The buzz around the local real estate circles is the news of the former Pillsbury Estate on Lake Minnetonka on Smith Bay is up for auction. Yes the $53.5 million pad located at 1400 Brackets Point Road, the one that was listed for a little over two years… with no price reduction.

What you get for the price:

• 32,000+ square foot main house (7 structures on property in all)
• 13 acres
• 1700 square feet of prime lake front real estate

Let me guess, the minimum bid will be no lower than $53.5m?

Interesting to see what the winning bid will be. I just can’t see someone paying that much for a house in Minnesota. May be if it was on the beach on one of the coasts, but not in this area. Lake Minnetonka is nice but not that nice.

It’s actually a sealed bid auction so you have until December 9th 2009 at 3pm to lick that envelope and get it into Sheldon Good and Company who has the listing.

And if you want to make an offer… don’t forget about yours truly

[H/T BringMeTheNews]

Rough month again with only 12 sales breaking the $1 million dollar mark

1. 3209 Galleria #1804, Edina, MN 55435 List Price $2,425,058 Sold Price $2,425,058
2. 222 2nd Street SE #1201, Minneapolis, MN 55414 List Price $2,079,000 Sold Price $2,424,570
3. 700 2nd Street S #W30, Minneapolis, MN 55401 List Price $2,449,000 Sold Price $2,275,000
4. 222 2nd Street SE #1006, Minneapolis, MN 55414 List Price $1,324,990 Sold Price $1,424,343
5. 731 Hidden Lane , Excelsior, MN 55331 List Price $1,695,000 Sold Price $1,350,000
6. 3209 Galleria #1308, Edina, MN 55435 List Price $1,336,048 Sold Price $1,337,704
7. 743 Goodrich Avenue , St Paul, MN 55105 List Price $1,275,000  Sold Price $1,306,000
8. 4254 Queen Avenue S , Minneapolis, MN 55410 List Price $1,395,000 Sold Price $1,300,000
9. 3066 Island View Drive , Mound, MN 55364 List Price $1,495,000  Sold Price $1,215,000
10. 1684 Tonkawa Road , Orono, MN 55356 List Price $1,500,000 Sold Price $1,125,000

Upper bracked condos seemed to top the list this month with The Westin Galleria Residences, Phoenix on the River and Washburn Lofts all popping a few near the top.

If you think January was bad for Twin Cities luxury home sales, February was worse.

1. 1500 Bohns Point Road , Orono, MN 55391 List Price $5,490,000 Sold Price $3,175,000
   
2. 5070 Highview Place , Greenwood, MN 55331 List Price $1,980,000 Sold Price $1,800,000
3. 222 2nd Street SE #901, Minneapolis, MN 55414 List Price $1,299,000 Sold Price $1,600,969
4. 5 Island Road , North Oaks, MN 55127 List Price $1,890,000 Sold Price $1,515,000
5. 793 Ferndale Road N , Orono, MN 55391 List Price $1,875,000 Sold Price $1,500,000
6. 1617 Franklin Avenue W , Minneapolis, MN 55405 List Price $1,550,000 Sold Price $1,427,000
7. 101 Main Street NE #5, Minneapolis, MN 55413 List Price $1,590,000 Sold Price $1,250,000
8. 4713 Townes Road , Edina, MN 55424 List Price $1,295,000 Sold Price $1,225,000
9. 11912 Tapestry Lane , Minnetonka, MN 55305 List Price $2,695,000 Sold Price $1,200,000
10. 14702 Williston Glen , Minnetonka, MN 55345 List Price $1,850,000 Sold Price $1,200,000
    

Slow month on the luxury front of higher end home sales. So much so a home that was on the market for 1400 days finally sold. A new construction builder also took some hits by dropping the original price tag over $2 million, ouch! A lot of other big price drops as well.

Most home buyers are under the impression that a lot bank owned homes that are on the market need a lot of work when purchased. I have been showing homes in the western suburbs, primarily higher end neighborhoods in Minnetonka, Minneapolis and Eden Prairie where that isn’t the case. A lot of these homes are newer, by that I mean only a few years old and are in great shape. Definitely not in shambles and needs a lot of ’sweat equity’.

Some of these banks that have a lot of upper bracket homes on the market are not wanting to hold on to these properties for very long. REO properties are almost being liquidated with price reductions of $500,000 and greater in some cases.

Even the New Construction

I have definitely noticed a lot of upper bracket homes that were once Parade of Homes models that have taken a hit. One for instance, visited one last week that was on the market during the 2006 Parade that was listed for $1.6 million is now on the market for $899,000.

