Minneapolis Duplex Sellers See Signs Of Spring

It’s finally starting to feel like spring in Minneapolis and St Paul. During the week ending March 22, 2014, however, this spring’s duplex market felt a lot like last year’s.

Nineteen Minneapolis and St Paul duplex sellers accepted offers on their properties. At 78.9 percent, the vast majority of these investment property owners have equity in their property and will leave closing with a check in hand. On average, the off-market MLS list price for these properties was $193,458.

One year ago during the third week of March, 17 investment property owners agreed to sell. At 64.7 percent, more than half sold and put money in their pockets. On average, they achieved a sales price of $187,500.

Unfortunately for buyers looking for a broader selection, there were just 26 new listings during the week. Most of these, at 76.9 percent, are sellers not facing a distressed sale. However, new inventory was down 23.5 percent from the week last year, when half of the properties were either the result of  a short sale or foreclosure.

Single family home inventory saw a slight uptick of 2.6 percent during the week.  This is positive news, as overall inventory was 6.8 percent lower than one year ago. However, pending sales were also down 6.9 percent, which may help to temporarily offset some of the imbalance.

As the spring thaw continues, we should start to see a truer measure of the Minneapolis and St Paul duplex market.