If you can answer yes to the following questions, then you may want to look at the following cities for your new home.
1. Do you want an open floor plan to accomodate family / entertaining needs?
2. Do you want a modern kitchen and bath?
3. Do you want a larger yard?
4. Do you want good schools and parks?
5. Do you want a quality built home?

If you answered yes to any of these, The Twin Cities suburbs such as Edina, Plymouth, Chanhassen and Minnetonka may be up your alley! These cities are not only popular among Twin Citians but boast nice homes, great schools, restaurants, shopping, waterfront and more!

If you are wondering when to buy your new home and thinking you will wait until the very bottom of the market, trends in the Twin Cities are showing that it won’t be long. According to Rob Bonahoom, mortgage coach at Cornerstone Mortgage “I think some time mid summer we will see the market get back to what we call a “balanced market”. This means, the time is NOW to buy. Mortgage rates are great and homes are priced right! There are many deals to be had if you are looking to move up into one of these Twin Cities suburbs.

According to MPLS / ST PAUL magazine here is what these upscale suburbs have to offer:

Edina
- Close proximity to Minneapolis
- Immaculately clean thanks to City of Edina street sweeping and plowing
- Great school system with a national reputation
- 50th / France shopping and restaurant district
- A few very high end neighborhoods (White Oak, Country Club, Highland and Rolling Green)
- Country Clubs and Golf Courses

Plymouth
- One of the Twin Cities most popular 2nd ring suburbs
- Close to Minneapolis and Lake Minnetonka
- Developments that have larger residential lots (great for kids and pets and private space)
- Neighborhoods that were designed to slow or discourage traffic
- Extensive trail networks
- Great schools including Wayzata High School
- Wonderful sense of community

Chanhassen
- Further away from the hustle and bustle of Minneapolis
- 5 city parks and 12 lakes
- Great value for your money on homes
- New state of the art High School set to open in Fall 2009

Minnetonka- Considered one of Minnesota’s best school districts which also serves nearby Deephaven and Shorewood with spectacular theater and language programs.
- Water, water, water! Lake Minnetonka is the biggest but there are 4 others to enjoy as well.
- Mature suburb with charming homes that typically have large lots for play and or expansion.

If you want to learn more or get out and take a look at what these or any other suburbs have to offer, please give me a call!

Jen McKinnon
Realtor/Investor
AGENT REFFERAL NETWORK
MN Real Estate Team - #1 team in MN

612.384.1073
jen[at]mnrealestateteam[dot]com
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This is good news if you currently live in Minneapolis or St Paul and another good reason to move to the Twin Cities if you don’t!

According to Men’s Health and Women’s Health Magazines (January / February 2009 issues) here are the rankings:
Best Cities For Men 2009
St Paul, MN ranks #2
Minneapolis, MN ranks #10
Best Cities For Women 2009
Minneapolis ranks #6
These rankings are based on Health data, Fitness, Quality of Life Variables including crime rates, air quality and job growth (30 variables total).

I have live in both cities - they each have their own great qualities. Although they are called the Twin Cities, they are very different from one another. Want to learn more? Give me a call!

Jen McKinnon
Realtor / Investor
AGENT REFERRAL NETWORK
Member of The MN Real Estate Team
612.384.1073
jen[at]mnrealestateteam[dot]com

Ok, so no more complaining about gas prices. This is great news and I wish the media would talk about this a little more. The Twin Cities is below the national average of $2.34 per gallon. I was thrilled to fill up for under $35.00 yesterday in St Paul. Now, if only food prices would come back down and home prices would go up! Slowly but surely it will happen.

Ok, so this isn’t really a post about real estate but I saw $2.99 / gallon gas today in St Paul - Highland Park and it got me thinking that things aren’t all that bad.  Just a few months ago we hovered at $4.00 / gallon but we still hear on the news how bad and horrible gas prices are and how this also affects the price of everything else in the economy.  Well, it does.  Gas prices certainly do affect the rest of the economy but $2.99 is where we were long before the economic crisis started to really put a pinch on people’s wallets and long before the recent Wall Street bail out.

Look at the positive and talk about the positive - $2.99 / gallon gasoline is a good sign and will be better for the people of the Twin Cities.  We will have more money in our pockets at the end of the day and typically, lower gas prices translate back into lower cost of goods like food and other daily essentials because the cost to ship these goods goes down.

Lower costs of goods will equate to more confidence in the market and more confidence in the market will lead to better business overall. 

Stay POSITIVE - this WILL get better even if we have to look at it one little step (like $2.99 gas) at a time!

Jen McKinnon
Realtor/Investor

612.384.1073
jen[at]mnrealestateteam[dot]com
AGENT REFERRAL NETWORK
MN Real Estate Team - #1 Team in MN!

If you have been considering buying a home in Richfield, take a look at this website that discusses a new development coming to the high traffic area of Hwy 62 / Penn Ave.  http://www.ci.richfield.mn.us/CD/Projects/Penn/PennCorridor.pdf

Yes, this will mean lots of construction for awhile but a gorgeous development of shops, condos, green space, parks, cafes, sidewalks and alot of beautiful landscaping appears to be on its way!  This face lift is much needed as many of the stores and streets in that area are looking run down and do not do justice to the work being done on many homes in the neighborhoods just off of Penn between the Hwy 62 and 68th Street.

