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I very much have to digress from the other responses to your post- no offense to anyone here, but I think that persons in Minneapolis/ St. Paul, and the metro at large, are in extreme denial about just how low many areas' property values have gotten, especially listings that are foreclosures and what this has done for many areas' comparables. I think the people that live in neighborhood that see homes on their blocks/ areas selling for 50% below what they used to are afraid to admit it to themselves or on this board for fear that they will give the impression that their neighborhood is in a decline.
And I do really feel the need to point out that Golfgal's experience is living in an exurb about 30-40 miles away from Minneapolis/ St. Paul. Uptown Urbanist, I love your posts and find you very knowledgable about your area of town and other areas, but I do feel the need to say that your experience searching for single family homes in a very popular and expensive dense urban area right now creates the risk that you might have somewhat of a skewed view of MSP real estate values (but maybe not, I just remember when I lived in Lowry Hill East a few years back, it was not uncommon to find older homes cut up into condominiums where one floor of the home would list well in excess of $500K if not much higher).
So- to answer your questions from my perspective DallasJoseph, yes the Twin Cities are safe and yes, this includes the core cities of Minneapolis/ St. Paul, and yes it is a nice place to live, and yes, if you are resourceful, know how to search the MLS system (and/or have a good realtor), are willing to do so some work, etc.- you can find a 3 bed home in your price range in a nice, safe area of Minneapolis or St. Paul. With that said, there aren't going to be a plethora of options for you out there, you aren't going to find 60 move-in condition 3/2 homes in areas with those qualifications just waiting for you to come put an offer on (but then again, maybe metro-wide you could, but expect to have several bidding wars), but if you don't go into your search with a lot of highly preconceived notions about what it is your family has to have from a house/ lot/ location, then I don't see a problem.
When recently looking on the MLS, and I saw a very nice, well-kept looking little 2 bed/ 1 bath house in Macalester-Groveland (one of the most highly recommended and beloved urban neighborhoods you will find on this board and generally a pretty expensive neighborhood) selling for $140K- I know you are looking for a bigger house at less money, but my point is that if a single family home, in good condition, in what is viewed as one of the "best" neighborhoods in Minneapolis/ St. Paul (probably in the top 3 of highly recommended neighborhoods on this board), is selling for $140K, then it is likely that you will find a number of options in one of the 100 other safe neighborhoods out there that aren't viewed as some of Minneapolis/ St. Paul's primest real estate.
If you're willing to compromise- for instance, if you decide that your family can live with only 1 bathroom for a couple of years, your options open up quite a bit in the core cities. Or to use another example, there is a 3/2 in my neighborhood (also generally a well regarded neighborhood noted for being very safe, friendly, community-oriented, well-kept w/lots of amenities) that is listing for $120K right now- it's in the far eastern stretch of the neighborhood (the western part is generally considered the nicest part) and is a couple of blocks away from railroad tracks where trains do run at night which would definitely be a noise consideration. However, it looks like a fairly nice house, it's pretty close to the Grand Rounds system up here, and the area is still safe and close-knit. And if you're willing to look at foreclosures that need work, and act quickly when you find a good deal, you're options open up further for you in numerous neighborhoods (including those that are consistently recommended by a wide array of people on this board) in Minneapolis and St. Paul.
I don't think there's any reason for you to be looking outside of Minneapolis or St. Paul itself. I guess it all depends on what your view/ notion of "safety is"- do you need a far-removed culdesac outside of urban environments to feel safe, or can you feel safe in an urban neighborhood with low crime? You mentioned Detroit- if you've lived in Detroit, Minneapolis and St. Paul will likely feel like fantasy-land to you (not to say that we don't have our problems/ issues also, just, IMO, not nearly as widespread or endemic). I would recommend researching city neighborhoods, targeting the ones that sound good, and then posting or Direct Messaging persons with knowledge of certain neighborhoods with the intersection (s) you are looking at and getting feedback/ advice.
What do you like to do? What living environments in the past have you liked?
There's some nice places to live in each city, there's also some suburbs that are also nice places to live, which is better depends on what you and your family want as a lifestyle.
We live in Robbinsdale, which is a first tier suburb of Minneapolis. It's a great place to have a kid, we're right off of the parkway, near a park and a lake, we see people with young kids out walking all of the time. However, I'm finding as families grow people move to suburbs with larger homes and while our neighborhood does have kids it doesn't have kids everywhere like some of my suburban friends have.
What we do have is a lot of community ed programs. Hennepin County Library is an excellent system loaded with free things for young kids. Each suburb offers assorted fun classes for kids. We've done classes in Robbinsdale, Brooklyn Center, Brooklyn Park and New Hope. There's also ECFE which a lot of parents have enjoyed (didn't do it myself though) This is a great place with young kids, I'd recommend my neighborhood in Robbinsdale but I'm not a fan of the western side of town. There are more on bathroom houses in my area but I think many have added a second bath, I would not do a one bathroom home ever again. What a pain!
