Circle Pines is a small city, approximately 2 square miles, in Anoka County. The neighboring community, Lexington is even smaller encompassing less than one square mile of land. Both little communities are often overlooked since they are sandwiched between Blaine, Lino Lakes just to the north of Shoreview.
Circle Pines might be small but is thriving and has a unique history. According to Circle Pines and Lexington History, it was one of the first cooperative communities started in 1946 in an area between the townships of Blaine and Centerville in Southern Anoka County. According to the Circle Pines website, the symbol of the cooperative was a pine tree with a circle around it; thus the name Circle Pines. Though the unique development idea only lasted 3 years due to financial and leadership problems, the name remained. One benefit of its cooperative past is that Circle Pines is the only suburban city that operates its own natural-gas distribution company which serves part of Lino Lakes. The community is a part of the Centennial School District is home to Golden Lake and acres of wetlands.
Real estate in the communities of Circle Pines and Lexington is affordable and selling-though admittedly at a slower pace than most sellers would like. First half of 2008 numbers show area homes are staying on the market an average of 160 days. When broken down to single family homes versus townhomes/ condos, the single family homes have a 158 average CDOM while townhomes/condos are selling a bit more slowly with a 181 CDOM. Prices reductions on townhomes are drastic in this area due to the abundance of new construction in the neighboring community of Blaine. Amazing deals can be had for the astute first time condo home buyer.
The cumulative days on market numbers for Circle Pines are comparable favorably with other areas of the north metro like Blaine, Forest Lake, Lino Lakes and Ham Lake where homes had 1st quarter cumulative days-on-market rates (CDOM) ranging from 150 to over 200 days. (Links to statistical reports for these communities are listed below.)
Inventory levels of single family homes under $200,000 in Circle Pines are reasonable as most homes fit into that under $300K price catagory. Lower days on the market can be partially attributed to fewer high priced homes and the central location to the downtown areas. New construction townhomes in Lexington that have been on the market since 2005 also skew the DOM results.
2008 Mid Year Sales Statistics for Circle Pines residential real estate statistics for single family homes:
Under $200,000~ 15 Active Listings, 6 Pending Listings, 11 Sold Listings, CDOM 151
$200,000-$300,000 ~ 15 Active Listings, 4 Pending Listings, 5 Sold Listings, CDOM 140
$300,000-$400,000 ~ 0 Active Listings, 0 Pending Listings, 2 Sold Listings, CDOM 265
$400,000-$500,000~ 4 Active Listings, 0 Pending Listings, 0 Sold Listings
$500,000 and Up ~ 1 Active Listings, 0 Pending Listings, 0 Sold Listings
2008 Mid Year Sales Statistics for Circle Pines residential real estate statistics for townhomes and condos:
Under $200,000~ 24 Active Listings, 0 Pending Listings, 13 Sold Listings, CDOM 181
$200,000-$300,000 ~ 11 Active Listings, 0 Pending Listings, 0 Sold Listings
**All Statistical information based on information from the REGIONAL MULTIPLE LISTING SERVICE of MINNESOTA, INC. for the period of 1/1/08 through 6/30/08.
For additional information on any current Circle Pines real estate listing or for additional information on buying a home in Circle Pines contact Teri Eckholm directly at 651-336-7073.
If you are buying, selling or relocating to Minnesota and need help from a professional Realtor, give me a call or visit my website for a FREE Relocation Packet. I specialize in acreage and lakeshore properties in the north and east Twin Cities metro area including Ham Lake, Lino Lakes and all communities in the Forest Lake School District! Serving Anoka, Chisago, Ramsey and Washington Counties in Minnesota.
If you are buying, selling or relocating to Minnesota and need help from a professional REALTOR®, give me a call or visit my website for a FREE Relocation Packet, Homebuyers Success Packet or sign up for Listingbook Twin Cities Home Search. I specialize in acreage and lakeshore properties in the north and east Twin Cities metro area including Ham Lake, Lino Lakes and all communities in the Forest Lake School District! Serving Anoka, Chisago, Ramsey and Washington Counties in Minnesota.
Teri, I think it's great information that they are selling, even if not as quickly as a seller would like. I'm just surprised for some reason that the condos are selling slightly slower then single family homes, I would think it would be the other way around.....Great post!
Wow, those are small places, 1 and 2 square miles. I thought my city was small at 6 square miles! It looks like your days on the market in both places are fairly similar to ours here in SoCal.
Gary--With the prices dropping, many homes are very affordable compared to just a few years ago. This featured home sold brand new for over $268K in 2004. The sellers are offering at over $40K less and have enhanced the home dramatically. Incredible savings on homes are all over in the Twin Cities north metro!
Carole--Interesting view from a NY girl! :) In MN many people love taking care of their yards and having a larger space to play in for their family and prefer to have options without HOA rules. However as the population ages and commuting time becomes longer, there are increasingly more people wanting to leave the exterior maintenance issues be someone else's worry with the townhouse/condo option.
Basically, townhome construction exploded over the past decade and there are many more than buyers right now...some are still being constructed. Great deals for the buyers!
Lynda--Circle Pines and Lexington are usually lumped in with the larger communities of Lino Lakes and Blaine. They should not be overlooked by buyers because they are special communities in their own right!
Ray--It takes time to look at all of the communities in MN that I serve without getting into the subdivision stats! It would be a lot of work...But if anyone was interested in a very specific area, all they would have to do is call me and I would run the numbers! :)
Theresa "Teri" Eckholm/REMAX Specialists assists Minnesotans to find their way home with helpful tips and quality service. Dedication to customer service has made Teri the REALTOR® of choice for families in Blaine, Forest Lake, Ham Lake, Lino Lakes and Wyoming areas. Licensed in MN.
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Teri, What a fantastic report and Localism post.