Many of the rambler style homes in these neighborhoods were built in the 1950’s and we are finding many that have been redone to add updated ammenities like granite countertops and updated kitchens, new paint, landscaping, finished basements and more.  There are even some that have gone from being a rambler to a full two story nearly doubling the space of the home! 

Add this new development into the mix and watch home values rise in this area that is close to major Highways 62, 494, 35W and Hwy 100 and just minutes from 50th / France in Edina and Lake Harriet or Lake Calhoun in Minneapolis / Uptown.

Call me today to start looking at your future home in Richfield, MN!

Jen McKinnon
Realtor/Investor
612.384.1073
jen[at]mnrealestateteam[dot]com

AGENT REFERRAL NETWORK
MN Real Estate Team
#1 Real Estate Team in MN

Here are some tips on nice and affordable neighborhoods to check out and where to meet people if you are relocating or moving to the Twin Cities:

(As read in Mpls/St Paul Magazine - July 2008)

Columbia Heights

• Affordable homes on tree lined streets
• Alot of parks, trails, mini lakes and quick access to Minneapolis and St Paul
• Family friendly neighborhoods with a diverse demographic

St Paul’s Desnoyer Park

• A lesser known gem of a neighborhood in west St Paul that bumps into the Mississippi River and is right across from Minneapolis
• Downtown Minneapolis is 3 miles away and Downtown St Paul is only 5 miles
• Mostly middle to upper class professional residents and a mix of families and empty-nesters with low turnover rate on homes
• Very low crime rate

Windom Park in Northeast Minneapolis

• Tree lined streets in an up and coming area of Minneapolis that still retains it’s feel of the older generation
• Close to bus lines and downtown Minneapolis
• More yard space than typical city lots
• Alot of restaurants and shops popping up

Inver Grove Heights

• Only 20 minutes from downtown St Paul and 30 minutes from downtown Minneapolis
• A variety of residents from young families and older empty nesters
• Tight knit community with plenty of activities and community events

Here are some great websites that are dedicated to helping you meet new people:

www.imnotfromhere.org

www.newcomersclub.com/mn.html

www.booksandbars.com

www.openbookmn.org

www.cscsports.com

www.meetup.com

Have real estate questions?  Want information about other neighborhoods in and around the Twin Cities?  Ready to buy a home in the Twin Cities?

Reach out to:

Jen McKinnon

Realtor/Investor

AGENT REFERRAL NETWORK

Member of MN Real Estate Team - #1 team in MN 2006,2007 & 2008

612.384.1073

jen[at]mnrealestateteam[dot]com

I live in this lovely and popular neighborhood of St Paul, MN and what follows, is some history and statistics about the area I call home.

Many of the homes in this neighborhood are single family, owner occupied homes but this neighborhood has a great history that starts back in 1880. The Macalester College Board of Trustees bought farmland outside of St. Paul and divided it into houses and the campus of Macalester College. It evolved into a farming community and then into what was considered a commuter “suburb” and now is now what you see today - a lively, bustling community of families and neighbors who care about their homes, businesses and eachother.

Macalester-Groveland is bordered on the north by historic Summit Avenue. To the south are Randolph Avenue and Highland Park. The Mississippi River makes up the west border and Ayd Mill Road the east. One of the most popular streets in St Paul, Grand Avenue, runs east and west through Mac-Groveland. 

Mac-Groveland has 2 major institutions of higher education.  Macalester College and The University of St. Thomas.  The St. Paul Seminary is also located in Mac-Groveland.

Many of the neighborhood homes in Mac-Groveland were built before 1940. Larger homes in the neighborhood feature Tudor, Prairie Style and Colonial Revival architecture.  With many of the Mac-Groveland homes built in the 1920’s and 30’s, the Arts and Crafts bungalows are still prevalent throughout the neighborhood.  These St Paul homes boast beautiful woodwork, built in buffets and character that is hard to come by in newer neighborhoods.  However, new construction and remodeled homes, town homes and condominiums are also available if you are looking for something newer.

The two public, neighborhood elementary schools in Macalester-Groveland are Randolph Heights Elementary and Groveland Elementary.  Mac-Groveland also has a number of private schools, including Saint Paul Academy and the Summit School.

One thing I love about living in Mac-Groveland is easy access to all of the neighborhood restaurants and shops.  For casual atmostphere but great food, look no further than The Groveland Tap and The St Clair Broiler.   Good Italian can be found at Carmelos or for great American cuisine and a more upscale atmostphere head over to The Heartland.  There are also numerous neighborhood coffee shops such as Brewberry’s and Coffee News.  Great Grand Avenue finds within Macalester Groveland are Shish, Italian Pie Shop and Homemade Pizza.   Shopping ranges from eclectic gift shops to specialty stores - one of my favorites is Gypsy Moon on Randolph.  The neighborhood also features the Grandview Movie Theater, a Whole Foods and the Mississippi Market.

Macalaster-Groveland Real Estate Statistics
Median Sales Price 2007:  $280,000

Average Sales Price 2007:  $325,737

Price Per Square Foot 2007:  $192

Sales Price % Change from 2006:  +0.7% and from 2001 +40.1%

Please contact me with more questions about Macalester-Groveland (or other) great St Paul neighborhoods!

Jen McKinnon

AGENT REFERRAL NETWORK

612.384.1073

jen[at]mnrealestateteam[dot]com