IMO I wouldn't buy until you know where you want to live for sure. Brooklyn Center is a city you probably see a lot of lower priced listings there. I would not recommend buying there right now. It has a big reputation problem. I think they're working on it and I'm hoping the reputation will change but until it does resale may be harder for you.
Thanks a lot for the responses. What do we like to do? We are going to be extremely busy with work and school. A fenced yard would be ideal with our children being so small. We enjoy going to the park, lake, etc.
Camden, I see where you're coming from. Perhaps in an attempt to overcompensate for the fact that I prefer living in the city and was trying not to assume that everyone else does, too, I was too quick to assume that the OP wanted a more suburban life. Actually, I think it was also the desire for a second bathroom that led me to think that; I've never lived anywhere with a second bathroom, and most of my Minneapolis friends and families live in one bathroom homes. I agree that if you could stick with one bathroom you would greatly expand your options, as in many (not all, certainly) places a second bathroom means possibly recent renovations or upgrades, and that probably is going to lead to an increased price.
I do fully agree that there are safe (depending on your own personal definition of safety, and in many cases the perception of safety rather than the reality) neighborhoods in the city with low price tags, especially right now (and as an aside, we're actually looking for duplexes, single family homes in our target area being out of our price range - we're doing the extended family living thing). Many affordable city neighborhoods are filled with fenced backyards, so you don't need to go to the suburbs or exurbs for that. If you want a shorter commute and like living in the city (but still having a backyard) then yes, I agree with Camden, that you can find something in your price range without going far out. You'll find lakes and parks all over the metro area, both in cities and suburbs.
The twin cities are is excellent when it comes to parks both large and community parks. My area of Robbinsdale has a nice community park and a Lake, Crystal Lake. They're going to be doing a major clean up of it in the next year. It is excellent with young families but harder to find a bigger home. There are people here with two kids and more but I've known a lot of people to start thinking of moving at that point because of space. Robbinsdale does an excellent job at giving a small town feel although it is right next to Mpls. I do feel a sense of community here that I really like. Politically I find it to be more moderate than Mpls, even right across the parkway. On my street we have both extremes on the spectrum and I personally like a moderate neighborhood. There's sidewalks and trails and it is close to highway 100, it's a nice, central location. I fall in love with my neighborhood every spring.
Another area I love is New Hope in between Winnetka and Boone as well as the area south of 36th. There's some parks there and the homes are a bit larger. The downside there is no sidewalks but the parks have trails. Great neighborhood though with lots of families about. I also like Maple Grove in the far NE corner, not as commuter friendly but it just seems like such a nice family centered suburb with a nice variety of housing.
A friend of mine lives in Northeast Minneapolis and loves it there, again, it has some nice parks. She lives near St Anthony and it seems like a nice place. I think the nice thing for you about that area is the closeness to major highways so you all can easily commute in different directions. NE Mpls, Roseville and St Anthony may be areas worth investigating.
Keb- I agree about your area, as it's basically my area as well - we must live pretty close to eachother (just on the opposite sides of the parkway)- we walk to crystal lake quite a bit from our house, as well as Ryan Lake (behind the flagpole memorial) on border of mpls/ robbinsdale, and we even get out for whiz bang days activities when they come around. I'm confused though- I was sure your location was between crystal lake and the parkway, and, outside of around the lake and park areas, we've never encountered a sidewalk over there....where are these mysterious sidewalks in robbinsdale that you speak of??
Uptown- I definitely understand, and perhaps I "under-compensate" too much- and my apologies if my post came off as implying that you are disconnected from us "regular" city-folk/ neighborhoods as I didn't mean to imply that. It does get hard sometimes though when persons coming from other areas seem very very concerned about crime as this could mean that they either don't want to have anything to do with living in/ near the city (and I can see where the 3/2 came into play as well with this thread), or it could mean that they actually do want city life and overcompensate with the stressing of safety as there are more unknowns/ variables when moving into the city and the average person might not know about the general quality of life here- which is the way I read/took it but I could be wrong...any preference dallasjoseph?
Last edited by Camden Northsider; 06-06-2009 at 02:55 PM..
Generally the Twin Cities area is very safe however, for a home under $125K with 3br/2bath you are not going to be in one of those safe areas.
Did you mean areas like these Golfgal?
3923 154Th St W, Rosemount, MN, 55068 - MLS ID#3692665 - Single Family Home real estate - REALTOR.com® (http://www.realtor.com/realestateandhomes-detail/3923-154Th-St-W_Rosemount_MN_55068_1109784015 - broken link) (4 beds, 2 bath- $106,376)
14735 Delft Ave W, Rosemount, MN, 55068 - MLS ID#3690558 - Single Family Home real estate - REALTOR.com® (http://www.realtor.com/realestateandhomes-detail/14735-Delft-Ave-W_Rosemount_MN_55068_1109616353 - broken link) ($17K under $125K, so you could easily add the 2nd bathroom and still be under-budget).
