1002 Heritage Court, Vadnais Heights$130,000! (Low HOA!)WOW... What a Light Bright CUTIE! Main floor with Walk Out & no stairs! Master suite with private 3/4 bath and walk-in closet, recently updated forced air/gas furnace, main floor laundry (In unit), cul-de-sac patio overlooking court yard. VERY Nice and VERY Inexpensive!  02/08/2018

House hunting is just like any other shopping expedition. If you identify exactly what you want and do some research, you’ll zoom in on the home you want at the best price. These eight tips will guide you through a smart homebuying process.      Know yourself and what fits. Understand the type of home that suits your personality. Do you prefer a new or existing home? A ranch or a multi-story home? If you’re leaning toward a fixer-upper, are you truly handy, or will you need to budget for contractors?       Get your finances in order. Generally, lenders say you can afford a home priced two to three times your gross income. Create a budget so you know how much you’re comfortable spending each month on housing. Don’t wait until you’ve found a home and made an offer to investigate financing... 10/15/2015

Summer is officially over and fall is here. Have you started decorating with fall décor, or are you enjoying the Pumpkin Spice ‘everything’ that seemed to have popped up out of the blue. The month of October has a variety of events to enjoy in the area. I hope that you are able to find something on this list to enjoy with your family. Gateway to Gold – October 10th at the Minneapolis Sports Center. This event will introduce individuals with physical and visual impairments, including youth, adults, and military veterans, to the Paralympic sports of cycling, Nordic skiing, and track & field. For more information, visit the website. 12th Annual Historic Riverfront 5K Run/Walk – October 10th at Boom Island Park. For more information, visit the official website.  Pro Football Hall of Fame To... 10/04/2015

We are headed into the last quarter of 2015, and soon the cooler weather will be here. Are you and your home ready for it? Here are a few tips for keeping your home in the best shape possible. Clean your Dishwasher Filter - The food particles that cake your plates and utensils don't magically disappear during the wash cycle. Usually these large particles collect in your dishwasher's filter, and are held there until the filter is cleaned. Although your dishwasher filter is often forgotten, ignoring this important component is a bad idea. If not cleaned regularly, the filter can negatively affect your appliance's performance, leaving you with extra scrubbing after the rinse cycle is complete. Seal Openings in your Home’s Exterior - According to the National Pest Management Association, ro... 09/25/2015

Before the air turns blustery here in the Twin Cities, let’s discuss heat. A lot of research money is being put into developing alternative forms of heat for homes. Most people have either a furnace that uses forced air or electricity for heat, or radiator/steam heat, or some form of a woodburning system. Many have a combination of woodburning and one of the previously mentioned systems. One form of heating that is getting a lot of attention these days is radiant heat. Radiant heat means that instead of forcing warm air or steam into a space to heat it, the heat is diffused through tubes or electricity into the walls or the floor of a space and the heat radiates throughout. It isn’t a new concept. The ancient Romans who were wealthy used a system known as hypocaust, at considerable expe... 09/18/2015

One thing that you will want to check if you are buying a home in the Twin Cities area is the radon level. According to Wikipedia, Radon is “a chemical element with the symbol Rn and atomic number 86. It is a radioactive, colorless, odorless, tasteless noble gas, occurring naturally as a decay product of radium.” That sounds way scarier than it actually is. Most Radon is dissipated into the outside air and becomes harmless. In the average home, the level is 1.3 picocuries per liter of air (pCi/l), and not considered to be a dangerous level by the EPA. If the level is 2 pCi/l however, the EPA recommends taking some steps to mitigate it. If the level reaches 4 pCi/l, they very strongly recommend mitigation procedures. There are several ways to discover the Radon level in a home. Most home... 09/13/2015

You have decided that it is time to get out of the apartment, and you’ve started looking at homes that you THINK will fit in your budget. Before you even see the inside of any of the homes, your Real Estate Professional recommends that you get pre-approved for a home loan. Huh? O.K. So you call your bank or a mortgage broker that you know and you submit your application. After a few days you are sure that they will approve you, and then you get the call. I’m sorry Mr. & Mrs. Smith but we cannot approve you for a loan at this time. Your heart sinks into your stomach. I’m sure that either this has happened to you OR you know someone this has happened to. Do not take the first NO with a grain of salt. Get a 2nd opinion! There might be something that just needs correcting, or the other mort... 09/04/2015

