Fluctuation may occur in other areas of the country, but according to the experts, real estate in Blue Earth and the rest of Faribault County stays pretty level from year to year.

If you are wondering what your home is worth, or if you are looking to buy or rent property, the real estate market in Faribault County is just as stable as ever according to those in the know.

As Ken Skaare of Olson Nelson Realty Incorporated (O/NE Realty) explains, there was speculation the Blue Earth rental market would see a decline following the closing of Walmart.

The fear was centered around Walmart employees who lost their jobs may move out of town and rent elsewhere. As it turned out, the potential crisis of losing a large amount of renters never came to pass.

“If you’re looking at a heart rate monitor, I always say Blue Earth and maybe Faribault County in general is kind of flat lined,” Skaare says. “That’s not a bad thing, that’s a good thing because we are just steady all the time.”

Interestingly enough, Wade Barslou of Wade Barslou Realty shares a similar opinion on the overall health of local real estate. A real estate veteran of 15 years, Barslou spoke of the real estate stability for buyers, sellers, and renters alike within Faribault County.

“We don’t have that huge rise, but we don’t have the fall,” Barslou explains. “If you buy a home here, it’s a pretty sound investment. You won’t have to worry about the market dropping out.”

This isn’t the first time the county’s real estate market held steady during a sizeable shake up. From 1998-2006, home cost appreciation in Minnesota rose 40-60 percent. With so many homes being purchased across the United States during this period, the “housing bubble” did not find its way into Faribault County.

Later in the decade when the U.S. housing market went in reverse and suffered a major collapse, real estate business in the county once again was still standing firm.

“There were major mortgage issues at that time,” says Kara Drake of O/NE Realty. “The real estate bubble kind of crashed, so we did see lessening of the market at that time, but it was nothing as devastating as what happened to other parts of Minnesota.”

When major market fluctuation occurs in the real estate business, what makes Faribault County such a stable and reliable market in the first place?

As it pertains to Blue Earth in particular, Drake feels the rural atmosphere is what attracts potential home buyers to the area. The steady flow of business transactions benefits those looking to sell or rent.

“I’m amazed that people who drive through Blue Earth may be intrigued by the name,” Drake says. “They’ll stop and want to see what we have available for real estate here. Driving by, the town is really quaint and sweet.”

“We also see people moving out of the metro area and are looking for something more affordable,” she added.