Tuesday, June 30, 2009

Weekly Market Activity Report from MAAR

The number of homes for sale in the Twin Cities metro area continues to decline relative to a year ago. As of Monday morning this week, there were 26,674 homes for sale in the region, down 20.9 percent from a year ago. In other words, we've lost 1 in 5 homes in our inventory in the last year.

Sales are a different story. For the week ending June 20, there were 1,156 signed purchase agreements, up 32.1 percent from the same week in 2008. That's the 12th week of the last 13 to feature a year-over-year increase in sales activity exceeding 20 percent.

We must bear in mind, however, that sales are only up in certain categories and price ranges. Year to date, traditional home sales (excluding foreclosures and short sales) are still down 17.8 percent from last year. New construction sales are down 21.7 percent from last year. And sales of homes priced above $350,000 are down 26.8 percent from a year ago. The lion's share of market activity is taking place in the lower price ranges this year

Wednesday, June 24, 2009

Come to Minneapolis if you are looking for Opportunities!

Best Cities for Finding Opportunity

Where are the best cities to live in the United States if you want to work hard and get ahead?

Forbes magazine examined the nation’s 40 largest metropolitan statistical areas and based on the number of Forbes' 400 best big companies and 200 best small companies that are headquartered in each, it identified what it considered places with the most opportunity.

The magazine says it took this route because the best big companies provide opportunities for those who seek to be employees, and the rate of success of small businesses indicates how the area treats entrepreneurs.

Here are the top 10:
1. Houston
2. Dallas
3. Minneapolis
4. Pittsburgh
5. Boston
6. Washington, D.C.
7. Austin
8. St. Louis
9. Kansas City, Mo.
10. New York

Source: Forbes, Lauren Sherman (06/19/2009)

Tuesday, June 23, 2009

What's the Skinny?

June's The Skinny video is now up and running! The Skinny is a 3 min. video produced by the Minneapolis Area Association of REALTORS and narrated by our President-Elect, Brad Fisher. The content is a brief snapshot of the state of the market in the Twin Cities. Click the link below to view this video.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wkpy8bvh3JY

Monday, June 22, 2009

We are getting more great news from MAAR on the state of Real Estate Market. http://ping.fm/nOCfy

More Good News on the State of the Market!

MAAR’s Weekly Market Activity Report - New Listings and Sales Continue to Rise

New listings and pending sales both took a jump upward in the week ending June 6 as the annual post-Memorial Day surge in activity took place. There were 1,226 signed purchase agreements in the Twin Cities for the week, which represents a 33.4 percent increase over the same week last year. The 2,160 new listings were a 4.3 percent decline from a year ago but were a significant bump over the activity seen during the Memorial weekend respite.

The June Housing Affordability Index of 199 is down 20 points over the last two months due to recent rises in mortgage rates and seasonal increases in the region’s median sales price. Combine that with a steadily declining Months Supply of Inventory (7.6 months) and falling Supply/Demand Ratio (5 homes per buyer), and it’s clear that market conditions are changing compared to a couple of months ago, moving towards a more balanced market.

Regardless, there remains a healthy inventory of properties available for purchase. And with the $8,000 federal tax credit spurring first-time home buyer activity, this summer should continue to be busy.

For the full market report visit
http://www.mplsrealtor.com/downloads/market/WMAR/wmar.pdf

MAAR Weekly Market Activity Report is information from the Minneapolis Area Association of REALTORS®

Thursday, June 11, 2009

New Listing coming to MLS!!!

We are excited to announce the newest listing brought to you by Stafford Family Realtors!

2301 Boulder Road, Chanhassen, MN 55317

This beautiful 4 Bedroom, 3 Bath home in the demand neighborhood of Stone Creek features a private yard with mature trees. For more information, please contact Eric or Sharla at 952.470.2575

Foreclosure Information

Foreclosures declined 6 percent in May compared to April, but the number is still an increase of 18 percent compared to May 2008, reports RealtyTrac.

Nevada continued to have the highest foreclosure rate with one in every 64 housing units receiving a foreclosure filing in May, six times the national average.

These 10 states account for nearly 77 percent of total U.S. foreclosure activity: Nevada, California, Florida, Arizona, Utah, Michigan, Georgia, Colorado, Idaho, and Ohio.

Wednesday, June 3, 2009

Great New Listings and Open Houses

We are excited to announce a great new price on a well maintained home in Carver!!!!
748 Kirche Hill Road in Carver is now listed for $220,900. The current owners of this home have installed new carpet and pad thruout, along with fresh paint, new light fixtures, new hardware, new flooring, and much more. The quiet yard backs to a business and are the quietest neighbors your could ask for.

Our OPEN HOUSE schedule is now posted for this Sunday the 7th. Come and visit Sharla & Eric and check out some great opportunities!

8500 Cedar Court, Victoria - $335,000 open from 12-2
910 Anthony Way, Victoria - $429,900 open from 2:30 - 4:30
9108 Overlook Court, Chanhassen $510,000 open form 12-2

For more information, please visit StaffordFamilyRealtors.com or call 952.470.2575.

Weekly Market Activity Report from MAAR

For the week ending May 23, there were 1,103 pending sales, which was down slightly from the week prior due to the Memorial Day weekend holiday. Despite the low-cal dip, the mark is still 27.2 percent higher than last year at this time. Of the week's sales, 43.2 percent were lender-mediated foreclosures and short sales. In week-by-week, year-over-year comparisons, sales are expected to be higher than last year for the remainder of the year.

Heavy sales and soft growth in new listings equate to no growth in the supply of homes for sale this spring—the time of year that typically shows the largest increases. There are currently 26,453 active listings, lagging 19.6 percent behind this time in 2008.

This week's edition of the MAAR Weekly Market Activity Report features a new Supply-Demand Ratio for June 2009 of 5.04, which means that there will be 5.04 houses per buyer during the month. This is an astounding 33.4 percent drop compared to June 2008.