I also viewed a home that was built and paid for back in 2007 for $3.1 million and is now on the market that is REO on Lake Minnetonka that is listed for $1.9 million. There is currently an uptick in foreclosures  located around Lake Minnetonka, Wayzata, Victoria, Deephaven and Shorewood that are bank owned homes.

Some builders appear to be walking away from  spec homes. Just giving up all together with homes.

Might be good time to jump in for some that have been waiting on opportunities such as Bear Bath in Eden Praire, views of Lake Minnetonka or any other high end neighborhood that may have seemed out of reach years ago. Foreclosures and bank owned homes have now spread to these areas as well.

Here’s an interesting website that I stumbled across called Sport Star Relocation. The site is largely catered to professional athletes that are looking to sell and find buyers for their homes. Although the athletes names are not disclosed, it does say which team they belong to.

The site also lets high end luxury buyers view potential leases for off season or in season, instead of owning.

The search is very easy. Just click on an area of the country to bring up homes that sports stars have listed and it will bring you to a page with homes that are for sale.

Looking at the map, I found no homes for sale from pro athletes in Minneapolis or St. Paul, no one has listed a home yet (at the time of this post). Although I haven’t heard about any trade rumors yet either.

A nice niche to be in, having professional athletes as clients

Here the most expenisve homes sold in the Twin Cities this past January

1. 920 Shady Lane E , Wayzata, MN 55391 List Price $10,250,000 Sold Price $8,850,000
2. 2625 North Shore Drive , Orono, MN 55391 List Price $3,995,000 Sold Price $3,300,000
3. 5200-14 France Avenue S , Edina, MN 55410 List Price $1,650,000 Sold Price $2,149,240
4. 3411 Shore Drive , Chanhassen, MN 55331 List Price $2,195,000 Sold Price $2,000,000
5. 6504 Stauder Circle , Edina, MN 55436 List Price $2,295,000 Sold Price $1,900,000
6. 7140 Hazeltine Boulevard , Chanhassen, MN 55331 List Price $1,890,000 Sold Price $1,450,000
7. 4845 Minneapolis Avenue , Minnetrista, MN 55364 List Price $1,895,000 Sold Price $1,450,000
8. 1700 Dupont Avenue S , Minneapolis, MN 55403 List Price $1,800,000 Sold Price $1,379,000
9. 10048 Adam Avenue , Inver Grove Heights, MN 55077 List Price $1,790,000 Sold Price $1,350,000
10. 20001 Manor Road , Shorewood, MN 55331 List Price $1,549,000 Sold Price $1,287,500
    

Dang, slow month for luxury real estate in the Twin Cities. Had to adjust the search criteria to pull the numbers because I originally came up with 9 homes that sold over the $1,500,000 price point. The upper bracket luxury homes are taken quite a loss from original list price from what buyers are willing to pay. The number one for the month did pop at over $8 mil.

Not to much going on in the Twin Cities luxury segment of the market. A dip down to 18 homes sold over one million dollars from the previous month of 24. Home sales in the upper bracket have seen a steady decline since October, but seasonally that is ok being the time of year.

Twin Cities Luxury Real Estate

1. 3209 Galleria #1802, Edina, MN 55435 Listing Price $1,806,900 Sold Price $2,488,888
2. 3209 Galleria #1702, Edina, MN 55435 Listing Price $1,775,000 Sold Price $2,108,271
3. 10708 Sonoma Ridge , Eden Prairie, MN 55347 Listing Price $1,479,000 Sold Price $1,479,000
4. 3209 Galleria #1608, Edina, MN 55435 Listing Price $1,273,670 Sold Price $1,395,128
5. 6980 Everest Lane N , Maple Grove, MN 55311 Listing Price $1,390,000 Sold Price $1,390,000
6. 5650 57th Street Circle N , Lake Elmo, MN 55042 Listing Price $1,299,000 Sold Price $1,280,000
7. 10 Maclynn Road , Greenwood, MN 55331 Listing Price $1,895,000 Sold Price $1,250,000
8. 5853 Linden Avenue N , Lake Elmo, MN 55042 Listing Price $1,168,000 Sold Price $1,234,000
9. 2504 Euclid Place , Minneapolis, MN 55405 Listing Price $1,375,000 Sold Price $1,200,000
10. 5405 Mirror Lakes Drive , Edina, MN 55436 Listing Price $1,399,000 Sold Price $1,150,000
    

Looks like a little bit of everything sold this past month in December, nothing to spectacular however the Galleria Condos in Edina seem to be firing on each cylinder having more than a few sales pop into the most expensive list each month. Also, some properties in Lake Elmo had a couple go over a million dollars.

