Business & Tech

Median Sale Price Down, Closed Sales Slow Up in Apple Valley During November

New listings during November exceeded those from November 2011.

The momentum in Apple Valley's real estate market during October——slowed a bit during November.

Though November 2010's 60 closed sales beat October 2010's 40 closed sales, this November buyers closed on 58 homes, whereas in October this year the 86 closed sales more than doubled last year's monthly total.

Last month, the median sale price in Apple Valley was $163,200; in November, it went down to $148,700.

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Year to date, median sale prices still are short of last year at this time by about $25,000, at $152,750.

Regionally, the Minneapolis Area Association of Realtors reported, the median home price in November was $149,250, down 10.1 percent from its already depressed levels in the same month a year earlier.

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That’s largely due to lender-mediated activity—shorthand for foreclosures and short sales—which comprised 44.1 percent of all closed sales and 41.9 percent of new listings.

But the number of homes for sale in the 13-county Twin Cities metropolitan area plunged nearly 24 percent from last year to 19,516—the lowest November inventory reading since 2004.

In addition, November 2011 marked only the third month in more than five years in which there was less than six months supply of inventory. Sellers listed 4,102 new homes on the market, down 13.6 percent from last year.

In Apple Valley, there were almost 15 percent more new listings in November compared to last Novembers, at 63 to 55. 

Regionally, buyers entered into 3,321 purchase agreements, up 30.2 percent over November 2010.

Ordinarily, such a big drop in inventory would indicate a rising market, but “prices are still bound by distressed activity, budget-conscious consumers and a general sense of economic uncertainty," said Brad Fisher, MAAR’s president.

Some sellers, at least, are benefiting from less competition. The share of asking price that sellers receive at sale has now posted year-over-year increases for the fourth consecutive month.

In November, sellers across the Twin Cities region received an average of 90.9 percent of their asking price; Apple Valley was right there, with 91 percent, and 90.7 percent year to date.

That figure likely was helped by the 30.6 percent decrease in the supply of inventory—currently at 5.7 months. Generally, a market with five to six months of inventory is considered balanced.

The first and fourth quarters of the year tend to see the most distressed sales and listing activity. Consequently, traditional prices fell 9.2 percent to $187,400, foreclosure prices dropped 14.3 percent to $98,500 and short sale prices were down 11.5 percent to $130,000.

The good news: The housing affordability index hit a new record high of 245, meaning that the median household income in the region was 245 percent of what is necessary to qualify for the median-priced home under prevailing interest rates.

"Prices don't reflect the improved supply-demand balance yet," said Cari Linn, MAAR’s president-elect. "Although there are some reassuring patterns taking hold, it would be overly optimistic to say that all of the market's problems will be washed away by spring."


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