question on corner lot (St. Louis Park, Inver Grove Heights: city hall, credit, houses)

[kitty2007]

I am interested in a house in corner lot,but I am not quite sure about the advantage and disadvantage of corner lot. Some people told me that was more difficult to sell a house in corner lot compared to others which were not at corner.Is that true?Could you please give me some suggestions?Thanks so much for your help.

[Lindenin]

I view corner lots as good, as long as that corner isn't a major intersection. I like them because you probably only have neighbors on two sides.

Others don't like them because you might have traffic noise on two sides instead of one, and because in a place like MN it might mean substiantially more sidewalk to clear of snow in the winter.

As for resale, I'll leave that to the pro's who frequent this board.

[Robert P Stewart]

Corners can be great and/or terrible. Here's what I've found:

Houses that benefit from corners are ones that:

a) take advantage of the corner. If the home is constructed at a 45 degree angle to the corner and uses the positioning for show - very good. Last year, I sold a home in a quiet neighborhood in Inver Grove Heights for full value in a neighborhood that was relatively old. The home had moderate renovation issues to boot. I credit our success, in part, to the fact that the home sat proudly facing the corner with enough set back from the road to be stately.

b) not on busy intersections. This is a toughy. I've seen sellers take major hits when it comes time to sell. Who wants to live in a home that should probably become a gas station one day?

There are exceptions and ways of dealing with this though:

We sold a property on Louisiana Ave in St. Louis Park that has serious traffic. The home owners planted privacy bushes and trees many years ago, and even with the traffic, the home felt relatively private. Other exceptions are the mega ramblers in St. Louis Park/Golden Valley area that go for $1 mill+. Lots of traffic, but holy carp the area is cool. Kind of like Miles Davis meets the Daytona 500. Ok, bad comparison...

Does that help?

Robert

[kitty2007]

Thanks for your suggestion. Do you know where can get city plan information---to know whether there is more houses to be built,new stores,etc?Thanks again.

[Ben Around]

We live on a corner lot in St Paul. Advantages: two "fronts" to showcase, the house is more prominent. (A disadvantage when I haven't kept up maintenece like needing a paint job or a major shrub trim!) Disadvantage: as someone else pointed out, I have lots more sidewalk to shovel than my neighbors. Both streets are quiet, so noise not an issue. I *think* I may pay more taxes since the city assesses street maintenence by the foot. Not that big a deal to me, but may be to you.

[Ben Around]

Originally Posted by kitty2007

Thanks for your suggestion. Do you know where can get city plan information---to know whether there is more houses to be built,new stores,etc?Thanks again.

Check with city hall to see how the property around the one you want to buy is zoned.

[BeckyS]

The local library in your neighborhood will probably have copies of any PUD or other construction in the neighborhood as well as zoning maps and the like.

[JenLee]

A corner lot is a major expense when it's time for the streets to be redone. You will be assessed by the foot; and when the city puts in new curb and gutters; your neighbors will be complaining about their huge assessments; but you will be hit with a double whammy (or more, depending on how deep your block is) of the assessment fees that they are hit with.

Do some serious research on this before purchasing; I *think* (but can't remember for sure) that that assessment fee can be transferred to the buyer of a corner lot too.