Twin Cities Suburbs Duplex Sales Not What They Seem

Over the last few years, the suburbs have seemed to be the hottest market in the Twin Cities.  Looking back at 2025, however, that may have been a mirage.

While declining sales were not as readily apparent as in Minneapolis and St Paul, the 202 suburban sales were the second-lowest in a decade.  Sellers obtained an average of 98.2% of their original asking price at closing. This was the first time that the percentage of the original asking price was below 100% since 2019.

This slide was not necessarily reflected in the median sales price of $450,000, which was identical to the 2024 median. Annual average sales price, however, dropped $101 year over year, to $461,763.

Suburban duplexes, triplexes, and fourplexes also spent more time on the market.  On average, a sold listing tallied 38 days of market time  and a median of 24 before selling. When including any previous market time, say, for a property that had been on the market, removed, then put back on before selling, the average swelled to 50 days, and a median of 29. In both days and cumulative days on market, average and median, these were the highest totals since 2016.

South St Paul and Hopkins saw the most turnover with 14 sales each. Columbia Heights added 11. The year’s high seller was a Hastings fourplex. The building featured 20 bedrooms and 8 bathrooms and generated $162,000 in annual revenue. Originally listed at $1,250,000, it closed at $1,050,000. The year’s value add opportunity was a Farmington fourplex that needed everything from siding to plumbing and sheetrock. Originally listed at $147,900, it closed at $140,000. In both new and sold listings it was the year’s most deeply discounted value-add opportunity.

The year saw a total of 307 new listings. This represented a 14.1% year-over-year increase. Active suburban listings finished at 617 for the year. This was a 39.9% year-over-year increase. In both cases, this was the most since 2016, which saw 327 new and 736 active listings.

South St Paul contributed 22 listings to new inventory. Hopkins and Columbia Heights added 20 more each.

What does this all mean? I’m not a statistician, but in layman’s terms, duplexes, triplexes and fourplexes are still selling. They just aren’t moving at the lightning speed they were a few years ago.

If you’re thinking of buying or selling a duplex in the Twin Cities suburbs, or even Minneapolis or St Paul, give me a call. I’d be happy to help you determine value or craft a strategy to achieve your goals.