 Summer is winding down, and the weather is becoming cooler. It’s time to put away the swimsuits and dig out the sweaters. The kids will be needing their backpacks for school again, too. Here are some fun activities for the beginning of Autumn. September Races - If you like running, you can find lots of races in September in the Twin Cities. Labor day weekend is particularly busy. Some of them are for very good causes. Here’s a link to the schedule of races. Renaissance Festival - Labor Day weekend is also a good time to experience a “Passport to Adventure” at the Renaissance Festival. There are exhibits and activities for every age and every interest! Blue Moon Art Tour - Another good event for Labor Day Weekend is the 9th Annual Blue Moon Art Tour. You can visit artists at their studi... 08/28/2015

With summer about over, it is time to get our home in order for the next season, Fall. If you have been entertaining this summer, I’m sure your home needs some touch up. Here are a few ideas to get your home in order. Get Your Carpets Clean – While the weather is still warm, it is a good idea to hire a professional carpet cleaning company. They will be able to clean your carpets and get out whatever was spilled in them over the summer. Since the weather is still warm, you can open the windows and get them dried in a few hours. Prune Your Trees and Shrubs – Many of the items in our yards need a good trim 2 times per year. Before the weather starts cooling down too much, it’s a good idea to get out the pruners and give your shrubs and trees a good trim. There are many websites that can gu... 08/21/2015

You are in the process of buying a new home for your family. There are MANY costs that are added when you are the buyer or seller. Since you are the Buyer, did you know that you can deduct some of the expenses that you pay when you finally close? Yes, there are tax advantages for home ownership, and I am going to share them with you. Points – If you pay any points for getting your new mortgage, you can deduct the dollar amount on your taxes. What are points? When you obtain a new mortgage, there is usually a loan origination fee and that is usually a percentage of the loan amount, which is called ‘points’. You can also pay points to reduce the interest on your loan. The more points you pay, the lower the interest rate will drop. Often it is called Pay-Down Points. You can deduct the poi... 08/14/2015

Conserving energy is something that we all work on….when we can. One thing we can do consistently is save energy in our home. Is your home up to date with energy efficiency? If you say no, don’t worry, here are a few tips that you can do that are minimal in price, but will help with keeping your energy bills down.1.    Foam weather stripping for windows and doors. This will keep the cold air from seeping through the cracks. Even if you have a new construction home, you can have gaps around the doors and windows. Think of it as $$$$$ seeping out. You want to keep that money in your pocket.2.    Wrap furnace ducts with Thermal Wrap. The point of the thermal wrap is to keep the heat in the ducts until it reaches the living areas in your home. You don’t want the hot air seeping out until it... 08/10/2015

August is the last month of summer and there are a number of events taking place in our great city. Grab the family and enjoy some fun before the kids head back to school.             Big Brothers Big Sisters of the Greater Twin Cities 5K – August 1 at Fort Snelling State Park. Participate in the 3rd Annual BBBS 5K Run/Walk! Enjoy the views and natural beauty that Fort Snelling State Park offers, all while getting in a bit of exercise!             Gilded Spatula Food Truck Battle – August 8 at Canterbury Park. This face-off between local food trucks will provide guests with great food, craft beer, and live music. A portion of the proceeds will go to support YouthLink's life-changing work with homeless youth in the Twin Cities.             Loring Park Art Festival – August 8 & 9 at Lorin... 07/30/2015

Summertime is great for enjoying time with family and friends as well as completing those tasks around the house that might otherwise get overlooked. Your home is a big investment, and it needs maintenance just like your vehicle. Here are a few July tips that you can do to keep your home in tip top shape. Home Interior – Clean Your Water Purification Filters. Your water filters need to be changed, on average, every 6 months. You want to ensure that you and your family are getting clean, purified water. Eventually all water filters lose their effectiveness and become compounded with the minerals found in our water. You might need to change your filters more often depending on the usage for your household. Home Exterior – Check Your Driveway for Cracks. Over time, asphalt and concrete dri... 07/24/2015

More rates are still at an all-time low and you are considering refinancing your mortgage. Before you take that step, there are a few things that you should consider to make sure that the refinance is going to benefit you financially. Will You Save Money By Refinancing – You need to take into consideration all the fees that are included with the refinance, not just the money you are going to save monthly. Often times with a refinance, there will be funding fees, application fees, and possibly an appraisal. Make sure that you are going to break even in the next few years with the fees of a refinance. If you plan on selling your home in the next 4 years, a refinance will most likely not benefit you. Do I have to Refinance with my Current Lender – The answer is NO. You can shop around and ... 07/17/2015

