New Website Soon!

Hello my dedicated and awesome readers!  I'm posting to announce that, in the very near future, the real estate team I work for will be unveiling a new website.  This website is in the works at the moment, but we are very excited about it. 

Among a whole host of great features, the most important to us is the property search.  When the website is launched, you will be able to search properties easily and efficiently directly on our website.  We believe this will be greatly beneficial to our clients.  As soon as the website is rolled out, I will be sure to come back and let all you readers know.  It is also possible that this blog will be featured on the website (in addition to being here as well).  Stay tuned everyone, thanks for reading!

Minneapolis Bedroom Requirements

I run into this situation a lot when showing homes in Minneapolis - is that room in the basement really a bedroom?  Is that loft-area in the upper level really a bedroom?  For owner-occupants, these questions may not be as important - any room can serve as a bedroom if you really want it to be!  However, this question becomes far more important when dealing with potential rental properties.  For a landlord renting a home, bedrooms equal cash flow so it is important to make sure your home has legal bedrooms that would pass a City of Minneapolis rental inspection.

The following criteria are listed at the very beginning of the City of Minneapolis' maintenance code.  They list the definition of a bedroom as "a habitable room within a dwelling unit which is used, or intended to be used, primarily for the purpose of sleeping, but shall not include any kitchen or dining room".  Seems pretty straight forward, right?  But just a minute - the City also lists a number of measurable parameters to determine whether a room meets the City's definition.  That list includes:

• Minimum seven foot ceiling height.
• Minimum of seventy square feet, excluding closet space.  
• A source of natural light that is equal to or greater than 8% of the floor area.
• A source of natural ventilation that is equal to or greater than 4% of the floor area.
• Cannot be arranged such that access to a sleeping room can be had only by going through another sleeping room, bathroom or toilet room.  If the home was built prior to 1920, this situation is grandfathered, however.
• Bedroom must be properly egressed.   

What's interesting is that you'll notice there is nothing in the code that requires a closet.  However, in order to be a legal bedroom, the above criteria MUST be met.  

Romney, Obama, and Housing

With the Presidential election just a couple months away, lets take a quick look at what each candidates housing policies are.

Barack Obama (D) - With President Obama, we actually have a track record to look at.  Unfortunately for the President, his housing policies have done very little to fix the problems facing the market.  Through a variety of different programs (HARP, HARP II, etc..) Obama has primarily focused on helping underwater homeowners refinance in an attempt to keep them in their homes.  These various programs have had some success, but most analysts agree that they haven't done nearly enough.

Interestingly, President Obama's re-election website does not list any housing policies.  He has posted his policy positions on a variety of other issues, but housing is notably absent.  Unfortunately for the market, the President doesn't seem to have much of a vision, and if he does he isn't exactly waving it around for the public to see.

Mitt Romney (R) - Mitt Romney has not been President, so we don't have a track record to analyze.  However, his website does lay out his policy vision on housing.  You can find that information here.  The core of Romney's housing plan is to reform Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, the two government-sponsored enterprises.  The website doesn't provide any specifics as to what constitutes "reform", so it is unclear what exactly he means.  He also mentions that he plans to roll back most or all of the new rules and reforms instituted under President Obama.  Mitt Romney certainly deserves credit for outlining and providing a housing policy, but the lack of specifics is certainly frustrating.

Conclusion:  So what does this all mean?  From a "big picture" perspective, neither candidate seems willing to address the substantive issues in the housing market.  Although the market has recovered significantly in recent years, there are certainly underlying issues that need to be tackled.  Personally, I'd like to see something from the following list implemented:

-One year moratorium on all foreclosures sales.
-Streamlining of the short sale process with basic rules set by the federal government.
-Slight loosening of underwriting standards on Freddie and Fannie loans.
-Streamlined re-financing of any underwater homeowner who is current on payments.

I could continue this list, but these are four ideas that would drastically help the market, and neither candidate is willing to go there.

At the end of the day, the pundits say this election will be about the economy but the candidates refuse to discuss one of the central tenants of the economy.  It's frustrating as a real estate agent, and it has to be even more frustrating for those that bore the brunt of the housing market.