A great place to raise kids! Even with $125k house? (Brooklyn Park: 2015, foreclosure)
Minneapolis - St. PaulTwin Cities
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The one and only area that might not pass your "people wouldn't be scared to go to a restaurant there" test around here would be North Minneapolis. Whether that is a fair assessment of that part of the city is another story. I would argue that the most "scary" thing about North is the fact that otherwise enlightened, progressive folks tend to have outpacedly negative opinions of the neighborhoods there without examining where that culture of fear came from in the first place. (spoiler alert: that's where the brown people have historically lived.) For the record, I am not arguing that North doesn't have it's problems--it does. But having looked at the crime maps and driven through there a lot, I don't think it is anywhere near as bad as the average Twin Cities resident might think it is.
I spent enough time renting to empathize with the desire to own. I also respect a willingness to make a few concessions in order to buy a home in your price range. I don't know much about the Twin Cities real estate market, but a quick search supports the skepticism of finding what you want in your price range in the Twin Cities.
Is there a reason that you specifically want to be in the Minneapolis/St. Paul area? Do you need a city of that size or would smaller cities work, too? You will find the same overall lifestyle just about anywhere across the upper Midwest. Low crime, good schools, and neighborhood playgrounds are pretty much the norm in this part of the country. Your housing budget would go farther in smaller cities around Minnesota, Iowa, Wisconsin, North Dakota, and South Dakota. The main disadvantages to the smaller cities are professional opportunity and cultural amenities. Des Moines, for example, won't have quite the same variety of dining, music, theater, and sports that you'll find in Minneapolis.
In Minnesota, you could take a look at Mankato or Rochester (I live in Rochester). Housing prices in Rochester are skyrocketing and they're still reasonably affordable. Your budget would give you a choice between a fixer-upper in a nice neighborhood or a nice home in a neighborhood that's bad only in comparison to the squeaky clean suburanized subdivisions inhabited entirely by upper-middle class Mayo lab techs and nurses with 2.1 honor students at the neighborhood elementary. To a lesser extent, St. Cloud and Duluth would be worth consideration. If you're willing to go smaller, that opens several more options including some exurbs of the Twin Cities.
Surrounding states have many similar options, too. I've visited Des Moines a few times and it feels very much like a miniature Minneapolis/St. Paul. I've known several people who moved to the Fargo, ND area and liked it so much they never left. Another friend lived in Sioux Falls for several years and liked it. Wisconsin has several medium sized cities, too. Of them, I'd look most closely at Madison or the Appleton/Oshkosh area. Any of these cities will have pretty much the same day-to-day characteristics as you observed in the Twin Cities. Just don't expect to discover a new Thai restaurant, catch a big league game, and then finish the night listening to an upcoming indie rock band in any of those cities. Basically, these cities let you sacrifice entertainment instead of safety, schools, or quality of the house. If you really liked what you saw in the Twin Cities, but it just doesn't quite fit your budget then it's worthwhile to look around the region.
So like I've said in some responses, thanks all for the info, I do appreciate it! I've been working on going through the suggestions so far, and below are the options that seem to have the most potential that I'd love more feedback on (positive and negative):
Coon Rapids
Crime good, schools good, 20-30 minutes from most things we'd be interested in - not close but not far. Not a bad option on cursory investigation
Summit/University
High crime, bad schools. But seems like it might have options that are within acceptable range for both
West Seventh Nothing currently available, but seems like good option for slightly more in the event we could get price lowered a reasonable amount
Victory, and north to 694 Seems like some options in this area. Schools aren't great, but crime looks bad but possibly acceptable
Overall, I am agreeing so far with the consensus that MSP isn't a good option for our price range. I'm not ready to mark it off the list quite yet, but it's pretty close. I've got a pretty solid idea of what we'd get there now, which I knew wasn't going to be great, so now it's just a matter of trying to decide if what we get (the good and bad) outweighs other options on the list that themselves have very different good/bad points.
Madison, W is a fantastic city ( I lived there many years ago), but I'm afraid that it too is out of your price range. Otherwise, it's one of the most pleasant and desirable cities in the entire nation. BTW, I'm not the only one who says this..
There are possibilities in Milwaukee, although crime has become a serious issue in some large sections of the North Side ( a bit west of Lake Michigan, though). Milwaukee has loads of modestly-priced, rather nice-looking bungalows in a price range a bit above your current ceiling, but not much more. Areas like Wauwatosa are very nice, for example, and there are nice areas on the East Side, not far from the lake. And yes, if you want to go another route, you can find very spacious 2 BR apts for about 800, as well. ..
So nobody here likes my Milwaukee suggestion huh? Look it up. The median price for homes there was around 130k last month compared to 242k for Minneapolis. This would be an ideal spot to look given the OP's requirements in my opinion.
Friends don't let friends move to Wisconsin.
j/k....my son lived in Wisconsin for a while...until he moved back to MN!
j/k....my son lived in Wisconsin for a while...until he moved back to MN!
There are some somewhat disturbing trends in America's Dairyland ( or the Land of Laverne and Shirley) that might give someone pause about moving there, yes. In fact, there have been a number of magazine articles in recent years about how Minnesota is eating Wisconsin's lunch in terms of economic development and forward-thinking policies.
