Townhomes - budget conscience - young newlyweds (Minneapolis, St. Paul: for sale, real estate market)

[mnswerin]

We are twenty-something, newlyweds and are looking for a home in the Twin Cities surrounding area. We are on a budget of $140,000 (because we are paying off our student loans), which limits our options. We both work in Minneapolis and want to keep our commute to 40 minutes max, however, neigbhorhood matters because we hope to start a family within the next couple of years. I am looking for advice on locations, and the debate of Townhome vs. Single Family fixer upper homes - which are a better investment? I am feeling very overwhelmed with this process -any help would be great!

[uptown_urbanist]

Are you open to city neighborhoods, too, or do you want a suburb? I get the impression you want a suburb, but wasn't sure if the "Twin Cities surround area" included or excluded the core cities themselves.

When you say "neighborhood matters" what exactly do you mean? Some of that is subjective, and different things matter to different people (including to those with young children) so more details would help you get a better targeted search area.

Where do you live now, and do you like it? Is it out of the question, financially-speaking?

[mnswerin]

I guess when I said neighborhood matters I meant safety and schools are a priority. We are open to the cities themselves if there is a safe neighborhood. We live in Roseville right now and it is kind of out of our price range unless we bought a very extreme fixer upper, however, that is kind of what we are seeking advice about - the investment value of fixer upper vs. a townhome. We are pretty open minded about neighborhood factors - just want a workable commute (20-40 minutes), safety, good schools, and other than that would love access to parks and shops, but the other things are more important. Thank you for your feedback.

[uptown_urbanist]

Maybe look into somewhere like the Kingfield neighborhood of Minneapolis; that's near Lake Harriet, but on the cheaper side of Lyndale. I've seen some fixer-uppers listed there in your price range (most are higher, but there are some that might work). That neighborhood has a really strong neighborhood association (from what I've heard) and residents who are working very hard on behalf of their neighborhod. It seems to have a lot of families that have been priced out of some of the other SW Minneapolis neighborhoods, and I would imagine that it will continue to increase in desirability in the years to come. It would be an easy commute, it's safe, I would imagine that from a property value point of view it would be a good investment. I think it's one of the better values in SW Minneapolis for someone who wants to find something affordable yet doesn't want one of the more "transitional" neighborhoods, and also wants to be somewhere with a lot of other young families. The houses in Kingfield are older, which means that you could potentially have some luck finding a great fixer-up home with great bones (older Minneapolis homes tend to have nice woodwork and other features) that could be restored to something really fabulous.

Remember to check out the first-time homebuyer programs; I know Minneapolis and St. Paul have them, and I'm assuming that most of the suburbs do, too. Also, this isn't a sure thing, of course, but some Minneapolis neighborhoods have grant money available for certain housing upgrades. If you buy in Minneapolis check with your local neighborhood organization to see what they might offer.

Another thing that I've started to look into is the possibility of adding "granny flats" (or alley flats - basically apartments above garages that can then be rented out for extra income); they're actively encouraged in a few places in Minneapolis, and in other areas the city is open to considering giving out zoning variances. I don't know if that's of interest of not, but it might be something worth considering.

[Haver]

As a single man in his 40's I've been actively prospecting the townhomes in West Bloomington around 169 & Old Shakopee Road. Many would be in your price range and the neighborhood is very safe; however the times I've been through there I havn't seen anything that really signals a lot of young families (I think its mostly 30's through 50's). I've timed the rush hour commute from where I work (169 & 394) to 20-25 minutes even with the congestion at Anderson Lakes Parkway. Schools for West Bloomngton will be uniformly excellent. If you cross over into Eden Prarie on the flip side you will also get excellent schools and perhaps younger families (depending on location). Townhome values there have gone down a bit, mostly because of forclosure pricing, but they also have not tanked so will probably hold their value.

[Camden Northsider]

I agree with Uptown Urbanist's comments on King Field, and Uptown may have well been describing my own neighborhood in the NW corner of Minneapolis (Victory) with their post which I would recommend you also check out. When we first bought here, we were actually on the same budget that you are, but at the time it was next to impossible to find anything half-way decent (in a 2 bed, 1 bath) in this neighborhood in that price range...we did find a fixer 2 bed 1 bath at the top of the price range- back then it seemed miraculous, but thanks to the real estate market crash, you could likely easily find what you're looking for in our neighborhood (and possibly even save some money) if you keep your eye on the market and act quickly when a foreclosure or cheapo comes up. Generally speaking, the nicest blocks in the n'hood are either those located in the western half (west of thomas ave n) and/or the 41st-45th blocks anywhere in the n'hood (the nicest blocks being the 41st-45th blocks in the western half). However, you will find great blocks, homes, and families in all sections of the neighborhood, and IMO everywhere in the n'hood is safe.

My wife and I are in our twenties and there are about 6-7 homes on our block that are similarly couples/ young families in their twenties (not to mention our alley neighbors). There have probably been more home sales in the neighborhood this past year/ year and 1/2 than likely at any other point in the n'hood's history (I think somewhere between 88-100 homes have sold?) due to the large inventory of for sale homes that have come on the market- a lot of the homes have been foreclosures (which, although they have generally sold fairly quickly, have brought values down quite a bit), but there have probably been as many that are a mix of retirees/ older folks moving on, and/or people moving due to job loss and/or transfers. With all of the home sales this past year, there have been a ton of new faces, mostly young people from what I can tell, out and about this spring enjoying the n'hood and all it has to offer (mainly the park/ green space, etc.). You can find all n'hood listings on realtor.com here: http://neighborhoods.realtor.com/MN/Minneapolis/Victory/480203/Real-estate/.

There are several threads on Victory Neighborhood if you search this forum (or google) where you can find more information- also see the neighborhood association's website: www.victoryneighborhood.org. And no matter where you work in Minneapolis, commute time wouldn't be more than 15 minutes from here. Good luck-

[MPLSCleveland]

My only advice on the the idea of a townhouse is to make sure you know what you will be getting into. Homeowner/townhouse associations can be a dream or a nightmare (HAving dealt with both during my time in the Twin Cities). If you do decide on a townhouse, make sure to read the declarations and bylaws of the association before closing. It is always good to know exactly what an association is responsible for, and what the individual owners are responsible for.
I agree with Camden, there are some nice deals to be had up here. At 140,000 dollars, you could find a very nice house. North of 36th Ave, and west of Thomas, there are some very nice, reasonably priced houses here in the Cleveland neighborhood also.

[Robert P Stewart]

And if I could add just one more point, make sure that the association you're buying into is solvent. Look at their financial statement and/or ask an accountant to give you an opinion on their financial health.

Buying into a broke association can be a nightmare.

[IloveOC]

And I would suggest driving through the neighborhood you are considering quite a few times to see what it is like while people are outside. Maybe even talk to a few of the people to get their comments. There are a few townhome developments around me that look very nice on the outside - but while driving around, I can see that I would not want to live there. I know that if I were to move, I would certainly talk with neighbors about the neighborhood. And also check with the police department for trouble area's.