Can't buy a SFH in Twin Cities for 200K? (St. Paul: sales, crime)

[Need_affordable_home]

I checked Minneapolis and you can get a 2 bedroom detached house in the low $100s. This is not true, you can get more than a shack for that price. It just wont be a big house, like 2, or less commonly 3 bedrooms and 800-1200 square feet in size. That city is sure expensive but it shouldnt be as expensive as Florida

[Cruz Azul Guy]

Have you looked closely at any of those homes in Minneapolis for 110k? Did you look at the neighborhood they were in? Guaranteed it wouldn't take you more than 5 minutes to find out why the house was priced for that amount.

[midwest456]

thanks. how much more in taxes would i pay for living in hennepin? is ramsey a lot more taxes than the more outlying metro counties as well?

[yellowsnow]

I believe the metro is composed of 7 counties. These are: Hennepin, Ramsey, Dakota, Scott, Anoka, Washington, and Rice. I think I got them right. These counties pay the highest taxes.

The difference is quite a bit of money. When you look at the MLS, check the county and the taxes paid by the current owner. Or for example, look up 300K existing homes in Hennepin and Sherburne counties.

[HKB]

Originally Posted by yellowsnow

I believe the metro is composed of 7 counties. These are: Hennepin, Ramsey, Dakota, Scott, Anoka, Washington, and Rice. I think I got them right.

Carver is the 7th county, not Rice.

Depending on how far you're willing to move out, you should check out the "exurb" counties of Wright (MN), Chisago (MN), Isanti (MN), and St. Croix (WI). Generally speaking, you can get more house for your money in those areas.

[Need_affordable_home]

Originally Posted by Slig

Have you looked closely at any of those homes in Minneapolis for 110k? Did you look at the neighborhood they were in? Guaranteed it wouldn't take you more than 5 minutes to find out why the house was priced for that amount.

They looked fine in the pictures, if not a bit small. Some may need minor TLC. I have no idea about the neighboors in Minneapolis. I only know theres dozens of houses in the low $100s, this price range is affordable for some middle class people and could be affordable for the OP's goal of spending under $200k on a house.

[HKB]

Originally Posted by Need_affordable_home

They looked fine in the pictures, if not a bit small. Some may need minor TLC. I have no idea about the neighboors in Minneapolis. I only know theres dozens of houses in the low $100s, this price range is affordable for some middle class people and could be affordable for the OP's goal of spending under $200k on a house.

You can't tell what a house & neighborhood are like from pictures. I wouldn't move into most of those neighborhoods if someone gave me the house for free. You have no idea how dangerous some of these areas are. There is violent crime on almost a daily bases in those places. For someone as concerned about crime as you claim to be, you seem incredibly naive.

OP... if you're determined to find a single family home for under $200k, you should look in suburbs like South St. Paul, West St. Paul, St. Louis Park, Fridley, Coon Rapids, Cottage Grove, and Anoka. I did a quick search on www.edinarealty.com (a Twin Cities-based real estate agency) and searched all homes between $150k and $200k in those 7 cities. 113 homes showed up.

[midwest456]

OP... if you're determined to find a single family home for under $200k, you should look in suburbs like South St. Paul, West St. Paul, St. Louis Park, Fridley, Coon Rapids, Cottage Grove, and Anoka. I did a quick search on www.edinarealty.com (a Twin Cities-based real estate agency) and searched all homes between $150k and $200k in those 7 cities. 113 homes showed up.
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Great news! Thanks for checking for me, will go there and look.
After reading these boards a few weeks (and researching elsewhere as well) I have pretty much stopped searching below 175 if it's a freestanding SFH. I thought I had mentioned St louis park earlier along with its neighbor Golden Valley and people said it would be more pricy as per the rest of the western burbs. I know that the median income of St L P is supposed to be about 60K so that sounds like a decent middle class area on average. Not to go with stereotyping or anything, but I hadn't read or heard good things about Fridley and Coon Rapids (not at all in the same category with Minneapolis north of the Olsen highway, of course).

[midwest456]

[quote=HKB;277934]A single family home for less than $200k can be found in the north metro near Blaine, but it will most likely be in a less desireable neighborhood. Coon Rapids and Anoka (blue-collar suburbs immediately west of Blaine) have many cookie-cutter 1950's/60's ramblers in the $150k-$200k price range, but many of them are dumpy and need a lot of work. I grew up in this area and I have to say that the homeowners in some of these neighborhoods don't show much pride in keeping their houses in good shape.
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Would you folks say this description also applies to Otsego and Champlin? (just over the river from Anoka)

[yellowsnow]

Otsego and Champlin have the reputation of being a bit more 'upscale'. There are also a lot of more expensive properties in those areas. A fixer in an area of more expensive homes is worth more than a fixer in an area of other fixers!