Home sale prices up in Douglas County region

Minnesota’s housing market is getting stronger and showing continued signs of recovery.

The newest housing report from the Association of Realtors shows strong gains in closed sales in February and the first gain in statewide median prices since June of 2010.

Statewide, closed sales were up nearly 15 percent in February 2012 compared to the same time last year. The median sales price was up 0.8 percent to nearly $124,900 last month.

Nine of the state’s 14 regions saw increases or no change in median sales prices.

In the West Central Region, which includes Douglas County, sales prices were up 7.7 percent.

“Prices remain the big area for improvement in housing right now. Removing more properties – especially those distressed properties – will continue to help prices,” said June Wiener, president of the Minnesota Association of Realtors. “We are seeing a positive trend of more closed and pending sales. Increased sales will help us decrease the inventory available statewide.”

Here are the median sales prices for February 2012 compared to February 2011:

Statewide – up 8 percent.

Seven County Metro Region – down 3.4 percent.

Arrowhead Region – up 15.3 percent.

Central Region – down 4.2 percent.

East Central Region – up 1 percent.

Headwaters Region – up 107.5 percent.

North Central Region – up 1.6 percent.

Northwest Region – no change.

South Central Region – down 13.9 percent.

Southeast Region – no change.

Southwest Central Region – up 3.3 percent.

Southwest Region – up 18.9 percent.

Upper Minnesota Valley Region – down 6 percent.

West Central Region – up 7.7 percent.

While prices remain one of the last areas to recover in this current housing market, homeowners are also starting to receive more of their original asking price from buyers, according to the association.

In February 2012, sellers statewide received 89.5 percent of their asking price; that’s up from 87.1 percent at the same time last year.

New listings are up 3.1 percent from this time last year. Since the start of 2012, new listings are down 0.8 percent and closed sales are up 11.5 percent.

“The newest housing numbers reflect what realtors are seeing every day,” said Wiener. “The market will continue to improve as we see homes recover some of the value lost in the past few years. We must also remember that this is a long recovery – and losses can’t be reversed in just a few months or couple of years.”

The Minnesota Association of Realtors is the largest professional trade association in the state with more than 19,000 members who are active in all aspects of the real estate industry.

Tags: local news, news, housing