Hopkins Retains Charm, Walkability of Small Town

At just 4 square miles, Hopkins is one of the smallest and most densely developed suburbs in the Twin Cities. It’s surrounded buy the much larger Minnetonka, St. Louis Park and Edina, but Hopkins has its own thriving downtown with arts and music, restaurants and shops.

“Hopkins is one of those places where you drive Mainstreet and you can’t believe that this still exists in the Twin Cities,” said Kersten Elverum, Hopkins housing and development coordinator.

Houses in Hopkins posted an average sale price during the past year of $194,296, so there are many first-time buyer opportunities, said Jennifer Morris, a Realtor with Edina Realty’s Wayzata/Lake Minnetonka office.

Most of the housing stock consists of 1½-story homes built in the late 1940s and early 1950s, but there are also new row townhouses and condos near downtown that are appealing to young professionals and couples without children, Morris said.

Renters who don’t want to live in Minneapolis or St. Paul, but still want the conveniences of living in a city, are also attracted to Hopkins. Renters make up more than 60 percent of the city’s residents.

“It’s very unique, because it’s a place where you can live and walk to virtually every service that you would need,” Elverum said. “There’s so much that you can access without ever getting in your car. As gas prices go up and congestion increases, people are really starting to appreciate that more and more.”