New listings and closed sales in the Twin Cities metro area posted records in September, according to statistics released by the Regional Multiple Listing Service of Minnesota Inc.
Closed sales totaled 5,277 in September, up almost 1 percent from September 2004’s record high of 5,256, Realtors reported.
New listings set a record for September with 9,336 units, which is up more than 3 percent from the previous year.
“There has been much talk in recent months about the prospect of a so-called ‘housing bubble.’ Those wild concerns are unfounded, and the data proves it. The Twin Cities residential real estate market is as healthy and robust as ever,” said Gregg Roeglin, president of the Minneapolis Area Association of Realtors.
Twin City residents continue to see their home values appreciate, as median home prices in September were up 4.5 percent from the year previous, although prices slipped 0.7 percent from the month before. MAAR expects housing prices to stabilize in the $230,000 to $235,000 price range until early 2006.
The Housing Affordability Index increased slightly in September to 137 due to the slight and not uncommon dip in the September sales price. An HAI of 137 means that the median family income has 137 percent of the necessary income to qualify for the median priced home using a 20 percent down payment and a 30-year fixed rate mortgage.
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