West Metro Apartments

Daughter and 2 friends are looking to move from Mankato to the west metro area this summer. Preferably the Edina, Minnetonka, St Louis Park area as they are closest to their places of employment. All 3 are recent college graduates. Suggestions for specific apartments to check into? Any rental agencies or particular areas to stay away from? Dads of young daughters that know the area, where would you suggest? I have zero knowledge of the area as far as housing. The other 2 girls are from out of state so they have no connections in the area either. Any and all input greatly appreciated.

Oofda, hope they plan on dropping coin renting in those cities. Generally higher the rent the less crap neighbors you’ll have to deal with.

Be alot easier telling us which specific spots they’re interested in than giving out the hundreds of rental goods and bads in those areas.

As with any potential living area it’s pretty easy to drive by these areas on weekends to see what you’ll be dealing with. Friday and Saturday nights with good weather will give you lots of information

Lots of nice places in those areas, expect rent to be over double my mortgage payment. Being almost all apartments are precast I w9rk on lots of them and I always ask going rates. 2500 a month in that area seems about the normal for something that’s a quarter the size of my basement. They would be better off further west in a small town and drive east to work. That would be my suggestion

They will be fine on apartment rates if there are 3 people. St Louis Park is quite nice from what I can tell … find an apartment that is 5-10 years old or more vs. brand new to save money.

The lure of inside the loop apartments is proximity to friends, gyms, and an evening social life. Living further out spending more time and money on commuting seems to be counter to that desire.

PM sent.

Brittman wrote:

St Louis Park is quite nice from what I can tell

I agree, that is a really nice area for a young professional. Definitely can get pricey though.

The West End in St. Lous park would be #1 for recent grads, but its fairly pricey. There are a bunch of apartments over there, central park west is nice.

I would much rather they live in SLP, Hopkins, or Minnetonka, than Uptown or North Loop.

The areas around the U of M have steadily increased in high end cost of living, but decreased in general area safety.

Don’t count out north loop. I regularly bike thru the area in evenings(well used to until they closed stone arch bridge), and have gone out for many drinks and eats in the area on weekends. Super popular with that age. Never felt uncomfortable. Couple bad incidents shouldn’t ruin an entire area.

I’d say all 3 of those are relatively safe area’s, with a few problem spots. But you should be able to tell pretty quickly by price and upkeep. West End in SLP, 50th and France in Edina are very popular and safe I’d say. Minnetonka is a little different since it doesn’t really have specific areas like those I just listed. If they are thinking “lake” for Minnetonka, they’d be better off looking in Wayzata, or Excelsior/Deephaven/Shorewood, and if you go that far out I’d say look at EP and Chanhassen too.

Deuces wrote:

Don’t count out north loop.

x2, probably the most thriving area in all of the Twin Cities (MSP/StP).

Depending on number of residents, they may want to look into renting a townhome. We rented one out for a number of years and just recently sold it. We were renting it for our mortgage which was less than an apartment. Ours was in Minnetonka.

All three of those areas will be much nicer than a lot of the metro. Plymouth and Maple Grove are nice areas that don’t add too much to the commute either and may be worth looking into. Like said above, the farther out you go, the more you get for your money.

Hopkins is underrated in IMO, and hopefully stays that way. Mainstreet still has a small town feel even though it is right in the cities. Very Walkable with restaurants and bars along main. The Moline apartment is very popular for young people. Several years ago we were renting a 2 bedroom house in Hopkins for $1,300/month, 1890’s old but fine. Took care of a lot of small things vs calling so the landlord never raised rent, he liked to fish also so would chat about that lol.

Blake rd and hwy 7 area has issues but looks like they are building a bunch of upscale apartments- that will change the scene.

West End is probably what they are looking for. Fun area but $$$

10klakes wrote:

Hopkins is underrated in IMO

I’d second this, and often think most people in DT Hopkins think they are in Tonka . Also FWIW Trev the Southwest Rail will be done sometime this century (2027 is the current prediction) and going thru all those places, so that will be something to factor in one way or another!

I’d also look at Eden Prairie. I’d have them stay away from Richfield and Bloomington. Those use to be nice area’s, Not so these days.

The natural progression of young adults that attend the University of Minnesota and/or others that return “home” to the Twin Cities after graduation is often / indeed Uptown and North Loop.
 