So like I've said in some responses, thanks all for the info, I do appreciate it! I've been working on going through the suggestions so far, and below are the options that seem to have the most potential that I'd love more feedback on (positive and negative):
Coon Rapids
Crime good, schools good, 20-30 minutes from most things we'd be interested in - not close but not far. Not a bad option on cursory investigation
Summit/University
High crime, bad schools. But seems like it might have options that are within acceptable range for both
West Seventh Nothing currently available, but seems like good option for slightly more in the event we could get price lowered a reasonable amount
Victory, and north to 694 Seems like some options in this area. Schools aren't great, but crime looks bad but possibly acceptable
Coon Rapids: Too conservative and insular, for my tastes. But that is subjective. Served by Anoka-Hennepin District, which doesn't have a great reputation and is a national headline for its treatment of LGBTQ students (google it). Also, a pain-in-the-butt commute, but that might be a moot point.
Summit/University: Avoid. Like I said earlier, the easternmost edge of Como might be ok.
West Seventh: I wouldn't personally live there as I imagine those houses are among the oldest in the city, have probably been being rented out for a long time. They are also along some busy, loud roads (if I am picturing the area right). If they have not been long-term rentals, then what you are probably seeing is a lot of houses turning over for the first time in fifty years because the little old Polish ladies that owned them are finally going into assisted living or dying (which should be familiar to you, if you looked at any housing during your time in Pittsburgh).
Victory north to 694: Can you tell me precisely what you are defining as Victory? I have watched Victory on the MLS religiously since closing on my own home, and nothing besides homes in need of serious rehab work has popped up in your range (although there is a cute 700ish SF bungalow in Victory that I never looked at, but if you are ok with being cramped, then it might be a good one for you). Anything good that comes up under 150k that is actually IN Victory will be gone in a day.
Victory is the only neighborhood on the Northside that would pass most people's sniff test as "safe," as in, very low crime and nobody would have any reservations about raising kids there.
Anything south of Dowling is Cleveland. This is not a bad area, but is not as attractive as Victory. A lot more rental properties, and more problems with petty crime. If you are at, say, 39th and any of the streets from Penn west to the Parkway, you are far enough north that you won't notice it. I nearly bought a house in Webber-Camden during my search (east of the cemetery, south of Lind-Bonahan), but ultimately decided it was too high of a risk: the area is borderline now, and will turn dramatically one of two ways within the next five years. Cleveland is the same way. I don't have the chutzpuh to bank on neighborhoods like that turning the way I want them to to recoup my investment. I would think that with small children, you wouldn't want to, either.
Even the houses that I saw in Cleveland (there were a couple) that were under 150 needed some significant work. I am not sure what you are seeing that is different.
North of the city line is Brooklyn Center, then Brooklyn Park. These are decent areas. Older suburban, and they get a worse rap than they deserve. Those schools are ok....they used to be among the best in the state, but this was many, many years ago. This is now home to the Twin Cities' large Liberian community.
The one and only area that might not pass your "people wouldn't be scared to go to a restaurant there" test around here would be North Minneapolis. Whether that is a fair assessment of that part of the city is another story. I would argue that the most "scary" thing about North is the fact that otherwise enlightened, progressive folks tend to have outpacedly negative opinions of the neighborhoods there without examining where that culture of fear came from in the first place. (spoiler alert: that's where the brown people have historically lived.) For the record, I am not arguing that North doesn't have it's problems--it does. But having looked at the crime maps and driven through there a lot, I don't think it is anywhere near as bad as the average Twin Cities resident might think it is.
It's where the Jews historically lived.
Minneapolis is the only example you have in the US of a large city doing the "European thing" and intentionally ghettoizing the Jews.
West Seventh in St. Paul is actually doable. I would absolutely forget the suggestion made above of moving north of I94 in Summit-U. There are houses close to this price in West Seventh. Linwood-Monroe may not be the top school, but it's not that bad. The Spanish immersion is also in the area. Lots of new development in the neighborhood. There is a childcare co-op with drop-in available run through the Macalaster Groveland Rec center, which isn't all that far away.
This is a very good suggestion. The West 7th neighborhood of St Paul has lots of smaller houses for sale. It's got lot of funky little places to walk to & is in the midst of a renaissance, with lot's of young hipster-artist types moving into the area. Lot's of converted artists lofts, craft breweries, etc. It's close to DT St Paul, close to Grand Ave and the airport. Linwood-Monroe is a decent school, I have middle class friends who's kids go there and they're happy with it. Adams Spanish Immersion is another where I have friends who's kids attend and they're happy with it. For Middle & High Schools, St Paul has an array of quality Charter Schools to choose form.
Coon Rapids: Too conservative and insular, for my tastes. But that is subjective. Served by Anoka-Hennepin District, which doesn't have a great reputation and is a national headline for its treatment of LGBTQ students (google it). Also, a pain-in-the-butt commute, but that might be a moot point.
Good to know. Doesn't directly affect us, but agreed it's not our ideal neighborhood
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Victory north to 694: Can you tell me precisely what you are defining as Victory?
I'm almost certainly mis-defining it, I'm just going off of where 'victory' showed on the map and the area around that until some other obvious word showed up Here's a few examples though: 3843 Sheridan Ave - $125k 5142 Camden Ave - $124k 4110 Dupont - $125k 5222 N 4th - $130k
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