Craig Armstrong

2007 is finished. Done. Gone.

Here's what happened in 2007 in Cottage Grove, MN real estate:

390 Residential Properties were sold and closed.
The minimum sold price was $114,500, and had 1 bedroom and 1 bath.
The maximum sold price was $974,900, with 6 bedrooms and 5 bathrooms.
The AVERAGE SOLD PRICE was $251,015, with and AVERAGE of 3.37 bedrooms and 2.3 bathrooms. (I know, there aren't .37 bedrooms, but its the average...)

The average days that a home in Cottage Grove was on the market and eventually sold was 126.

Compare that to 2006, for only Cottage Grove again:

523 Residential Properties were sold and closed in all of 2006.
The minimum sold price was $117,000 and had 1 bedroom and 1 bathroom.
The maximum sold price was $1,250,000 and had 7 bedrooms and 5 bathrooms.
The AVERAGE SOLD PRICE was $257,579 with an AVERAGE of 3.36 bedrooms and 2.32 bathrooms.

The average days that a home in Cottage Grove was on the market and eventually sold in 2006 was 110.

What does that tell us:

1. Homes ARE still selling
2. Homes MUST be priced right to sell
3. Buyers are able to select from a number of homes, and will search for the best home for the best price
4. To get a home sold may take longer than in the past, which is why curb appeal and staging are vital to setting a home apart from the competition.

That is why I offer FREE Staging Advice from a Professional Home Staging Expert to each listing. I also update my listings on the market - what has sold, what the competition is doing WEEKLY. I offer a FREE market assessment to people in Cottage Grove. I work with buyers for FREE, (the seller pays my fees), I e-mail new listings for a buyer's specific needs after we discuss their dreams/goals/needs in a home, I negotiate for my clients - I LOVE negotiations and get the best possible deal for my clients all the time.

The Minnesota Association of Realtors (MAR) completed a report for the 3rd Quarter of 2007. It is available online at their website. Its a VERY interesting report (and quite large - 16MB in size).

One section that I found interesting stated that:
"Housing prices over the time period beginning in 1998 through the end of 2003 grew over 5 times faster than inflation. Inflation increased nearly 14% over this time, whereas housing prices increased 62%. In the 24 month period covering the beginning of 2004 through the Fourth Quarter of 2005, inflation increased about 7.3% (or about 3.65% per year, on average), and housing prices rose approximately 14.99% (or about 7.45% per year, on average). Between the Third Quarter of 2006 and the Third Quarter of 2007, the average house price in Minnesota fell by about 2.4%."

Here's the interesting thing - even with a fall of 2.4% over a one year period, we're STILL at incredible increases spread over the course of time from 1998 to the present (just shy of 10 years). We're still FAR ahead of even what the stock market was able to do during that same time. A little slow down in price is OK - no one is earning 62% more than we were in 1998 (see the inflation rate). We were in essence pricing people out of the market as the value of homes climbed and climbed.

Yes, it hurts to not see the value of a home as high as it was. It stings. But, if you've been in your home for more than a couple of years, and you did not refinance to 110% of your home - you're still able to sell for a nice profit!

AND, if you're selling for a little less than you were hoping to sell for -- Remember, you're able to buy for a little less than you would have expected to.