The Master of the House Welcomes You Home

Photo of the Day

Everyone’s Best Friend Awaits Her Owner’s Return

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Bridge Photo for July 28, 2010

Stone Arch Bridge
Minneapolis, Minnesota

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Related post:

“Hump Day” Now Seen in a Whole New Way

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Minneapolis—St. Paul Real Estate Market: July 2010

Where has the Twin Cities real estate market been and where is it heading? This monthly summary provides an overview of current trends and projections for future activity. Narrated by Brad Fisher (2010 President of the Minneapolis Area Association of REALTORS®), audio recorded by Zach Foty and video produced by Chelsie Foty.

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Here’s an interesting article from The Associated Press on the housing market, both national and local.

Housing recovery is about timing and location

By J.W. ELPHINSTONE (AP) – 5 hours ago

NEW YORK — If you bought a home in San Francisco in the past year, it might feel like the housing slump is over. Bay area home prices have shot up 18 percent in the past year.

But someone next door who bought in 2006 may have suffered a 35 percent loss in value. And if you’re a Las Vegas homeowner, there’s been no good news in four years.

The latest report on home prices confirms that real estate is all about timing and location.

Nationally, home values rose 1.3 percent in May from April, according to the Standard & Poor’s/Case-Shiller 20-city home price index released Tuesday. And 19 of 20 cities showed price gains month over month.

Yet conditions are hardly uniform across the country. Some cities, such as San Francisco and Washington, have less area to build out and better job markets, so they have suffered less or in some cases recovered more quickly. Even cities like Phoenix and Las Vegas, which endured some of the worst losses after the housing bubble burst, are seeing vastly different trends over the past year.

“Generally, in any recovery, there is always parts of the country that lead the way and certain parts that lag behind,” said Jonathan Basile, vice president of economics at Credit Suisse. “To understand why, you have to look at the economies of those areas and how much building went on to help determine why one outperforms and others underperforms.”

Take the metro areas in Las Vegas, Phoenix and Miami. Home values soared in all three cities during the early part of the last decade, then plummeted in the last few years. All three have struggled with high foreclosures.

Yet over the past year, while home prices rose 7.2 percent in Phoenix, they ticked up only 1.2 percent in the Miami and fell 6.5 percent in Las Vegas.

Part of the reason is that Phoenix has a healthier job market than the other two cities. Its metro area had an 8.7 percent unemployment rate in May, one point lower than the national average.

Las Vegas, meanwhile, had a 14.1 percent unemployment rate in May, while Miami had an 11.2 percent rate. That left fewer households in position to take advantage of government tax credits for homebuyers that expired in April and the lowest mortgage rates in decades.

Prices in Las Vegas have lost more than half their value since peaking in August 2006. And the long-term picture isn’t rosy either. Home values there have risen a mere 2 percent since 2000, according to S&P/Case-Shiller.

Miami home prices are up 46 percent since the beginning of the decade, but just 1 percent over the past year. High-end sales have helped boost the median price. In the last three months, there were five sales between $8.7 million and $15 million. There have been only 27 of those in the past nine years, said Ron Shuffield, president of Esslinger-Wooten-Maxwell Realtors Inc.

And prices could drop quickly in Miami over the next year. Nearly 23 percent of those homeowners with a mortgage in the area have either missed three consecutive payments or were in foreclosure, according to Moody’s Analytics. That compares with 10 percent in Phoenix and 15 percent in Las Vegas.

“Just like in the housing boom period you had significant divergence by regions, in the early periods of recovery, we’re seeing similar divergence,” said Zach Pandl, analyst at Nomura Global Economics. “But it’s not exactly the same cities in these groups.”

Of all cities, San Francisco has shown the sharpest turnaround. After values plunged 46 percent to their low in March of last year, they have regained 21 percent, the best performance in the S&P/Case-Shiller report.

Doug Duncan, chief economist at mortgage giant Fannie Mae, said housing is healthier in big cities in the Northeast and on the West Coast because they have limited land for construction and better local economies.

With desirable San Francisco, “you have an ocean on one side and some mountains on the other side,” he said.

State homebuying tax credits and a shorter foreclosure process also have helped California housing markets.

Federal tax credits for homebuyers helped prop up prices in cities like Minneapolis where the median home price is just under $170,000. Home values there rose nearly 3 percent in May from April and nearly 13 percent from last year, S&P/Case-Shiller showed.

