Young family moving to minneapolis looking for home location! (Eagan: home search, neighborhoods)

[swalk]

We are looking to move to Minneapolis from Utah based on a job opportunity for my husband. We have a young family (4 and 1) and I'm a work-from-home mom. His work would be just North/East of the Univ. of Minn. area. We are looking to buy a home in a community that would fill these criteria:

1. <$400K
2. 4 bedroom single-family home
3. commute time of 30 minutes or less
4. good schools. If we make the move, we plan to be there long enough for our kids to definitely be in the public school system.

The research we've done online has lead us to Eagan and Woodbury. Any advice and recommendations on these areas or others that would work is appreciated!

[Texas2010]

I would also take a look at Falcon Heights and Roseville. Good luck with your home search and move!

[golfgal]

Eagan and Woodbury would fit what you are looking for. The schools in Eagan are somewhat better then Woodbury. I would look at Mounds View if he is working on the north side of the cities. Mounds View is the highest rated district on that side of the cities. Mahtomedi would be my second choice.

[cleanspirit2]

Might consider Orono schools and western suburbs. [mod cut]. Good luck.

[Cheerymonkey]

Fridley would also fit this bill!

[10,000Lakes]

Originally Posted by cleanspirit2

Might consider Orono schools and western suburbs. [mod cut]. Good luck.

A nice home under 400k in Orono will be hard to find. You can get much more for your money elsewhere.

[swalk]

Great info. Anyone know anything about St. Louis Park or Hopkins area? What kind of commute is that like to the north/eastern part of minneapolis? What are the schools like?

[uptown_urbanist]

St. Louis Park is known for its excellent schools, and are consistently ranked as some of the best in the state. The commute shouldn't be too bad. Hopkins has a nice downtown; not sure about the school district, but assume that they're good.

Both Hopkins and SLP are quite a bit different from Woodbury or Eagan, though, so they may or may not be of interest depending on what else you're looking for in a community. I happen to think they're different in a very good way: far less stereotypically "suburban" in the modern sense. There's a range of housing types and neighborhoods, including some very family-friendly neighborhoods with attractive older homes on tree-lined streets, if that's to your taste.

If you stay long enough both of those suburbs will be on a planned light rail line.

If I were going to raise kids in a Minneapolis suburb St. Louis Park would be my first pick, but that's admittedly personal preference. It's conveniently located, has great amenities for families, good schools, some diversity, and doesn't have the snob factor that you find in some of the other nearby suburbs. (plus, I have great memories of spending time as a kid at the SLP Rec Center and the Roller Garden -- both still there.)

[StilltheSame]

We live in SLP and moved here because of the walkability of the neighborhood, the schools and the convenient location. We love it here - and will wait to buy in our area (just across from Excelsior and Grand) whenever something that fits our needs (and budget) becomes available. However, the homes are small and many will require renovation or expansion - but they are oh so charming!

[west336]

Originally Posted by StilltheSame

We live in SLP and moved here because of the walkability of the neighborhood, the schools and the convenient location. We love it here - and will wait to buy in our area (just across from Excelsior and Grand) whenever something that fits our needs (and budget) becomes available. However, the homes are small and many will require renovation or expansion - but they are oh so charming!

Except in Minnekahda Vista, where some homes are huge and most are quite expensive. That's where my wife wants to move, and I keep telling her "maybe in 5-10 years honey".