Mt Ranier, WA on July 4th, 2012 This year, there's a lot to be thankful for beyond the traditional holiday bird. Home buyers can be thankful for record-low mortgage rates. Sellers can be thankful for the possibility of getting more money in less listing time. Some homeowners are thankful for the housing recovery because it may alleviate underwater situations. Tryptophan doesn't seem to be slowing buyer and seller optimism. In the Twin Cities region, for the week ending November 17: • New Listings increased 11.4% to 1,046 • Pending Sales increased 9.8% to 843 • Inventory decreased 29.4% to 14,770  For the month of October: • Median Sales Price increased 14.8% to $175,000 • Days on Market decreased 25.2% to 103 • Percent of Original List Price Received increased 3.5% to 94.5% • Months Supply of Inventory decreased 40.1% to 3.7

Mpls Area Association of Realtors Weekly Market Activity Report  The housing market is improving. But don't take our word for it. CoreLogic, Standard Poor's, FHFA and the NAHB all closely monitor a diverse array of housing data and indicators. At some point over the past six months, every single one of these indices has either reached a multi-year high or has shown several consecutive months of im- provements. Does that mean every home in every neighborhood in every city across America is worth more today than it was a year ago? Of course not. But you'd be sur- prised just how robust this recovery is. Go ahead, dig into the numbers & see for yourself. In the Twin Cities region, for the week ending October 20:  • New Listings increased 0.6% to 1,110  • Pending Sales increased 33.3% to 1,012  • Inventory decreased 28.5% to 15,903 For the month of September: • Median Sales Price increased 12.8% to $174,813 • Days on Market decreased 28.5% to 101 • Percent of Original List Price Received increased 4.0% to 94.8% • Months Supply of Inventory decreased 39.2% to 4.1

Here's a quick interesting article about "Black Monday" which occurred 25 years ago last week.  The Dow closed at 1738.74 that day. 
NPR; 25 years since Black Monday

Well, more good news for sellers.  According to the CRS Connect blog, housing prices are continuing to rise.

By Regina Ludes, Tuesday, 4 September 2012 - 3:19pm


U.S. home prices, including distressed sales, increased 3.8 percent in July compared to a year ago, the biggest year-over-year increase since August 2006, according to the latest CoreLogic Home Price Index report. Home prices also increased 1.3 percent in July compared to June. The July figures mark the fifth consecutive month that home prices rose on both an annual and monthly basis.

Excluding distressed sales, home prices rose 4.3 percent in July from the previous year and increased 1.7 percent from June.

“It’s been six years since the housing market last experienced the gains that we saw in July, with indications the summer will finish up on a strong note,” says CoreLogic’s president and CEO Anand Nallathambi, “Although we expect some slowing in price gains over the balance of 2012, we are clearly seeing the light at the end of a very long tunnel.”

Including distressed sales, Arizona, Idaho, Utah, South Dakota and Colorado had the highest home price appreciation rates, while Delaware, Alabama, Rhode Island, Connecticut and Illinois had the highest deprecation rates.

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Mpls Area Association of Realtors Weekly Market Activity Report

The inventory levels continue to drop.  Less than 17,000 houses on the market in the Twin Cities.  Those levels are low.  If you are thinking of selling, now may be the time.  Give me a call & I'll give you a localized update on the market.   Weekly Market Activity Report Do you hear that? It's the sound of carts shifting through the back-to-school aisles, filling quickly with notebooks and pencils and glue. It's the sound of teenagers shuffling through dorms and down storied lanes on their first college orientation.  It's the sound of young professionals readying themselves for their first big job, freshly shorn and tailored. It's the sound of a family preparing for the leap from the overcrowded apart- ment to the "starter" home that will see their first into high school. The end of summer sure can seem an awful lot like spring. Let's see if the housing market says the same.   In the Twin Cities region, for the week ending August 11:   • New Listings increased 2.0% to 1,387   • Pending Sales increased 31.2% to 1,149   • Inventory decreased 29.6% to 16,982   For the month of July: • Median Sales Price increased 13.7% to $179,000 • Days on Market decreased 27.8% to 106 • Percent of Original List Price Received increased 3.6% to 95.0% • Months Supply of Inventory decreased 42.8% to 4.3

Monthly Skinny: July 2012

Another "Monthly Skinny" with Great News for Sellers.  Low Inventory Levels & High Buyer Demand make it a great time to SELL!  There were 17,103 Active Listing, as of the end of June.  Thats' the lowest amount of Active Listings since January, 2004.  WOW!!!  Take a look at this 3 minute video from Mpls Area Association of Realtors to get "The Skinny".   

Summer Heat

Back from Vacation.  Went to Oregon for a lovely family wedding & then spent a few days in the National Parks.  We missed the heat wave. Here's the latest from the Mpls Area Association of Realtors. Weekly Market Activity Report Summer heat waves roll across the northland as election season also heats up. Meanwhile, as the mercury and partisan rhetoric both escalate, residential real estate continues to show signs consistent with market recovery. For the current round of numbers, both buyer and seller activity levels were higher than last year at this time. Buyers have been taking advantage of historic affordability levels for some time, but renewed seller confidence is a more recent development and some would even call it an encouraging omen, as long as supply levels don't exceed a prior apex. In the Twin Cities region, for the week ending June 30: • New Listings increased 0.1% to 1,414 • Pending Sales increased 20.4% to 1,194 • Inventory decreased 31.0% to 17,417 For the month of June: • Median Sales Price increased 10.4% to $179,000 • Days on Market decreased 22.0% to 113 • Percent of Original List Price Received increased 4.0% to 95.0%  Months Supply of Inventory decreased 44.7% to 4.4.