As spring slowly approaches, Fargo-Moorhead area home builders will be watching the ground closely, waiting for the thaw they need to start excavating new foundations. If last year is any indication of what’s to come in 2014, new home construction may be looking at another banner year.
Massive Growth in New Construction in 2013
Construction of new homes for sale in the region encompassed by the Fargo-Moorhead Area Association of REALTORS® sky-rocketed in 2013 as builders scrambled to find enough subcontractors to fill all of the orders for new homes. On the F-M area’s Multiple Listing Service, which includes most home sales in the region, residential new home sales finished the year up significantly compared to 2012.
Dollar volume of new home sales on the MLS rose by an incredible 35% for sales of $132,321,941 worth of homes. The number of single-family homes, twinhomes, condominiums and townhomes built in 2013 rose by nearly 21%, ending the year with 513 sales of new houses. As the difference in those figures indicates, homes sold also sold at higher prices than in the year before. Part of that was due to low interest rates helping buyers reach up to higher price levels, while part of it was also because of the rising prices for new homes in such a strong market.
It Was Hard to Build Homes Fast Enough
Sales moved so fast, home buyers often had difficulty finding a finished model to view as they worked with their REALTORS® and builders to choose their home design and options to include. Often, buyers could only view blueprints, photos, and incomplete homes as they planned their own new home’s construction.
Builders already have some orders for new homes to be built when the frost comes out of the ground this spring. When that happens, the dirt will be dug again, the concrete will be poured, the hammers will fly, and cities such as Fargo, West Fargo, Moorhead, and Dilworth will continue their solid growth.