 Well, people are flocking to Grand Rapids to take advantage of a housing surplus full of good deals. Hedy Clotter shows us how the Grand Rapids housing market for recreation homes is booming. The place to be for families with young children and retirees because of a housing surplus according to a recent survey of remax brokers and agents in Minnesota. Housing surplus really relates to the fact that there are more homes for sale than we'll sell in a given season. With a housing surplus, the buyer has more options when choosing a property with a better price point. Sellers are affected by having to be careful with the price tag they place on a home. There's some really great properties out there, just a variety of places. We have over a thousand lakes in our county alone and that really affords the buyer a lot of choices. There are several reasons why Grand Rapids is considered a popular destination for a vacation home. There's everything from things on acreage with on nice clear lakes, deep lakes, sand beach that doesn't have a lot of elevation and it's still what would be considered an affordable second home or lake home. The average home in the Grand Rapids market is approximately 2,200 square feet and the average price of a waterfront home is about $270,000. The lake season is during March through November and is weather dependent. A quick search on the Itasca County Board of Realtors' multiple listing service database shows hundreds of residential properties on the market. We have properties for sale anywhere from the $100,000 price point and a little bit below that all the way up to upper bracket luxury homes which for our area would be approaching a million dollars. When you are ready to purchase your vacation home here are a few tips. They can really benefit from the market knowledge of a local agent and that will really help them focus in on the right properties that meet their needs and wants and desires and be able to purchase them at an affordable price for them. In comparison, the average price of a recreational property in the Brainer Lakes area ranges from $350,000 to half a million dollars. In Grand Rapids, Hady Clodder, Lakeland News. He also says if you wait until the fall to purchase your recreation home you can save more than 10 percent. If you've enjoyed this segment of Lakeland News, please consider making a tax-deductible contribution to Lakeland Public Television.