Real Estate RSS Feed

Here at VIBE, we pride ourselves in doing everything we can to ensure you have the best experience possible with your real estate purchases, and take it from us, who you choose to finance that purchase can make a HUGE difference.

Here are the most important insights (from a Realtor’s® perspective) about choosing a good lender, and why it really matters.

1. )  Sometimes our recommendations to work with a professional can feel like we’re pushing you in a certain direction. But as Realtors®, we are fiduciaries, which means we must operate with your best interests in mind. So when an agent recommends a few different lenders to you, chances are, they are coming pre-vetted by their personal interactions and experiences with them! 

Trust us,…

 

It just sort of feels like everything's a bit extreme right now, doesn't it? Well, the Twin Cities real estate market is certainly no different. And though things have seemed a bit imbalanced since the beginning of COVID-19, the paragraphs below describe some of the most extreme numbers we've ever seen when it comes to monthly market stats, over two years since the pandemic started. Let's take a look.

We're going to have to get this elephant out of the room right away, because this elephant never skipped breakfast there's nowhere to stand while it's in here. That elephant would be the Average Home Sale Price for the month of April, which came in at a whopping $430k! That is almost a $23k jump just from last month, and is roughly $16k higher than…

We Minnesotan’s all know that feeling of that first summer breeze that hits your face and lets you know that warmer days lie ahead. Isn't it great? Well summer is back, just look outside. What's that you say? All you see is mud and sleet? Oh my, you didn't think I was talking about the weather, did you? Oh gosh no, I'm talking about the real estate market of course, because we're back to summer-like numbers, and more extreme "temps'' than we've ever seen. Let's take a look!

When you look at the average Days on Market for homes in the Twin Cities, you can see it's been climbing steadily since last July. Normally a sign that things would be balancing out a bit in the market, Realtors welcomed longer selling times with open arms. Now, just take a look at…

Spring is sort of in the air and with spring typically comes the hottest time of the year to sell your home! As REALTORS® we see all types of different situations when it comes to getting your home ready to make its debut on the market, and of course when you go to list your home everyone seems to have an opinion about who to work with, what your home is worth, and much more. No fear! We are here to debunk some common misconceptions when listing your home.

 

Myth: Get in touch with a REALTOR® a week or two before listing your home.

Fact: This is actually the exact opposite of what we recommend doing, but we do understand sometimes you have to move quickly! If you aren’t under any extreme time constraints, our advice is to get in touch with your…

Well, hello again. Back for more, I see? That's good, because I have more riveting real estate market info for you as we break down what February was like here in the Twin Cities. When we left off last month, we were desperately looking toward spring to bring us some welcome balance in this very unique market. So is spring here yet? Err...kind of...I guess...not really...hopefully soon? Let's just take a look.

The biggest helper would have likely been a big increase to the overall housing inventory, but I am a bit bummed to report that we didn't see a big boost. Total Units Available landed at 4,106. While that number is up a bit from January, it's still over 1,200 less than where we were a year ago. New Listing inventory was actually closer to last…

Last year’s article from our very own Susan Bonne was so good we're pressing the repeat button. The real estate market is even more competitive than this time last year, we knew we had to reshare these helpful and even more relevant insights! If you’re in the middle of buying a home right now, or are thinking about getting the process started - this one's for you! 

You’ve likely been hearing, from every rooftop, that we are in the hottest seller’s market in a generation. That listings are scarcer than hen’s teeth. And that buyers have to pay thousands over asking, and throw in homemade cookies, a puppy and maybe a Tesla to be the winning bid and secure a new home. Yes, it’s more than a typical real estate frenzy, and multiple offers on desirable…

And we're off! 

New year, new Twin Cities real estate market. Last year brought us so many highs and lows. 2022, can we count on you to chill out a bit and help us keep our sanity? Speaking of chill, that's definitely been the theme so far with an eight year January low of 10.4 degrees. Is the market frozen, too? Or just heating up? Let's take a look.

Let's start off on a positive note. The New Listing inventory was trending downward at a scary rate, but we saw January kick up sharply to 3,366 homes hitting the market - way up from December. Last year, we also faced some large obstacles with how low the Average Days on Market got (less than a week at times), but that has now gone up by two days for seven consecutive months, landing at 20. Finally,…

Written by VIBE Owner/Broker Steve Anderson

That's a wrap!

Just when we thought maybe we'd kick off a more traditional new year - BAM! Omicron has essentially taken a hold of the Twin Cities, and many of us find ourselves reliving some of the practices of past quarantines, isolations, canceled events, etc...as I write this, even our household is all COVID-positive (we're doing okay), and part of us it feels like this will never end. However, news from parts of the world that are ahead of us does seem encouraging. At least for now.

So how did 2021 leave us in regards to the housing market? We left off acknowledging the roller coaster of a year it had been, but ever so curious of what the 12th and final month of the year would tell us. Let's take a…

Welcome to 2022! We don’t know about you but we are staying cautiously optimistic that this year will be better than the last few. With the start of the New Year under our belt, it’s time to start thinking about any home projects you may want to tackle in the coming months - especially if you are thinking of listing your home this Spring.

So when is the right time to bring in your Realtor?

We actually find that most people bring us in their Realtors too late. Getting a hold of your Realtor prior to tackling an entire list of pre-list projects can save you a lot of second guessing and potential pitfalls. Your Realtor will be able to suggest what projects will get you the most bang-for-your-buck when it comes to resale, and can also connect you…

Written by VIBE Owner/Broker Steve Anderson Well, here we are at the end of another crazy year in real estate. 2021 has been like riding a roller coaster where the safety harness is just a little too loose, and while it wasn't the worst ride we've ever been on, we're still ready to get off this thing. So, how did it shake out with the numbers? Some went as expected, but there's a surprise twist at the end, so stay tuned.  What didn't surprise us? Well, the sale prices. They didn't change much - in fact, they hardly changed at all. The Average Sales Price came down less that two thousand dollars to $392k, which is the same as it was in September. And the Median Sales Price dipped to $338k, again, only down about two thousand…