The Twin Cities Spring Housing Market April Review 

Market snapshot: Spring in Minneapolis-St. Paul and the theme of the housing market story is home buyers as plentiful as mushrooms after a spring shower and “home for sale” signs as rare as dinosaur fossils. Okay, I admit I am exaggerating slightly about the for sale signs but for many buyers, especially in the lower price ranges, it sure feels that way.

New Listings in the Twin Cities were down 8.3 percent compared to April of last year causing inventory levels to fall 19.8 percent with 10,916 homes available in all categories. Values continue to gain momentum with medium sale prices steadily inching upward with days on the market going in the other direction.  The month's supply of homes was down 21.4 percent at 2.2 months and needless to say, sellers were quite happy. The short supply of inventory has caused closed and pending sales to be down from last April’s numbers.

Even though most decent properties that are priced to market are selling above list, quickly and with multiple offers, so far buyer demand remains incredibly strong. Even though many first timers have lost out on several properties they hang in there. In the Minneapolis-St. Paul metro, this demand is reflective of a strong labor market, interest rates still at historical lows, rising wages, and rising rents making home ownership very appealing. As we forge ahead into the summer months, don’t expect this situation to change unless something unforeseen occurs to change the market dynamics.

Let’s dive a little deeper into the numbers for Twin Cities housing April 2017 in comparison to the same time last year. *

Quick Twin Cities Housing Market Stats

• With demand surging and inventory shrinking, home prices continue to rise
• Shrinking inventory levels resulted in a drop in both closed and pending sales
• Largest price gains in the single-family segment where the median sales price increased to $255,000 up 6.3%
• Fastest selling price range $190,001 to $250,000 at 47 days on market until sale
• Slowest selling price range $1,000,001 and above at 192 days on market until sale
• Price range with the largest gains was the $500,000 to $1,000,000 segment with sales increasing to 16.9%

 Twin Cities Home Inventory Stats at a Glance

• new listings down 8.3 %
• inventory of homes for sale down -19.8%
• the month's supply of inventory down -21.4%   
• the month's supply of inventory currently at 2.2
• new construction inventory up 7.1%
• new construction inventory at 5.7 months down 13.6%

As we move into summer, buyers are severely challenged in the lower price ranges and sellers are gleeful. For the moment it doesn’t look like that will change going into the summer unless something unforeseen happens like perhaps a significant jump in interest rates or negative economic news.  So if you want to buy a home in the Twin Cities dust off your patience and perseverance.  If you are thinking about selling there is no better time than the present so consider doing it now.  Keep in mind, the market is cyclical and this situation that is perfect for sellers will not last forever.

*Market data source Minneapolis Area Association of Realtors.