Minneapolis Foreclosures Continue to Play a Big Role in Local Real Estate Scene

While foreclosure filings rose during the third quarter, they are still down over 10% from the same period last year.   Roughly one out of every 154 homes received a foreclosure notice in the third quarter.  While the foreclosure rate in the Minneapolis metro area is still relatively low compared with the rest of the country, many economists and local real estate professionals agree that it will remain a big part of the Minnesota real estate scene.

The Minnesota MLS still has a fairly substantial inventory with roughly 20,000 mls listings.  While foreclosures and short sales prices dipped in September, down 3.3% t0 $114,900 and down 4.7% to $143,000 respectively,  standard home prices actually rose 7.6% to $215,250.  From my point of view there are some amazing values for home buyers in the Twin Cities these days.

The top 10 cities for foreclosures currently reside in four states, California, Florida, Nevada and Arizona.  At least Minneapolis didn’t make that list and currently ranks 76th in foreclosure rate for the third quarter. As everyone in the real estate industry already knows, we’ve got quite a ways to go before the foreclosure challenge is in our rear view mirror.  Still, as I keep saying, this is a pretty good time to be a qualified buyer.

 

 

Three Biggest Challenges Facing Real Estate Today

It’s probably no surprise to anyone that the real estate industry is still down.  If the industry hit the crest of one of the biggest real estate bubbles in history around 2006-2007, it’s safe to say that real estate probably hasn’t even hit the bottom of the trough yet.  What’s even more hard to believe than how long the real estate industry has been in a slide is the fact that the market is still down in spite of the lowest mortgage interest rates in recorded history.  There are many reasons that home owners and home buyers are giving for the current market conditions and a recent Realtor survey shares their thoughts on the biggest challenges facing real estate today.

In Realtor Magazines September poll, the following three reasons were listed as being the biggest challenge to the real estate market;

1. Unemployment (54% of agents surveyed) – This is not only because of the obvious reason,  unemployed can’t afford to buy a home, but also because  so many people with jobs are living in fear of losing their job.  I recently heard this from a couple who could more than qualify for a nice home with a super low mortgage rate.  When I asked them what’s holding them back, they said they wanted to wait until the job market started to rebound.

2. Lack of capital (25% of agents surveyed) This be interpreted one of two ways; either there isn’t enough money/capital flowing into the mortgage markets, or people don’t have enough money for a down payment or if they have enough for a down payment, that’s about all they have.  Hard to get a mortgage these days with no reserves.

3. Distressed Properties (19% of agents surveyed) The problem with all the foreclosures is they bring down the value of every other home in the neighborhood.  The way appraisals work (or at least the way they used to work)  is they have to find three comparable properties within a reasonable distance from the subject property that have sold within the past 6-12 months.  If one of the three homes that meets that requirement went into foreclosure and was purchased at a deep discount from the bank, it will seriously bring down the average value of the three comps and the home you are trying to buy or sell. As a result, many homes are appraising for less than they were purchased for.  This means that thousands of homeowners can’t sell and buy up, or buy down for that matter.

Clearly the first of these three challenges has to change before the other two will.  If people are working and have confidence in the job market then they will start to think about buying homes again.  Also, if more people are working, fewer homes will be slipping into foreclosure.  More jobs are the answer and unfortunately there is not any easy solution to this current problem, just ask our president.

Sorry I don’t have a better answer for you today!

Roost Closes It’s National Home Search Business

Then there was one.  As you may know, at one time there were three companies offering real estate search that used IDX listings; Cyberhomes, Roost and Realtor.com.  Cyberhomes rolled most of it’s home seach assets into RPR last year and now Roost has announced that it is existing the portal based home search business at the end of August and will be focusing their efforts on Social Media Marketing for real estate agents.

It’s a little frightening to think that any one company should have a monopoly in any business and real estate is no exception.  While I don’t know if two of the big three players in this space are existing because of the slow real estate market, it’s clear that the remaining company, Realtor.com, is here to stay.

