According to an October 2016 Home Sales Report released by the Virginia Association of REALTORS® (VAR), residential real estate sales reflect well-adjusted year-end performance. Year-to-date measures continue to outpace prior years and support sustained market strength. Volume through the end of October 2016 exceeded $31.970 billion, a gain of 6.4 percent from last year’s total of $30.050 billion.

“While the market is settling into the winter season, pent up demand remains a strong contributor,” 2017 VAR President Claire Forcier-Rowe said in a press release. “Still recovering from the peak inventory constraints, buyers are moving quickly on available properties and taking advantage of low interest rates. It’s a great time to the enter the market, as financing remains so accessible, and it’s a great time to consider listing, as sellers can anticipate that prices will be buoyed by buyer eagerness.”

Year-over-year, the number of transactions fell marginally, from 8,870 to 8,789 (a 0.9 percent decrease). Typical of the months following the summer peak, October sales declined from September by 10.8 percent (from 9,857). Historically, sales pace tapers from June through December.

Volume rose 1 percent on the year, from $2.787 billion last October to $2.815 this year. Because pace fell slightly, the rise in volume is attributed to the stronger performance in median price. 

Statewide median sales price for October was $262,500, 5 percent higher than the median price last October ($250,000). The October median price held steady with September, supported by strong demand. Typically, median price declines each month from the summer season through the end of the year.

The average number of days on the market declined significantly year-over-year by 16.7 percent, from 78 to 65. Further illustrating buyer motivation, the adjustment in average length of time on the market from September to October was a slight 3.2 percent (from 63 days). In 2015, time on the market lengthened by 8.3 percent from September to October (from 72 to 78 days).

The average 30-year fixed mortgage interest rate ticked up slightly in October to 3.47 percent. The continued access to low rates, along with loosening inventory, enticed buyer activity and contributed to market performance. Virginia unemployment rose to a seasonally adjusted rate of 4.2 percent in October, up 0.2 percent from the rate reported for September.