September 2009 Real Estate Review

What to Watch for:

This information was provided by The Greater Lakes Association of REALTORS
With the final days of the tax-credit for first-time home buyers approaching, home sales in the Greater Lakes region are showing some signs of life. There were 236 homes sold in September, up 14.0 percent from one year ago. That's also a slight increase from August, which is quite remarkable considering that September typically means a drop-off in sales as the school year begins.
Home prices continue to decline, but this is partially a function of increased market share of non-waterfront homes, likely sparked by the federal tax credit for first-time home buyers. Good news for sellers: the Average Days on Market Until Sale is now shrinking and the Percent of Original List Price Received at Sale is now growing.

Click Here To View the Full September Real Estate Review

Also, it appears that the twin cities real estate market is continuing to improve. This market has had a month over month increase now for 13+ straight months. The Gallery of Homes is a member of both the Greater Lakes Association of REALTORS and the Minneapolis Association of REALTORS which provides the Northstar MLS system serving the twin cities area which is the 5^th largest MLS system in the country. As a member of this association, we receive a real estate review for this market as well. Because the twin cities real estate market does have a direct impact on our local real estate market, I thought I would share the latest report we received from them:

Autumn may be bringing colder temperatures (and snow, too: what’s up with that?!?) but the Twin Cities housing market is still hot. Contrary to the typical fall slowdown, pending sales are gaining weekly momentum as home buyers take advantage of the final days of the Federal tax credit. 

For the week ending October 3, signed purchase agreements were a stunning 61.2 percent higher than last year, jumping from 647 to 1,043. New listings are a different story, however, down 8.0 percent below the previous year. Total active listings remain sluggish compared to a year ago, with the 24,354 on the market representing a 20.9 percent drop from a year ago. 

There are some new stats this week that help bring some perspective on just how much better things have gotten for sellers in the last year: 

- Days on Market Until Sale: at 129 days is 11 percent below last year. - Percent of Original List Price Received at Sale: at 93.9 percent is 1.8 percent higher than last year. - Months Supply of Inventory: at 6.6 is 30.5 percent lower than last year and inching closer to a balanced market. 

All three indicators are important reflections of market shift. However, we can’t minimize that sellers still face tough conditions, especially in the higher price ranges where sales are still on a downward trend.

Please feel free to contact me with any questions

Dan Pflugshaupt

REALTOR, GRI, e-PRO

218-839-7700

Dan@GalleryofHomesMN.com

Specializing in North Central Minnesota Lakeshore & Recreational Property