The Half-Price House

Maplewood Foreclosure

Where: 23xx Hillwood, in Maplewood

What: 3 BR/3BA split-level (1984) with almost 1,700 FSF on a .38 acre lot

Who: listed by Carol Bromen (RE/MAX); selling agent: Ross Kaplan (Edina Realty)

How (much): just sold for $175k

When: listed - July, '09; closed - Feb, 2010

[Note to Readers: I NEVER divulge details of an in-process transaction that I'm handling, for obvious reasons. However, once a deal is closed and a matter of public record, I may cite otherwise publicly available information as evidence of particular market activity, trends, etc.]

This home and the couple who bought it (my clients) are the flip side of today's distressed housing market.

First-time Buyers who qualify for a tax credit, they paid the bank-owner $175k -- just about half what the previous owners paid in March, 2006.

Even after the fix-up time and money the Buyers will now have to invest . . . that's a whale of a discount!