Though Median Sales Price Down in Maple Grove, Overall Regional Real Estate Market Looking Up

The Minneapolis Area Association of Realtors (MAAR) reported recently the median home prices in May for Maple Grove dropped slightly. However, sales are happening faster.

Across the Twin Cities region, the month of May 2012 provided more evidence that a real estate recovery is under way. However, new listings and median sales prices slightly dipped from 2011 in Maple Grove.

The median regionwide sales price was $169,000, up 10.5 percent from the same month last year. That represented the third-largest year-over-year jump since January 2004 and the third consecutive month of year-over-year gains.

Regionwide median prices have risen 22.5 percent since February (from $138,000 to $169,000), and are now at the highest level since October 2010.

In Maple Grove, the median sales price dropped slightly to $220,000, a 4.1 percent decrease from the same month in 2011. Although, homes still continued to have an above average sales price for the regionwide.

Part of the reason for the increased sales price regionwide was due to decreased supply. The number of homes for sale has dropped for 16 consecutive months, down 31.1 percent from last May to 17,262 active listings—the lowest inventory reading for any month since January 2004.  Maple Grove’s inventory also dropped in May by 12.6 percent compared May of last year.

That trend continued in May; during the month, buyers regionwide signed 5,130 purchase agreements, 27.3 percent higher than the same month last year, and sellers introduced 6,599 properties to the market, 6 percent less than May 2011. This combination of activity drove down the number of homes for sale on the market to 17,262, down 31.1 percent.

As a result, "Residential home prices have been increasing steadily," said Cari Linn, MAAR’s president. "It's been a positive change for our local housing market and it's been a long time coming."

Linn noted that another factor in the median price rise is the fact that so-called “distressed properties” now comprise a smaller share of overall sales. Traditional homes now sell for a median price of $205,000, foreclosures sell for $116,350 and short sales go for $135,000, so the smaller proportion of the latter translates into median price gains.

Traditional closed sales were up 50.1 percent, while foreclosures fell 12.8 percent and short sales increased 12.9 percent. Together, distressed homes made up 31.1 percent of all new listings and 39.4 percent of all closed sales, the smallest shares since June 2008 and September 2008, respectively.

Homes regionwide sold in 125 days, on average, down 19.6 percent from last May. In Maple Grove, homes were on the market an average of 114 days – down 39.9 percent from last May. Sellers received an average of 94.5 percent of their list price, up 3.8 percent from 91.1 percent last May regionwide. In Maple Grove, sellers received about the same as they did in May 2011 – 93.3 percent.