Home Sales Remain Strong Through July

Buyer activity in the Twin Cities housing market continued its strong run in July.

For the 13th consecutive month, there were more pending sales than there were a year ago. July saw 5,174 signed purchase agreements, up 16.0 percent from July 2008 and the strongest July showing since 2005. Of these sales, 43.6 percent were lender-mediated foreclosures and short sales.

"It's been a busy summer," said our prez, Steve Havig. "Buyers are active and supply is shrinking."

New listings continue to post weak numbers, with July's total of 7,669 representing the lowest July output since 2002.

As sales have grown and new listings have slowed, the total number of houses available for sale has dropped dramatically in the Twin Cities. As of August 1st, there were 25,862 homes for sale in the region, down 21.6 percent from a year ago.

The overall July median sales price for all properties was $171,000, down 17.8 percent from one year ago, but up 2.1 percent from the second quarter median sales price of $167,500. The median sales price of traditional homes in June was $213,150, down 6.2 percent from a year ago. Lender-mediated homes posted a May figure of $126,000, down 15.4 percent from a year ago.

There appears to be less room for negotiation, as the Percent of Original List Price Received at Sale continues to improve—the July mark of 94.0 is 1.5 percent higher than last July.

Comments

[Jason]

Granted that there are more buyers looking for deals out there, so we see an increase on a buying side. However, isn't it also seasonal to see the supply side of the equation go down regardless of the number of buyers. It can mislead consumers by saying that the supply is going down because there's an increase of buyers.

[Jeff Allen]

Hi Jason-

Even taking into account typical seasonal variations you reference, the drop in supply has been pretty dramatic -- we've lost 7,000 units compared to the same time last year. It's a direct result of a) increased sales absorption and b) weak new listings.

-- Jeff