Local Market Conditions & home prices

According to Minnesota Realtors:

Tariff announcements in early April triggered market uncertainty, causing mortgage rates to swing from a low of 6.6% to nearly 7.1%. Rate fluctuations (in part) fueled rate-sensitive buyers to sign more purchase agreements, leading to a 2.8% increase statewide. Sellers were more active, with new listings up 7.2%, while buyer activity was relatively flat.

Inventory is moving in the right direction, rising 8.5% statewide and reaching the highest April level since 2020. The statewide median price reached $360,000; the 2.9% increase is partly due to more activity in new home construction and luxury sectors. On average, homes spent 44 days on the market.

This spring, buyers and sellers face a market with both more choice and more uncertainty. Despite economic and trade concerns, serious buyers remain active and determined.

April Year-Over-Year Summary of Key Market Indicators:

Closed sales: 5,537 (down 0.8%)

Median sales price: $360,000 (up 2.9%)

Average sales price: $418,831 (up 3.4%)

New listings: 9,851 (up 7.2%%)

Pending sales: 6,498 (up 2.8%)

Days on the market: 44 (up 4.8%)

Homes for sale: 14,371 (up 8.5%)

Months Supply: 2.6 (up 13.0%)

 

April home sales for St. Paul, Minnesota, by neighborhood. Home prices continue to rise as the housing market remains contracted. Homeowners are reluctant to move up to higher monthly mortgage payments.

Prices continue to climb as demand remains higher than the supply. We have been in a holding pattern for a couple of years as the housing market contracts.

Data used to create the table was extracted from the NorthstarMLS which is deemed reliable but not guaranteed.  For more local home sales data, see Local Market Conditions and Home Prices.

Happy Wednesday

Key Updates: According to new data from the Minnesota state and Twin Cities metro REALTOR® Associations, new listings, pending sales, inventory, and prices all rose in March.

• New listings rose 11.4% statewide and 12.1% in the Twin Cities.
• Signed purchase agreements were up 4.0% statewide and 5.5% in the metro.

• The median sales price increased 3.0% statewide and 3.5% in the metro.

Sales activity picked up in March, but like last March, the average list price in St. Paul was slightly higher than the average sale price. The number of days it takes to sell a house went down. Median home sale prices went down slightly from last month. Downtown St. Paul had the most homes on the market, while Highland Park had the highest number of pending sales. To get a feel for which neighborhoods are the hottest right now, compare the number in the homes for sale column with the number in the pended column. If the numbers are close or the pended number is higher than the number of homes for sale, houses are selling quickly.

With 30-year mortgage rates at about 6.6%, pending tariffs on imports, and general political chaos, I am going to go out on a limb and predict slower and fewer home sales this spring.

Real estate is local. The chart was made from data extracted from the NortstarMLS. It is deemed reliable but isn’t guaranteed. The data captures a high number of houses that are bought and sold in St. Paul, but not all of them.

According to Minnesota Realtors, the Minnesota Realtors Association, home buyers and sellers pulled back in February due to uncertainty and higher interest rates. Home prices went up.

“After five months of growth, seller activity slowed in February. New listings fell 7.2% across Minnesota as many homeowners chose to stay put with lower interest rates. Pending sales also declined 7.9%, marking the second straight month of declines. High mortgage rates, low inventory, and broader economic factors pose affordability challenges, shaping buyer and seller decisions.

Housing supply appears to be flattening out after months of growth, with active listings up 1.0% statewide. Even with recent inventory gains, the state would need a 150% increase—more than 16,000 additional properties—to reach a balanced market.

Prices continued to rise, with the median home price up 4.9% to $343,000. Buyers remain focused on monthly mortgage payments, which have risen significantly compared to a few years ago. Despite rising home prices, recent rate declines could lessen monthly payments.”

 

February Year-Over-Year Summary of Key Market Indicators: 

• Closed sales: 3,399 (down 8.5%)
• Median sales price: $343,000 (up 4.9%)
• Average sales price: $402,812 (up 7.6%)
• New listings: 5,999 (down 7.2%)
• Pending sales: 4,300 (down 7.9%)
• Days on the market: 59 (up 11.3%)
• Homes for sale: 11,689 (up 1.0%)
• Months Supply: 2.1

We are seeing a little more activity in the local real estate market. The number of new listings is up and so are prices. This is normal for February.  The number of days it takes to sell a house is up slightly month over month.

Mortgage rates are still high at an average of 6.63% (Freddie Mac), but are trending downward. However, they will remain high for the next year. If there is a recession or what I like to call a “Trump Slump” rates may improve. Our economy doesn’t like uncertainty and we have plenty of it with on-again and off-again tariffs and more.

Here are home prices by neighborhood using data from the NorthstarMLS which is deemed reliable but not guaranteed.

For more local numbers please see “Local marketing conditions and home prices“