January’s chilly weather put a bit of a freeze on the Twin Cities housing market, as the number of pending and closed sales dropped with the temperature.

But while the volume of sales was lower, sellers still were able to command higher prices. Median prices were up 12.4 percent compared with January 2013, with the median in the 13-county area now at $179,900.

The Twin Cities real estate market typically slows down in December and January, as prospective house hunters are hunkered down and enjoying the holidays. That trend was apparent this year, as pending sales were down 16 percent in January and closed sales were down 12.8 percent. The sales data was included in a report released Wednesday by the Minneapolis and St. Paul Associations of Realtors.

The uptick in median housing prices in January included a 14.4 percent bump in Ramsey County, from $138,000 a year ago to $157,900 last month. In Hennepin County, the median rose to $189,000 from $167,500.

New residential home construction did pick up last year in the Twin Cities, and is expected to carry over into 2014. More than 10,000 residential units were permitted for construction in 2013, the first time that level’s been reached since 2006, according to the Builders Association of the Twin Cities. About half of the permits were issued for multi-family dwellings, such as townhouses.

In December, Minneapolis led the way among area cities with 371 units permitted for construction. Edina was second with 253, followed by Maple Grove with 38 and Woodbury with 31.

http://www.twincities.com/business/ci_25123028/january-metro-home-sales-down-but-prices-are