Real Estate Search Terms That Include “MLS” and “Map” for July

At MLS Maps we have seen a big uptick in the use of “MLS” combined with “map” in searches for real estate.  As we all know, the use of the term MLS is becoming increasing more familiar to home buyers and more and more people shopping for homes have started to use “mls listings” as a way to find a home.  With the continued expansion of maps use through both Bing and Google, more people shopping for real estate are expecting to be able to locate homes on a map.  Below is the most recent list of real estate search terms that include both “mls” and “map”.  There were 283 different search terms in July. These terms are in rank order from most searched to least searched.  See below;

mls map
mls map search
mls maps
mlsmaps.com
mls listings map
search mls by map
mls listing map
mlsmaps
mls by map
map mls
mls map los angeles
mls search by map
mls listings by map
mls map listings
phoenix mls map search
mls area map
map mls listings
las vegas mls map
minneapolis mls map
sacramento mls map
cincinnati mls map search
denver mls map
los angeles mls map
mls mapping
mls search map
mls.com map
search mls listings by map
search mls listings map
amarillo mls map
map based mls search
mls listings on map
mls map listing
mls on map
mlsmap
arizona mls map search
central texas mls map
charlotte mls area map
charlotte mls map
florida mls map search
free mls map search
lubbock mls map
map based mls
map mls numbers
map of mls areas
map search mls
maps mls
mls area map los angeles
mls canada map
mls listing by map
mls listing maps
mls listings canada map
mls listings map search
mls map az
mls map las vegas
mls map minneapolis
mls map mn
mls map search cincinnati
mls map search ft. lauderdale
mls maps las vegas
mls maps palm beach
mls mapsearch
mlsmap,com
montana mls map
pensacola mls map
phoenix mls map
sarasota mls map search
savannah georgia mls map
search mls map
the mls map
view mls listings free on a map
albuquerque mls map search
arizona mls map
arizona mls map of listings
austin mls map
austin tx mls search map
az mls listings map search
az mls map
birmingham mls area map
ca mls search maps
central ohio mls map
chandler mls map
chattanooga mls map
chattanooga mls map search
chicago mls map
chicago mls map search
cincinnati mls “”map search”"
corpus christi mls map search
corpus christi mls maps
daytona beach mls map
dc mls map search
denver real estate mls map search
des moines mls map
el paso mls map
fairbanks mls map
find maps of mls numbers
find mls map number
fl mls map
flagstaff mls map search
florida mls map
florida mls map home
florida mls mapsearch
florida mls search by map
fort lauderdale mls map
free arizona mls map search
free az mls map search
free gps maps for mls
free maps mls
free mls listing map
ga mls map
georgia mls map search
greater las vegas association of realtors mls area map
hattiesburg, ms mls map search
home search mls map
houses in arizona mls map search
how to map mls numbers

http://www.mlsmap.com/

idaho falls map search mls
illinois mls map
indiana mls map
jacksonville mls map
laredo mls map
las vegas mls maps\
little rock mls map
map based mls system
map mls areas
map mls listing
map mls listings wisconsin
map mls properties
map mls search
map of areas in mls miami
map of mls areas los angeles
map of mls listing
map of mls listing 607623
map of mls regions
map out mls listings
map search mls listings
map-based mls searching
mapping several mls
maps for mls
maps mls listing
maps of mls
memphis mls search map
memphis real estate mls map
memphis tn mls map
miami florida mls search by map
miami mls map
milwaukee mls map
mineapolis mls map
minneaplis mls map
minneapolis mls search map
minnesota mls map
minnesota mls map search
mls & map
mls are map
mls area map minneapolis
mls area maps
mls area maps miami
mls az map search
mls canada map listings
mls denver colorado map search
mls finder map
mls free maps 2010
mls grid map
mls homes-maps
mls id map
mls id search 716059 map
mls listing cincinnati searchable map
mls listing map search
mls listing map search 33139
mls listing on map
mls listing with map
mls listings baltimore map
mls listings bozeman map
mls listings map miami
mls listings map ohio
mls listings map view
mls listings maps
mls listings with map
mls listings with maps
mls listings with selectable map
mls listings, map
mls map and los angeles
mls map atlanta
mls map birmingham al.
mls map duluth mn
mls map flordia
mls map florida
mls map for oklahoma
mls map for riverside, ca.
mls map grid areas
mls map homes for sale
mls map listings chicago
mls map lv
mls map miami
mls map nashville
mls map of california
mls map of little rock
mls map of phoenix
mls map seach florida
mls map search dc
mls map search denver
mls map search florida
mls map search miami
mls map search online
mls map search phoenix
mls map search quad cities
mls map search wisconsin
mls map view
mls map washington dc
mls mapping system
mls maps 2010
mls maps 2010 free
mls maps buy
mls maps minneapolis
mls maps new orleans
mls maps ontario
mls maps real estate
mls maps vermont
mls maps, mn
mls mn map search
mls modesto map
mls new york by map search
mls on a map
mls online free map
mls property search by map
mls realtor maps
mls san francisco map
mls seach map
mls search draw map 40071
mls search phoenix map
mls sites map
mls update maps
mls with searchable map
mls zone maps
mls+areas+map twin cities
mls. maps
mls.ca road map
mls.com/maps
mls.maps
mlsmap.ca
mlsoregon listings map
new orleans mls map
new orleans mls search map
new orleans mls+area+map
oakland mls maps
ohio mls maps
omaha mls by map
palo alto mls map
pensacola mls map search
philadelphia mls map
phoenix arizona mls maps
phoenix az mls map search
phoenix mls by map
real estate map search mls miami
realty mls map search
regions in mls maps
reno mls map search
san francisco mls map
search arizona mls map
search louisiana mls listings by map
search mls by map tx
search mls listing using map
search mls listings on map
search mls listings with a map
search mls maps
seattle real mls map
tampa mls map search
texas mls map
texas mls maps
us mls service map search
utah mls by map
utah mls map
washington dc mls map search
where can i get a mls map?
www.mls map
www.mlsmap
www.mlsmaps.ca
search mls”" texas “”map search”"
chicago map mls
find mls map chattanooga
mls map -google
mls map listings new york, ny
mls map numbers
mls map online free
search fl mls using map

