pay for these services.
This website will offer you more information.
Do you want to buy a house?
Make sure your credit scores are protected. Protect them by keeping your identity information secure. That way, when the time comes to buy a house for sale in the Lake Harriet or Lake Calhoun neighborhoods of Minneapolis or homes for sale in any other Minneapolis cites, you’ll have a sound credit score to show the under writer.
Contact me today!
Susan Hofflander is a seasoned real estate professional, providing real estate consultations for home buyers and sellers in the Twin Cities since 1994. Susan specializes in homes for sale in Lake Calhoun/Lake Harriet, Minneapolis, Plymouth, MN, Minneapolis Western Suburban Cities and Downtown Minneapolis Lofts.
With the real estate market being somewhat volatile, many home owners are opting to remodel their current homes. It’s valuable to know which projects will be the best return on your investment when you do sell. As an agent, the best advice I can give is:
While the roof, siding, windows are not very glamorous, they are a large part of why buyers may choose one home for sale over another. You’ll receive up to an 80% return on that investment. Next, kitchens and bathrooms looking updated and sparkly are another big selling factor. Those improvements will yield up to 75%.
Remodeling magazine’s feature, Cost vs. Value provides the results of their study each year, determining what the new data shows with regard to how improvements translate in to dollars returned when the homes are sold.
Contact me when you need information about your house in Lake Harriet or Lake Calhoun neighborhoods of Minneapolis, or Plymouth MN or any homes in the Western Suburbs of Minneapolis
Susan Hofflander is a seasoned real estate professional, providing real estate consultations for home buyers and sellers in the Twin Cities since 1994. Susan specializes in homes for sale in Lake Calhoun/Lake Harriet, Minneapolis, Plymouth, MN, Minneapolis Western Suburban Cities and Downtown Minneapolis Lofts.
