Buyer's agent · Home Match Realty
Janet sets up a private NorthstarMLS search, shows you what is wrong with each house as well as what is right, and negotiates the offer. First homes, lake places, acreage and relocations, across West Central Minnesota from Alexandria.
Reviews, reproduced as written
Three buyers' Zillow reviews, reproduced as written, with the date each was posted.
If you want a realtor who will get the job done i highly recommend Janet she helped us get the perfect house for our family of 8 ! Apart from knowing what she is doing she is a pleansant person to be around so kind i am so glad we had her as our realtor! She will not disapoint !
Janet is amazing, she was there every step of the process and made sure everything went smooth and easy. She even helped me move and clean my new home. Always a phone call away even after closing on my home. I didn't just find a relator; I found a friend. Thank you for everything you do Janet!!!
Wow this lady is the best she is funny good hearted and was ready to help me out at any moment .She made us feel like family I wouldn't have had it any different . She will work with you and walk you through any questions, issues or problems she is straight forward and is on your side through your buying process.We need more people like this in life and as friends thanks again for your help
Step by step
Here is what the process looks like from first call to keys.
Twenty minutes by phone or at the office on Kenwood Street. What you need, what you want, what you can spend, and how fast you need to move. Janet listens for the difference between needs and wants; one couple wrote that she "fully assessed our wants and needs."
Before showings, Janet will connect you with a local lender or work with yours. Sellers in this market take pre-approved buyers seriously and often will not accept a showing request without a letter.
Janet builds a saved search in NorthstarMLS matched to your criteria, so new listings and price changes reach your phone the moment they post. You see the whole market, not what one website chooses to show.
Janet lines up showings around your schedule, including evenings, weekends and last-minute requests. On site she points out the water stain, the older furnace and the neighbor's fence line, and tells you what a repair might run.
Price, closing date, inspection and financing contingencies, what stays with the house, who pays which closing costs. Janet writes the offer, explains every line, and handles the back-and-forth. A first-time buyer called her "an awesome negotiator."
Inspection, appraisal, title, insurance, final walk-through, closing table. Janet tracks every deadline and stays reachable after closing; one buyer wrote that she was "always a phone call away even after closing on my home."
Before you tour
Since August 17, 2024, under the practice changes that followed the NAR settlement, an agent working with you as a buyer needs a written agreement with you before you tour a home together, in person or live online (NAR settlement FAQs). Minnesota already required a signed buyer's broker agreement before an agent acts as your representative, and state law lists what it must contain (Minn. Stat. 82.66). In plain terms, the agreement tells you:
You can also ask, as a term of your offer, for the seller to cover some or all of your agent's pay. Janet walks you through her agreement, line by line, before you sign it, and explains anything in it you want explained. How Janet is paid is set in a written buyer agreement you sign before touring, and it is negotiable.
NorthstarMLS, counts by town
Counts only, from NorthstarMLS, outside the Longview Circle development: 31 closings since November 2023, led by Willmar (11), Alexandria (5), Glenwood (2), New London (2), Pennock (2) and Spicer (2). Homes listed by other brokerages are counted, not shown, under NorthstarMLS rules; every closing, both sides, is on the sold page.
Buyer-side closings by town since November 2023, outside Longview Circle
| Town | County | Janet for the buyer |
|---|---|---|
| Willmar | Kandiyohi County | 11 |
| Alexandria | Douglas County | 5 |
| Glenwood | Pope County | 2 |
| New London | Kandiyohi County | 2 |
| Pennock | Kandiyohi County | 2 |
| Spicer | Kandiyohi County | 2 |
| Hoffman | Grant County | 1 |
| Long Prairie | Todd County | 1 |
| Olivia | Renville County | 1 |
| Redwood Falls | Redwood County | 1 |
| Richmond | Stearns County | 1 |
| Sartell | Stearns County | 1 |
| Isanti Twp | Isanti County | 1 |
The Broker Reciprocity logo marks sold data supplied by NorthstarMLS through its Broker Reciprocity program. Data believed to be accurate but should be independently verified. Properties displayed may be listed or sold by various participants in the MLS. This home sale information is not an appraisal, competitive or comparative market analysis, CMA or home valuation.
Market numbers change month to month, so ask Janet for current comparable sales in the towns and price band you are considering: what similar homes listed at, what they sold for and how long they took. In general, homes priced well sell close to asking, and homes priced high sit and then adjust.
