A frosty October morning

faucet

This tip is mostly for new homeowners or people new to Minnesota or are new to owning a home.

It is almost time to turn off the water to the outdoor faucets and disconnect any hoses. A light freeze or two probably won’t hurt your water spigots but when the temperatures get down into the 20’s watch out.

Here is what you need to do:

1.  Turn off the water from the inside of the house.

2.  open the spigot on the outside.

What happens if you don’t turn the water off?  Pipes can freeze and faucets can be destroyed by ice.  . . and it isn’t pretty.  Frozen pipes can burst and ice can damage faucets resulting in the need for expensive repairs. 

Leaving a hose attached can damage the spigot even if the water is turned off. I learned this lesson the hard way.

The good news is if you don’t know how to turn off the outdoor spigots you have time to find shut-off valves or call a plumber.

A quick look at the October 2024 housing market

Mortgage interest rates went down and then up a bit.

Mortgage interest rates

The number of homes on the market is rising and on average it takes twice as long to sell a house as it did a few months ago. Don’t get me wrong in most cases houses in St. Paul are selling in 30 days or less. Prices are not rising as quickly. We are still experiencing a seller’s market except in downtown St. Paul where the market is balanced.

Celebrating the original people

Fort Snelling
Fort Snelling

The land my house in St. Paul sits on once belonged to the Anishinaabe. The original people. Historically, the Minnesota region was strategically important to Native American peoples for thousands of years as they used the waterways for transportation and food and to develop an extensive trade relationship with other native peoples. By the 1600s, two main groups lived in present-day Minnesota, the Dakota and the Ojibwe.

Let’s not forget that the land we live on was stolen from the Anishinaabe and they were almost exterminated in the process.

Last year, the Biden administration issued a proclamation recognizing Indigenous Peoples Day for the third consecutive year. The commemoration of Native American history and culture is now federally recognized alongside Columbus Day, which has been historically observed on the same day.

We can honor Indigenous people by learning about them and our shared history.

Register to vote today

Voting on West 7th in St. Paul
vote

Just a friendly reminder. People wishing to register to vote in Minnesota before the election must do so by October 15, 2024. You can register at the polls on election day but if you do it ahead of time voting will be faster for all of us on election day.

I like to vote early just in case. 🙂 If you don’t want to vote early have a plan for election day and register today. At the very least make sure you know where to go to vote. Polling places can change and sometimes they do.

Go to the Minnesota Secretary of State website to check and see if you are registered or register online. They make it so easy, but I just don’t see the point of waiting until election day.

Election day is November 5, 2024, and that is also my birthday which falls on a national election day every 28 years.

Please vote. You can vote today. I voted yesterday in person.

The pandemic and Downtown St. Paul

The Covid-19 pandemic had a strong impact on downtown St. Paul and it looks like the neighborhood is still struggling.  Downtown is the only St. Paul neighborhood that isn’t experiencing a strong seller’s market. In fact, we are seeing a weak buyer’s market.

There are definitely opportunities for those who would like to move downtown. The graph shows the increase in condos for sale after the pandemic hit.

Housing supply graph for downtown St. paul
Housing supply in downtown St.Paul