3280 149Th St W, Rosemount, MN, 55068 - MLS ID#3654817 - Single Family Home real estate - REALTOR.com® (http://www.realtor.com/realestateandhomes-detail/3280-149Th-St-W_Rosemount_MN_55068_1107398347 - broken link). (I'm sure they would take $125)
Actually, Dakota County, although not the best for commute times, might be a good place to get a really good deal right now- the county's website (http://www.co.dakota.mn.us/HomeProperty/Foreclosures/default.htm - broken link) shows that they've had about 2,000 foreclosures just this past year.
Last edited by Camden Northsider; 06-06-2009 at 03:28 PM..
Crime happens everywhere. Some neighborhoods it tends to happen on a daily basis. As stated we've lived in 6 states, some being quite populated with crime. I was raised in the suburbs of Phoenix and Denver. My wife being raised in the Los Angeles inner city knows what crime is like. I'm former law enforcement. We know crime occurs and have come to the realization you cant be too picky with our price range. But our main concern is the violent crimes such as assaults, homicides and robberies.
Keb- I agree about your area, as it's basically my area as well - we must live pretty close to eachother (just on the opposite sides of the parkway)- we walk to crystal lake quite a bit from our house, as well as Ryan Lake (behind the flagpole memorial) on border of mpls/ robbinsdale, and we even get out for whiz bang days activities when they come around. I'm confused though- I was sure your location was between crystal lake and the parkway, and, outside of around the lake and park areas, we've never encountered a sidewalk over there....where are these mysterious sidewalks in robbinsdale that you speak of??
Yeah,we're really close!
I am in between Sanborn Park and the Parkway - just north of where you were thinking, there's a section that has sidewalks, it's the same section that is torn to pieces right now. We have alley garages. It's a fairly small section. There's other areas in Robbinsdale with them too but on the other side of 81.
Dallas, the places to seriously avoid IMO are the Jordan and areas immediately surrounding it. If you do NW MPLS I think North of Dowling is a better bet. Brooklyn Center can have some great homes and I am 100% at ease driving through there and often do. However it has a reputation problem, somewhat deserved, and is an area I'd call transitional. I don't know where it is going to go. There's areas that are not good.
It is really hard to be specific about which suburb to live in and which to avoid because the area is all so interconnected. One thing I've found living up here is a neighborhood can change fast on on. Sometimes it's really nice then 4 blocks later it looks tired. I love to garage sale so I drive through a lot of areas and I see that a lot. It's really weird.
3923 154Th St W, Rosemount, MN, 55068 - MLS ID#3692665 - Single Family Home real estate - REALTOR.com® (http://www.realtor.com/realestateandhomes-detail/3923-154Th-St-W_Rosemount_MN_55068_1109784015 - broken link) (4 beds, 2 bath- $106,376)
14735 Delft Ave W, Rosemount, MN, 55068 - MLS ID#3690558 - Single Family Home real estate - REALTOR.com® (http://www.realtor.com/realestateandhomes-detail/14735-Delft-Ave-W_Rosemount_MN_55068_1109616353 - broken link) ($17K under $125K, so you could easily add the 2nd bathroom and still be under-budget).
3280 149Th St W, Rosemount, MN, 55068 - MLS ID#3654817 - Single Family Home real estate - REALTOR.com® (http://www.realtor.com/realestateandhomes-detail/3280-149Th-St-W_Rosemount_MN_55068_1107398347 - broken link). (I'm sure they would take $125)
Actually, Dakota County, although not the best for commute times, might be a good place to get a really good deal right now- the county's website (http://www.co.dakota.mn.us/HomeProperty/Foreclosures/default.htm - broken link) shows that they've had about 2,000 foreclosures just this past year.
OH, grow up. I still stand by my original post that finding a house for a family of 5 for under $125K is going to be difficult. There are houses out there but will anyone want to live in those houses for a plethora of reasons? I think the real issue is that in most areas of Texas $125K can buy a pretty nice house where as in Minnesota that is not the case.
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- and my apologies if my post came off as implying that you are disconnected from us "regular" city-folk/ neighborhoods as I didn't mean to imply that. It does get hard sometimes though when persons coming from other areas seem very very concerned about crime as this could mean that they either don't want to have anything to do with living in/ near the city (and I can see where the 3/2 came into play as well with this thread), or it could mean that they actually do want city life and overcompensate with the stressing of safety as there are more unknowns/ variables when moving into the city and the average person might not know about the general quality of life here- which is the way I read/took it but I could be wrong...any preference dallasjoseph?
