February’s pace seems slightly slower than that of January, but is still looking very healthy.  As the rates have ticked up over 6% again, some buyers that were once the fence are starting to become a little more serious after hearing reports that the rates will continue to rise.  My listing in Golden Valley, having been on the market a couple months, received multiple offers at the end of January and will close this month.  Needless to say, the sellers were pleased with the offers.As more and more buyers are using the Internet to find their next home, it becomes more crucial for real estate agents and sellers to market heavily towards that buyer.  I have developed some great new ways to accomplish this… give me a call to find out more!

While many Sellers chose to take their homes off the market in late 2005 and wait till Spring 2006 to relist their homes, many Buyers came back into the market right after the first of the year.  Showings have been extremely brisk and these buyers are coming ready to make an offer.  With the recent warm weather, the housing market seems to be warming up right along with it.

The number of New Listings and Pending Sales dropped dramatically the last week of November as both buyers and sellers were focused on the Thanksgiving holiday.  Last week saw a bump up in showings as buyers got back to their normal routines.Many buyers are concerned that there haven’t been many new listings coming on the market in recent weeks.  This is a seasonal trend… we should see a pick-up in new listings after the New Year.

As we near the end of the year, I encourage buyers sitting on the fence to go out and find your home now while the market conditions are in your favor.  For sellers, keep in mind that a buyer who is looking at houses this time of year may be very motivated… if you take your home off the market till the new year, you may miss the buyer looking for a home like yours. 

Each weekend, I hold at least one Open House.  As the weeks have progressed, Buyers at my opens seem much more relaxed about their searching; they know there’s a lot of houses for sale and they know that the houses that are for sale probably will still be for sale next week, or the week after.While Buyers are calm, Sellers are a little more tense. Showings are continuing to drop off, and Open House activity is going down as well.  In addition, more and more Sellers are reducing their asking price, which puts added pressure on other sellers to follow suit.  Between Thanksgiving and Superbowl Sunday has historically been the hardest time for Sellers, but the best opportunity for Buyers.  Based on what I am seeing in the market now, that appears to hold true again this year.

Agents in my Edina Realty office and others have been commenting recently how the number of showings has decreased and houses are taking longer to sell.  Welcome to the Fall/Winter market!  This time of year, while harder on prospective sellers, is a time of opportunity for buyers.  We have not had this large of a selection of homes for sale in many years… meaning that buyers have their pick of homes!

The news the last week has focused on the disaster left in Hurricane Katrina’s wake.  While we may be safe from hurricanes in Minnesota, there are many small, personal disasters that happen each year to individuals and families here and around the country.If you are able to, please donate to one of the many charities working to help the victims on Katrina.  While you are making that donation, please do not forget the charities that help our fellow Minnesotans.  While they may not get the headlines, they need help too.

While home sales are still extremely brisk, the inventory for sale has climbed 30% since February, which is leading to longer market times and more competition for price, marketing and condition by sellers.  Interest rates have started to creep up as well, however they are still about the same as they were last year at this time.

The Minneapolis/St. Paul housing market is still going strong.  Housing inventory is continuing to grow but at the same time, we are near-record levels for closed sales.  Locally, this year’s interest rates, sales, and appreciation are still tracking much higher than anybody expected.  While most houses take 1-2 months to sell, I listed a house for sale and received two offers in five days!  The house was priced well, was completely cleaned and decluttered, and I took beautiful pictures to show off its condition.

Aaron Dickinson named “2005 Super Real Estate Agent” by Minneapolis.St.Paul Magazine and Twin Cities Business Monthly.  Up to 108,000 members of the Twin Cities (including home buyers & sellers, mortgage & title companies, and other real estate agents) have the opportunity to submit nominations, which are then screened against the Department of Commerce database, and then reviewed by a panel of real estate experts and final winners are chosen.  In 2005, just over 800 agents, or less than 5% of the agents in Minnesota, were selected as “2005 Super Real Estate Agents!”

Minneapolis named “Top Tech City” in the USA by Popular Science!