Learn Finnish: Välittäjä etsii minulle rivitaloa Espoosta. - The real estate agent is searching for a terraced house for me in Espoo.

This is a special rule (verb rection) for the verb etsiä (to search or look for). In Finnish, you do not search in a place, you search from a place. Because Espoo uses the inner location cases, it takes the elative ending -sta.

Why is rivitaloa in the partitive case?

The verb etsiä requires a partitive object. Searching is an ongoing, incomplete action—the agent is looking, but the search is not yet finished. Therefore, rivitalo takes the partitive ending -a.

Does the word välittäjä always mean a real estate agent?

Not always. It generally means a broker, agent, or mediator. In the context of housing, it is commonly used as a short form for kiinteistönvälittäjä (real estate agent).

Why is "for me" translated as minulle rather than another case?

Minulle is in the allative case, which literally means "onto me" but is widely used to mean "to me" or "for me". When someone performs a task or favor for another person, Finnish typically uses this case to show who receives the benefit.