Real Estate Agent · Saint Paul, MN · Member since 2015 · 24 posts · 8 votes
Hey guys-
Anyone have any experience with rentals over in North Minneapolis? I know that this area has historically been somewhat of a war zone, and definitely still is at points...but there are definitely some areas that are coming up. I am more of a Saint Paul guy, and am trying to familiarize myself with Minneapolis neighborhoods better.
Just wondering if anyone has any suggestions for specific pockets in North Minneapolis that they are liking these days?
I have never never held a rental property in n mpls. Flipped a few and I think they are easier to work w on that end than St. Paul.
From an outsiders perspective it seems like a horrible place to try and do business. The city and newspapers put the screws to the landlords in the area. Two years ago it was that khan that they did all they could to run out of town and defame him in the paper. Last month they picked their man of the year 2017 a steve frenz, they pulled his licenses and fined him about 200,000$. Now, obviously every tenant he ever had is lining up to try and take him to court. Seems like they complain about the lack of affordable housing and then fine, defame, and pull the licenses of people who attempt to provide affordable housing. Obviously I don't know the ins and outs of what happened.
Clearly it's a difficult place to do business. Class D properties. All that inventory was so cheap a few years ago and has really came back. There are some good pockets like west of penn or above 40th Ave, but I would definitely cruise the neighborhood you buy in before you buy.
I have never never held a rental property in n mpls. Flipped a few and I think they are easier to work w on that end than St. Paul.
From an outsiders perspective it seems like a horrible place to try and do business. The city and newspapers put the screws to the landlords in the area. Two years ago it was that khan that they did all they could to run out of town and defame him in the paper. Last month they picked their man of the year 2017 a steve frenz, they pulled his licenses and fined him about 200,000$. Now, obviously every tenant he ever had is lining up to try and take him to court. Seems like they complain about the lack of affordable housing and then fine, defame, and pull the licenses of people who attempt to provide affordable housing. Obviously I don't know the ins and outs of what happened.
Clearly it's a difficult place to do business. Class D properties. All that inventory was so cheap a few years ago and has really came back. There are some good pockets like west of penn or above 40th Ave, but I would definitely cruise the neighborhood you buy in before you buy.
I have a rental over there. Dowling and Fremont. Its been ok. I bought the property at county auction and remodeled it and had steady tenants for the past 7 years. They have not been great tenants but they were mostly ok until a couple years ago when they started getting behind. I have not had any problems with the city over there, but I also maintain my properties and don't do slumlord type things. In general north of Dowling ave is good, and anything close to the parkway is good. I lived on lowry and lyndale for 3 years when I bought my first house and I didn't have any problems. One block away on Bryant there were constant drug raids and such. So it really is block by block. There are a lot of homeowners who have lived their for decades and really make the neighborhoods nice. There are also a lot of absentee landlords who cause deterioration to the neighborhoods over there, so the city can give you a hassle if your property falls into tier 2 or 3. The city can be a hassle anywhere though. They made me do some BS repairs on my duplex in NE that were completely unnecessary and kind of took away from the original design of the house.
West of Penn is better then east, north of Broadway is better then south, north of Lowry is better then south, north of Dowling is better then south, north of 44th is better then south, north of Memorial Parkway is better then south. Stay away from the thoroughfares and you will be fine :) Best of luck.
There is a little pocket in the Harrison neighborhood that I really like. Its about 8 blocks large. If you can find a property in that area it will likely be a steal. Like everyone else is saying, it really is block by block. Do your research. Drive the area a few times at various points throughout the day. Trust your gut.