With summer comes cleaning and home updates. One of the great things about living in the Twin Cities area is that summer is a great time to spruce up your house! Are you itching to change your living areas? Are you thinking it will be too expensive to change anything? Penny Wrenn of LearnVest has some great ideas and suggestions on how to do each room for under $500! In her article she addresses the living room, bedroom, kitchen, and bathroom and has it organized by $100, $300, and $500 renovations and revamps.  The living room is the center of your home, and you want it to be inviting and comfortable. Some budget friendly ways to spruce up your living room include painting, using fabric as a valance, adding light and mirrors, and using a color theme throughout the room. When you retrea... 07/10/2015

  Are you ready for this weekend? A time when we celebrate the birthday of this great country, do you know what you will be doing? Will you be at one of the many events in the area, or will you be BBQ’ing at home with family and friends. If you still have not decided what you will be doing, here are a few suggestions: Coon Rapids 4th Of July Celebration – July 2nd – 4th. The event is being held at a new location: Coon Rapids Ice Center, located at 11000 Crooked Lake Boulevard. Events include a carnival, parade, fireworks, bingo, pull tabs and other fun activities. A Taste of Minnesota - Waconia Fairgrounds – now until July 5th. Live music, beer and wine tastings, blood drive, inflatable, pony rides, petting zoo, midway rides and fireworks. Anoka Fireworks – July 3rd. This is the 18th an... 07/03/2015

Summer is officially here, and you might be preparing to sell your home in and around the Twin Cities area. Just as it is your realtor’s job to get your home sold, it is also your responsibility to prepare your home to be in the best shape possible for sale. For the next few weeks, we are going to share pointers on how you can be best prepared for showing your home to prospective buyers. The best thing you can do is to get rid of the clutter in and around your home. Start with the outside of the house. Put away all of the tools, empty flower pots, extra trash cans, etc. If you are lucky to have a shed on your property, use it! Get a few storage bins and put the “stuff” in them and store them in the shed. Make sure that your front and backyards are properly manicured. I am not saying tha... 06/30/2015

This weekend is the time when we celebrate our Dads and all that they do for us. Have you decided what you will be doing? A Sporting Event, Special brunch/dinner or just hanging out, whatever you choose to do to celebrate Father’s Day, make it all about him. Here are a few ideas that might spark your interest: ·         Stone Arch Bridge Festival – June 20 – 21 on the Minneapolis Riverfront. Over 250 artists, 3 performance stages, Family art activities, there is bound to be something that everyone in the family will like. A great event for the whole family. ·         Father’s Day 5K – Held at Lake Phalen in St. Paul, grab the family and enjoy a short 5K run. For the little ones, there will also be a ¼ mile fun run. This starts at 8:30 am – so plan accordingly. ·         Canoe with Dad o... 06/19/2015

Spring is the time of year when everyone starts looking to buy their next home; otherwise known as House-Hunting season. If you are planning on being in the market to buy or sell a home, you need to know what is going on in the real estate market. According to Freddie Mac, 40% of the home sales for the year happen in April, May, and June. This year the sellers have the advantage in the market, and in some parts of the country, this advantage is A LOT. Here are 4 things that you must know if you are going to be a participant in the real estate market. ·         Home Prices are Increasing – If you are looking to buy, you need to know that houses are not staying on the market long. There is a shortage of homes to buy, and if you are looking to stay at the lower end of the price spectrum, t... 06/05/2015

June is here, and this month we officially kick off summer. Are you ready to have some fun with the family? Here are a few events going on in June for you to enjoy.If you are a music lover – there are a variety of parks to enjoy music and the outdoors. Visit this website to find a park near you.If you are looking for a day of Family Fun in a Christian environment – head to the Joyful Noise Family Fest at the National Sports Center. This event is taking place on June 5 & 6, and the artist lineup is fantastic this year.  It includes TobyMac, Matthew West, For King and Country, Jamie Grace, and more! Visit the website for full details.Are you into Farmers Markets? Head to the Maple Grove Community Center every Thursday from 3:00PM – 7:00PM. The Farmers Market runs from June 11 – October 22... 05/29/2015