Minnetonka recommendations (Minneapolis, St. Paul, Burnsville: realty, property taxes, houses)

[mazzer]

Hi Everyone,

We've got the chance to move to Minnetonka and we're looking for nice areas nearby to live.

We need good schools, not too expensive say $450K max, I like victorians, my wife like small towns like Mahtomedi and Stillwater, so something like that would be great.

Maz--

[golfgal]

It will be slim pickings for $450K in Minnetonka. Commuting from Minnetonka from Stillwater/Mahtomedi wouldn't be fun. Growing up in Stillwater my preference is also for older, Victorian homes and the reality is that in the twin cities the only places you are going to find them in any great number is Stillwater, St. Paul around Summit Ave area, Minneapolis and Northfield. Expect to pay about a million in St. Paul/Minneapolis for the Victorians there, Stillwater will be about $500,000+, Northfield will be a little less.

[Robert P Stewart]

Great recommendations, Golfgal.

Good victorians are difficult to come by. Great victorians are even harder.

Minnetonka is an expensive place, but I think it may be possible to work within your budget. Your commute east will be horrific though.

I absolutely love Stillwater, and for your budget, you may be able to find something quite nice there.

Take care,

Robert

[Minnehahapolitan]

Stillwater is nice, but if you want to commute there from Mtka, you'd be nuts. For Victorians, try looking around Lake Mtka, Wayzata, Excelsior, Orono, Et Cetera. Orono is more suburban, Excelsior and Wayzata are old towns. There are perhaps a few old farmhouses left in Mtka or other suburbs, you may half to wait for one to come on the market there. It would also be easy to live in Mpls. and commute, especially if you are along the Lake St. area. (Live in the Souithwest High district for the best schools, or open enroll in suburban districts) If you wanted a slightly newer house (craftsman era) you could look in parts of Saint Louis Park, Edina and Hopkins. Good luck with your search.

[mazzer]

Thanks guys.

The reason I'm looking all over is I have two interviews with two different companies for very similar roles. Either company is good, however as you can see from my confusing previous messages one is over on Rice St in St Paul, the other is near to Eden Prairie.

I'm commuted to death right now and want a break from all that. I drive 120 miles in LA traffic per day which is bad news. So I'm not planning on driving from Stillwater.

I'll just have to scale back on my victorian plans and get something a little more modest.

Minnehahapolitan could you give me some districts so I can plug them into my search tool? You mentioned Southwest High and districts?

Also, I heard Edina was not very nice, have I got this wrong, thought crime was bad there?? (Apologies if I'm wrong!)

Thanks for the recommendations guys, sorry about cross posting Golfgal!

Maz-

[golfgal]

Edina is one of the best districts in the state, Southwest High is not. One thing you need to understand about Minnesota is that unless you are in St. Paul or Minneapolis proper, almost all of the schools are good. One the western side of the cities, Eden Prairie, Wayzata, Minnetonka, etc. are all good districts. Really, in Minnesota people choose places to live based on what their kids want to do--if you have a superstar football player, Eden Prairie, good runners, EP, Rosemount, Lakeville. Cross Country Skier, Stillwater.

[mazzer]

Originally Posted by golfgal

Edina is one of the best districts in the state, Southwest High is not. One thing you need to understand about Minnesota is that unless you are in St. Paul or Minneapolis proper, almost all of the schools are good. One the western side of the cities, Eden Prairie, Wayzata, Minnetonka, etc. are all good districts. Really, in Minnesota people choose places to live based on what their kids want to do--if you have a superstar football player, Eden Prairie, good runners, EP, Rosemount, Lakeville. Cross Country Skier, Stillwater.

As soon as I started looking at Edina I could see I had it mistaken for some other place!! Sorry (humble pie time!).

Got an 8 year old girl who enjoyed playing soccer last year, I quite enjoyed assisting in coaching too!!

It is quite different to Stillwater and Mahtomedi, my chances are 50/50 so I have too look hard at both areas!

[Minnehahapolitan]

School Districts: Edina, Minnetonka, Wayzata, Hopkins, Eden Priarie, St. Louis Park.
"Be more cautious of": Robbinsdale, Burnsville
Disregard: Richfield (I would rather send my kid to North High, no joke)
If I drove 120 miles a day I would cry, that's horrible. I can't comment much on sports at different districts. Golfgal, don't dismiss Southwest simply because it is in Mpls. (Granted, Mpls. is a lousy excuse for a school system) Their Int'l Bach. program is one of the best in the state and their test scores outperform some suburban schools.
Minnehahapolitan----

[golfgal]

Originally Posted by Minnehahapolitan

School Districts: Edina, Minnetonka, Wayzata, Hopkins, Eden Priarie, St. Louis Park.
"Be more cautious of": Robbinsdale, Burnsville
Disregard: Richfield (I would rather send my kid to North High, no joke)
If I drove 120 miles a day I would cry, that's horrible. I can't comment much on sports at different districts. Golfgal, don't dismiss Southwest simply because it is in Mpls. (Granted, Mpls. is a lousy excuse for a school system) Their Int'l Bach. program is one of the best in the state and their test scores outperform some suburban schools.
Minnehahapolitan----

There are many quality student in both the St. Paul and Minneapolis school districts but the majority are not and while the teachers are fine, the atmosphere in those schools is such that it is difficult to be a good student.

[movin' right along]

This is my first post on this site, hope I'm doing everything right!

My husband grew up in Mahtomedi, his mother taught in the school district for years. His family moved to the area (Dellwood) because of the schools. You'll pay for it in your property taxes. Mahtomedi is one of the best school districts in the state, smaller class size, great teachers, wonderful community. Stillwater schools are decent, but much larger than Mahtomedi. If you chose Mahtomedi, you'd be near White Bear Lake (beautiful area), and could buy a nice home for $450k. Close commute to St. Paul but a haul to Eden Prairie (35 miles each way, I did it for 3 months and then moved!). You'd also be close enough (10-15 minutes) to Stillwater to enjoy the shops, the river, the many festivals.

We love the Stillwater area, great houses, still some affordable old Victorian homes. My personal opinion, Minnetonka area homes are cookie cutter, lack any architectural significance - 50s ramblers, bleh. There are exceptions, I'm sure, but you'd really have to look. Wayzata, Excelsior are lovely, great homes, but very expensive. The same feel as Stillwater, but a little more exclusive.

Some sites I've used to help with the house search (in the midst of ourselves, considering the same areas - my husband works in Minnetonka)
www.edinarealty.com, http://education.state.mn.us/ReportCard2005/

Good luck!