To download The Northern Virginia Home Sales Report for October 2015 Click Here.
Click Here to download the historical monthly data
Northern Virginia Buyers Seek Pre-Rate-Hike Bargain; First-Time Homebuyer Market Tracks with Nation as Down from Last Year; Sellers Benefit from Equity Gains
Fairfax – Both nationally and locally, the real estate market’s Achilles heel is the first-time home buyer market. With the low mortgage rates, healthier job prospects and the high cost of today’s rent, this entry level segment should be doing better. Locally, this segment is weaker than at the national level, with starter home inventory and sales tracking much less than last year. Mortgage requirements and down payments fuel this decline. Other market tiers are performing better.
“The Federal Reserve of Richmond reports that our Virginia homeownership rate is 68.5 percent, which was 4.8 percent higher than the nation’s,” said Mary Bayat, 2015 Northern Virginia Association of Realtors® board chair. “Our Northern Virginia market helps bolster those statewide numbers.”
Local Realtors® report a positive mindset for both buyers and sellers. “Confidence is high,” said NVAR Board member Veronica Seva-Gonzalez of Compass. Buyers, in particular, are pleased that the number of competing offers has decreased compared with earlier in the year, she noted. “Although many buyers take a break over the holidays, I believe there is great opportunity now for both buyers and sellers. There is less competition, and I see many motivated buyers.”
Buyers and sellers are aware of news reports that the interest rates may go up at the end of the year, said Seva-Gonzalez, and some are trying to take an advantage before it is too late.
“While the shadow cast from the financial crisis is not totally gone, there is a lot of improvement at the broad range of our local real estate market,” Bayat said. “More people are working, gas prices remained low, and the Northern Virginia region has seen improving equity in homes.
“October overall was a month of year-over-year gains, both locally and nationally,” Bayat added. NVAR home sales have increased by 4 percent to 1,524 homes compared to last year’s 1,466. The average sold price rose to $543,465, which is 1.4 percent above last October’s average of $535,845, she noted.
“A stable and slightly improving real estate market should continue in the fourth quarter of 2015, she concluded. Overall, this has been another healthy year for the Northern Virginia housing market. Prices and consumer confidence are up, she observed.”
According to Seva-Gonzalez, 2016 could start with early, strong sales numbers.
“Many buyers take a break over the holiday. Yet, I believe there is great opportunity now for buyers and sellers since there is less competition. Also I see many motivated buyers.”
A stable and slightly improving real estate market should continue in the fourth quarter of 2015, she concluded. Overall, this has been another healthy year for the Northern Virginia housing market. Prices and consumer confidence are up, she observed.
October 2015 Regional Home Sales Compared to October 2014: Northern Virginia
The Northern Virginia Association of Realtors® reports on October 2015 home sales activity for Fairfax and Arlington counties, the cities of Alexandria, Fairfax and Falls Church and the towns of Vienna, Herndon and Clifton.
A total of 1,524 homes sold in October 2015, a 3.96 percent increase over October 2014 home sales of 1,466.
Active listings continued to show an increase this month compared with 2014. Listings remain up by about 9 percent over last year, with 5,569 active listings in October, compared with 5,125 homes available in October 2014. Homes took longer to sell this October than last year. The average days on market (DOM) for homes in October 2015 was 58 days, an increase of 9.43 percent compared to the 53 DOM for homes in October 2014.
The average home sale price rose slightly this October, to $543,465. This is a 1.42 percent increase compared to October 2014, when the average price was $535,845.
The median sold price of homes decreased slightly this October, to $461,000.This is just 0.86 percent below the October 2014 median price of $465,000.
The 1,686 new pending home sales in Northern Virginia in October is an increase of 6.31 percent compared with 1,586 pending contracts in October of last year.
NVAR Charts, Graphs, Social Media
For NVAR’s October 2015 housing data, click here.
To see our October housing stats infographic, click here.
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The Northern Virginia Association of Realtors® serves as The Voice For Real Estate in Northern Virginia and provides a variety of services to its members including educational opportunities, professional standards enforcement, market statistics, legislative reviews, issues lobbying, multiple listing and lockbox services, and more. The purpose of NVAR is to enhance the ability and opportunity of its members to conduct their business successfully, to promote member professional competency, to maintain members’ adherence to the Realtor® Code of Ethics and to promote the preservation of the right to own, transfer and use real property. NVAR has grown to nearly 12,000 Realtors® who carry out a real estate industry in a community of more than 2 million residents. Visit NVAR online at www.nvar.com, www.realtorschool.com, and www.realtorshop.com. Contact the Northern Virginia Association of Realtors® at 703.207.3200. The NVAR headquarters is located at: 8407 Pennell Street, Fairfax, VA 22031, with a second service center located in Herndon.
October 2015 Regional Home Sales Compared to October 2014: Northern Virginia
The Northern Virginia Association of Realtors® reports on October 2015 home sales activity for Fairfax and Arlington counties, the cities of Alexandria, Fairfax and Falls Church and the towns of Vienna, Herndon and Clifton.
A total of 1,524 homes sold in October 2015, a 3.96 percent increase over October 2014 home sales of 1,466.
Active listings continued to show an increase this month compared with 2014. Listings remain up by about 9 percent over last year, with 5,569 active listings in October, compared with 5,125 homes available in October 2014. Homes took longer to sell this October than last year. The average days on market (DOM) for homes in October 2015 was 58 days, an increase of 9.43 percent compared to the 53 DOM for homes in October 2014.
The average home sale price rose slightly this October, to $543,465. This is a 1.42 percent increase compared to October 2014, when the average price was $535,845.
The median sold price of homes decreased slightly this October, to $461,000.This is just 0.86 percent below the October 2014 median price of $465,000.
The 1,686 new pending home sales in Northern Virginia in October is an increase of 6.31 percent compared with 1,586 pending contracts in October of last year.
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