Southwest Suburbs

Today I was scrolling through a list of town names found in Minnesota.  I expected there would be quite a few that started with Lake and there were nine.  It surprised me that there were 22 that started with Saint and only because I figured that since we are the land of 10,000 lakes that surely w...

Here are some things that Buyers in the marketplace now should be thankful for:You won't have to pay over market value for a homeYou shouldn't have to compete with multiple offers You'll have lots of homes to look atYou might get more concessions for repairs or closing costs help You can still ge...

According to an article in todays StarTribune the Twin Cities market continues its slowdown but seems to be faring better than other parts of the country.  We are still on pace to have the thrid best sales year ever.  With the interest rates remaining low and high employment we will not see the l...

Maple Grove is home to one of only 50 Angel of Hope stautues.  Located in the Arboretum this Christmas Box Angel of Hope is a gathering place for parents grieving the loss of a child of any age.  It is inspired by the best selling book and television movie "The Christmas Box" by Richard Paul Evan...

I love those challenges where people make up new words.  Usually they are pretty descriptive of something that we see in our culture.  Here's one I thought was interesting:GENERICANA: Features of the American landscape that are exactly the same no matter where one is, such as fast food joints, st...

Seller activity in the Twin Cities residential real estate market declined over last year for the third time in four weeks as compared to the same week last year.  About 2,100 new listings were added to the local market for the week ending September 30. That amounts to an 8 percent decrease from ...

Fall is a great time to think about doing some painting.  If you buy 4 or more gallons of Benjamin Moore Regal® interior paint then you can send in for a $25 gift card from Pottery Barn.  Be sure and ask the salesperson for the mail in redemption form and once sent in you should receive your gift...

The most expensive house on the market in Minnesota, that's what.  It's called Thistledor and it sits on Brackett's Point, a peninsula jutting out into Lake Minnetonka.  It was listed at $18 million when it first went up for sale in April.  Now the price is $14.9 million. The estate, being sold a...

Everyday I pass over this stretch of road on my way in or out of my neighborhood.  It always makes me laugh.  You see in Minnesota we have two seasons, winter and road construction.  I always wonder if the road crew was just having a bad day or did they actually plan to do this just for fun or to...

10 Tips for First-Time Homebuyers  Be picky, but don’t be unrealistic. There is no perfect home.  You may have to compromise. Do your homework before you start looking. Decide specifically what features you want in a home and which are most important to you.  Get your finances in order. Review yo...