The Deets

This is a single family home just one block South of Minnehaha Creek and within blocks of the restaurants on S Chicago Ave. That’s a pretty sweet combination. Lake Nokomis is also easily walkable/joggable from this location.

Downtown commuting can be as easy as taking the 1-ways on Portland and Park rather than hopping on the mess that is 35W. Or head South to the Crosstown for easy access to the airport.

About that airport. This is definitely in the flight path that plagues the most Southern of South Minneapolis. Backyard grilling on a busy flight night with planes arriving from the West involves sign language.

3 bed, 1 bath, and 1335 sq feet, a dog-ready fenced in yard, and a 1 car garage in a quiet neighborhood (outside of the planes) for $215,000.

According to ColdwellBanker.com’s Home Price Comparison Index, a $200,000 home in Minneapolis would be worth $210,000 if it was in Edina, but only $193,000 if it was in St. Paul or Lake Minnetonka.

Programs like this seem interesting when you compare, say, Minneapolis to Cleveland or Seattle. However, the data starts to seem a bit less reliable when you get closer to home.

Zilpy.com is doing some cool heat maps of rental prices. Looks like the North Loop and the area near the Guthrie are the high rent districts followed by Kenwood, the lakes, and Uptown.

Sounds right to me.

This well maintained Craftsman belongs to a Deets reader named Jon. The 813 sq ft, 2-bed, 1-bath house went on the market today and is looking for a new owner.

Jon sent over a few things he’s loved about the neighborhood during the time he’s lived there. First, there is the Dairy Queen on the corner. Duh. Park-wise, it’s across the street from Bancroft Elementary with a view of the fields and only 3 blocks from Powderhorn Park (Powderhorn art fair, May Day parade).

38th St E, Chicago, and Bloomington Aves are all bus routes, and you’re not far by bike from Lake Harriet.

A lot of big stuff has been updated, including central air and a new roof. The woodwork looks awesome.

As regular Deets readers are well aware, 38th St E has some challenges. However, the Bancroft Neighborhood Association is very active, and work is being done to redevelop some of the biggest problem spots. With that in mind, it may be a great time to invest in the neighborhood.

Listing Price: $212,000

Is that Jon in the Google StreetView image of his house?

4428 45th Ave S sits at the Southern end of the Longfellow community in the Hiawatha neighborhood. There is a lot to like about this location. It’s only blocks from Minnehaha Park where you can dine on fish tacos while drinking a Summit within feet of Minnehaha Falls at Sea Salt followed by a stop at Dairy Queen on your way home. Good living.

Being on 45th, it doesn’t have the higher traffic volume one sees on 46th or 42nd Aves. 46th is the first N-S thru-street from Lake to the Ford Bridge, so gets quite a bit of traffic. It’s also a bus route from 46th to 38th St. Being a block off of that has some advantages. It’s also a short walk to the 46th St LRT station.

The house is a 3 bed 1 bath 1300 sq ft bungalow with lots of updates. The kitchen appliances look great and the 2nd floor has been updated. The fenced in backyard appears to be dog ready. And it has central air, which is by no means standards in older Minneapolis homes.

Thanks to skadi for the tip. And thanks to others who have sent in tips. I’ll get those rolled out soon.

By the way, ryanol Tweeted earlier today looking for Minneapolis neighborhood recommendations for S or SW Minneapolis homes in the 180-240K range. Give him a shout or drop a comment here if you have advice you’d like to share. Personally, I think he needs to decide if he’s a river person or lake person first. That will narrow things down a bit.

How bad is the sub-prime mortgage mess in the United States?

According to the ticker at the bottom of the Onion News Network’s Monday news coverage, bad enough to warrant sacrificing agents.

The full message reads:

CONGRESS ANNOUNCES PLAN TO EASE SUBPRIME MORTGAGE CRISIS BY SACRIFICING A DOZEN CENTURY 21 AGENTS TO REAL-ESTATE . . .

This ran during their report titled, “China Celebrates Its Status As World’s Number One Air Polluter“

To the Century 21 agents I know, I hope you survive this round of sacrifices.

Alex Stenback has a great explanation of how a few point difference in your credit score effects what you could pay for your mortgage.

How a Three-Point Difference in Your Credit Score Could Cost You Thousands.

Scenario 2:
Now suppose your credit score is a still very good 718 - just three points lower than the previous example. here’s where it gets a little tricky - now you have a choice.

1. You can either pay an additional .5% of the $200,000 loan amount ($1,000) to obtain a 6% rate.
2. Or, you can accept a rate that is .125% or so higher, in lieu of the up-front fee.

In this case, 3 points will cost you $1000 as a 1-time payment or $16/month for 10 years. Ouch.

4 beds, 2 bath, and a 2 car garage for $259,900? Yep.

And get this: it’s 1/2 way between the Birchwood Cafe and the Clicquot Club. A very short 2 block walk gets you to either restaurant.

It’s also close to Matthew’s Park, the Midtown Greenway bike trail, West Mississippi River Parkway (and bike trail), the Riverside exit to I-94, and shopping along Franklin Ave. In fact, it will be an easy walk to the new location of Seward Coop.

It’s a corner lot, and there is a bit of a driveway running from the alley to the garage, so prepare to do some shoveling. There may be some street noise since it’s on a bus route and there is a stop light at the corner.

According to Minneapolis Guy / downtown Minneapolis condo Realtor, Matt Loskota, there are currently 25 units (condos and townhomes) in 7-figures on the market downtown.

This includes spots in Cobalt, Bridgewater, Zenith, and union-unfriendly Whitney.

Get our your ruler and draw a 1 foot by 1 foot square. How much do you think that would cost you in a premium spot downtown?

Based on sales over the past two years: $455

Brian sent in a tip about this house near his home.

The hardwood floors appear to be in great shape and the kitchen has had quite a few upgrades. 2-car garages are hard to come by in Longfellow, so that’s a big plus. A gas fireplace and front loading new washer/dryer set sound pretty sweet.

It’s around 1/2 way between the 38th & 46th St LRT stops, so take your pick. You have at least 4 coffee shops to choose from within easy walking distance, including the Riverview Cafe, Fireroast Mountain Coffee, Minnehaha Coffee, and Tillie’s Bean. Buster’s on 28th is a good choice for beer & burgers.

3 bed, 1 bath, and 1850 finished sq ft for $254,900. There is an open house this Sunday (Feb 24) from 1-3. If you check it out, let us know what you think of the place.