For St. Cloud home sellers and buyers puzzling over whether now is the right time to enter the local

market, last week’s helping of national residential real estate news was difficult to assimilate—much less

to provide coherent ‘buy’ or ‘sell’ signals. That’s what happens when median sale prices increase by more

than 13% and sell in the shortest number of Days On Market ever, yet most press reports headline

residential sales “declines.”

“Declines” like that are hard to digest in any case. When you’re trying to make an already

complicated decision like buying or selling St. Cloud houses, they’re less than helpful.

Last year the situation was already complicated enough. Prudent St. Cloud buyers were faced with

the brain-teasing situation of record high home prices that were partially offset by record low home loan

offerings. What were thrift-minded buyers to do? What if a price reversal was possible?

Buyers and sellers now have the additional factor of today’s stormy economic picture—both

national and international—to further complicate the paralysis-inducing timing issue. As realtor.com

summarized last week, “No one wants to buy at the top of the market, but it’s not clear yet whether the

market has peaked.” Although the national press was technically correct in describing “dropping real

estate sales,” they often failed to fill in some relevant details. If it’s true that some sellers in some markets

are “lowering their asking prices,” such declines may only be reversals from newly over-escalated asking

prices.

In other words, ‘declines’ that are actually ‘increases.’

And in fact, June’s existing-home sales (that were breathlessly described as having declined “for the

fifth straight month”) averaged median sale prices that were 13.4% higher than the previous June’s.

Evidently, a great number of buyers surveyed the overall direction of everything and decided that today’s

offerings will look like decent bargains—especially compared with what is to come (possibly even soon

to come).

St. Cloud buyers do have one compelling fact that has guided decisions for many past generations:

it’s the evident value of owning your home over the long term. Call me for current information to help

you appraise your next course of action.

Providing a superior level of informed, professional real estate services to buyers and sellers throughout Central Minnesota. We have agents specializing in residential, commercial, multifamily, new construction, existing, investment properties, foreclosures/REO, and short sales with offices located in:

Multiple Office Locations To Serve YOU!

Saint Cloud 320-259-4554

Princeton 320-983-3555

Sartell 320-259-4554

Little Falls 320-259-4554

Minneapolis 763-565-2000

Hutchinson 320-455-9127

Litchfield 320-298-1140

Premier Real Estate specializes in MANY areas around Central MN including Saint Cloud, Waite Park, Rice, Royalton, Sartell, Royalton, Little Falls, Cold Spring, Saint Joseph, Elk River, Monticello, Ramsey, Saint Michael, Andover, Ham Lake, Anoka, Champlin, Buffalo, Glencoe, Brownton, Silver Lake, Kandiyohi, Dassel, Minneapolis, Maple Grove, Saint Louis Park, Saint Paul, Robbinsdale, Crystal, New Hope, Brooklyn Center, Brainerd, Nisswa, Aitkin, Albany, Coon Rapids, Sauk Rapids and more!