We buy houses in Richfield, MN

What is different about selling in Richfield?

Richfield is a first ring suburb right below Minneapolis, with the airport on its eastern edge. People settled near Fort Snelling in the 1820s, and Hennepin County set up the Town of Richfield in 1858. It became a village in 1908 and moved to a council and city manager form of government in 1950. After World War II, farmland was sold to builders who put up homes for returning veterans, and most of the single family houses date from that boom.

Small postwar houses on small lots are the heart of Richfield. They were built to be simple, and many of them still have the kitchens, baths and mechanicals they came with. That makes them easy to love and hard to sell on a repair list.

How does the legal side work here?

Richfield is in Hennepin County, so probate cases are filed in Hennepin County District Court at the Government Center in downtown Minneapolis, and deeds are recorded with the county's Recorder and Registrar of Titles office. Richfield has its own point of sale inspection: for single family homes, two family homes and condos, a city housing inspector looks at the home and a Certificate of Housing Maintenance is needed before the ownership transfer. Rental property must be licensed and inspected under city code.

Neighborhoods and areas in Richfield

Wood Lake. Home to Wood Lake Nature Center, which opened in 1971 as one of the first urban nature centers in the country.

Lyndale Avenue and 66th Street. The early Harmony post office stood on Lyndale, and this corner is a local landmark.

Penn Avenue. A main north and south street, with a school building in the south end of the city.

Cedar Point Commons. A shopping area at Cedar Avenue and 66th Street that opened in 2007, next to the airport.

The I-494 corridor. Best Buy has its corporate campus just north of the freeway, and Interstate 35W is another main route.

The Bartholomew House. A historic house on the east shore of Wood Lake that is on the National Register of Historic Places.

Richfield's point of sale inspection, in plain words

Richfield checks a house when it sells. For single family homes, two family homes and condos, the owner arranges a city inspection by a Richfield housing inspector. The city then issues a Certificate of Housing Maintenance, and that certificate has to be in place before the ownership transfer.

If the inspector finds something that does not meet the housing code, the repairs have to be done and checked again before closing, unless the buyer agrees to take on the repairs under the conditions the city sets out.

This is a big reason Richfield sellers come to us. We buy as is, so you do not have to chase a repair list on a house you are leaving. How the inspection works in your sale depends on the house and the closing, so we will go through it with you. A Minnesota attorney or your title company can confirm the details for your address.

The postwar house and what it needs now

The Richfield you see today comes mostly from the 1950s. After the war, the population grew fast, and builders filled the old farm fields with small homes for veterans and their families. Later came apartment buildings in the 1960s and early 1970s.

Those first homes were practical. Many have a small footprint and a modest kitchen and bath. The city even runs a program, Richfield Rediscovered, meant to encourage owners to remodel and expand these older houses.

If you have owned one for a long time, you know what the next owner will face. We buy it as it is, and you do not need to remodel first.

Next to the airport and the freeways

Richfield is squeezed between Minneapolis, the airport, Fort Snelling and two interstates. Interstates 35W and 494 are among its main routes, and the airport runs along the eastern border. Some homes sit close to planes, traffic and freeway noise.

That shapes how a regular sale goes, because some buyers will walk away over noise. We do not need you to win over every buyer. We look at the house and the numbers.

Rental houses in Richfield

Richfield requires that residential rental property be licensed and inspected. The owner applies, schedules an interior and exterior inspection, fixes whatever the city lists, and renews the license each year. That covers short term rentals too.

If you own a rental and you are tired of the cycle of inspections, or you inherited one, we buy with tenants in place. You do not have to end the lease. Tell us about the tenants, the rent and the license when we talk.

Situations that come up in Richfield

Many Richfield owners have been in the same house for a very long time. When it is time to sell, it is often because of a move to senior living, a death in the family or a divorce. Others own a house that sat vacant after a parent passed and are weighing taxes, insurance and upkeep.

Whatever the reason, you set the closing date. If you need the money by a certain day, or you need time to move out, we plan around you.

When listing in Richfield may be the better move

If your home was updated in the last few years, is clean and shows well, an agent can bring it to a lot of buyers and may land a higher price. A buyer who loves a small remodeled house near Wood Lake might pay more than we can.

A direct sale fits better if the house needs work, the point of sale inspection looks like a headache, or you want a date you can count on and no showings. We will tell you straight which path we think fits.

Related reading: Selling a house that needs repairs and Selling a rental house with tenants in place. Also see What is a TISH inspection and do I need it to sell?