Author: jeffanderson

Our pick a home rent to own program.   This is a great alternative to buying a home right now. You can have them buy the home and you can rent it and buy it within 5 years. Here is how it works… You can lease a home in the area you want. You apply online to enter the program. Must have a minimum of 620 credit score and ability to make the payments. You simply shop for homes within the website that are for sale and fit the guidelines of the program. You then live in the home for up to five years and you can purchase it any time during the lease term after the first year. After I do the application and am qualified what happens next?   1)You search for homes within a large inventory of homes for sale that qualify for the program 2) You sign a lease with a one year commitment 3) A security...

Good news on inflation   Inflation is slowing and that is good new for American and Minnesota consumers. The Consumer Price Index inflation moderated to 6.5 percent in December which will help the Federal Reserve to lean toward slower interest rate moves. Inflation slowed on an annual basis for the sixth straight month in December. The Consumer price index was 7.1 percent in November and went down to 6.5 percent in December. With inflation under control in the future interest rates will go down this will impact what buyers get for an interest rate on a home, car, and anything they finance. With this welcome news look for the Federal Reserve to only increase rates by .25 basis points next and not again if this decreasing inflation trend continues. I hope you found my blog on “Good news on inflation” helpful. Look for more blogs on all aspects of Minnesota, real estate, and the world around...

Highest rated places to live in Minnesota   So many have opinions on this but here is what I found.   The website touropia https://www.touropia.com/best-cities-in-minnesota-to-live-and-visit/ rated the top 12 best cities in Minnesota to live and visit. Here are their winners. Eden Prairie Edina Rochester Minneapolis Plymouth Paul Mankato Chanhassen Cloud Maple Grove Woodbury Minnetonka   The nationally known Niche rated the best places to live in Minnesota https://www.niche.com/places-to-live/search/best-places-to-live/s/minnesota/. This list included some neighborhoods. Here are those.   Macalester-Groveland in St. Paul Anthony Park in St. Paul Falcon Heights Eden Prairie Summit Hill in St. Paul Lauderdale Union Park in St. Paul Highland Park in St. Paul Edina Comp Park in St. Paul Shoreview Hamline-Midway in St. Paul Fulton in Minneapolis Linden Hills in Minneapolis King Field in Minneapolis Plymouth Mendota Heights Chanhassen Downtown St. Paul Page in Minneapolis Shorewood Lynhurst in Minneapolis Lowry Hill in Minneapolis Summit-University in St. Paul Regina in Minneapolis   Minnesota has so much...

Experts weigh in on Minnesota real estate in 2023   The experts say homes sales in the Twin Cities are expected to be about the same as 2022, this is regardless of higher interest rates. It is predicted home sales will slow more nationally then in Minnesota. New construction will feel the biggest impact. Builders started too many developments and have some spec homes yet to sell. Look for buying incentives like discounted interest rates, seller paid closing costs and other extras like them finishing the basements. Realtor.com predicts The Twin Cities metro area will be down .8% for sales in 2023 compared to 14% nationwide. Listings will continue to be at a short supply in 2023, since we currently only have a two-month supply of homes for sale. Prices in the Twin Cities will continue to rise (the doomsayers are clueless – our economy is based on supply and demand). Will not see the bidding...

Things to do in Minnesota during the holidays.   What are some fun things to do in Minnesota during the holidays when you have family and friends in town? Here is a list of things that might interest you. Light displays…Bentleyville Tour of Lights in Duluth. Kiwanis Holidays Lights in Mankato, Winter Lights in the Twin Cities, Glow Holiday Festival in St. Paul, Sertoma Winter Wonderland in Baxter, Celebrate the Light of the World in Willmar, and Sever’s Holiday Lights in Shakopee. Historic home tours like the James J. Hill house in St. Paul. Psycho Suzi’s is transformed into Mary’s Christmas Palace. Have holiday cocktails surrounded by kitschy holiday décor and holiday tunes. Visit the Mall of America as they have several holiday events like the Festival of Trees. Holiday shows like A Wonderful Like at The Saint Paul Hotel, or Christmas Carol at the Guthrie Theatre or Houlton’s Nutcracker Fantasy at the...

