Longfellow Nokomis Real Estate Guide

Three Cheers for 3 Tiers!

This would be the obvious headline.  But the jury is still out on 3 Tiers. 

I made a stop in the new East Nokomis bakery and bought a half dozen treats to share and try. The most impressive thing I had was a mini key-lime pie tart with three fresh raspberries on top.  Tasty combination.  The key lime was especially tart, and the raspberries were especially sweet.  The least impressive was the lemon bar.  It tasted like sugar more than lemon. 

I really want them to succeed and offer another treat for those of us in East Nokomis, and another reason for people to travel to this side of the lake.  The atmosphere was lovely.  Crisp, clean, minimalist.  The sharp edges on the perfect shaped cakes assured you that the decor was intentionally sparse, and not just "yet to be determined."  And there were many treats yet to try.  The sign reads, Cakes, Truffles, and Tortes, and I did not try any cakes or truffles.

Any one else have an experience to share?

New Look, New Dog, New Pizza...same old weather (includes Pizza Joe's review)

A week of change!  We've been working on updating the look of this site and went live with it on Sunday night.  Here it is!  You're looking at it.  It's not perfect, but I think that's okay considering that we help people buy and sell houses for a living, not design websites!  Let us know what you think.  Like it? See a glaring error?  Tell us that too!

Second, my family and I adopted a new dog on Sunday.  He was formerly known as Chevy Chase, but we have fittingly renamed him Clark W. Griswold.  He's a ~7 month border collie/lab mix.

He is very exited to meet all his neighbors around Lake Nokomis and the Minnehaha Dog Park.

And lastly, news for everyone in the East Nokomis area.  I tried our new pizza joint last night.  Pizza Joe's moved in to the space formerly occupied by Ginelli's.  Ginelli's was a favorite of my neighbors and mine.  Would Pizza Joe's successfully replace it?

Well so far so good.  We tried to order on their website and ran into some errors.  When we called to follow up, they were unbelievably nice.  The manager was clearly excited at a chance to make some new customers.  We ordered two pizzas:  a build your own with peppers, onions, and mushrooms, and a sausage.  We had our choice of three different crusts and went with the "hand tossed."  Both pies were well received.  The sauce was good, the toppings fresh, the cheese gooey, and I heard from the others that the sausage was good. 

Was it as good as the late great Ginelli's?  Well...no.  But it was better than any of the chains for sure.  It held up well against the local joints too. I like the choices and flavor of Parkway Pizza better, but their bitter crust cannot be eaten alone and you end up with a plate of "pizza bones."  And Pizza Joe's was cheaper!  I'm not a huge fan of Joey D's..err...I mean Chris and Rob's pizza, but I know that others are.  I guess I could see myself order from any of the them depending on what I'm in the mood for and what crowd I'm feeding.

Welcome to the neighborhood Pizza Joe's!

Found in Nokomis

I saw this minivan parked in my neighborhood and had to stop and take a picture.  This was last week when it was 30 below zero so I was NOT going to get out of the car. But, it was interesting enough to roll down the window to brave the cold for a quick snapshot.

I've always been a fan of car art. This minivan owner tried to disquise his minivan as an aquarium.
Send us your pictures of other car-art and we'll post them here. There's no better way to show off Minneapolitans creative self-expression.

 

Best Halloween Display in Minneapolis!

If you live in the Ericsson neighborhood, you've probably already discovered Polly and Gregg Hanson's annual Halloween display.  They (okay, mostly just Polly) have been growing and improving their "graveyard," as Polly calls it, for 10 years.

As the owner of Virginia Rose Estate Sales, the Hansons are in the perfect business for finding odd and discarded pieces add to the scenery.  Polly says that she tries to avoid store bought items, although with their reputation they often recieve gifts that do have commercial origins.  The hard work and commitment to producing something orginal that you can't simply buy at Menard's really shows.  Go check it out before the spooky season is over! 

The home is located at 4228 30th Ave S.  Enjoy the pictures:

       

   

    

Carbon Monoxide Detector Law-What it means for Minneapolis Homeowners

As of today, if you live in a single family home in Minnesota, you need a carbon monoxide detector within 10 feet of every sleeping area. New construction has already been required to have them for the last year, and if you're a renter living in a multi-family unit such as an apartment building, you'll start seeing them next year.

I know some will say "quit passing laws on what I do in my home" and others will say "I' m glad this law was passed. It's a good safety measure." No matter what side of the debate you fall, I've been doing some research trying to figure out what this actually means for my clients who are buying and selling homes in Minneapolis.  The wording of the law doesn't say anything about the carbon monoxide police or how this will be monitored or enforced.

If you already live in Minneapolis, or if you are selling a home in Minneapolis, you're likely familiar with the Truth in Sale of Housing Inspection that is required to be completed before a home can even be shown to prospective buyers. I checked with the Minneapolis Truth in Sale of Housing (TISH) Department and asked them what this new law will mean in terms of these inspections. The response was that "it's a state law, not enforced by the city". At least for now, it will be marked as a "suggested correction" on the  TISH report. So, at least as far as the city of Minneapolis is concerned, today backflow preventors are more important than carbon monoxide detectors.

Minneapolis Makes Forbes Top 10

Forbes published an article last week about the 10 most lucrative cities, and Minneapolis made the list. The 4th and 7th street areas are mentioned, where luxury condos and office spaces have become the norm.  Since 1990, that area has seen 288% appreciation.

It's nice to hear some good real estate news once in a while.

Cold Californians Learn about Minneapolis Weather

  I had the pleasure of working with a young couple from California over the weekend.  They are relocating to Minnesota, and they picked the coldest weekend of the year to visit Minneapolis and search for a home to buy. Last Thursday when I heard the forecast for Martin Luther King Weekend, I called the Californians and said "GO BUY SOME MORE CLOTHES!"  Despite my warnings, they came with a baby in tow, and we spent all weekend looking for their new home in the bone-chilling cold.

Here are my favorite Californian quotes from the weekend:

"When our plane was landing, the pilot told us it was 5 degrees below zero.  There's something wrong when you have to differentiate when the temperature is either above or below zero."

"Are those tents out there on the lake [Nokomis]? They're ice fishing? WHY?"

"Do you have tolls here?" Me, "No, we have taxes"

We were looking at a townhome in a complex and needed to do some walking to get to the front door. As  I turned around to make sure everyone was OK, I noticed my client's eyes squinted shut, her hands clasped over her mouth, and walking as if every muscle in her body had frozen solid.  She nodded that she was OK.  When we got inside and her eyes were watering she said "That wasn't so bad."

Spoken like a true Minnesotan.

Minneapolis - St. Paul Volunteers make the map

Perhaps it's our education system, or the bike trails, or our lakes. Perhaps it's just because we care about our city. No matter the reason, Minneapolis-St. Paul has the largest rate of volunteerism in the country. Over 40% of us give back to our community. 

In Nokomis and Longfellow, my favorite places to volunteer are with Nokomis Healthy Seniors and the Minnehaha Food Shelf, in addition to my responsibilities as the Edina Realty foundation chairperson for the Edina Realty office in Highland.

Interested in volunteering in Minneapolis?

Try Volunteer Match
Minneapolis Park and Recreation

See the rest of the story about volunteering in Minneapolis and St. Paul.

Submitted by Lisa Dunn, proud Minneapolis Resident, and REALTOR with Edina Realty.