City View Photo

Greetings!
1550 Zarthan front photo

A recent Star Tribune article about the decreasing demand for "big homes" got me thinking about strategic buying. Mike and I talk a lot with our clients about resale value. Specifically, we address the importance of thinking through potential future value prior to buying rather than after the fact. To protect resale value we encourage buyers "not to buy a problem that can't be solved". Dated kitchens can be remodeled, poor landscaping can be changed and even walls can be 1550 Zarthan front photo

can be moved.

But, you cannot move a busy road, or remove the train track.

Less obvious "unsolvable problems" might be a quiet country road, or a seemingly beautiful open lot behind a home. That road may become busy as the city grows and the open lot could actually be zoned commercial. A keen eye on the front end can help you maximize your future value.

How does this tie back into the changing demand for large homes? In the same vein as resale value; it is important to think about who will buy your home when you sell it in five, ten or twenty years down the road.

Our population is going to look very different in a few years and that will affect the demand for housing. There will be more aging baby boomers than young families. What will aging baby boomers need? Will the supply of growing families be plentiful enough to absorb the large homes that baby boomers are downsizing away from?

I'm not suggesting that there are hard rules to follow when making a buying decision. Rather, it is beneficial to think about resale prior to signing the mortgage.

Happy Halloween!

Kricket and Mike
KricketandMike.com Inc

Architecture Coach: Ingredients for a Modern Kitchen

By Barbara Ballinger | October 2010

The kitchen remains one of the most popular rooms in the house. If it's well laid out and equipped, it becomes a magnet for family members. "It's the place where they begin and end their days and also interact with friends," says designer Cheryl Kees Clendenon, founder of In Detail, Kitchens, Baths, Interiors, a design firm in Pensacola, Fla.

But it can do more.

To learn more....

Current Market Information
Statistics from Minneapolis Association of Realtors

Weekly Update:

Foreclosure Report August 2010:

Monthly Market Indicators:

Now Available...

4301 Woodstock Drive, Golden Valley

This an opportunity in North Tyrol Hills to remodel, rebuild or lightly update a solid home in an amazing location. The large flat lot provides great possibilities. This is a fabulous and stable neighborhood with large lots, mature trees and great proximity to the city. There are many remodels taking place in the area. Hopkins schools!

Offered For: $259,900

Mortgage Minute

News from Rita Welton, PHH Home Loans

IF YOU HAVE BEEN THROUGH A FORECLOSURE OR SHORT SALE AND BEEN TOLD THAT YOU WILL NOT BE ABLE TO OBTAIN MORTGAGE FINANCING IN THE FUTURE, YOU SHOULD KNOW THAT OPTIONS MAY BE AVAILABLE TO YOU IN AS LITTLE AS 3 - 7 YEARS.

CALL ME TODAY AND WE CAN DISCUSS YOUR SITUATION IN DETAIL.

Rita Welton
Loan Officer
PHH Home Loans
612-925-8423 direct
rita.welton@phhonline.com

This statement of current rates is not an offer to enter into an agreement for a loan at a specified interest rate or number of discount points or both. (In Minnesota: an offer to enter into such an agreement may only be made pursuant to Minnesota statutes section 47.206.) Current interest rates and discount points are subject to change at any time without notice to you.

Kricket's Social Korner
Restaurant Suggestions

Isles Bun & Coffee

This month I thought it would be refreshing to highlight a place that I

often visit on a Saturday morning; ironically after running a couple of lakes.

Isles Bun & Coffee is a tiny Uptown neighborhood classic, tucked away on 28^th Street a half block from Hennepin. If it weren't for the line coming out the door you might not know they were there. The coffee is excellent but the baked goods are fresh, hot, homemade and delectable.

They are well known for their cinnamon buns and puppy dog tails (a less intimidating version of the bun). For the frosting fanatics you get to put as much or as little of it on your bun as your heart desires.

My favorites though are their scones and cookies. The scone menu changes regularly so it's always fun to see what is new to try. Their blueberry buttermilk is delightful and their chocolate peanut butter scone is rich beyond belief. The cookies are heavy, moist, yummy and more than I should ever eat in one sitting. They say the cookies are a third pound before cooking them. Yikes.

You can count on a few things at Isles Bun; everything is baked fresh that day, you will likely have a something hot out of the oven, and they will be busy.

This is not a place where you are going to grab a table on a Saturday morning and have a leisurely coffee and read the paper. There are just a couple of high top tables inside and generally lots of people crowding around them to get to the counter. In the warm months you may get a table on the sidewalk. However, don't let the popularity of this place scare you off. They are extremely efficient so the line moves quickly. The wait and the calories are worth it.

Enjoy!