Pending sales remain up but soften to single digits. New listings decline.
The Minnesota housing market remained strong in January, with year-over-year closed sales up +16.2% and pending home sales up +5.2%, according to Minnesota Realtors® (MNR), the membership organization supporting all 21,000 Realtors in the state. Market demand for homes remained high, with average days on market at 46 days, which is two fewer weeks or a 25.8% reduction when compared to January 2020.
With only one month’s supply of inventory available — and new listings down by -12.1% — competition among buyers for scarce housing stock is intense. By the end of January, there were only 7,860 homes for sale in the state, a -48.3% decline from January 2020. On average, sellers were getting +98.3% of their asking price, which is a +2.6% increase compared to last year at this time.
“January was still very much a seller’s market. Heightened demand was met with a decline in new listings, exacerbating the impact of historically low inventory in a market where consumers are primed to buy,” said Chris Galler, CEO of Minnesota Realtors. “With the shifts in lifestyle and working habits brought on by the pandemic, people are hungry for space. As long as interest rates remain low, this trend is likely to continue. As spring approaches, we are likely to see another very hot selling season.”
Statewide, the median sales price jumped +10.9% over January 2020 to $272,000, and the average sales price hit $310,785, up +8.4%.
January year-over-year summary:
- Closed sales: +16.2% to 4,788
- Median sales price: +10.9% to $272,00
- Average sales price: +8.4% to $310,785
- New listings: -12.1% to 5,274
- Pending sales: +5.2% to 4,905
- Days on the market: -25.8% to 46 days
- Homes for sale: -48.3% to 7,860
Closed Home Sales Across Minnesota by Region
January saw double-digit increases in year-over-year closed sales in 11 out of the 13 Minnesota regions, with the Northwest region topping the chart with a more than 40%hike. Only two regions, Southeast and West Central, showed more modest increases of+6.4% and +3.5% respectively. See chart below for more details comparing January 2021 to January 2020.
The seven-county Twin Cities region comprises Anoka, Carver, Dakota, Hennepin, Ramsey, Scott and Washington counties. The official Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington metropolitan statistical area recognized by the Census Bureau consists of 16 counties, which is what MAR & SPAAR local associations report on.
Source: MNR News