Here are some numbers for August home sales in St. Paul. The inventory of homes on the market continues to fall. Home sales remain fairly brisk and home prices are strong. I say strong because prices are seasonal and they will go down a bit during the Fall so even though the median home price was $175,000 in July and $172,500 home prices are trending upward.
The number of homes for sale also starts to go down this time of year. We are still in a strong seller’s market which isn’t the same as a healthy market. The average time it took to sell a home in August was 42 days. There are people who want to buy a home in St. Paul who are not buying because they can not find a home to buy and there are would be sellers who don’t want to put their home on the market until they find a home that they want to buy and there are too few to choose from.
Home prices are still lower than they were during the peak in 2006 and that is probably a good thing for those who plan on buying this year. Is it too late in the year to put your home on the market? I would say no considering hundreds of homes sell each September and I am currently working with some motivated buyers who would like to get into a home of their own before the cold and snow.
For more local real estate numbers please see Local Market Conditions & Home Prices
I bought my first home yesterday – I figured I should get some skin in the real estate game and I’ve been saving for a down payment for years. It seems like we may be in a “last call for Happy Hour” situation with the Fed shaking the saber rattle and still decent but slowly climbing home prices.
Asking price was $175,000, and I was able to negotiate the price down to $171,500 plus $2,000 in closing costs. I think I got a good home for a good price. I recently turned 30, said goodbye to the roommates, and I’m excited for the next phase in my life!