While most of us that live in the Twin Cities know that the first place we think of to find high end goods is Edina’s Galleria, the Mall of America, or MOA to us locals, is revamping its style to include some luxury brands previously only reserved for the West side. For those of us that now cringe to travel to the Galleria because traffic is just so dog gone annoying, we can now take a detour to the shops at MOA.
The “South Wing” of the mall is getting a face lift to draw in high-end brands, including porcelain tile and crystal chandeliers, all to a luxury price of $5 Million. Current tenants include Burberry, Hugo Boss, Betsey Johnson, Nordstrom, with more to come in the upcoming months. The true test of keeping these brands here will be sale driven, as rent in MOA is pretty high. Only time will tell if true Lux can survive in Bloomington, the shopping ugly step child of beloved Edina.
Ever want to know what an expensive home will cost you in the Twin Cities? Well if you are looking for a historic home and you have a couple of million dollars to spare, here are three great choices scattered across the Metro area.
Built in the 1860’s, this Italianate Farmhouse in Saint Paul boasts 4000 square feet, four bedrooms, and two acres of land/gardens – all for $2.5 Million. Listed with Coldwell Banker Burnet.
The Cedarhurst Mansion in Cottage Grove will only cost you $2.5 Million, but you’ll get a historic home built in 1911, 10 acres of land, and over 12,000 square feet. Listed with Edina Realty.
For a simple $2.4 Million, you can own the Lovness Estate in Stillwater, designed by Frank Lloyd Wright and built by the home owners in 1957. Sitting on 20 acres, the home has two bedrooms, a separate cottage, and comes with original plans to build three more small cottages, all designed by Mr. Wright himself. Listed with Sky Sotheby’s Realty.
Lake Minnetonka has its share of expensive luxury homes that are currently for sale, most of them being in the multi-million dollar range, and it always comes as no surprise that the most expensive home in the Twin Cities is located on the lake. Currently the top honor goes to a listing with Coldwell Banker Burnet in Orono that is priced at $11.5 Million.
1655 Bohns Point Road, Orono
Located on the prestigious Bohns Point, the home features sweeping views of Lake Minnetonka on 3 acres of lakeshore. With over 9000 square feet, including a 1 bedroom/1 bath carriage house, the home has 7 total garage stalls. Make sure you can pay the taxes. They come in at a staggering $75,000 per year!
If you forgot about the Minneapolis-St. Paul-Lake Minnetonka Luxury Home Tour, aka the Twin Cities, then you have one more weekend to get off the couch and out of the house to view some major architectural homes for sale. Half of the homes surround Lake Minnetonka, and the rest are mostly in Edina, Prior Lake, Credit River Township, so there should be no excuse that the homes are too spread out.
If you have been on the tour in the past few years, you might have already visited a few of the homes as they are repeats, but hey, sometimes it’s fun to keep dreaming. I have always like the home in Credit River Township, so it might be interesting to see it again, but I know I just have to visit the home on Palmer Pointe in Minnetrista.
Tickets cost $20 at Caribou Coffee, or $25 at the luxury homes, but if you only want to see one or two of them, you can always just go the $5 route for each single home. Let me know which homes you liked the best!
I was reading today about a Luxury Mansion in Florida being listed for sale at a staggering price of $75 Million. Problem is, the house is not entirely finished. In fact, it doesn’t go much past the studded walls. The unfinished 90,000 square foot home includes a roller rink in the basement, home theater, bolling alley…oh, the list goes on. Needless to say, but selling an “as-is” home is pretty difficult. Buyers have a hard time envisioning the final product, and many will discount the home even more.
The article got me wondering if there were any new construction homes listed in the Twin Cities MLS database that were priced above a million dollars and being sold “as-is”. I was able to find one on Long Lake with 5200 square feet of unfinished space that is for sale for $1.1 Million. It originally started out at $2.2 Million, but with the market crash, and the simple fact that it is not finished, I am not surprised it hasn’t sold yet. Once a potential buyer also looks at the $18,000 yearly property taxes, they might think twice about buying the home. Oh, and did I forget to mention that the home is now lender owned?
On June 25, 2010, the world’s largest gold coin will be auctioned off to a really wealthy bidder. Minted in 2007, the Canadian Maple Leaf weighs 220 pounds and 20 inches wide, and is heavy enough that two men cannot pick it up. Yikes!
The coolest tidbit about the coin is the fact is is made of the purest gold on earth, roughly 99.99% pure. Currently face valued at $1 Million, experts believe it will fetch the current gold rate. So that means since gold is currently priced at $1256/ounce, the coin could go for as much as $4.42 Million.
It continually amazes me how home owners don’t realize the poor quality of photos that their real estate agent is using to market their Million dollar homes here in the Twin Cities. Just today, I have been going through luxury homes stretching from Stillwater to Lake Minnetonka, and probably 90% of the homes priced over $800,000 have agent taken photos that are out of focus, tilted, angled, poor lighting….you name it, these photos stink!
In case you wonder if they really make that big of a difference, well I have to tell you that they do. If a buyer is looking at purchasing a luxury home, they want to see the home showcased at its finest. This means that quality photos must be taken by a professional photographer, and edited in the best way to show the homes highlights. Hey, I consider myself a decent photographer, but I leave the high-tech photo business to the professionals when it comes to my luxury listings. This means I spend money to get the quality I expect and the quality my clients deserve.
After all, what are they paying me for? My job is to market their luxury home to a luxury audience. Agents that bring their point-and-shoot cameras into a million dollar home should be kicked out on the spot. They don’t know what they are doing, and the people who will suffer for it are their clients.
Want to know why your home has been languishing on the market for over a year? Over two years? Take a look at the photo below. It represents the only photo for a $1.5 Million listing in Minnetonka. The description in MLS sounds great, but there are no photos to back it up. Do you think a buyer would really want to set up an appointment for this type of listing?
Or how about this home below that started out at $2.4 Million in Eden Prairie? It is has been on the market for a while, and now is reduced $500,000. Could it be that the really poor photos, and there are more, are killing any potential sale for this home? I certainly think so.
As a home owner looking to sell, you really need to question the agent you use and how they are going to professionally market your luxury home. Luxury home specialists know that money has to be spent on quality photography and marketing pieces to attract buyers. Ask your agent for marketing examples and past experience in the luxury home market before you sign a year long listing because if you don’t, the quality you could be getting could resemble the photos above.
"While holding myself to the highest professional and ethical standards, I pledge to take my clients real estate success to new heights by helping them make prudent real estate decisions, and in the process, prove worthy of their trust and friendship so that I may become a long term friend and advisor."
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All views expressed on the Minneapolis - St Paul Real Estate Blog are those of Jennifer Kirby, and are not to be assumed the views of the Brokerage. Please contact me if you have any questions.
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Or how about this home below that started out at $2.4 Million in Eden Prairie? It is has been on the market for a while, and now is reduced $500,000. Could it be that the really poor photos, and there are more, are killing any potential sale for this home? I certainly think so. 
