June was a busy month for SPAAR President and Snyder Team leader Jennifer Snyder. “In addition to it being ‘that time of year’ when families want to get moved and settled before the new school year, buyers feel that we have finally hit the bottom in terms of affordability,” she said.

Snyder’s sentiments are reflected in statistics released last week for the 13-county Twin Cities metropolitan area. While new listings are down, pending sales are up—nearly one-and-a-half times what they were over last June’s post-tax credit slump.

“Properties that are priced appropriately for the market are moving,” said Snyder. “Listings at all different price points are selling—and in a couple of cases it’s even getting tricky to find the right inventory for a specific buyer—a good problem I haven’t experienced in a while,” she said.

When combined with record affordability, the 5.5% decline in new listings and a 15.9% decrease in inventory add an element of urgency buyers haven’t experienced in some time.

The flow of financially distressed properties onto the market appears to be slowing, and those on the market are selling. Foreclosures and short sales accounted for 38.2% of all sales, the lowest level since June 2010. 

For more details, look at these June statistics: THE 200+ I HOUSING SUPPLY OVERVIEW

Home Sales were up in January 10.4 percent from a year ago and were the highest January total in the Twin Cities since 2007. “We’ve had back-to-back months where sales have outpaced our expectations,” said Jennifer Snyder, our team member and president of the St. Paul Area Association of REALTORS®.

In January in the Twin Cities, there were 2,209 sales compared to 2,001 sales a year ago, an increase of 10.39 percent. January and February are traditionally the slowest months of the year for home sales in the Twin Cities. “We have seen an uptick in sales activity and activity in the market in the last two months,” Snyder said.

Median prices were down 10.8 percent from last year to $140,000, from $157,000 last January. “We saw sales down last year, but prices increased slightly. We may be seeing a shift of increased sales activity tied to prices adjusting,” Snyder said. “Especially in the winter months, there are buyers looking for bargains, and the price decrease likely reflects an increase in sales of foreclosed properties and other distressed properties.”

The median is the mid-point. Half the homes sold for more, half for less. Numbers reflect the 13-county metro area and include single-family, condominiums and townhouses.

~SPAAR Press Release February 11, 2011~

The St. Paul Area Association of Realtors recently announced the first half sales and median sales prices for Washington County.  The figures covered existing single-family homes, townhomes, and condos.  Many cities throughout the county experienced an increase in median sales prices.  Here is the breakdown of cities and their median sales price:

• Mahtomedi ~ $250,000 ~ Up 25.6%
• Cottage Grove ~ $188,500 ~ Up 6.2%
• Stillwater ~ $228,750 ~ Up 0.8%
• Lakeland ~ $216,500 ~ Up 24.1%
• West Lakeland Twp. ~ $376, 500 ~ Up 2.1%
• Afton ~ $357, 500 ~ Up 8.8%
• Dellwood ~ $740,000 ~ Up 111.4%
• Forest Lake ~ $138, 375  ~ Up 2.5%

Cottage Grove, Mahtomedi, West Lakeland Twp., Lakeland, Forest Lake, and Stillwater all saw an increase in the number of home sales as well. 

While many cities and counties in the metro are seeing a slowing real estate market, Washington County is experiencing stabilizing market conditions.  It’s a good time to live in Washington County!

There’s been a lot of talk about the possible extension of the homebuyer tax credit in the last few days.  Here is the latest information. 

Due to transactions taking months to complete, many purchasers may not close the transaction by the June 30 deadline. An amendment has been introduced that would extend the closing date so purchasers may take advantage of the credit. At this point only the Senate has adopted the amendment that would extend the closing date for the homebuyer tax credit from June 30, 2010 to September 30, 2010. The house still needs to adopt the Senate amendment. If adopted, it would create no new eligibility for the credit. The amendment would apply only to purchasers who have satisfied the April 30 binding contract rule for the $8,000 and $6,500 tax credits. Congress will be in session during the weeks of June 21 and June 28, so votes on the legislation are still possible before the June 30 deadline.

~Information from The Saint Paul Area Association of REALTORS~