Unfortunately not too much traditional resale homes happening right now. Most on the list are builders throwing homes they sold on the market.

Here is a list of the ten most expensive homes sold in November for Twin Cities luxury real estate. There were 8 less homes sold in the upper bracket sector of the market this month compared to last. Twenty four homes sold in the month of November.

Twin Cities Luxury Real Estate

1. 630 Indian Mound E #1B, Wayzata, MN 55391 List Price $3,200,000 Sold Price $3,050,000
   
2. 2182 Homestead Trail , Medina, MN 55356 List Price $2,950,000 Sold Price $2,800,000
   
3. 4345 Trillium Lane W , Minnetrista, MN 55364 List Price $3,200,000 Sold Price $2,600,000
   
4. 4912 Rolling Green Parkway , Edina, MN 55436 List Price $2,795,000 Sold Price $2,600,000
5. 2700 Stone Arch Road , Woodland, MN 55391 List Price $3,100,000 Sold Price $2,513,000
   
6. 3209 Galleria #1602, Edina, MN 55435 List Price $1,829,900 Sold Price $2,093,972
7. 1435 Park Drive , Orono, MN 55364 List Price $3,300,000 Sold Price $2,000,000
   
8. 719 Minnetonka Highlands Lane , Orono, MN 55356 List Price $2,099,000 Sold Price $1,850,000
9. 3209 Galleria #1708, Edina, MN 55435 List Price $1,361,955 Sold Price $1,747,455
10. 17875 Breezy Point Road , Woodland, MN 55391 List Price $1,995,000 Sold Price $1,650,000

The first time since I have been putting this list together, the most expensive home sold was a condo and there was an equestrian horse farm that made the top ten. The Edina Westin Galleria Hotel & Residences Luxury Condominiums had a total a five homes sold over a million dollars.

Thirty Two homes sold in the Twin Cities area over 1 million dollars in October, here are the ten most exensive.

1. 30 Gideons Point Road , Tonka Bay, MN 55331List Price $3,590,000 Sold Price $3,500,000
2. 4017 N Shore Drive , Orono, MN 55364 List Price $3,595,000 Sold Price $2,825,000
3. 3300 Graham Hill Road , Orono, MN 55356 List Price $2,795,000 Sold Price $2,750,000
4. 4508 Wooddale Avenue , Edina, MN 55424 List Price $2,650,000 Sold Price $2,250,000
5. 4850 Lake Harriet Parkway W , Minneapolis, MN 55410 List Price $2,495,000 Sold Price $2,200,000
6. 265 W Point Road , Tonka Bay, MN 55331 List Price $2,590,000 Sold Price $2,000,000
7. 21075 Radisson Road , Excelsior, MN 55331 List Price $2,000,000 Sold Price $1,882,500
8. 4870 Lake Harriet Parkway W , Minneapolis, MN 55410 List Price $1,999,000 Sold Price $1,800,000
9. 8964 English Turn , Eden Prairie, MN 55347 List Price $1,960,000 Sold Price $1,800,000
10. 5241 Halifax Avenue S , Edina, MN 55424 List Price $1,745,000 Sold Price $1,710,000
    

Here is the list of most expensive homes sold in September

1. 715 Widsten Circle, Wayzata, MN 55391 List Price $2,900,000 Sold Price $2,900,00

2. 2774 W Lake Of The Isles Parkway , Minneapolis, MN 55416 List Price $3,795,000 Sold Price $2,850,000

3. 2227 W 21st Street , Minneapolis, MN 55405 List Price $2,499,900 Sold Price $2,175,000

4. 10665 Sonoma Ridge , Eden Prairie, MN 55347 List Price $2,068,105 Sold Price $2,068,105

5. 5256 Oxford Street , Shoreview, MN 55126 List Price $2,150,000 Sold Price $1,850,000

6. 903 4th Street N , Stillwater, MN 55082 List Price $1,950,000 Sold Price $1,825,000

7. 700 2nd Street S #W31, Minneapolis, MN 55401 List Price $1,900,000 Sold Price $1,800,000

8. 4601 Drexel Avenue , Edina, MN 55424 List Price $2,198,800 Sold Price $1,775,000

9. 5200-02 France Avenue S , Edina, MN 55410 List Price $1,450,000 Sold Price $1,757,376

10. 1225 Jennings Cove Road , Minnetrista, MN 55364 List Price $1,650,000 Sold Price $1,612,500