"Buyers Are Liars"

In this business there is a common phrase: "Buyers are Liars".

It's certainly not because people are intentionally being misleading. It's usually because either they don't know what they really want or, more commonly, there are many factors to buying a home and, "I'll know it when I see it...”, is the predominant and most common thought!

I once had a client, for example, who told me when looking for a single-family home for himself and his family, that they absolutely did NOT want to see any ramblers. Absolutely no ramblers. None.

So, over a period of the next couple months we looked at dozens of MN homes together: 2 stories, split entries… every kind except ramblers - and they just couldn't find a house they liked...

Finally (after we'd spent enough time together) I asked him what it was that he didn't like about ramblers. The story he told me was all about the house he grew up in. It was positively riddled with complications -it was messy and dirty, had water, bugs and even rodents in their poorly-maintained unfinished basement - it actually sounds like it was quite frightening to him as a young boy… (I might even have nightmares about HIS basement!)

But his story had nothing to do with most of the ramblers actually on the market, many with beautifully finished, light walk-out basements - with nothing scary about them in the least!

After hearing this, I searched around on the Minneapolis MLS for a while to look at the same area we'd been looking in, but specifically ramblers that fit his qualifications otherwise. I found several that were in his price range and looked like they'd fit the bill (so to speak) except that they were ramblers. I asked his permission on our next showing date to show him a few local-ramblers while we're out seeing these others "just to compare dollar to dollar", I think I said. I picked out some very nice places (with fully finished basements) for him and his family to see.

Well, that was it! That very same day they found their dream home (and low and behold) it was a rambler!

I guess it's sometimes true that "buyers are liars" - because in order to find this client what he wanted, I had to do something that was the OPPOSITE of what he said he wanted...

Shopping For Lenders

When you're ready to get the home of your dreams or just refinance the one you're already in, you'll most likely shop around for a good mortgage. And, if you're like most people, you'll pay most attention to the interest rates and points (percentage points paid to the lender for their service).

But bear in mind that although the costs of a mortgage are important, they are not the only thing to consider in choosing a lender. Make sure your lender is someone you feel comfortable talking to, someone who answers your questions honestly and thoroughly. You will, after all, be sharing all your intimate financial-details with them! Also make sure that they (or their staff) have good customer service skills. In a detailed transaction like this, you want someone who will be on top of the details and be quick to address any concerns and return your calls...

Also, consider the types of loans you are being offered. Each lender has access to different "loan products" from 15-year, 20-year, 30-year or more, to the payment-structure and penalties. You could also choose to go to a mortgage broker or a brokerage where typically they'll have access to hundreds, if not thousands of mortgages.

And don't be afraid to shop around. You are not bound to the first lender or loan officer you meet.

You can literally interview as many as you like until you find "the one". But just use caution to not give out your social-security-number too many times as it can ding your score a couple points each time it's pulled. Lenders always want that number first to determine if you're a legitimate candidate for a mortgage or not, but you have no obligation to giving that out until you're sure!
 

"Real-A-Tor"?

I was having a great conversation with another local Realtor/agent the other day, when we paused and noticed how some of the other agents on her team often talked.

We overheard them referring to themselves as Real-a-tors - with 3 syllables. I never noticed before, but all of a sudden as we eavesdropped on their conversations, it seemed more pronounced than ever before!

We continued listening to this conversation to see if anyone would come to our rescue, but it seems this subtle mispronunciation went completely unnoticed... by a bunch of other MN Realtors, no less!

So how IS Realtor pronounced???

In actuality, Realtor is just 2 syllables "Real" and "Tor" (sounds more like "real-ter" or "real-tor") like Doctor sounds like "doc-ter". But I don't think I've ever heard anyone say doc-a-tor before though.

We giggled to ourselves and left the others blissfully-unaware - but wondering when or where this faux paus started? Maybe we'll never know!

But here's the real truth... you heard it here, folks.

(rē'əl-tər - rē'əl-tÔr)

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