What that means for a buyer:
Janet will not tell you the market is "hot" or "cold." She will tell you what the last six comparable sales did and what that means for your offer.
Alexandria sits on I-94 about 132 miles from Minneapolis and 107 miles from Fargo (source, source), so a weekend of showings is realistic.
For buyers arriving from further away, Janet compresses the search. One couple relocating from California answered a Zillow ad for a house in Redwood Falls; when it did not work out, she showed them roughly a dozen homes over the next two days and they closed on a house in Buffalo Lake a few days later. Local introductions to lenders, inspectors and closers, and a full relocation guide covering hospitals, schools, employers and commutes, are all part of the service.
Lake property in West Central Minnesota has its own checklist, and Janet works through it with every lake buyer. Clients who "were in the market for a cabin" described her in their review as "extremely knowledgeable of lakes, homes and their backgrounds." Things she checks on every lake purchase:
Browse the Lake Finder for acres, depth and public access on more than 40 lakes, then read the buying a lake home guide or the cabin and seasonal home guide.
Buildable lots and rural acreage are a steady part of Janet's business. Home Match Realty lists the Longview Circle lots currently for sale, in a residential development in Osakis with lots from just under an acre to nearly two acres, and 9 Longview lots closed in 2026.
Before you buy land, Janet helps you answer the questions that decide whether it is buildable at the price you want: soil suitability for a septic system, well drilling depth in that township, zoning and minimum lot size, road access and easements, and whether utilities reach the lot line. See the selling and buying land guide and the new construction guide.
Janet is not a lender and does not steer you to one, but she knows local banks and credit unions and can introduce you. A few starting points:
Read before you offer
How first-time buyers in Minnesota go from renting to closing: Start Up down payment loans, buyer agreements, seller disclosures, closing costs and homestead.
Lake classes, shoreland setbacks, septic and well checks, dock rules, invasive species, flood insurance and taxes to verify before buying a Minnesota lake home.
VA loans are for eligible veterans and service members; USDA loans are for moderate-income buyers in rural areas. Fees, income limits, well and septic rules.
Listed by Home Match Realty
Pending
Tell Janet what you are looking for and where, and she will set up your private search today. Call or text (320) 219-2488 if you would rather talk first.
Questions people ask
How Janet is paid is set in a written buyer agreement you sign before touring, and it is negotiable. The agreement states the amount or how it is figured; ask her to walk you through it before you sign.
Yes. Since August 17, 2024, an agent working with you as a buyer needs a written agreement before touring a home with you, in person or live online, and Minnesota requires a signed buyer's broker agreement before an agent acts as your representative (Minn. Stat. 82.66).
Yes. Janet can show you any home listed in NorthstarMLS, the shared database brokerages across the region use, and represent you on any of them, whoever the listing brokerage is. Of her 31 buyer-side closings outside Longview Circle since November 2023, 30 name another brokerage as the listing brokerage in NorthstarMLS.
Then Janet would represent both you and the seller, which Minnesota calls dual agency, and it needs the written consent of both of you. Your buyer agreement includes a dual agency disclosure where you say up front whether you will consider homes Home Match Realty lists, and if it comes up, the purchase agreement asks you and the seller to consent again. As a dual agent she owes duties to both sides, keeps each side's price, terms and motivation confidential unless that side says in writing to share them, and cannot advocate for one side against the other. If you decline dual agency, you may give up the chance to buy Home Match Realty's listings with Janet as your agent. Minnesota requires every agent to give you the Agency Relationships in Real Estate Transactions disclosure at the first substantive contact (Minn. Stat. 82.67).
Usually the same day or the next, depending on the seller's showing instructions. Janet takes last-minute requests, including evenings and weekends.
Yes. Most sellers will not consider an offer without a pre-approval letter, and some will not schedule showings. Janet can introduce you to local lenders if you do not have one.
It depends on the house, not a rule of thumb. Ask Janet for the current comparable sales on the homes you like; she pulls sold prices, list-to-sale history and days on market before recommending a number.
You can negotiate repairs or credits, walk away within the contingency period, or proceed as-is. Janet will walk you through each option and tell you which makes sense for the issue found.
Yes. A couple relocating from California wrote that she "showed us about a dozen houses" in two days, and she handles the lender, inspector and closer introductions. See the relocation page.
With financing, 30 to 45 days from accepted offer is typical. Cash purchases can close in two weeks if title is clean.
Ready when you are
Janet lines up showings around your schedule, evenings and weekends included.
