The Biggest Mistake Minneapolis Sellers Are Making Right Now: Pricing

Before a buyer steps through your door, they’ve already pulled the comps. They know your price range, and they know what your neighbor got. If the numbers don’t line up, they never start negotiating. The biggest mistake I see Minneapolis sellers make is believing a seller’s market means buyers will overlook price. After more than 3,700 sales, here’s why the opposite is true.

Figures are as cited in my video above (July 2026).

“It’s a seller’s market”

Sellers still have the edge. The Twin Cities sits around 2.5 months of supply, while a balanced market is closer to 5 or 6 months. But inventory is up from a year ago, and buyers have more choices. Buyers are sharp: they have the same tools we do, they use them before they ever book a showing, and they run their monthly payment at around 6.5% interest first.

So, on the same street, in the same market, well-priced homes are winning and overpriced homes are sitting. More in warning signs for Minneapolis sellers and homes selling vs. sitting.

The first week is everything

Many sellers picture pricing like a negotiation: list high, come down a little and meet in the middle. That’s not how the first week works.

Your listing has the most power in its first seven days. Zillow, Redfin and Realtor.com push new listings to the top and send alert emails to every buyer with a matching saved search, including the price range. Price inside that range and you land in hundreds of inboxes on day one. Price above it and those buyers never get the email.

Buyers in this market are committed. They typically search for weeks and tour several homes, so they recognize the right price instantly and move. Well-priced homes often go in the first week or two. After 3 to 4 weeks with no offers, every buyer can see the days on market, and the question in their head shifts from “Should I offer?” to “What am I missing?” A price cut doesn’t reset the clock or bring back buyers who already moved on.

What sitting costs you

Every extra month means another mortgage payment, tax bill, insurance payment and month of utilities. In the video, I noted Minnesota property taxes up about 7% this year and homeowners insurance up close to 40% since 2018.

The pattern I see again and again: homes that sat past 50 days almost always had price drops of $30,000, $40,000, sometimes $75,000. Sellers paid months of carrying costs, their position softened, and inspection negotiations got tougher because buyers could tell they were motivated. The net came in lower than if they’d priced right on day one.

Timing matters too. The Twin Cities spring window runs roughly late February through May. Price wrong in March, chase the market for 90 days, and you can slide right past it. See selling in fall vs. spring.

What the right price does

Picture it: your home goes live Monday. By Wednesday, you’ve had eight showings. By Sunday, you have multiple offers. The right price triggers alerts, lands near the top of the portals, and gets saved, shared and scheduled fast. Buyers know others see it too, so they move, and competition pushes the price up.

A lower list price doesn’t mean a lower sale price. Pricing in the heart of recent comps, or a touch below, creates the competition, and the final number often lands at or above asking.

A real example: last year, a client insisted on listing at the Zestimate, probably about $100,000 too high. Comparable homes were averaging about 10 days on market, and that house went past it twice before it sold. I’m confident they would have netted more if they’d priced it right from the start.

How to price it right

Most sellers walk in with a number already in their head: a neighbor’s sale, a Zillow estimate or what the market felt like a couple of years ago. None of those tell you what a buyer will pay today.

• An online estimate has never walked through your home. It doesn’t know about your updated kitchen, new roof or how your lot compares. It can start the conversation, never set the price.
• Old sales reflect old conditions. Price from recent comps.
• What earns the top of the comp range: kitchen or bath updates in the last 5 to 7 years, updated mechanicals with no big repairs waiting, and strong presentation: professional photos, cleaning, staging and curb appeal.
• Nothing justifies pricing above the comps. And watch round numbers: a home priced just above a common search cap (like $500,000) can miss every buyer whose search stops there.

Price for where the market is, not where you wish it were. Correctly priced homes are still getting multiple offers and closing at or above asking.

Thinking about selling? Get a free home value estimate, estimate your net proceeds, or book a strategy call and we’ll pull your comps. Also see who’s moving to Minneapolis.