Our local REALTOR Association Reports:
The January 2010 Twin Cities housing market has shaped up to be nearly identical to January 2009.
-Pending sales are down slightly from a year ago, but not by much.
-New listings are down slightly from a year ago, but not much.
-Inventory is rising slowly, but not much.
After the roller coaster ride the local market has experienced over the last four years, perhaps "not by much" is a welcome respite.
-There were 558 signed purchase agreements for the week ending January 23, down 2.3 percent from a year ago.
-New listings posted 1,522 units, down 0.6 percent from a year ago.
-The current inventory of active listings is 20,629, down 17.5 percent from a year ago.
The February 2010 Supply-Demand Ratio sits at 6.99, which means there are 6.99 homes available for each buyer. That's a drop of 8.5 percent from a year ago and the lowest February mark since 2006.
When looking at the West Savage marketplace, inventory is begining its steady crawl up to normal levels. As of today we are at 18 total active listings in West Savage (typically in spring/summer we see as many as 28-30), and a few TNAS (Temporarily Available for Showing) listings, meaning there is an active contract on the property but for one reason or another, the home is not available for showings. We also have a couple of For Sale By Owner homes on the market/entering the market that are not included in this active count (The Pointe, Hamilton Hylands).
A glance at our inventory this early in the year is pointing at one striking detail: This appears to be the year that the traditional seller is re-entering the marketplace, after a year and a half of sitting back and waiting. We hope all goes well for them as we move into spring and summer, though we are still not seeing any appreciation at this time, as short sales and foreclosures are continuing to pop up in our marketplace from time to time. More updates to follow on West Savage Blog.