Real Estate Insights
For both home sellers and home buyers. Up to date information for the Twin Cities real estate market. This includes informational videos, market trends, home buyer and seller strategies, timely articles and good old fashioned advice.
Should I buy a home or rent? That is a question only you could answer. But I can at least share with you the benefits of owning a home. I've had friends through my life that I've always rented because they may want to move to New York City or some other location around the globe. Funny thing is, 30 years later they still live in town and never moved. At this point they're so deep into the rental trap that they'll never get out.
To me the number one reason to purchase a home is for financial freedom. Once it's paid off you've established an asset and it's one of the first steps that you can take to financial independence. Check out this video, there's more wonderful reasons.
I have created an interactive PDF for the book I wrote; First time home buyers guide, everything you need to know to buy a home. Within this PDF are highlighted phrases that lead you to videos explaining a subject in more detail. This is the introduction video to the book. It is a great tool for all home buyers. Even if you have purchased a home before and would like a refresher course on the steps to buying a home. I will follow this up with other videos in the coming week. So please stay tuned to this webpage for updates.
One common home buyer question that I receive on a regular basis is, are home property taxes and real estate taxes the same thing? The answer to that is yes, they are. But where the confusion comes from is your point of reference for the information in the first place. What I mean to say is depending on what article you read in the newspaper or blog online. Some refer to it as property taxes and others refer to it as real estate taxes.
What closing costs are associated when buying a home? And what's the difference with those versus seller paid closing costs? This is typically one of the first questions that I will answer for any potential home buyer. It is important to know ahead of time what your bottom line is. There should not be any hidden closing costs or hidden fees? But at the same time to avoid that you want to have an idea of what your costs are to begin with.
The video below will give you good idea of all the closing costs and how they differ for you in several situations. Meaning buying a single-family home versus a townhome have different costs. This tutorial will help you in 5 minutes learn more about this subject and will help you moving forward.
If you are buying a home, chances are you don't really know all the steps to purchasing one. Especially if you are a first-time home buyer. And why would you? This isn't something that you do every day and that's why you hire A licensed real estate agent. They will help you through the process by answering all of your questions.
One of the first questions most homebuyers ask is are there any hidden fees when buying a home? The obvious answer should be no but unfortunately in the world we live in there are some agents that either don't know or won't tell you the truth. This five minute video will answer this question and give you a lot of helpful information to make sure you know the answer.
Everybody has heard the horror stories about buying and selling homes. I can attest that after 18 years of being a licensed real estate agent that many of those situations could have been avoided simply by making sure you take the time to cover all of the bases. What I'm trying to say is so many agents nowadays seem to skate over the details because they're moving on to something else that some of the most basic obvious things can be completely missed.
As a home buyer or home seller, who you hire to take care of you in a transaction can make all the difference as to how everything plays out. As a licensed realtor I have a fiduciary responsibility to you that I take very seriously. I've seen some pretty bad stuff happen over the last year that I believe is misrepresentation on the part of some of the real estate agents. To protect yourself, you need to be aware of the different things that are happening in the market. Take a few minutes of your day and watch the video below. It will teach you how to protect yourself and what to look out for.
**Featured listing**
1015 Lilac Court Shakopee, MN 55379- Home For Sale. Take a tour of this lovely town home with all living on one level. It features 3 bedrooms, 3 bathrooms and over 2400 finished square feet and so much more!
Understanding the difference between a contingent off and a non-contingent offer can make all the difference for both a home buyer and home seller. This short video explains the in's and out's of contingent offers Before you buy a home or sell a home, you will want to understand this information.
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Information for home buyers and home sellers in the Twin Cities Metro area.
Meet Tom Sommers Top Real Estate Agent in the Minneapolis St. Paul Metro Area
Recent Sales
Tom Sommers became our realtor in the short sale of our house. He was very knowledgeable in the area of short sale and skilled in how to expedite the process of the sale. He was persistent in talking with the bank to make sure the process was moving forward and not sitting in a pile on someone’s desk. He also has excellent people skills and was able to keep things …
-Linda W., Client
The adventure of finding our home started unexpectly with Tom Sommers. We were not seriously looking and the thought of selling/buying a new house was daunting. We met Tom at an open house. I knew immediately that this was the guy to get us started. He was calm and confident the entire process. He is genuine and trustworthy. He sold our house at a great price and our …
-Sarah & Mike R., Client
I just wanted to send you a note to let you know how much we appreciate all the work you did to get us into our first home. You came to us as a referral because the first realtors we contacted made us feel as if we weren’t going to be spending enough money to make it worth it for them. From our very first conversation you established yourself as extremely professional …
-Lauren B., Client
I used Tom for both the sale of former home and purchase of my current home. Although I knew many realtors, I was drawn to some of Tom’s posts about the current housing market and the best interest of the home owner. Others just seem to post information about listings in general. The counsel he offered was outstanding. He was patient and helpful with the numerous …
-Lisa M., Client
Dear Tom, Thank you so much for helping us find our new home. We are really happy here and getting settled in box by box. We were so impressed by your commitment to helping us find the right home for us and not just trying to make a sale. Not only did you help us get a great deal you also helped us through the whole process from beginning to end. Thank you for being …
-Phil & Rose K., Client
