by Mike Knaak
editor@thenewsleaders.com
The mother/daughter team of Sherrie Klein and Wendy Loso snapped up a former credit union building and quickly remodeled it into what turned out to be a fast-selling one-of-a kind residence in Collegeville Township.
The building, that housed a branch of the Central Minnesota Credit Union at one time, came on the market in March.
The duo moved quickly.
“I have a ton of buyers looking for property in this area,” said Loso, a realtor with First Realty. “They want acreage, it’s close to St. John’s University and close to the interstate.”
When asked by a visitor what was done to the building, both women said in unison, “a lot.”
Klein owns Klein Builders with her husband Mark.
“We totally demoed the whole inside,” Klein said. “It had no kitchen. We had to cut up the floors.”
The crew added an entryway, three-car garage and mud room.
The patio just off the kitchen offers a convenient place for grilling and for watching wildlife on the partially wooded two-acres. As the women showed a visitor around, a deer slowly walked across the yard.
Mark Klein knew his way around the project. He worked as a carpenter on the crew that constructed the building for the Collegeville Community Credit Union in 1982.
The result: a three-bedroom, three-bathroom, 2,300-square-foot residence on Fruit Farm Road.
The construction crew finished the work about June 1 and Loso listed it for $449,900.
As of last week, Loso had a finalized purchase agreement for the property.
“We like finding these projects so we can work together,” Klein said. Loso watches for properties coming on the market that have remodeling potential.
“We were amazed at how many people drove by and asked what we were doing with the building,” Klein said.
The women hosted an open house for members of St. John the Baptist Parish, across the road, and between 30 and 40 people toured on June 2.
The former financial institution does come with one unique feature. There’s a metal safe inside a concrete block enclosure in the lower level utility room.
Wendy Loso and Sherrie Klein stand in the remodeled kitchen of the former credit union office.
The remodeling included adding a three-stall garage to the building and new landscaping.
A stamped concrete compass adds a decorative touch to the landscaping.
The front office space was converted to a kitchen, dining area and living room.
The credit union building before the remodeling started.
