What's That? Should I be Concerned About It?So you have been looking at houses and every once in a while you see a big white plastic pipe hiding in the bushes.What is that? Should I be concerned about it?Actually that big white pipe is a good thing. It's a sewer drain clean out.But it looks so new and this is an old house, what's up with that?Again, it's a good thing. It means that the home owner once had sewer problems but they have dealt with it properly.It means that most likely the homes sewer main has been completely replaced from the home to the street. That alone is generally a several thousand dollar repair. A repair that you most likely won't ever have to deal with again or at least for a very long time.It also means that if there is a plugged line in the future Roto-Rooter won... 02/03/2016

Sad Story, Happy Ending, Griffin RIPSometimes an obituary can tell a very good story. While Griffin had a very bad start he had a very good life and died peacefully. It's stories like this obituary that shows us that the "Monsters" in life are not imaginary beings but demented people! Griffin survived his encounter with such a monster because of Saints that showed what the power of love is all about.In case you were wondering, this obit was run in the want ads as it is against newspaper policy to run a pet obituaries in with the human deaths.So what does this have to do with Real Estate in Minot ND?A twisted mind like the one who nearly killed Griffin is nothing less than a sociopath. Someone who would do this one of God's creatures may do it to another, the neighbors pet, or even worse... 01/31/2016

Condominiums and Townhouses for sale, Minot ND, 01/31/2016 Report92 Units for sale as of 01/31/2016Price Range $89,900. to $465,000.Average $203,559.Average days on market 117.Condo fees range from $50.00 month to $402.50While Condos and Townhouses look the same there are basic differences in ownership and maybe in infrastructure. Both may have fees for maintenance of the structure, yard care, and snow removal. On a condo you also share the water, sewer and garbage bill (at least here in Minot ND). In Minot a townhouse must have it's own individual water and sewer to each unit thus you will have your own billing for these utilities. 01/31/2016

Minot ND Housing Report for the week ending 01/30/2016Be sure to note the line above as this is a very restrictive report.There were 5 homes sold in this limited catagory. The most expensive home sold for $249,900 and it was on the market for 489 days. The least expensive home sold for $174,900 and it was on the market for 60 days. Median days on market for the 5 homes sold was 112. 01/31/2016

Daddy Got A New Pool Table... and You Can't Have It! Minot RE 101 OK, we can negotiate on the table above... BUTFrequently and with gaining frequency I am being asked by home Buyers if we can ask for personal property items dealing with homes we are placing an offer on. First of all Buyers need to know, personal property is just that... PERSONAL! Most Offers To Purchase include some personal property, our Multipule Listing Service Offer to Purchase in Minot ND says: carpet, awnings, window treatments and hardware, lighting fixtures, ceiling fans, built in equipment and built in appliances, garage door openers and operating remotes, smoke detectors, sump pump, and the following non-real estate items:No where does it say lawn mower, snow thrower, dining table, wife's lingerie, or whatever... 01/30/2016

Can I Move In Before The Closing? If you are the Seller of a home these are words you really don't want to hear. The short answer is just say NO! For the reasons just listen to the video and if for some reason you are still not convinced at least take the provisions suggested. 01/29/2016

10 Home Owner Tax BreaksYou Bought A House in 2015, Congratulations!You Get Some Tax Breaks You Never Had Before.In an effort to inform my 1st time home buyers who purchased last year that they are now eligible for some nice tax breaks I did a quick search and found a great article By Daniel Goldstein and printed by Market Watch. The article can be found HERE.I love his opening statement: "If death and taxes are the two true givens in life, there probably should be a third: the bucketful of tax breaks Uncle Sam throws out every year to encourage more Americans to buy a home."Instead of me plagiarizing the article just click on the link I gave you above.If you are still living in an appartment in Minot ND then maybe it's time you call me, Bob Timm at National Marketing Realtors, and get ... 01/28/2016

Let Us Hit It Out Of The Park For You, National Marketing Realtors Yesterday was one of the most exhausting days I've had as a Realtor.I have been working with a wonderful couple navigating through Sellers who are still thinking it's a Sellers market when it's not.Yesterday we were a mile away but today we have a deal.Things looked impossible as we bargained over price, building a garage, personal items, and more.Today everyone is happy, Buyers, and Sellers. I can't wait for the house warming party.  01/26/2016

Don't Wait Until Spring To Hire A Contractor, Minot Real Estate 101 Often people make the mistake of waiting until spring to hire a contractor to build a garage, re-roof, build a deck, or even build an addition to their home.If you wait until spring chances are that the contractors you call will already be booked up for most of the building season.Don't take chances on hiring a builder by waiting until the last minute. Get references from friends and neighbors before hiring a contractor. If you are new to town ask your Realtor or a lender who they recommend for the job. Using the want ads, the yellow pages, or the Internet can all be a gamble. Realtors and lenders work with builders every day, we know who the good ones are.One more tip, write down what you want, what you expect, and whe... 01/26/2016

Condominiums and Townhouses for sale, Minot ND, 01/23/2016 Report85 Units for sale as of 01/23/2016Price Range $89,900. to $365,000.Average $203,511.Average days on market 110.Condo fees range from $50.00 month to $402.50While Condos and Townhouses look the same there are basic differences in ownership and maybe in infrastructure. Both may have fees for maintenance of the structure, yard care, and snow removal. On a condo you also share the water, sewer and garbage bill (at least here in Minot ND). In Minot a townhouse must have it's own individual water and sewer to each unit thus you will have your own billing for these utilities. 01/24/2016

