October 2015

If you’re considering relocating to St. Louis Park, MN, you’re in good company -- the city has grown 5.9 percent since 2010; it’s the fifth fastest growth rate in the Twin Cities Metro Region. And St. Louis Park residents know why people want to live here. They can be at work in downtown Minneapolis in 15 or 20 minutes, the schools are amazing and recreational offerings numerous.

St. Louis Park Schools

Is there something in the water in St. Louis Park? Whatever the reason, students here typically outperform those in the rest of the metro region. ISD #283, St. Louis Park Public Schools, is a nationally renowned school district - where every school has been named a National School of Excellence.

The district oversees four elementary

The two worst situations to find yourself in during the house hunting process are not finding a home you wish to purchase and falling in love with two or more homes. The latter is a decision that’s hard to make when each offers something desirable that the other lacks.

The first thing I suggest to my clients in this predicament is to make a list of what you like and don’t like about each home. If you’re a member of a family, have each person do the same. Now, it may turn out that one person’s “like” is another’s “can’t stand,” so understand that compromises will have to be made.

Here are a few criteria to use when making your decision.

The Neighborhoods

While the homes may be tough to compare, the neighborhoods may not be. Remember, you’ll

St. Louis Park homebuyers appear to be snatching up new listings as soon as they hit the market and, at least according to the latest Multiple Listing Service statistics, we’re still very much in a seller’s market.

New Listings in St. Louis Park

The number of new listings to hit the St. Louis Park real estate market decreased more than 31 percent over this time last year. If you recall last month’s number, our inventory of available homes in St. Louis Park was a paltry 2.5 month supply. It’s down to 2.4 months now, a definite sign that we’re still in a seller’s market.

Median Sales Price

The median sales price of a St. Louis Park home increased 8.6 percent over this time last year and now sits at $240,000. Now this sounds good for

Real estate is confusing, scary and mysterious to folks not involved in buying and selling homes every day. Hey, it’s understandable, but it doesn’t have to be that way. There’s actually a step-by-step process to buying a home and, if you follow the steps (yes, in order) it’s a lot easier, far less confusing and not at all scary.

 We see a lot of mistakes that homebuyers make and they happen mainly because they didn’t follow the process. Here are three mistakes you should know about so that you can avoid making them.

 1. Not preparing

Homes cost a lot of money yet every week we see buyers either online looking at homes or out visiting open houses without a clue as to how much they can spend on a home. The very first step in the purchase

The Kris Lindahl Team often wonders if there’s something in the water in St. Louis Park; the city boasts an amazing education system. In fact, St. Louis Park Public Schools is nationally recognized. Every school bears the National School of Excellence distinction.

This month we celebrate St. Louis Park High, serving more than 1,400 students in grades 9 through 12. The school employs 73 full-time teachers, giving it a student/teacher ratio of about 19:1.

Special Programs

St. Louis Park High School offers a number of programs to students. Making College Possible is aimed at preparing low-income students for the ACT and SAT tests with test prep materials and admissions and financial aid counselling.

The school also offers a learning lab,