Realtors, Can Local Home Buyers Find You?

According to the NAR, National Association of Realtors, the internet continues to be the top source and fastest growing source of real estate agent leads and home buyer traffic.  If you haven’t already discovered this, having a web site is only a small part of the real estate marketing solution, the other parts are;

• Getting your real estate web site to come up on the search engines for local real estate searches
• Having something on your site that home buyer are looking for
• Having a proven system for converting visitors or clicks into real estate leads

That said, here are some hard facts about why every real estate agent and Realtor should really start to pay attention to their online marketing strategy;

• Almost 90% of real estate buyers use the Internet
• 87% of home buyers who used the Internet to find a home purchased through a real estate agent
• The majority of home buyers start their search online and then contact a real estate agent
• 66% of home buyers purchased through the first real estate agent or Realtor they came in contact with

These stats are from the National Association Of Realtors Annual survey of Home buyers and sellers so you know it solid data.

At MLS Maps, we help real estate agents attract local home buyer traffic and turn it into solid real estate leads.  We work with an exclusive group of like-minded Realtors who also share a passion for Internet marketing and have a better than average understanding of the strategies and principles that drive Internet marketing success.

If you are one of these agents and you would like to participate in and obtain the rights to an exclusive real estate marketing territory and a true pay on performance platform, contact Ken Horst @ 612-251-8237 for more information and to see if your city or target market is still available.

RPR On Its Way to Becoming the National MLS?

The RPR or Realtor Property Resources, recently announced that is has entered into licensing agreements to obtain listings data from groups representing more than 210,000 Realtors in 43 U.S. markets.  While still far short of the having all the MLS listings nationwide included in its database, it appears as though they may be gaining speed in their quest to be the national aggregator for MLS Listings, an achievement that they failed to accomplish with the “MLS” brand.

Interestingly the RPR is being touted as an agent only resource providing many of the tools and information that Realtors currently get for free from their local city, county, state and other government web sites.  Realtors currently get all the MLS listing information as part of their local Realtor association membership and many web savvy agents leverage that information by providing consumers with access to the local MLS information on their web site to attract home buyers.  If the RPR eventually aggregates most of the MLS listing data nationwide and then decides to create a public facing portal, this could become competition for the local Realtors all over the US who are using their local MLS listings as a way to bring relevant data to their local web site visitors.

For those agents who are still challenged by how to market their business online, about 90% of Realtors, this won’t be a problem as they are not getting business from the Internet anyway,  but for the super star Internet marketer agents in every market, this could eventually take a lot of wind out of their internet marketing sails as a national player with a potentially large budget starts to build its brand and muscle in on the local property search traffic.

Stay Tuned!

Top 100 MLS Search Terms on Google

We are frequently doing keyword research to help us understand how people are searching for real estate and homes for sale.  As you can imagine, at MLS Maps we are very interested in how people are using the term “MLS” in their real estate searches.  Over the years we have seen a growing number of searches that include the term “MLS”.  We think this is because consumers are getting smarter about how to find the biggest and most accurate list of homes for sale in their area.  More and more consumers know that the MLS is a tool used by real estate agents and figure if it’s good enough for a Realtor, it’s good enough for a home buyer on the internet.  Below is a current list of the top 100 search terms on Google that included the term MLS and approximately how many times it gets searched each month;

