house!
Hello fellow Duluthians! After renting here for about five and a half years, I've decided to put down some more permanent roots and buy a house. And despite the charming graphic a few posts down, I'm looking to buy in the Hillside.
Does anybody have any recommendations for realtors, particularly one that not going to hate me for buying a $65,000 house that won't net them a very big commission? My only caveat is that I'd rather stay away from Gables and Ivy, since I had a bad experience renting from them (landlord couldn't have cared less about the property, didn't even mention broken light fixtures or leaky roofs until the day we were moving in, didn't care if the other tenants blatantly violated the lease, etc.) and I've heard from some other people who were similarly unimpressed with Gables and Ivy.
But I'd like to hear your opinions, good and bad, about any real estate companies/agents that you've dealt with.
Thanks!
Posted by
Sonya on July 11, 2008 11:42 AM | Permalink
Comments
Casey Knutson Carbert is awesome! She works hard, has an great memory, and is reliable.
CASEY KNUTSON CARBERT
(218) 348-7325
[email protected]
www.edmundsllp.com
Posted by: Pistoffnick | July 11, 2008 12:10 PM
Casey Knutson Carbert is awesome! She works hard, has an great memory, and is reliable.
CASEY KNUTSON CARBERT
(218) 348-7325
[email protected]
www.edmundsllp.com
Posted by: Pistoffnick | July 11, 2008 12:11 PM
The hillside is awesome despite what others may say. If you are nice and don't sell drugs or fight people in the middle of the night we would welcome you with open arms.
There are a couple of houses on fifth street that are worth looking at. Can't recommend a realtor
Posted by: jp | July 11, 2008 12:29 PM
Tiss Underdahl is, like Casey, a fabulous realtor who lives with a prominent local artist, so she understands the needs of artists and creative people in terms of housing. She just worked with a new professor coming to UWS who is married to an artist and they were quite pleased with her and with the house they bought in Lakeside. They had specific needs in a house b/c the husband wanted to work in a studio at his home.
We worked with Lynn Beechler when we moved here 14 years ago and thought highly of her, she pays attention to what you want, and what you can afford in a house.
See, you have lots of choices! Good luck.
Posted by: Claire | July 11, 2008 12:35 PM
Jason Hoch and Tim Belcastro of Ally Realty are fantastic! They made our first home buying experience smooth, easy and fun. They work very hard and are very professional.
Posted by: AJB | July 11, 2008 12:56 PM
We used Jeff Urbinak for our first house. I'm not sure which company he's with now (maybe Remax?). He helped us put in our offer on a contract for deed! I'm sure his commission was only in the hundreds on that sale....
Posted by: Tim K | July 11, 2008 01:37 PM
the mitch!
Posted by: c-freak | July 11, 2008 02:45 PM
I've worked just a bit with Casey, she impressed me.
Posted by: Ted | July 11, 2008 03:31 PM
Welcom eto the Hillside! I live by East High School for 16 years and moved to the hill 6 yeras ago and haven't regretted it once. Make sure you get a view-that's what livingon the hillside is all about.
Know Cassey & Tiss both persoanlly. Both have totally different personalities, but both are terrific agents and care about their customers. My agent who was the ABSOLUTE best (and Casey's mentor I understand) has retired, so I can't recommend her, but w/o her I wouldn't be watching the 1000 footer going through the canal right now...
Posted by: top of the hill guy | July 11, 2008 03:33 PM
Jack Harnstrom (I believe he is with Prodigy now) was a wonderful buyer's agent for us. He was patient in answering questions, patient while we looked at what seemed like a million houses (at a modest budget, too) was easy to get a hold of whenever there were issues, questions or papers to sign (that is SO important!).
No matter who you choose, I'm glad you're going to get a buyer's agent on your side. Too many buyers just trust whomever the seller's agent is--which is not always the best idea.
Posted by: jest me | July 11, 2008 03:34 PM
Casey Knutson Carbert is awesome! She works hard, has an great memory, and is reliable.
CASEY KNUTSON CARBERT
(218) 348-7325
[email protected]
www.edmundsllp.com
Posted by: Pistoffnick | July 11, 2008 04:25 PM
Casey Knutson Carbert is awesome! She works hard, has an great memory, and is reliable.
CASEY KNUTSON CARBERT
(218) 348-7325
[email protected]
www.edmundsllp.com
Posted by: Pistoffnick | July 11, 2008 04:26 PM
Wow, thanks everyone! I'll definitely be contacting Casey and Tiss and maybe a few others.
I've lived and worked in the Hillside for as long as I've been in Duluth, so it already feels like home. :) I'm looking forward tomaking it a more permanent home.
Posted by: Sonya | July 11, 2008 04:42 PM
Hey Sonya, I have one to add: Tom Bridge with ReMax. He was very patient, knowledgable, and upfront about any problems he knew about with the houses. Good luck!
Posted by: Jess | July 11, 2008 05:23 PM
I haven't looked much in Duluth but I didn't know you could still get a house here for 65k. I've done a lot of looking in Superior and boy do they have a lot of junk. Anything under 90k is usually in real bad shape or doesn't have a basement. Without a proper foundation the house is pretty much useless to me. Anyway good luck with your hunt. BTW the real estate agents I've talked to seem not to care how much the house is going for. They still answer questions and treat me ok.
Posted by: Anarchy | July 11, 2008 06:54 PM
Forgot to mention I did live right above the Central High clock tower for a little while. Place burned down after I moved. Rent was $25 a month. Free drinks in the alley out of brown paper bags back then. It was about 1969 or 70.Don't know if that has changed over the years or not.
Posted by: Anarchy | July 11, 2008 07:18 PM
Nicki Conrad - most awesome realtor, ever. She went to bat for us so many, many times and found us the most perfect house. She's very child-friendly and very used to people who can only spend $65k. You can call her at 218-391-6428.
There are some nice houses just down the way from us on E 10th St and 12th Ave E, but I have no idea what the price is...
Posted by: tamara | July 11, 2008 08:25 PM
My husband and I loved Deanna Bennett with Messina. And she was plenty patient enough to take us through the more than 30(?) houses we looked at before we found THE ONE.
Posted by: a different tamara | July 11, 2008 10:02 PM
I had great luck with Kris Kapsner of Messina in buying my new home. He's a great guy and very knowledgeable.
Posted by: ironic1 | July 13, 2008 11:48 AM