“But the wind has been taken out of our sails since the expiration and prices are flattening out, especially for entry-level homes,” said Pam Kowalski with Counselor Realty in Minneapolis.

Most economists don’t expect the price increases to last through the year. And many predict prices will fall through the rest of the year. A high number of foreclosures will continue to weigh on prices in many areas, and job uncertainty and tight credit are still keeping many would-be buyers sidelined.

“I bet in six months, 15 to 20 cities will have falling prices,” said IHS Global Insight economist Patrick Newport. He predicts prices will fall a further 6 percent to 8 percent before turning around next year.

The pain, though, likely won’t be equally shared.

AP Business Writers Christopher S. Rugaber and Alan Zibel in Washington contributed to this report.

Copyright © 2010 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.

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Interest Rate Update

Today I’m reading reports of interest rates at 4.375% for a 30-year fixed loan and 3.875% for a 15-year fixed loan. These are incredible rates! Call me if you’d like to discuss your real estate possibilities. I’m happy to be of service in making your dream come true.

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Photo of the Day: Turtles Having Fun!

~ Keep Cool Today Amidst the 90 Degree Temps ~

The Phelps fountain, also known as the “turtle” fountain,
at Lyndale Park by Lake Harriet in Minneapolis, Minnesota.

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This fountain was moved from its former downtown Gateway site in 1962-63 when the perennial garden that surrounds it was built. It is located on the east side of the garden. The Heffelfinger fountain lies to the west of the Phelps fountain. Further west lies the Rose Gardens, the second oldest rose garden in the United States. Other places to see at Lyndale Park are the Peace Garden and the Thomas Sadler Roberts Bird Sanctuary. The picturesque setting of these gardens is frequently used for wedding ceremonies and photography shoots.

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Minneapolis—St. Paul Real Estate Market: July 26, 2010

Weekly Market Activity Report

It’s been almost 3 months since the expiration of the federal home buyer tax credit and the market appears to have settled into something of a rhythm. With the dust settling, pending sales have become mostly fixed in the 500-to-600 per week range for the past 9 weeks.

While the dramatic drop from a year ago is certainly not positive, demand is at least holding relatively steady for the time being. The 626 purchase agreements signed for the week ending July 17 were 39.7 percent behind a year ago. For the same reporting week there were 1,618 new listings in the Twin Cities, down 10.0 percent from a year ago.

Inventory is rising due to slower demand. The 27,350 homes currently available for sale represent an increase of 4.8 percent from last year.

As reported by the Minneapolis Area Association of Realtors

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Photo of the Day: Hot Air Balloon

Up, Up and Away Over the St. Croix River

As seen while traveling from Hudson, Wisconsin to Minnesota. There were three of these balloons in the air when I took this photo. The other two were out of sight by the time I pulled off the road to snap this picture.

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Curb Appeal: Home and Garden

A Garden Full of Curb Appeal: Part 2

There is a wide variety of front gardens in view as one wanders around town. I find myself drawn to arbors and white picket fences with plenty of plantings. Here’s another example of an abundant front yard, complete with fountain, bench seating, trellises, zen rock sculpture, and blooms a-plenty! Enjoy.

A welcoming entrance to the front yard.

Whimsical twig star overhead.
(Click on smaller photos to see in larger size.)

A most interesting plant. Anyone know what this is?

A pretty bench to sit and enjoy a pretty garden.

An attractive and colorful brick-paver path leads to the front door.

A lily pad pot and a fountain.

A corner amassed in blooms.

Lilies

Blooms on both sides of the fence.

A blend of English, formal and zen feel on this side.

The side yard gets green thumb treatment as well.

A wide mix of elements adds much charm to this garden.

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See this related post:

A Garden Full of Curb Appeal

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I Found Heaven on Oahu

H E A V E N ~ O N ~ E A R T H

Today I came across a blog with a writer’s workshop. Instructions:

Post a picture and a description that fits into this quote for you:
“How far to heaven? Just open your eyes and look. You are in heaven” -Shankar

I find heavenly people, places and more all around me each day. Still, one place came to mind for me when I read about this workshop exercise. Oahu. More specifically, The Byodi-In Temple at the Valley of the Temples Memorial Park. The photo above shows the temple, set amidst the trees and hills to the side and the mountain to the back. Water flows in front of the temple.  This is an ideal setting in Feng Shui. The mountain at the back and the hills to the sides represent protection. The water in front brings prosperity and abundance. I felt an incredible peace here.

