July 14th, 2008 categories: Real Estate, Trends
Plentiful jobs, excellent schools, affordable housing - according to CNN’s Money Magazine top 100 list of America’s best small cities, 9 Minnesota cities have all that and more. And even better, the report ranked our very own northwest suburb, Plymouth, MN, as the #1 place to live among U.S. cities with populations of 50,000 to 300,000!
The ranking touts Plymouth’s “topnotch” schools, plentiful jobs, affordable housing, low crime rate and active outdoor culture. In addition, the report shows that Plymouth has a significantly higher-than-average median family income, family purchasing power, math and reading test scores, and percentage of residents with a health plan (91.2%); AND lower-than-average auto insurance premiums, shorter commute times, and lower median home prices. Here are a few other things they say about our little gem of a city… Read the rest of this entry »
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Green Nation: Saving the Planet One Earth-Friendly Move at a Time
May 8th, 2008 categories: Design, Green Living, Moving, Trends
One fifth of all Americans – 20 percent – move every year! That means that the average U.S. resident will move a total of 16 times over their lifetime – about once every five years! That’s a lot of moving!
Moving supplies such as boxes, bubble wrap and other packaging materials remain piled up in landfills long after people have settled into their new abodes. EarthFriendlyMoving has set out to change that by offering eco-friendly moving supplies available at consumer-friendly prices. Read the rest of this entry »
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Green is the New Black at the 2008 Parade of Homes Spring Preview
March 13th, 2008 categories: Design, For Fun, Green Living, Home Buying, Real Estate, Trends
Green is the new black during this, the final weekend of the 2008 Parade of Homes Spring PreviewSM presented by Builders Association of the Twin Cities’ members.
This year’s Guidebook includes plenty of great Green articles to help us make sense of this growing movement and the homes in this year’s 14-home earth-friendly mini tour are built to showcase Green building practices, products and design, and many of them will host education seminars and other interesting events to give home buyers a better understanding of their Green options.
Some of the seminars that are taking place this weekend include: “Landscaping for a Green Community”, “Light up Your Home AND Your Energy Bill” and “Geothermal Heating and Cooling: A Systems Approach.” And I’m thinking about checking out an event with eco-friendly design expert, Jackie Kanthak, who will be will answering questions, giving green design ideas, and offering advice on the the hard to find eco-friendly products for the kitchen and bathroom.
Green or not, the homes on parade cover a broad spectrum of prices to fit the needs of every buyer, ranging from the lowest priced home by S.W. Wold Townhomes, Inc. in Cambridge, priced at $119,900, to the most expensive home by Stonewood LLC, located on Loring Drive in Minnetrista and priced at $2,950,000.
So come on out this weekend to take advantage of the longer days and beautiful spring weather that’s rolled our way, and peruse the preview parade!
For more information go to http://www.paradeofhomes.org.
Happy house hunting!!!
:: Kelly ::| Discussion: No Comments »
A Fresh Perspective in Real Estate
March 11th, 2008 categories: For Fun, Trends
Greetings everyone!
I wanted to take a moment and introduce myself. My name is Kelly Carlson, Marketing Manager for the Don Edam Group, and I’m going to be contributing to this blog (and to the real estate industry in general) in the days to come, from a completely new and different perspective than your typical real estate professional.
Hoping to utilize a trifecta of my favorite hobbies (trend hunting, exploring new places, and trying new things), as well as tapping back into the service journalism and editorial voice that my U of M education once afforded me, my intentions are to keep you posted on all the latest news, statistics, tips, and trends in real estate and to scope out and share with you all of the food and dining, shopping and style, arts and entertainment, health, education, and local events that make our Twin Cities neighborhoods unique and fabulous places to live!
Although I am relatively new as a licensed real estate agent, I’m excited to know that the combination my background, work and educational experience, and personal interests can lend something new to the industry. While my expertise (& nearly a decade of experience!) lies primarily in promotions, marketing, and trend research, I also have 2 years experience as a credit analyst for a local mortgage services company and 4 years experience in title insurance research, giving me a range of knowledge and skill that can only add to our clients’ success.
I get a kick out of being a social anthropologist and spotting changes in consumer behavior, scoping out new trendsetting products and services, and just about any super-smart thinking on where our societies are headed at large. I look forward to developing new and innovative ways of marketing your homes and neighborhoods so that others can see why you called it “home” for so long, and I hope you enjoy the information I can share with you about the people, places, and events that form our great Twin Cities communities.
In the meantime, happy house hunting and speedy sales to all!
Kelly
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