How are the house rentals and foreclosures in Saint Cloud? (Minneapolis: short sales, renters)

[icequeen2008]

I am moving to Saint Cloud soon anyone know how easy or hard it is to get a house?

[MommyShell]

What type/size house are you looking for? I know of a great house in Monticello, which is about 25 minutes on I-94 from St. Cloud, centrally located between St. Cloud and Minneapolis.

[knke0204]

The City of St. Cloud put on a rental license freeze. Also, if you buy a property in St Cloud that currently is a rental property, you now must re-apply instead of being grandfathered in. And re-applying isnt possible, since there is a rental property freeze. Its a good move by the city, avoiding the over saturation of rental properties. Although rentals are great for the college kids and lower incomes, homeownership is the most desirable for owners and the city. Homeownership means higher property values due to the maintainence and upkeep.

I would assume that South St Cloud is having its problems wtih forclosures among the newer expensive homes that were involved in the bubble.

[ozzie679]

Originally Posted by knke0204

The City of St. Cloud put on a rental license freeze. Also, if you buy a property in St Cloud that currently is a rental property, you now must re-apply instead of being grandfathered in. And re-applying isnt possible, since there is a rental property freeze. Its a good move by the city, avoiding the over saturation of rental properties. Although rentals are great for the college kids and lower incomes, homeownership is the most desirable for owners and the city. Homeownership means higher property values due to the maintainence and upkeep.

I would assume that South St Cloud is having its problems wtih forclosures among the newer expensive homes that were involved in the bubble.

St Cloud put the hammer down on rental houses. Good for them (us)! It's not fair to a home owner to have a rental full of riff raff lowering the property values of the neighmorhood. Now when I say "riff raff"...I mean the dregs of society. Not renters in general...because I am one

I would think Sartell would also have a good number of foreclosures.

[knke0204]

Originally Posted by ozzie679

St Cloud put the hammer down on rental houses. Good for them (us)! It's not fair to a home owner to have a rental full of riff raff lowering the property values of the neighmorhood. Now when I say "riff raff"...I mean the dregs of society. Not renters in general...because I am one

I would think Sartell would also have a good number of foreclosures.

I understand that cities the size of St Cloud need rentals, and because of the university and colleges, but there needs to be some sort of mandate to manage them.

The rental freeze is nice, but it doesn't fix the problem. The problem is the landlords who currently have licenses that refuse to maintain their property. I lived in South side Neighborhood for 2 years, and the number of neglected rentals compared to up kept rentals is staggering. To have a rental licence in the city, I think owners should pass an inspection EVERY year and have periodic inspections throughout the year at random times to ensure upkeep and maintainence.

Its all about the broken window theory -- A building with broken windows is much more likely to get more broken windows by followers than a building with no broken windows. In other words, keep up the homes and rest will follow suite.

[egordenier]

There are a ton of foreclosures and short sales all over the area including St. Cloud. I am a realtor so I have first hand knowledge of that. Are you a first time home buyer? If so, you can capitalize on a fantastic buyer's market, record low interest rates, AND the $8,000 first time home buyer's tax credit. Go for it!!