  Minnesota is rated the best state in the nation.   Those of you who complain about our winters should know you living in the best state in the nation and the best country in the world. How can I say that? Let me tell you why… World population review for 2022 by US & World Report defined quality of life for each state in the US. It is measured by comfort, health, and happiness. Quality of life is further measured by material factors, such as income and housing, and health, education, and freedom. Minnesota ranks second best quality of life by this. High life expectancy, low poverty, food security and employment levels were outstanding and great education. Also, high median family income and low levels of separation and divorce. Crime rates are low, the air is clean, and the population is healthy.   WallHub rated the best and & worst states to raise a...

We have the best rated airport in North America. J.D. Powers 2022 North America Airport Satisfaction study was recently released. Our flying volume is 94 percent of pre-pandemic numbers. Travelers have fewer flights, more crowded terminals and more limited food and beverage options. So how does Minneapolis/St. Paul International Airport compare? Based on greater than 26,500 surveys from US and Canadian residents who traveled through US airports. The study, which is now in its 17th year, looks at airports in three main categories…mega-airports, large airports, and medium airports. Minneapolis/ St. Paul airport is classified as a mega-airport. Satisfaction is determined by looking a terminal facility, airport arrival and departure, baggage claim service, security check timeliness and efficiency, check-in and baggage check and quality of food, beverage, and retail. The most satisfying mega-airport, with 33 million passengers or more, was our Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport! It ranks highest in customer satisfaction with a score...

Update on the Coronavirus in Minnesota. The State of Minnesota has the smallest number of coronavirus cases in the Nation per 1,000 population. The Governor, Tim Walz, issued an executive order 20-19 https://mn.gov/governor/news/executiveorders.jsp That we are to be “in shelter until May4th. That includes restaurants, business and schools. This also is in effect for public and private schools and Universities and Colleges. Real estate’s classified as an “essential service” and continues to be active, but much slower than a normal spring season. How do we deal with this? Dealing with the Coronavirus in Minnesota. We are staying at home and when we need to go to the grocery store, we use social distancing. That is a six-foot minimum distance from another. We are also allowed to walk our dog, talk ourselves and get outside exercise. We’re encouraged to wear a mask. For education the Governor authorized the Commissioner of Education to...

Here is we know we are the best nations best secret. Since we are the northern most state in the union excluding Alaska. We are always ranked near the top for healthiest state, best public schools, quality of life, best state for women and the list goes on and on. Which is why it is easy to see that Minnesota is number 1 once again. Now a new honor New ranking confirms what we in Minnesota already knew. We are so very generous here. Minnesota is the most charitable state in the US. This is by the personal finance website - WalletHub https://wallethub.com/edu/most-and-least-charitable-states/8555/#main-findings . It ranked 19 traits that included volunteer rate and the percentage of people donating money. After adding the rankings…we were number one! Our nonprofits in minnesota The nonprofit sector in Minnesota is booming. The state has the highest number of nonprofit employees in history.  With a total of 385,000 workers. And...

As a long-time resident of Minnesota, I appreciate what we have here. In fact, we are the best place in the nation in many categories. Let me share with you a few facts. Minnesota is a great place to raise a family Highest ACT scores in the nation. See my blog at www.mnschools.com for more information. Our schools are rated as some of the finest in the nation. As an example, U.S. News & World report says Minnesota has 58 of America’s Best High Schools in 2018. And U.S. News rates Minnesota as having the 3rd best place to live in the nation. https://www.usnews.com/news/best-states/minnesota . has an amazing quality of life USA Today listed Minnesota a number one healthiest state in the nation. This reflects our clean air, clean water, and best hospitals in the nation. Also, we have the lowest heart-related deaths of any state in America. is the land of opportunity First, we have the highest employment...