By the Numbers: Oakdale, Twin Cities Median Home Sale Prices Fell in 2011

Oakdale Real-Estate Numbers

(Numbers provided by the Minneapolis Area Association of Realtors)

Oakdale 2010 2011 Median Sales Price $164,600 $133,000 Average Sales Price $167,344 $145,513 Price Per Square Foot $95 $83 New Listings 637 489

 

In the 13-county Twin Cities region:

• The median sales price fell to $150,000 in 2011, down 11.7 percent from 2010.
• Inventory fell 28.7 percent in 2011 from the previous year, and is now at the lowest level in eight years.

 

Overall, the Twin Cities real estate forecast is still chilly, but there are at least a few rays of sunshine poking through the clouds.

The median sales price of homes in the 13-county Twin Cities region fell significantly in 2011, despite 15.8 percent fewer homes going up for sale. 

Ordinarily, a big drop in inventory would lead almost immediately to rising home prices. But the region’s median price is still being held down by the flood of properties being sold through the foreclosure process or through short sales, said Richard Tucker, vice president of Coldwell Banker Burnet in Hastings.

Exactly half of all closed sales in 2011 were either foreclosures or short sales, and such “distressed properties” typically go for about 60 cents on the dollar compared to traditional homes.

Tucker noted that the National Association of Home Builders this month included the Twin Cities to its list of 76 “improving housing markets,” which measures housing permits, employment and housing prices for at least six months. 

Among other “optimistic indicators” he cited: The region’s relatively low 5.4 percent unemployment rate, historically low interest rates and the fact that rental-vacancy rates in the region are at record lows.