The Magnificent Byodo-In Temple translates to “Temple of Equality — not to discriminate” and is home to Amida, a golden Buddha unique to the entire world.

This Buddha is thought to be the largest figure carved since ancient times. It towers more than 18 feet and is an original work of art carved by the famous Japanese sculptor, Masuzo Inui.

The Bell House, above, contains a five-foot high, three-ton brass bell called bon-sho (sacred bell). It closely resembles the bell hanging in an identical Bell House at the Uji Byodo-In. The tone of the bell sounds a message of deep calm and peace and is said to cleanse the mind of evil and temptation. The resonant sound of the bell travels for some distance so one hears it while walking through the temple and along the grounds. The bell is customarily rung before one enters the temple to spread the eternal teachings of Buddha. I made a short video of the bell being rung when I visited and I listen to it with regularity.

The Byodo-In was built entirely without nails and is a scale replica of a temple at Uji Japan that was constructed over 900 years ago. It is built to represent the mystical phoenix with its wings upheld by pillars of stone. Folklore tells of the phoenix arising from the ashes to reflect promises of hope and renewal. Isn’t that a heavenly thought?
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Architectural example of building with no nails.

This is the view from inside the temple with the water in front.

This is a meditation space on the grounds.

A view from the meditation area.

This, then, was one experience I had of heaven on earth.
It was all too short a visit. I’d return in a heartbeat.

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More on the Writer’s Workshop:

A Garden Full of Curb Appeal

This garden caught my eye as I walked down a street in Hopkins. It offers the perfect blend of flowers, shrubs, chairs, lawn, and the charming, white picket fence. The array of plants with their numerous colors and shapes are a sight to admire. Everything looked healthy and well-tended. It was clear that the owner put time, energy and love into this space.

Plantings are located both inside and outside the fencing.
The curb appeal is greatly enhance by this garden.

Roses on arbor

Cluster of Roses

These bright roses were in abundance along the fence and the arbor.

Pink Roses

These pink roses peek out from around other greenery in the garden.

Blooming beauty all along the fence.

(I used my cell phone camera so the photos in this post aren’t the best.)

Windowbox

The window boxes extend the garden to the exterior of the home.

The trimmed shrubbery next to the house
bring an architectural aspect to the garden.
Note the exposed branches on the underside of the shrubs.

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Bridge Photo for July 21, 2010

North Centennial Lakes Bridge

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Related post:

“Hump Day” Now Seen in a Whole New Way

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Minneapolis—St. Paul Real Estate Market: July 19, 2010

Weekly Market Activity Report

For the week ending July 10, the number of pending sales held steady with the week before but remained well behind last year’s pace. The 545 signed agreements during the week represent a drop of 45.9 percent from last year at this time. That’s the tenth consecutive week of year-over-year declines in buyer demand, a period that coincides with the loss of the federal tax credit for first-time home buyers.

The 1,542 new listings for the most recent reporting week are also down compared to last year but not to the extent of pendings, posting a decline of 17.4 percent from a year ago.

Inventory is up 4.4 percent from a year ago. Because the growing inventory is being greeted with slim buyer demand, the balance of buyers and sellers is shifting the market back in the buyer’s favor. The July Supply-Demand Ratio of 7.44 means that there are 7.44 houses for each buyer this month, up 46.9 percent from the mark of 5.06 seen a year ago.

As reported by the Minneapolis Area Association of Realtors

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Frugal or Inspired Wallpaper?

Inspired:

Illustrated covers from The New Yorker magazine get a second life in a Twin Cities home.

Some years ago I marketed a home here in the Twin Cities where the owners had decorated their small bath with old covers of The New Yorker magazine. It brought plenty of color, art and charm to an otherwise unattractive, lower-level bath.

The New Yorker is known for their funny cartoons.  I think I’d have added some of the cartoons into this mix, either as part of the wallpaper itself or framed and hung on the walls, to add a dash of humor to an otherwise mundane part of life.

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Minneapolis—St. Paul Real Estate Market: June 2010

Where has the Twin Cities real estate market been and where is it heading? This monthly summary provides an overview of current trends and projections for future activity. Narrated by David Arbit, audio recorded by Zach Foty and video produced by Chelsie Foty.

