Bad weather puts a chill on the housing market

Pending home sales in the Twin Cities were sluggish for at least half the month of February, according to preliminary reports from the Minneapolis Area Association of Realtors.

And with fewer foreclosures and short sales coming onto the market, the inventory of homes for sale remained low.

Bad weather has put a chill on the housing market. A local trade group said Twin Cities builders pulled 14 percent fewer permits for single family homes last month than they had in February 2013.

Meanwhile, the rental side of the housing world has stayed hot. Permit activity for multi-family constructions like apartment buildings surged last month.

And reports from Marquette Advisors showed that the apartment vacancy rate in February stayed extremely tight at 2.5 percent. As a result, rents have been climbing.