Finding a new home in the Twin Cities can be difficult, especially if you are new to the Minneapolis/St. Paul metro area and just don’t know where to begin your search. A lot of things have changed in the housing market in the last few years and for some people that can be really confusing. It always helps to know someone who knows something about buying a home or building a new home but if you don’t here are a few ideas for gathering the information you need when beginning to search for your next new home in the Twin Cities housing market.
Here are several ways to start your new home search, some are obvious, and some not so much, but still worth trying:
Find a Trusted Realtor
There is an old saying that everyone has at least one Realtor in their family. If you have a sister or brother-in-law who is a licensed Realtor then by all means give them a call. If you don’t have a family member or friend who sells real estate then ask a friend who they consider to be a trusted Realtor in Minnesota. You will be developing a long term relationship with your Realtor so check out their referrals and make sure you like and respect one another.
Find Your New Home in the Sunday Paper
The Sunday paper is still a great place to find new homes. Each week real estate agents, brokers and home owners list their homes for sale with a schedule of Open Houses. These ads are usually in color with more detail in the Sunday edition but you can also find the information other days of the week. The Sunday paper can usually be accessed online for free or for a nominal fee.
Check Out The Builder’s Website
Nowadays every home builders has a website with information about the homes they have built, the homes they have in inventory and the homes they are in the process of building. The builder’s website is a great resource for finding a new home in the Twin Cities metro area.
Social Networks
Social Networks like Facebook, Twitter and Linkedin are great resources for finding a new home on the web. You can either ask a question such as “where is a great place to live” or “who are the best home builders in Minneapolis” and get a whole bunch of answers from your network, or you can simply type those queries into the search bars of any of those sites. Either way, social networking sites have made searching for anything much easier and less time consuming.