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Interest Rate Update

Today I’m reading reports of interest rates at 4.375% for a 30-year fixed loan and 3.875% for a 15-year fixed loan. I’m wondering what impact these rates will have on homebuyer activity for the rest of this month. These are incredible rates!

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Bastille Day Remembrance

Bastille Day holds a special place in my heart. It was on Bastille Day in 1955 that my older brother was born. He loved celebrating Bastille Day on his birthday. And why not? Our family loves the French people, the country, the French food and wine, the culture, the history, the architecture, the gardens, the monuments, and the French way of life. Amour de la vie Française!

My brother was a photographer. He spent time in Europe learning the craft and continued to enjoy it throughout his life. Photography and Bastille Day celebrations were both passions for him.

I almost missed seeing the sky tonight. I spontaneously ventured outside at 9:00 p.m. to run an errand. The evening sky was ethereal and I thought of my brother. Perhaps, I thought, he is looking down upon our family, providing a brilliant evening sky to let us know he’s doing fine.

There is a poem that has brought me comfort in times of death. It’s often attributed to Mary Elizabeth Frye although the origin has been disputed over the years.  Abigail Van Buren, the newspaper columnist known as Dear Abby, confirmed Frye’s authorship after researching the subject. There is more than one version of this poem floating around on cards and the internet. I share this one, the first version I read:

Do not stand at my grave and weep;
I am not there. I do not sleep.
I am a thousand winds that blow.
I am the diamond glints on snow.
I am the sunlight on ripened grain.
I am the gentle autumn rain.
When you awaken in the morning’s hush
I am the swift uplifting rush
Of quiet birds in circled flight.
I am the soft stars that shine at night.
Do not stand at my grave and cry;
I am not there. I did not die.

—Mary Elizabeth Frye

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Rest in peace, Richard. See you on the other side someday.

Photo of the Day: July 12, 2010

I’m not sure what type of flower this is but the colors are eye-catching.

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Photographed at Lake Harriet, Minneapolis, Minnesota.

Minneapolis—St. Paul Real Estate Market: July 12, 2010

Weekly Market Activity Report

As the summer progresses, the Twin Cities housing market continues a remarkably similar week-to-week pattern —tepid new listings, extremely weak buyer demand and a total supply of available homes that slowly increases.

New listings for the week ending July 3 were 5.6 percent below last year, but the drop in pending sales was much more dramatic. The 611 signed agreements for the week ending July 3rd represented a 38.2 percent drop from last year’s figures. Because the decline in demand is stronger than the decline in supply, the number of total active listings is up 3.8 percent from a year ago.

On the upside, Days on Market until Sale has dropped considerably over the last year. At 121 days in June this is 14 percent below the 140 days it took to sell a house last year. Percent of Original List Price has also increased, in related news. However, these metrics tend to lag a few months behind the true supply-demand picture, so it is unlikely that these positive trends will continue.

As reported by the Minneapolis Area Association of Realtors

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“Star Berries”

It’s blueberry season and the pickings are good right now. The blueberry is one of the few fruits that are native to North America. The Northeast Native American tribes revered blueberries and the elders of the tribe named them “star berries” due to the shape of a perfect five-point star blossom at the end of each blueberry.

Blueberries, also known as “star berries”, are ready to pick and eat.

Blueberries can be enjoyed in a multitude of ways: plain, in cereals, in pancakes and waffles, on ice cream, in pies, in muffins and scones, in a salad, in a smoothie, etc. I recently picked my own blueberries at Blueberry Fields of Stillwater. They’re easy to pick and it’s a good way to save money at the grocery store. And these are grown without pesticides, a definite plus!

Pick your own blueberries at Blueberry Fields of Stillwater

Bev, one of the owners of Blueberry Fields of Stillwater,
greets you and shows you how to pick if it’s your first time.
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My box of blueberries and a sheet with several recipes. Picking is easy.
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Beautiful, ready to eat and wonderfully fresh.
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Bev and Mike O’Connor of Blueberry Fields of Stillwater
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Check their website for a schedule of picking times:

Blueberry Fields of Stillwater

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Blueberries are a real food that are naturally good for you:

Nutrition Facts on Blueberries

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Photo of the Day: Lake Creature

Who’s visiting Lake Harriet these days? It’s the Lake Creature!

Art on the Lake

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Learn more about the Lake Creature at www.lakecreature.com.

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