North Loop properties are often stunning in appearance but are really pricey … I know quite a few young people that have lived in that area. Most move out after a year or two and just Uber to the night spots.

The crime that I am aware of in North Loop area was mainly vehicle break-ins and stolen vehicles. One was even inside a basement garage. Same with Uptown to be honest … mostly vehicle break-ins and stolen vehicles.

fishthumper wrote:

I’d have them stay away from Richfield and Bloomington. Those use to be nice area’s, Not so these days.

Ridiculous statement.

Deuces wrote:

<div class=”d4p-bbt-quote-title”>fishthumper wrote:</div>
I’d have them stay away from Richfield and Bloomington. Those use to be nice area’s, Not so these days.

Ridiculous statement.

Agreed, ridiculous statement. Not sure how Thumper would both know how those area’s are, while also refusing to come to the cities anymore….

Appreciate all the info so far. If anyone has specific places to look into that would be great as well. I believe they are paying $1500/month plus utilities right now for a 3-bedroom in Mankato. Not sure they can come close to that in the metro?

Trev wrote:

$1500/month plus utilities right now for a 3-bedroom in Mankato. Not sure they can come close to that in the metro?

Had an ex who was in maple Grove complex few years back that paid 1850 for 3br but the tenants were okay, opinion from rural folks probably be even less desirable. Cheapest I’ve heard. Goes back to the more you can pay the less crap to deal with fellow tenants. I’d guess to say 2250month for nicer places throughout, and that’s bottom of the nicer food chain

I’d imagine they will be over $2k a month for sure.

I just had a college roommate stop down to catch up and he and his wife built a house but kept their townhouse in Apple Valley as a rental. He said they get $2100 a month for it…which covers the mortgage, insurance, taxes, and lets them pocket a few hundred bucks a month (while gaining equity). He admitted it’s probably under priced but they have an awesome family in there now and he doesn’t want headaches.

Trev wrote:

I believe they are paying $1500/month plus utilities right now for a 3-bedroom in Mankato. Not sure they can come close to that in the metro?

Yeah, for something you’d want your daughter living in, I’d bet you will be starting at $2500/mo and going up. Not sure if it’s feasible for any of them, but might be better off townhome shopping as one of the 3 might be able to buy and rent to the other 2 cheaper for everyone than renting.

Be aware that there are 3 now but things could change. Who will sign and be responsible for the lease? Girls fight, fall in love, hate the area, lose their job ect.

North Loop/SLP you’ll have a hard time finding much below $2100/mo. With that said, you get nice amenities like gym access, rooftop pool, etc. Doesn’t “save” them money, but it can allow them to drop the Lifetime membership.

https://www.apartments.com/saint-louis-park-mn/3-bedrooms/

Looks like they start at $2200 or $3,000 min for a newer place for a 3 bedroom

ganderpike wrote:

North Loop/SLP you’ll have a hard time finding much below $2100/mo. With that said, you get nice amenities like gym access, rooftop pool, etc. Doesn’t “save” them money, but it can allow them to drop the Lifetime membership.

That’s what they are looking for. Something with amenities such as a gym.

Another thing to factor in is parking. Most all of the modern apartment complexes have off street parking with many offering secure underground parking.

That said, most of these buildings offer one maybe two spaces per apartment. If all three have cars then they need to understand what is available to them and if they need more spots what is the cost.

Trev wrote:

<div class=”d4p-bbt-quote-title”>ganderpike wrote:</div>
North Loop/SLP you’ll have a hard time finding much below $2100/mo. With that said, you get nice amenities like gym access, rooftop pool, etc. Doesn’t “save” them money, but it can allow them to drop the Lifetime membership.

That’s what they are looking for. Something with amenities such as a gym.

Millenium Apartments in SLP would be an example of one with those amenities.

good gawd….$2250.00 a month…..thats over twice what my mortgage was!!!!

glenn57 wrote:

good gawd….$2250.00 a month…..thats over twice what my mortgage was!!!!

I thought they had to pay people to live in Cold Spring, but you were paying to live there?!?!

Glenn that’s almost 3x what my current mortgage is and I have a 3 bedroom house on 6 acres.
They could save a lot of money by looking out farther and commuting in to school/ work.
Renting for that kind of money is like pissing it down the drain.