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New beginnings...

The first month of 2021 is officially in the books! After riding the err...bumpy rollercoaster of last year's market, we look to January's numbers to see what the new data is telling us about how the spring may shape out. There's a reason for the term molasses in January, and if you live in Minnesota, you're probably already aware that it's almost always the coldest month on record here. Turns out, that has an effect on the real estate market as well, because historically, it's a pretty slow month for home sales. Weather-wise, however, this January was pretty tame. Yes - there's a polar vortex coming, but it's February now! All that said, let's look at the numbers to see what they can tell us. New listings went…

A year like no other...seriously.

We have done our best to bring you accurate and timely market information throughout 2020. As this crazy year comes to a close, we wrap up the past data and look forward to the changes ahead. It will be extremely important to keep up with the market over the spring of 2021, as we are hoping to see a bit more balance in the real estate world. Now, let's recap December and see how things turned out.

For new listings last month, it should come as no surprise that we went a bit down from November, and landed not far off from where we were last year at this time - 2,820 to be exact, which is only a few hundred above 2019. That category alone, however, does not showcase the amount of demand still present, because as we…

Hello again! What's our theme for this month's recap? Let's just say things got interesting...

We knew there was potential for November numbers to be unique-- a presidential election, COVID spikes across the nation (particularly right here in the Twin Cities), and the entry to winter. What we didn't know was whether or not this progressing Seller’s market could help out buyer demand by going against historical November slow downs, and provide a healthy amount of listings to hopefully balance things out. Did that happen?

No. No it did not...

November 2020 brought some of the steepest dips we've seen all year. While normally this wouldn't be a huge surprise, considering the market almost always slows down toward the holidays, it seems surprising…

Welcome back! This month’s update is titled: Peaks and Valleys 

Actually, it's just titled Market Update for October— it's about peaks and valleys, as that's what the numbers are showing us. Last month we were starting to see some shifts in the market, so let's dive into the October numbers to see if we're still heading in that direction, or if that was just a blip.

Perhaps the biggest indicator for us to look at right now is the total number of homes for sale. This has now gone down for the sixth consecutive month, and we're heading into the time of year where it typically takes an even further dive as it starts to get cold and closer to the holidays. October is officially the lowest number we have seen all year, and there are no signs of that…

Written by VIBE's Broker / Owner Steve Anderson

Welcome to the Market Recap for September 2020. There's been an interesting shift since last month, so let's take a look at the data and see where the Twin Cities real estate market may be headed for the fourth quarter of this undeniably tumultuous year.

Over the summer, we've watched the sales numbers climb, climb again, and then climb some more. Prices constantly going up and days on market consistently going down...but of course, that is unsustainable. I've mentioned a few times in past recaps that it seems we are "waiting for the other shoe to drop" - so did it happen? Honestly, it's probably too early to make the official call, but we are seeing some key indicators from trends over the last two…

The market update of threes! Everything is coming in sets of three this month, so that'll be the theme as we examine just what's going on in today's Twin Cities real estate market.

For starters, let's call out the major outlier here...average sale price for 2020 is now almost $100k higher than it was this time in 2019 - wow! August last year was just under the$290k mark, and for this year we are broaching almost $380k. While it has certainly been a difficult year to track, there is no doubt that the limited home inventory this year has caused a surge in home prices like no other.

As for our other indicators, most everything seems to be happening for the third month in a row. New listings are slightly up over last month, and at the same pace…

As we look at the numbers for July, we'll be looking at the real estate market's health in general, without as much emphasis on COVID-19. It's not to say we're not focusing on the impact this disease is currently having, but historically there is almost always a summer lull, so we want to be sure we're taking that into account.

School start and end dates play a large variable in how the real estate seasons play out. Since “going back to school” looks a bit different this year, we will have to closely monitor how this impacts the real estate market. Will it put a damper on the typically very strong fall market? Time will tell.

Here's how the numbers stacked up for July...The number of new listings went slightly up, which is encouraging in a…

Written by Steve Anderson, Broker at VIBE Realty

The numbers for the first half of the year are officially in. Typically, in the Twin Cities, spring and fall are by far the two busiest seasons, but when COVID-19 became a factor back in March, we started to see it take its toll on the real estate market. So how did everything shake out? Although June has been stronger than usual, it didn’t quite make up for the lighter spring.

The general consensus seems to be that sellers were understandably hesitant to open their doors during the initial spread of the virus. As regulations started to loosen, homeowners became more comfortable with selling. And while the amount of new listings did go up slightly in a month where they would typically go down,…

Written by Steve Anderson, Broker at VIBE Realty

Spring Market 2020: Aggressive Buyers Make for Happy Sellers 

As spring’s real estate market tries to find its stride, May’s data suggests conditions remain very favorable for sellers, but mixed for buyers depending on price point and motivation. New Listings have seen a slight uptick, resulting in a much needed increase in inventory. This is good to see going into summer, as this is normally when inventory levels would start to dip following a strong spring.

However, even with more inventory, houses are selling at a historically fast pace with an average market time of just 16 days. This is making it even more competitive for buyers and is resulting in higher prices for sellers. While…

Written by Steve Anderson, Broker at VIBE Realty

We were very interested to see April's market update come in, as we knew the numbers would give us a lot of insight on how things drastically changed throughout the month. This was certainly the case with new listings, which were down by the thousands compared to 2019. Keep in mind too, that this year was trending higher than 2019 before COVID-19 hit. So what is the real gap there? Hard to say for sure, but I would estimate we should have been closer to 10,000 based on what was trending.

On the other hand, buyer demand seems to be almost alarmingly high. By combining the increased average sale price with the decreased days on market, houses are selling faster and for more money than we've seen…