mls listings	44000
austin mls	2800
florida mls	2800
nj mls	2800
tucson mls	2800
flat fee mls	2300
san diego mls	2300
utah mls	1800
mls realty	1800
minnesota mls	1800
seattle mls	1500
cincinnati mls	1500
search by mls number	1500
charleston mls	1500
sacramento mls	1500
mls mn	1200
search mls	1200
arizona mls	1200
bakersfield mls	1200
desert area mls	1200
denver mls	1200
dallas mls	1200
birmingham mls	1000
sarasota mls	1000
maine mls	1000
mls lookup	1000
new jersey mls	1000
las vegas mls	1000
houston mls	1000
minneapolis mls	1000
mls los angeles	1000
mls number	1000
mls homes	1000
phoenix mls	820
hawaii mls	820
wisconsin mls	820
michigan mls	820
hilton head mls	820
albuquerque mls	820
charlotte mls	660
california mls	660
chicago mls	660
anchorage mls	660
nashville mls	660
tampa mls	660
fort myers mls	660
brevard county mls	540
boise mls	540
flat fee mls florida	540
desert mls	540
san antonio mls	540
northwest mls	540
brooklyn mls	540
virginia mls	540
portland mls	540
mls finder	540
flat fee mls listing	540
commercial mls	540
mls online mn	540
mls home search	540
oregon mls	540
maui mls	540
cincy mls	440
orange county mls	440
alabama mls	440
northern kentucky mls	440
ny mls	440
flat fee mls miami	440
myrtle beach mls	440
mls rentals	440
florida mls search	440
miami mls	440
north carolina mls	440
search mls listings	440
maryland mls	440
key west mls	440
spokane mls	440
baldwin county mls	350
tulsa mls	350
palm springs mls	350
colorado springs mls	350
indiana mls	350
oklahoma mls	350
westchester mls	350
wasatch front mls	350
mls exchange	350
mls property search	350
austin mls search	350
idaho mls	350
fl mls	350
southwest mls	350
santa barbara mls	350
mls property finder	350
mls all star game	350
monmouth county mls	350
nky mls	350
louisville mls	350
naples mls	350
mobile mls	350
san jose mls	350

MLS Maps Welcomes the Preferred Home Team in Minneapolis, Minnesota

At MLS Maps, we are always looking for better real estate search solutions for our visitors. We do this by scouring the web looking for the best map based MLS search tools so home buyers can easily find homes where they want to live.  As a result of connecting home buyers with local real estate agent search sites, MLS Maps is able to provide consumers with access to millions of real estate listings all over the US.  Even more than Realtor.com! Who knew?

Yesterday we connected home buyers in the Twin Cities to a local real estate company called Preferred Home Team.  We made this decision after carefully studying their map based mls search site and determining that it was easy to use and gives our visitors access to over 56,000 Minneapolis MLS listings.

If you’re looking for a home in the Minneapolis – St. Paul metro area, be sure to check out Preferred Home Team  and MLS Maps!

MLS Maps Recommends Joining ActiveRain

I have been a member of ActiveRain since 2006 when they had fewer than 20,000 members. Now with over 180,000 real estate industry members ActiveRain is a great community to belong to. Check it out!

Top MLS Map Based Search Terms on Bing

Thanks to Microsoft’s  $100,000,000 ad budget promoting Bing,  and it’s starting to look like we may want to pay attention this search engine.  While there are obviously fewer searches on Bing compared with Google, I wouldn’t completely rule Bing out of my internet marketing mix.

Here is a list of searches on Microsoft’s Bing search engine that include the words “MLS” and “maps”. As we have seen, the occurence of MLS & Map in the same search phrase is on the rise. Each keyword phrase is linked to the corresponding Bing search engine results page (serp).  This list below is in order of most searched term to least search term or keyword

mls map
mls map search
mls maps
mls area map
mlsmaps
mls listings map
mls search by map
austin mls service map
austin texas mls map
dallas mls map search
dayton oh mls mapping
flagstaff mls by map
florida mls map
florida mls map search
gmls maps
map mls listings in spokane wa
map of mls
map of mls listings
mls by map
mls list map seattle
mls listing by map
mls listing map for ok
mls listings by map
mls map boise
mls map houston
mls map listing
mls map search cleveland ohio
mls maps gulfport ms
mls real estate by map
mls, indianapolis, in, map
mlsmap
mlsmaps.com
oregon mls listing map
real estate mls search map
richmond mls map
san antonio mls search map-based
san francisco mls map
search mls on map
view mls area map
flagstaff mls map
texas mls map search

These keyword search phrases are from traffic on MLSMaps.com during February