The Minneapolis Real Estate Blog: Minnesota: Minnetonka

The amount of days that a home sits on the market does not necessarily have anything to do with the home for sale. Many times, it has to do with location, and even the amount of competition from other neighbors. Take for instance, Minnestrista, Mound, and Orono, which have the largest amount of homes for sale this year. They also have a relatively high number of days of the market (DOM).

At the same time, you could look at Orono with its high DOM, and also take into consideration that the average selling price in 2007 was almost $2 Million, also contributing to the reason for a high DOM.

On Lake Minnetonka, there are many small towns that surround the lake, and each has homes that vary in price. Greenwood for instance, is relatively small, and only had four homes sell for all of 2007, at an average sales price of $1.1 Million. Spring Park, on the other hand, has only two homes for sale and barely 2000 residents, but the average sales price is just a little above $600,000.

As you look at the average days on the market for Lake Minnetonka, the one thing to remember is that most of these homes are fairly expensive. And as we all know, the higher the price, the longer is takes to sale.

Oops! Looks like I forgot to do the market analysis for February. But have no fear, with the market slow down, we didn't' miss out on too much!

$1 Million -2 Million - The "cheap" homes have tons of competition, what with 117, which is almost the same amount as in January. Thirteen homes are pending, which compared to March 2007, is a three homes short. Closed sales totaled six, which blows last year out of the water.

$2 Million - $3 Million : 41 homes are competing against each other, especially with almost 10 homes for sale more than in January. Selling seems a little difficult in this price range as there is only 1 pending sale and 1 closed sale for March.
$3 Million - $5 Million : There are 22 homes currently for sale on Lake Minnetonka in this price bracket. Looking back to March 2007, there were only 9! Makes me wonder if some affluent home owners are also finding themselves in a financial pickle with the housing downturn.

$5 Million + : The premier homes in the price range are the cream of the crop. Nothing is new except maybe a few photos. Only eight homes can boast this price range, and the highest priced home tops the scale at $53 Million. The higher a listing is, the longer it takes to sell.

If you would like to search the current luxury home inventory in Minneapolis, Saint Paul, and the surrounding areas, view my price by price analysis at Fine Homes of Minneapolis.

With so many lakes in Minnesota it could easily get confusing on the water quality of each lake. Thanks to the Department of Natural Resources, they do the research for you. All you have to do is fumble through the data.

On their website, you can look up the lake of your choice and then obtain information on water quality, water clarity, what types of fish the lake stocks, topography charts, and more. The DNR also offers Fish Consumption Advisories and lets local real estate owners know if certain species have higher than normal amounts of Mercury.

It is a great way to check up on the ecology of a lake you might be thinking of purchasing a home on.

Looking to buy a luxury home in Minneapolis? Well, the place to be is Lake Minnetonka. The most active price range of 2007 has been the $1-2 Million market and is the most affordable for the area. Fall is upon us and now is a great time to take a tour of homes for sale via the water and also enjoy the changing colors.

1 Million - 2 Million : The most active high-end price range just got more active this month, again. This time more homes moved to PENDING, eleven to be exact, and 5 of last months six closed for the month of September. However, active listings still remain high at 141.

2 Million - 3 Million : This bracket saw a another decrease in active listings. There are 41 active homes for sale and only 1 pending. Four homes closed this month, 1 more than in August.

3 Million - 5 Million : Always the bracket to be active or slow, the month of September was the reverse of last month and gained more listings - holding steady at 21 listings. Nothing sold this month as last month's only pending is still waiting to close.

5 Million + : The uber-bracket of Minneapolis real estate currently has 11 homes for sale, which is two more than last month. No homes have been put under contract nor did any sell this past month either. Last month's most expensive home on Lake Minnetonka priced at $15.9 Million just got beat out by a new listing on Lake Minnetonka for $53.5 Million!!!

Read my post which introduces you to the luxury estate on Minneapolis Luxury Real Estate blog.

