As median prices continue to hang low along with interest rates, the housing affordability index reached a new record high of 245… which means that a family earning a median income has 245% of the income needed to qualify to purchase a median priced home.
It appears that buyers are figuring out this is a good thing because pending sales are higher than they usually are at this time of year. Having the jobless rate fall to the lowest in 2 1/2 years also has a positive impact.
With the supply of homes available for sale at lows not seen since January 2005, it's good news for sellers who have been waiting a long time for news in their favor.
The number of buyers still isn't high enough to make this a sellers market, but the months supply of inventory dropped to 5.7 months, bringing it into the range of 5-6 months that is considered balanced between buyers and sellers.
Median price dropped a little again this month, to $149,250.
Condos and townhomes continue to show the biggest price drops. The under $120,000 price range showed the highest increase in sales, which also likely contributed to the lower median price. There is less than a 5 month supply of homes available in price ranges below $150,000, which makes it not surprising that good homes in that price range frequently sell in multiple bids.
The figures above are based on statistics for the combined 13-county Twin Cities metropolitan area released by the Minneapolis Area Association of Realtors. Click here for local reports on 200+ metro area communities. Click here for current interactive market analytics by area, city, county, neighborhood or zip code.
Sharlene Hensrud, RE/MAX Results – Email – Minneapolis – St. Paul Real Estate Market Information
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