Many homeowners are wondering, “Why sell now”? If the market is getting better shouldn’t we wait? Right now is a great time to sell for many reasons. Some of the better reasons are:

• Sales prices have increased 14.5% in the past year, so you will get more for your home.
• Traditional homes sold in just 68 days for 97.7% of their original list price in June 2013.
• Interest rates are on the rise, right now they are at around 4.5%. The higher they go, the less home buyers can afford.
• Inventory is still very low but starting to increase slightly. There are 17.2% fewer homes for sale than in June 2012 but 17.4% more than in January 2013.
• School will be starting again soon and many buyers want to be moved in before the new school year starts, so they need to buy now.

If you are on the fence about selling your home, contact me for a no obligation discussion. Your home may be worth more than you think and I can help you decide if now is the right time for you to sell your home or not!

The Minneapolis Area Association of Realtors has released the market statistics for the Twin Cities for the week ending June 29th and for the entire month of June 2013.

In the Twin Cities region, for the week ending June 29:

• New Listings increased 22.8% to 1,738
• Pending Sales increased 22.4% to 1,405
• Inventory decreased 16.8% to 15,405

For the month of June:

• Median Sales Price increased 17.5% to $210,000
• Days on Market decreased 33.6% to 75
• Percent of Original List Price Received increased 2.5% to 97.5%
• Months Supply of Inventory decreased 27.1% to 3.5

2012 is coming to an end in just a few days so let’s take a look at where the market is at.

According to the Remax National Housing Report, November was the 17^th consecutive month of higher year over year sales with a 15.7% increase in November 2012 over November 2011.  The average number of homes for sale dropped 29.1% from last November, making it the 29^th consecutive month to month drop.  Pending home sales, a measure of home contract signings, shot up in the month of November, reaching its highest level on record in two-and-a-half years. It’s also the third consecutive month of sales increases. The median sales price also increased for the 10^th consecutive month to $163,750, a 6.9% increase.

According to Freddie Mac, the 30-year, fixed-rate mortgage hovered at 3.35% for the week ending Dec. 27, down from 3.37% a week earlier and 3.95% last year.  The 30-year fixed-rate mortgage averaged 3.66% for 2012, the lowest annual average in at least 65 years.

The last time the housing market was healthy without stimulus was February 2007.  The National Association of Realtors expects to see a stronger housing market in 2013.