Loving Their Grandma House

Living in the expensive San Francisco Bay area, Mary and Jane were long-time renters (and long-time friends of Shari's) who could only dream of owning a home. When they moved back to Minneapolis after nine years away, they were delighted to find that though housing prices had shot up, they could actually get out of the rental market and into a house bigger than a bread box. They chose the Longfellow neighborhood because of its central location and to be close to friends, work, and the Mississippi River bike and jogging trail.

Mary and Jane aren’t fix-it-uppers, so they needed a home that was in good shape. Their 1941 "grandma" house fit the bill. It had lots of loving care from its former owners, so the only work they needed to do was cosmetic. Cash-strapped after their big move from California, they used their apartment rental deposit to take up the old carpets and refinish the hard wood floors. They also took down the heavy drapes, which were hiding fabulous new windows.

As they settle in, they plan to paint, remove old wallpaper and linoleum, get new window treatments, and install a pedestal sink in the bathroom. Next summer they’ll plant some new flower gardens and replace the old metal fencing with a privacy fence. They also hope to remodel the kitchen and bring it into the new millennium.

Moving from the west coast back to Minnesota was a pretty overwhelming job. Mary and Jane got help from Coldwell Banker Burnet’s Home Resource Center, which hooked them up with major moving companies, provided a big price discount, and helped trouble-shoot when problems arose during the move.

“The folks at CB Burnet provided great support when we ran into problems with our moving company,” says Mary. “It was a comfort to know that the Home Resource Center was behind us and that Shari was calling and yelling at people!”