Sharlene Hensrud

My head turned as I drove past the striking St. Katherine Ukrainian Orthodox Church in Arden Hills when I was out showing houses yesterday. One of only two Ukranian Orthodox parishes in Minnesota according to the website of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of the USA, St. Katherine's celebrated its 60th anniversary last year. Its current structure was built in 1996.

Although I know it's there, it always surprises me when I see this distinctive Russian church in Minnesota where this style of church architecture is rare... after all, the Twin Cities have been jokingly called the Vatican of the Lutheran Church so our dominant style of church architecture is very different.

With 36.7% of Minnesotans of German ancestry, 17.2% Norwegian and 9.9% Swedish it isn't surprising that 6 of 10 Minnesotans are Lutheran. Worldwide, the Eastern Orthodox religious tradition is second only to that of the Roman Catholic Church. In the Ukraine, 80% are of the Eastern Orthodox faith.

While the long narrow style basilica style of public buildings became the church building style of Western Christianity, the Eastern Orthodox religion adopted the more compact style of pagan tombs. My understanding is that five domes, as in this church, symbolize Jesus Christ and the four evangelists, and the distinctive onion style of the domes was developed to prevent snow from accumulating on them... hmmm, sounds like this could work for Minnesota as well...

When I visited orthodox churches in Russia and Bulgaria I was surprised to find the congregation standing throughout the entire worship service... there were no seats to be found. Services were also sung almost in their entirety with no instrumental accompaniment... supposedly because they see the human voice as the most perfect instrument of praise.

The orthodox cross adds two additional bars to the traditional one bar cross found in the Western Christian tradition... the upper one representing the plaque hung over Christ's head, the middle bar the beam on which his wrists or palms were nailed (same as in Western Christianity), and the bottom bar the footrest where it is believed his feet were nailed.

Interested in what's for sale in Arden Hills around this striking church on County Road 96 just east of US Highway 10? I encountered a neighbor out running with his dogs through the grounds when I stopped yesterday. Current average list price in this neighborhood is $381,382.

Sharlene Hensrud, RE/MAX Results - Email - Arden Hills Realtor

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The number of new listings entering the Twin Cities market last year was the lowest it has been since the turn of the century... down from a peak of 108,033 in 2006 to only 68,875 in 2011.

That low number of sellers entering the marketplace coupled with buyers snatching them up resulted in in a supply of homes for sale that dropped off my chart... only 16,191 active listings at the end of 2011.

If you look at the laws of supply and demand, indications are this could be a good year for sellers. The months supply of inventory in December was down to 4.2 months... indicating a seller's market for the first time since 2005!

Unemployment has been holding buyers back, but the unemployment rate has now reached its lowest level in three years. The decline since August was the biggest decline over any 4-month period dating back to 1976! That, combined with continued record-low mortgage rates and rising rental rates, has bolstered demand.

Traditional sellers have been holding back during the last few turbulent year, resulting in a high percentage of short sales and foreclosures...

...which in turn have contributed to declining prices encouraging traditional sellers to stay out of the market.

Overall median sale price last year was $150,000, but when you break it out by traditional, short sales and foreclosures you see that median price for traditional sales was almost double that for foreclosures.

This could be the year of the move up buyer... selling to first-time homebuyers eager to buy to escape rising rents... then buying up with not only price savings but also with the increased buying power of low interest rates.

Thinking about selling? It's time to start getting your home ready, listings are needed... !!!

As Twin Cities rents go up in in response to high demand and the lowest vacancy rates in about 10 years some renters are starting to wonder if it finally makes more sense to buy.

While there are many factors involved in such a decision, if it boils down to whether buying makes financial sense given current market conditions a good gauge is the price-to-rent ratio.

The price-to-rent ratio is the cost of the median home divided by a year's median rent. Median price of a home in the 13-county Minneapolis-St. Paul area was $150,000 at the end of 2011. Median rent is about $1,100/month or $13,200 annually, according to more than one online rental site. Dividing $150,000 by $13,200 gives a ratio of 11.36.

So what does that mean? The classic rule of thumb is that when the ratio is over 20 you should rent... 15-20 you could go either way... under 15 it makes more sense to buy. At the peak of the bubble the ratio was 21.69... long-term average from 1989 to 2003 was 13.48.

At 11.36 the price-to-rent ratio is below both the peak and the long-term average, which seems to tip the scale towards buying vs renting.

The Coffee Shop Northeast is one of those intimate coffee shops that immediately makes you feel at home... like you are already part of the neighborhood. I met new clients there on Thursday night just as I had met another client there a few weeks ago. I was again struck by the 'Cheers' feel of this neighborhood hub... very friendly and welcoming, a place where you go not just for coffee and food but also for comaraderie and to get a pulse on what is happening in the neighborhood. They've got it right when they say they serve coffee~treats~food~ LOVE!

Thursday evening was December 1st, Johnson Street shopping night. As I walked towards the coffee shop I was greeted by the dazzling, colorful displays in A Bag Lady on the corner... and when I arrived at The Coffee Shop Northeast I was delighted to find some local artisans set up in back of the shop. What an added treat to be able to get a start on my Christmas shopping!

If food prepared and served with love is the way to a person's heart the corner of Johnson and 29th is the Audubon Park neighborhood heart trifecta.

Not only do you have The Coffee Shop NE, but you also have Hazel's Northeast restaurant serving home cooked comfort food and Sarah Jane's old fashioned bakery providing fresh, delicious melt-in-your mouth goodies since 1979. When I stopped by Sarah Jane's on Saturday morning it seemed like everyone there was greeted by name. I couldn't resist picking up some divinity for my husband, it's his favorite holiday treat. Sarah Jane's divinity was some of the best we have ever had... soft, dense but also light, and divinely delicious!

It never ceases to amaze me how people who live in this neighborhood want to stay here! Audubon Park has homes of various ages and character, many classic two-stories, tudors and bungalows built in the first half of the last century but also some mid century ramblers... with an average price of $146,975. It is bordered on the north by the lovely St. Anthony Parkway, a great place to walk, run and bike, and on the east by St. Anthony.

More than any other part of the city, people who want to live in Northeast Minneapolis know and pick their specific neighborhoods... and Audubon Park is usually near the top of the list. See homes for sale in Audubon Park and find out why people love living here!

Sharlene Hensrud, RE/MAX Results - Email - Minneapolis Audubon Park Realtor

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