Saint Paul Real Estate Market Analysis for August 2008

Oh would you believe it?  New listings for homes fell in Saint Paul, Minnesota, for yet another month in a row during August, according to the Minneapolis Area Association of Realtors’ Market Update for 100 Twin Cities Communities. Throughout the month of August, there were 553 new listings in the City of Saint Paul. In August of 2007, there were 641 new listings, which is a drop of about -13.7%, about the same as July's drop of -13.6%. The Como / Como Park neighborhood of St. Paul experienced the largest decrease in new listings at -32.5%.  The Merriam Park was the only neighborhood of Saint Paul to experience an increase in new listings in August compared to last year.  Listings there rose 6.7%.

For St. Paul’s posted new listing for January through August, there were 4,922 new listings in the city.  This is a drop of -10.2% compared to the 5,482 new listings during the same time period of 2007.  The greatest new listing fluctuations happened in the St. Anthony/Midway neighborhoods, where new listings have decreased by nearly 30% for the past two months in a row, while the West Side / Cherokee neighborhood’s new listings of homes for sale have increased 14.4% compared to last year.

Fewer new listings does not equate with fewer closed sales on homes in Saint Paul, Minnesota. At 301, there were 2.0% more closed sales this year in August than the same month of 2007’s 295. For the year to date, there have been 1,838 close sales from January through August.  Last year by this time, there were 1,863 closed sales.  That means we are now within -1.3% of 2007’s sales figures for the year to date!  The West Side / Cherokee, Southeat, East Side and North End / Frogtown neighborhoods have seen particularly large increases in sales compared to last year.

One statistic which is way off compared to last year are the sales prices of homes in Saint Paul, which continue to fall. The average sales price of a home in the City of St. Paul was $187,181 in August 2008 compared to $248,588 in 2007. That is a decrease of -24.7%. This month, there were no exceptions to the downward trend in home sales prices.  The average sales price year-to-date in the City of St. Paul is no better at $184,373. During the same time period in 2007, the average sales price of a home was $236,940, a decrease of -22.2%. The percentage of St. Paul homes which sold at their original list price has decreased to 92.6%. In 2007, 94.5% of the homes sold in August were purchased for their original listing price.

Homes for sale in St. Paul are staying on the market longer than they did in 2007. In August of 2008, a home in Saint Paul was on the market for an average of 133 days before it was sold. In August of 2007, homes for sale in Saint Paul were on the market for an average of 111 days before selling. The amount of time a home spends on the market varies from neighborhood to neighborhood as well. Homes sold in Highland Park, homes have gone from spending 58 days on the market last year to 137 days this year.  Merriam Park and West 7th neighborhoods, homes are selling after an average of just over 2 months on the market.

This is a short review of the St. Paul real estate market based on calculations by the Minneapolis Area Association of Realtors for the month of August, 2008. These statistics of course do not reflect all situations. Click here if you’re interested in reading July’s statistics.