Salary-challenged and facing relocation--can I afford to live here? (Minneapolis: wood floors, sale)

[Lake Affected]

I'm probably going to be asked very soon whether I'm "willing to relocate," and in this case the relocation is to the Twin Cities.

We live in Rochester, NY so the winter weather horror stories don't scare me off. What's most likely to scare me off is if we can't afford a safe and comfortable living situation.

Rochester is a depressed area that didn't really experience a housing bubble, which is why we could afford our 1400 sq. ft. Colonial with a front and back yard on a quiet tree-lined street even though we aren't at all well-off. It is in a nice neighborhood that's cheek-by-jowl to an area with gang activity, shootings, drug houses, etc. A lot of people wouldn't even consider moving there because of the proximity to a deprived, high-crime area, but we know the city and knew this was a good place to live.

My guess is that, if we want to buy a house in the Twin Cities, we'll be looking at some not-so-great city neighborhoods, just like we did in Rochester. When you know you're going to be looking in some struggling areas, that local perspective on just how bad you can expect things to get in the various neighborhoods is invaluable. Any insight would be greatly appreciated. I know most people want to know where the nice areas are, but in our circumstances it's also helpful to know which parts of town are neither friendly nor safe, so that we don't factor housing prices in these areas into our consideration of the relocation prospect.

We aren't adverse to looking in small town, suburban, or rural areas either--it's simply a question of whether we could afford to live in such a place. The company I work for is in Eagan, so it would be nice not to have an hour-long morning commute.

[audadvnc]

We don't know the extent of your living expense budget, but there are several places in Minneapolis and St. Paul that are inexpensive and transitional. And in comparison to several US cities, the poorer areas aren't really all that bad here. You can pick and choose your neighborhood, and get a feel for the places by driving around. Tell us a little more what you're looking for...

[golfgal]

What is your budget? Eagan is a great, safe community with great schools. There are several towns just south of Eagan that are "affordable" by Twin Cities standards with easy, easy commutes into Eagan.

[Lake Affected]

My husband and I are in our 30s, no children. You might call us an "education poor" professional couple. Our current house was $73,000. The property taxes in Minnesota are much gentler than what we have here, so we could afford more for our second home, but anything much over $100k is probably not appropriate for our budget.

We love our current house, which is a 1924 colonial of about 1400 square feet. Wood floors, plaster walls and plenty of old-house charm and inconvenience. My husband likes to spread out, and he found the house to be an adequate size. I am very into gardens so a bit of a yard would be excellent.

If I could change anything about our current house, I would add a fireplace. My husband would add 600 square feet.

My husband loves to go running and we both love the woods and nature. We also love cheap restaurants and used book stores. We have two pussycats so that is an issue when it comes to condos or townhouses. My husband is English and loves to be able to walk places rather than drive, but he enjoys the countryside as well. It's probably worth mentioning that his attire and appearance, while normal for Camden Town outside London, probably wouldn't go over well in a neighborhood that was ultra-conservative or suspicious of anyone not wearing Dockers.

I can fix cosmetic problems fairly easily but anything that has to be up to code is beyond my capability. As far as weird pet peeves go, my husband can't stand sleeping on the ground floor, and I absolutely loathe rodents so any neighborhood where you can expect to see more than the occasional mouse indoors is right out.

[uptown_urbanist]

I agree with the others; it all depends on your budget. Also, what kind of neighborhood do you prefer if you have a choice? Some of the most affordable options are in the suburbs, so there's no need to live in the city if you don't like cities. On the other hand, there are also some relatively affordable, very nice city neighborhoods, too, so you can likely find something affordable in a safe city neighborhood, too, if that's more your speed. The Twin Cities aren't the most affordable place around, but I think they offer a pretty value. I'd start by at least guessing a rough estimate of how much you're willing to spend, then work from there.

ETA: our posts just crossed. Your budget is pretty small for a house, although it's potentially doable; will you be getting a cost of living increase for the move here?

[Lake Affected]

U_U, I'm not likely to see a COL increase, as the company considers the Rochester and Twin Cities COLs "comparable." At this point I'm mostly trying to get a sense of what kind of lifestyle changes I could expect if I relocated--could we have a house or a condo or would we have to rent, what kind of neighborhood could we afford, how long a commute would I have, etc.

As for what kind of neighborhood we'd like, we like living on a quiet street but don't consider "quiet" and "urban" mutually exclusive. We like fields and crickets and creeks too, but with fairly easy access to the urban center (1-2 hours away at most). I'm a homebody, but my husband likes some nightlife. We don't like treeless housing developments, or being run over by suburban assault vehicles. We don't like pit bulls and barbed wire either. In an ideal world, a quiet city annex would be perfect. We recognize that we will probably be unable to afford anything like that.

[Cruz Azul Guy]

I ran a search on the MLS in the Twin Cities for homes 100k or less, at least 1400 square feet and which have a fireplace. I found around 100 properties that met this set of criteria, with almost all of them located in Brooklyn Park, Brooklyn Center, North Minneapolis and the East side of St. Paul. Those would be good areas to start looking.

[Lake Affected]

Slig, you are a star. Thanks!

[audadvnc]

There's a house right near the one I'm buying in near North Mpls that will go on sale for about $100K after the renovation is complete. It's a late Victorian, built around 1910, 2 1/2 stories, on a quiet street in a part of town has had its share of rough times and is on the mend. No fireplace in this house, but plenty more community rehab projects are in process. Stay tuned...

[uptown_urbanist]

I'd check the commute on all of those areas, as some might get to be longer than you'd like.

Based on your description, though, I think you'll like the Twin Cities.