As of today there are 35 Mobile Homes available in Minot ND with the inclusion of 3 in Ruthville, an unincorporated community between Minot and The Minot Air Force Base.The least expensive MH available is listed at $15,000. The most expensive is listed at $119,900. The average is $46,868. The average days on the market is 121. Current lot rents are:(as stated in the listings used) Dakota Park South $400.00Edgeview $450.00Holiday Village $395.00Jefferson $414.00Northland $315.00North Star $330.00Parkview $380.00Robindale $380.00Ruthville $400.00Western Village $420.00Woodridge $440.00 NoteIf you are looking to purchase a Mobile Home your choices of lenders will be much more limited than if you were purchasing a "stick built" home. National Marketing Realtors can help guide you to a lende... 01/24/2016

Please note the line directly above this one.In the limited category shown in the chart there were 5 homes sold this week with the most expensive having sold for $265,000 with 169 days on the market. The least expensive home to sell last week was $64,900 with 62 day on the market. Average days on market was 118 days.If you are looking for the least expensive listing in Minot or the most expensive please give National Marketing Realtors a call, we will find it for you. If you want a custom built home built just for you we partner with several contractors and we can get it built for you. Call National Marketing Realtors today. 01/24/2016

 Gardening In Minot ND, Real Estate 101     Every year I jump the gun, plant my seeds (indoors) to early, and end up having about a 50% crop failure before I even get my little seedlings into the ground.Then, due to my eager attitude, I often plant the seedlings outdoors to early and kill the remaining 50% or at least a good share of them. This has been going on for about 40 years. You would think I'd get it right... eventually. Now that I've totally disqualified myself from giving you advice on gardening... let me give you some advice on gardening.1) Read the directions on the seed package.2) Keep in mind that in general in Minot we are pretty much frost free around the first week of June.3) Those little green houses they sell at Home Depot, Menards, and other stores, blow over very ea... 01/24/2016

Shorts in January in North Dakota, It's all Relative!In North Dakota we are just coming off of a couple weeks with days containing some sub-zero temperatures.Yesterday El Nino brought us some strong winds and temps in the low 30's. This morning in Minot we woke up to a temp of 37 degrees.Here is my new, made up word: North Dakotaized. What is North Dakotized? Every year in the Minot area we gladly receive many new families from Texas, Florida, and other Southern States who move here either for the Minot Air Force Base or the oil fields.They move here in the summer and at 60 degrees they are wearing their parkas complaining how they are freezing (understandably so as it was 110 degrees at home).Then comes winter. The Canadian winds blow (notice I blame a foreign county) and the temps dro... 01/22/2016

Luxury Living, 1700 Dakota Drive, Minot ND Real Estate 101Yesterday I posted some beautiful winter scenes taken from the windows of this home. I hope you enjoy the views of the home as well. NOBODY tops the quality of materials and workmanship in a Tivoli home. It's not bragging if you can back it up! 01/22/2016

I was wondering what "clever" saying there was about old Realtors that I might use in the proper situation. The only on I found was Old Realtors Never Die, They Just Become Listless. Frankly I was hoping for better... do you have one?While looking I found this tidbit that made me laugh:Karnack The Magnificent divined the answer to the question in the hermetically sealed envelope as: "Hut 2, 3, 4.... Hut 2, 3, 4.    The envelope containing the question was opened, it asked: What is directly across the street from Hut 233.If you are looking for a Minot ND Realtor who has a sense of humor, all be it a little strange, then give me, Bob Timm a call. Buying and selling a home can be stressful, it's good to have a little humor to help fight off the stress. 01/22/2016

Our guest at today's Realtors Association meeting (Jan 21st 2016) was from the Sunrise Rotary Club. She was proud to announces that Winterfest has returned to Minot ND after being absent for a long period of time, in fact no one could remember the last one. They are starting off fairly small but hope that in a couple of years it will be a weekend event and not just a single day event. If you would like to help out look up the Sunrise Rotary Club on their website or Facebook page.  01/21/2016

Scenes From My New Listing, 1700 Dakota Drive, MinotActually I'm jumping the gun a little bit as we don't have the home on the MLS yet so I'm just going to show you the beautiful winter scenes from out the homes windows as I saw them today when I was preparing the listing.I can hardly wait to show you this beautiful custom built home by Minot's premier builder Tivoli Custom Homes. The home it's self is as beautiful as the views. 01/21/2016

                                                      Completing The Puzzle Takes Time, Minot Real Estate 101The question I hear most often from 1st time home buyers after we find "the perfect house" is how long does this process take?This may sound like a trivial question but actually it's very important. Mr and/or Ms Buyer obviously live somewhere NOW and NOW most likely requires some kind of notice that they are moving.In a nutshell I say that if everything goes perfectly you may be in your new home by 6 weeks however things seldom do go perfectly so figure 8 weeks to be safe. And then I tell them that the next several weeks are in the hands of your lender.I am then often asked how to get out of a lease. That of course depends on the landlord/managing company. You always get better r... 01/20/2016

ZONING, Minot Real Estate 101KNOW YOUR ZONING!The map above is one block of NW Minot. The upper left corner is Broadway and University and the lower left corner is Broadway and 8th Ave.Everything on the left 1/3 of the map is zoned C2 which is a commercial zoning. On the bottom in the middle is one home that is zoned R3G which means Residential Multi-family Grandfathered In, and the remaining 5 homes are zoned R1 which means Single Family Only.If you look to the left of the home zoned R3 you will see the roof of a house and a double garage. The house is pictured to our right. This house sits in the C2 zoning even tho there are several lots zoned R1 and the R3G next to it. Currently this home is being used as a Duplex with a family renting the main floor and one renting the egress baseme... 01/17/2016