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Those of us Minnesota dwellers have witnessed a myriad of changes   in the housing market throughout the Twin Cities over time. And it’s true — Minneapolis and Saint Paul continue to evolve. Even with changes that COVID-19 has brought upon our economy, along with the ever changing political backdrop of our communities, the demand for housing in the Twin Cities remains at an all time high. Home sales and prices skyrocketed as buyers outpaced sellers in some parts of the metro.

And so this leads us to the buzz term of the year: “It’s a Seller’s Market.” But what does that really mean for sellers, buyers, and real estate as a whole? While the market remains hot across most larger cities in the country, it’s hard not to acknowledge the growth and demand…

Written by VIBE Owner/Broker Steve Anderson

This month's theme: Broken Records

Last month we left off talking about the importance of the spring market this year, and how it will set the tone for the selling season. Well here we are, smack in the middle of the spring 2021 market, and what are the numbers saying? Let's take a look!

We're going to start with some of the less drastic changes that we saw over April. Months Supply of Inventory, which is basically real estate's slug percentage, stayed below one month for the fifth month in a row, but did tick up to .9 this time. New Listings to hit the market also went up by a decent margin to just over 7,100, but that was sort of to be expected given the time of year. Still not enough to put a dent…

Written by VIBE Owner/Broker Steve Anderson

Things are heating up! As we enter the spring season, we look closely at the numbers because we need to know if there will ever be an end in sight to this crazy, imbalanced market. If you're out looking at houses, you likely know just how intense the multiple offer situations have been. Will it even out anytime soon? Let's see what March can tell us on the subject.

Diving right in, we'll look at the Average Sales Price, and wow...we are now approaching almost $400k for the average - that's right - the average sales price in the Twin Cities. The official number is $382k. Just to give you an idea of how important that is, last year at this exact same time, the average sale price was $297k, and THAT was the…

Written by VIBE Agent, Susan Bonne

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 spring real estate frenzy, and multiple offers on desirable properties in affordable price ranges are the norm rather than the exception. 

So what’s a savvy buyer to do? How do you give yourself the best possible chance of winning when you’re working within a set budget, potential time constraints, and the many unknowns in the process, not the least of which is, what is everyone…

The days are getting longer and we can see the light at the end of the tunnel, literally. The sun is starting to shine, the snow is beginning to melt, and that only means one thing — spring is in the air. While we aren’t necessarily holding our breath that we won’t see another quick gnarly snow storm in May, (hello Minnesota?!) we can’t deny that the spring market is upon us, AKA peak season for real estate. 

First, let’s face it, doing just about anything in the winter is more difficult and that includes moving in and out of a home. The homes that didn’t sell in the fall are now coming back on the market, and many people want to sell and buy before school starts in the fall and before the snow starts up again this coming winter. Though the market…

We left off last month pleading for warmer weather, and it appears mother nature finally had the volume turned up, because we are getting it! In the first week of March, we have three days, yes THREE, that look to be in the fifties, with one of those days hovering around the sixty degree mark (checks pulse). While we'll have to wait until next month's recap to see how the warm weather plays into the spring real estate market, the numbers for February are hot off the press, so let's dive in shall we?

We're going to start with the tamest differences that we can compare to last month's numbers. First off, Days on Market. This went down, again, but only by one day. While that's not a drastic change from January, it is a full 50% lower than where it was…

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…

Do people actually move in the winter time? Oh ya, you betcha!

While there are definitely busier home selling seasons throughout the year here in Minnesota, life still happens in the winter, and that life often includes buying and selling real estate. So what are some of the key things we see as industry professionals when it comes to moving in the winter versus the other seasons? Let's take a look!

 

 

Dealing With Unpredictable Weather

What's the first thing that comes to mind when you think of Minnesota in winter time? It's cold! Well, turns out the same rings true when it comes to moving. Consider that you may end up being outside for a longer period than most humans would typically desire, and on top of that, you'll likely be lifting…

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…