Newer townhomes/homes near Metrodome

[silverjet]

I also second the suggestion of checking out what's available in NE Minneapolis -- it's a great area and there seem to be a lot of nice developments over there.

[mcxale]

Originally Posted by uptown_urbanist

There's a lot of nice options within walking distance of the Dome, including townhomes. They can be pricey, though. Otherwise I'd second the suggestion to look along the Hiawatha Line. There's been a lot of new development that's taken place along the route, and many of the neighborhoods have a lot of families with young kids.

It depends on your tastes and what you like to do, of course, but I think living in the Mill District (downtown, by the river) would be great if you have a young kid; lots of condos, but I think there are some townhomes, too. There's the Mill City Museum there, places to walk by the river, you'd be close to the central library (they have story times for young babies, in addition to the more standard toddler stuff), etc.

As a parent I'd also suggest that one of the downtown apartment or condo buildings could be an excellent option for someone with a young kid, especially if you find one with a common room, a pool, or simply somewhere you can go and easily hang out when it's cold and snowy outside. You lose out on the benefit of having your own backyard, I know, but the tradeoff of more communal indoor space for the cold weather might be worth it, especially if you're not planning on staying in the one location for years.

Loring Park, on the other end of downtown, has some nice newer townhomes (as well as high rise condo towers), although I'm not sure what the sale prices are like; there are some playgrounds tucked in here and there, and it's a pleasant neighborhood.

Thanks everyone!

uptown_urbanist, Mill District & Loring Park sound intriguing. I'm deterred from high-rise living since there's no yard and storage is at a minimum. I would love to find a development that is similar to where we currently live: it was built in 2007 and is a mix of townhomes & apartments and is an "up & coming" neighborhood so it's not as expensive as it would be if it was in the nicest area, and amazingly it's walking distance to my husband's job. I've found some places over the river that seem nice (not sure of the neighborhood names) but it will be a bit of a walk for my husband (over 2 miles).

[uptown_urbanist]

There are some blends of townhomes and apartments in Loring Park, including some with large balconies or patios; I think those are pretty expensive, though. I know the Greenway Gables Townhomes are about double your budget, but there may be something else similar but cheaper out there somewhere in or near downtown.

Don't forget about condo/HOA fees if you go the condo or townhome route. I admit that I forgot about them when I read this thread; I started doing some poking around (we're hoping to buy something ourselve in the next year, ideally sooner rather than later, and started to think about whether or not we'd be open to considering a townhome or highrise in Loring Park or downtown) and while some of the units themselves fall into our price range, the fees can be pretty substantial. On the other hand, they often include a lot of things that don't normally get folded into mortgage payment discussions, so I guess it's not a direct comparison when looking at single family homes without associated fees.

[mcxale]

Also - considering the Hiawatha Line area, how safe is the light rail at night? Would it be safe to take it in the middle of the night?
Thanks.

[Slig]

Originally Posted by mcxale

Also - considering the Hiawatha Line area, how safe is the light rail at night? Would it be safe to take it in the middle of the night?
Thanks.

The light rail doesn't run in the middle of the night, it stops service just after 1:00am. We have taken the light rail many times on the last few trains and have never had any concerns with safety. All the stations have video surveilance and if anything suspicious is going on a Metro Transit guy starts yelling on the loudspeaker, "You in the gray shirt, please stop bothering the passengers," or "Please do not smoke on the platform!" There also seems to be alot more metro police hopping on the trains and hanging out at the stations as it gets later at night.