• First of all, try to look at the inspection from the buyer’s perspective. They don’t know you or your home and the last thing they want is to buy a home that is cosmetically great yet falling apart behind the sheetrock. If you are going to purchase another home you will want to make sure everything is in working order, so give the buyers of your home that same courtesy.
• Even if your home is practically brand new there may be some issues that you don’t even know about yet. Don’t feel that the buyers or the inspection are saying that you are a bad homeowner. Everything has a lifetime and it could be that although the a/c works fine right now it is about to quit running which you would have no way of knowing without having had it inspected.
• Leave your emotions out of it. Just because you love your home as it is and you love the way you fixed the plumbing under the kitchen sink does not mean that the buyers and their inspector will love it as well. Don’t take it personally if they request a redo on your work.

Homes wear out in time, which is normal. You as the seller need to look at the inspection report objectively and respond in a professional non-emotional manner. Inspectors are paid to go in and find problems and they will always find things, which is their job. Be willing to negotiate with the buyers within reason to the deal done.

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In the Twin Cities region, for the week ending June 1:

• New Listings increased 23.6% to 1,713
• Pending Sales increased 22.8% to 1,180
• Inventory decreased 23.1% to 14,349

For the month of May:

• Median Sales Price increased 15.1% to $194,450
• Days on Market decreased 29.8% to 87
• Percent of Original List Price Received increased 2.5% to 97.0%
• Months Supply of Inventory decreased 30.6% to 3.4

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Why own a home? Need some good reasons to buy your own home? Take a look at this short list.

• Prices are still fairly low and so are interest rates. They say prices will increase by at least another 5% in the next year and interest rates may also rise, so get in as early as you can.
• Rent is normally a variable that is only set for a short amount of time and seems to always increase. If you buy your own home and get a fixed rate mortgage, your “rent” will be the same for the life of your mortgage.
• Rather than paying someone else for your place of residence, you are paying yourself with your mortgage payments. You can look at it as a form of savings plan as the equity builds in your home.
• Mortgage interest is still a tax deduction. If you buy soon, you get a double bonus with the low interest rate and being able to use it as a deduction.
• Paying your mortgage on time every month as well as your other bills will help get you a great credit score.

If you are on the fence about buying a home, now is the time to get off that fence and do it while homes are still a great deal!

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In the Twin Cities region, for the week ending May 25:

• New Listings increased 29.8% to 1,799
• Pending Sales increased 18.8% to 1,382
• Inventory decreased 24.6% to 14,169

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Sellers know that multiple offers are likely if they have their home priced right so they are often taking their time in responding to buyers offers. Unless there is a specified time limit in the purchase agreement the seller does not need to accept or deny a purchase agreement within any specified time frame. Sellers can also choose what they will do with the offers they receive. The listing agent is required to present all offers to the seller but then it is up to the seller as to how they handle the offers.

In most cases the seller will offer all buyers the opportunity to submit their highest and best offer for consideration but the seller may just want to have their home sold and they can just choose an offer they like and be done with it without asking the other buyers for a better offer. The buyer’s agent has no influence whatsoever in this decision.

Real estate is a bit of a game as the offer details are always a secret, so the best strategy is that you offer your best offer up front and hope for the best. At times it may not seem like a fair game, but that is how real estate works right now.

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In the Twin Cities region, for the week ending May 18:

• New Listings increased 20.9% to 1,855
• Pending Sales increased 24.1% to 1,313
• Inventory decreased 25.9% to 13,866

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Click on the infographic for a larger version.

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