Lake Minnetonka Real Estate Update - August 2007

Looking to buy a luxury home in Minneapolis? Well, the place to be is Lake Minnetonka. The most active price range of 2007 has been the $1-2 Million market and is the most affordable for the area. Summer is winding down and soon the Lake will have a spectacular display of autumn colors for all to enjoy. Get your home soon so you too can enjoy the wonderful lake views and take a last cruise around the lake before winter sets in.

1 Million - 2 Million : The most active high-end price range just got more active this month, again. This time more homes moved to SOLD, six to be exactly, and 7 more took their spot for being put under contract. However, active listings still remain high at 144.

2 Million - 3 Million : This bracket saw a slight decrease in active listings, some being withdrawn from the market and a couple being put under contract. There are 42 active homes for sale and six pending. Three homes closed in August.

3 Million - 5 Million : Always the bracket to be active or slow, the month of August was very much the latter. Holding steady at 17 listings, one pending, and only one sale. But what do you expect when you are selling in such a high price range?

5 Million +: The uber-bracket of Minneapolis real estate currently has 9 homes for sale. No homes have been put under contract nor did any sell this past month either. The most expensive home on Lake Minnetonka is still hanging in there at $15.9 Million.

According to the Minneapolis Area Association of Realtors, the housing supply outlook for homes $1 Million + is about 21.9 Months, an increase of over 25% since the beginning of the year. The number means that is will take almost two years to sell all the homes price over $1 Million in Minneapolis, St Paul, and the surrounding MLS areas. Of course, every local market is different, so what sells slow in one area, my sell like hot cakes in another!

Lake Minnetonka Real Estate Update - July 2007

Looking to buy a luxury home in Minneapolis? Well, the place to be is Lake Minnetonka. The most active price range of 2007 has been the $1-2 Million market and is the most affordable for the area. So bring your boat, and your check book, because one of the best lakes in Minnesota is up for sale....via homes, that is!

1 Million - 2 Million : The most active high-end price range just got more active this month. Whereas June saw 135 active listings, July was ever more so with a whopping 149 homes for sale! Pending sales are currently at 15 because two from June closed in July. However, where previous months saw 10 or more homes closing, July only had these two.

2 Million - 3 Million : This bracket remained steady, currently at 48 active listings. There are now seven homes waiting to close, with one sale reported for July.

3 Million - 5 Million : The upper brackets finally saw more listing activity this month with currently 16 active listings. One new home went pending this month, with the three from last month closing in July.

5 Million + : The uber-bracket of Minneapolis real estate currently has 9 homes for sale, gaining one new listing from last month at a price of $5.75 Million. No homes have been put under contract nor did any sell this past month either. One of the most expensive homes in the Metro area, listed at $14.9 Million was taken off the market.

According to the Minneapolis Area Association of Realtors, the housing supply outlook for homes $1 Million + is about 20.9 Months (up seven months from January and one full month from May) for Previously owned homes. Of the homes above $5 Million, half were listed in 2006, and one has been on the market since 2005.

Being the largest lake around, it makes sense that Lake Minnetonka would be home to a couple of yacht clubs. During the summer months, especially on the weekends, you can enjoy some of the sailboat regattas on Wayzata Bay. I have always loved sailboats and I can remember my first ride on a very windy day. It seemed the captain of the boat was trying to get me in the water as a joke, but thankfully I did not fall overboard.

If you like to sail, Minntonka offers three options:

• Minnetonka Yacht Club - 19800 Minnetonka Blvd., Deephaven, MN 55331 Call (952) 473-9935
• Upper Minnetonka Yacht Club
  4165 Shoreline Drive, Spring Park, MN 55384Call (952) 471-8783
• Wayzata Yacht Club
  1100 East County Rd 16, Wayzata, MN 55391 Call (952) 473-0352

When locals think of ultimate luxury homes, they immediately point to Lake Minnetonka, just 20 minutes west of downtown Minneapolis.

As one of the largest lakes in the state, it is steeped in history. The Dakota Indians called the lake home and gave it the current name, meaning "Big Waters". It was a great secret until discovered in 1822 by frontier men. There are a couple historical sites available online to learn more about the unique history of the area:

• The Excelsior-Lake Minnetonka Historical Society
  
• The Minntonka Historical Society
  
• The Wayzata Historical Society