•  Homestead filing information
•  Keep safety in mind
•  Packing for your move
•  Preparing for the inspection
•  Selling your home video
•  Selling your home, townhouse, condo or duplex
•  Water/ Sewer accounts

Homestead filing information
Homestead provides homeowners with substantial property tax savings. To qualify for the tax credit, you must own and occupy your home before December 1.

To file for homestead, all new homeowners must come to City Hall. (City Hall is located at 5005 Minnetonka Boulevard, about three blocks east of the intersection of Highway 100 and Minnetonka Boulevard.) To avoid forgetting this important errand, many homeowners simply come directly to City Hall after their closing.

When you come to file for homestead, be sure to bring one of these forms of evidence of title transfer with you

• Warranty deed
• Contract for deed
• Certificate of title
• Quit claim deed.

After the first filing, your homestead status is automatically renewed. No further action is required until you sell or rent your home, or you no longer use the home as your primary living place. Call (952) 924-2535 for more information.

Keep safety in mind
Don't lose sight of crime prevention precautions in the chaos of moving. Here are some pointers from the St. Louis Park Police Department

• Don't give burglars clues about your belongings. Avoid piling valuables where they can be seen from windows and doors.
• Boxes from TVs, stereos, etc. should be broken and turned inside out for disposal.
• Make sure locks have been re-keyed.
• If you don't have window coverings that fully cover windows, buy some or just hang sheets in the interim.
• Apartment dwellers should write only their last name and first initial on their mail box.
• As you're unpacking, create a list of valuable property for insurance purposes. If you haven't already joined Operation ID, now's a great time to join. Then you can engrave your belongings as you put them away. (To join, just visit the St. Louis Park Police Station, 3015 Raleigh Ave. S. between 8 a.m. and 5:30 p.m., Monday through Thursday, or between 8 a.m. and 4:30 p.m. on Friday. You'll be given an engraving pen and national ID number.)

Packing for your move
If packing results in an unusually large load of garbage, you must call Waste Management at (763) 783-5423 to arrange for a special collection. Do NOT set out appliances, furniture, tires or large loads of garbage until you have made arrangements for collection and billing. Click here for a fee list.

Don't forget that you can donate useable items to a charity. Some charities (ARC of Hennepin County or the Salvation Army, for example) will pick up items from your home. Donating useable items reduces the demand on landfills and garbage incinerators, helps others and nets you a tax deduction!

If you aren't going to take household hazardous waste with you, please protect our environment by disposing of these items properly. Hazardous waste includes paint, paint thinner, tires, herbicides, pesticides, wood preservatives, aerosols, used motor oil, batteries, anti-freeze, poisons, acids, medical waste, solvents, flammable materials, etc. You can take hazardous waste to

• Hennepin County Recycling Center - 8100 Jefferson Highway, Brooklyn Park Hours are 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Tuesday through Friday and 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Saturday; closed on Sunday and Monday.
• Hennepin County Recycling Center - 1400 West 96th St., Bloomington. Hours are 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Tuesday through Friday and 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Saturday; closed on Sunday and Monday.

If you take hazardous waste to a collection site, please leave materials in their original container. To protect your vehicle, place items in containers that will not leak or break during travel. Call (612) 348-3777 for more information or directions.

When you move, leave the recycling bins for the new occupants. Bins are the property of the City of St. Louis Park - not the individual resident.

Preparing for the inspection
Homeowners interested in preparing for a housing inspection can correct these code deficiencies

• Exteriors with peeling paint or bare wood
• Garages or storage sheds that are structurally unsound or have rotted wood
• Broken windows
• Rotted fascia boards
• Improperly working garage door openers
• Unsafe furnaces or space heaters
• Inoperable or missing smoke detectors
• Improper exhaust venting of dryers
• Unsafe or overloaded electrical wiring
• Junk vehicles and trash visible to passersby.

This is not a complete description of the property maintenance code, just examples of common code violations. For more information, contact the Inspections Department at (952) 924-2588 or mcamilon@stlouispark.org .

Name	Date	Duration	Video
Selling Your Home in St. Louis Park	Nov 2005	15.40

Selling your residental property
Inspections at the time of sale are aimed at protecting the community's overall housing stock and avoiding unsafe conditions and major deterioration. The City of St. Louis Park requires property inspections whenever a property is sold or ownership is transferred. To ensure you are ready for closing, apply for your inspection before or immediately after you place your property up for sale. A Property Maintenance Certificate MUST be presented to the buyer and title company when the property transfer occurs at closing.

To schedule an inspection, the homeowner or the owner's agent may either call the Inspections Department at (952) 924-2588 or come to St. Louis Park City Hall (second floor - Inspections Department). City Hall is located at 5005 Minnetonka Boulevard (three blocks east of Highway 100). You may also apply on-line. (Click on Permits & Forms.)

The fee for the housing inspection includes the initial inspection and any follow-up inspections that may be needed. Inspection appointments are typically available within one to three days. A City inspector will visit your property to check that the siding, roof, garage and interior complies with the City's property maintenance code. A typical inspection takes about 45 to 60 minutes. Fees are

• $195 house or townhome
• $115 condo
• $275 duplex

If the inspector finds no code violations, a Property Maintenance Certificate is issued.

If code violations are found, work orders are issued for the needed repairs. In most cases, corrections must meet the code requirements that were in place when the building was constructed. If a portion of the home was remodeled, the remodeled section must comply with the building code that was in effect when the remodeling occurred. (Exception: smoke detectors are required in all buildings, no matter when constructed.)

In most cases, the seller makes the code corrections. However, buyers may obtain a temporary property maintenance certificate if they sign an agreement acknowledging the work orders and agreeing to make all required code work within a specific time period. Buyers and sellers must use the City's Agreement Form and pay a $50 service fee. In addition, sufficient funds must be put in escrow to cover the cost outlined in the agreement. A City representative must also sign off on the agreement.

After repairs have been completed, a City housing inspector will return for a follow-up inspection to verify that all work meets code. Once this is done, a Property Maintenance Certificate is issued. Certificates are good for one year.

Water/Sewer - changing accounts
If you are a new homeowner, you need to change the water service account from the former owner's name to yours. To do this, call the utility billing office - (952) 924-2111.

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