NoVa, Hampton Roads housing markets improve in November

The Northern Virginia and Hampton Roads housing markets in November showed signs of improvement from the same month last year, including increased home sales and selling prices.

Northern Virginia

Home prices and sales activity in Northern Virginia rose year-over-year last month, indicating a healthier market than the November 2023 one.

November housing sales in Northern Virginia rose 10.8% from November 2023, according to data released Tuesday by the Northern Virginia Association of Realtors.

Last month, 1,168 homes sold in Northern Virginia. There were 1,228 total pending sales last month, up 23.3% from November 2023.

In November, the region had 1,407 active listings, the same number as in November 2023. New listings totaled 817 units, below the five-year average of 1,239 new listings in November and down 2.25% from November 2023.

The month’s supply of inventory (MSI) — a measure of how many months there would be homes on the market if no new inventory were added — stood at 1.1, up from November 2023’s MSI of 1.05 but down from October, which had an MSI of 1.4.

Homes spent an average of 22 days on the market in November, up 10% compared with the same month last year, and slightly higher than the 19-day average of October.

“By all accounts, November was a healthier real estate market compared to a year ago,” NVAR board member Arshia Kia with KW Metro Center said in a statement. “We have slightly more inventory, which helps buyers. The appetite for homeownership is strong, so even with more homes on the market, homes are selling well, which in turn is driving prices up from a year ago.”

The median sold price last month was $699,900, up 6.6% compared with November 2023 but down from the MSP of $715,000 recorded in October. For the third month in a row, total sales volume jumped significantly from the prior year, according to NVAR. Last month, November’s sales volume totaled more than $985.45 million, up 19.1% from November 2023.

NVAR reports home sales activity for Fairfax and Arlington counties, the cities of Alexandria, Fairfax and Falls Church, and the towns of Vienna, Herndon and Clifton.

Hampton Roads

In Hampton Roads, closed and pending sales, inventory, the median sales price and the median number of days that homes were on the market rose in November.

Home sales in the region totaled 1,899 in November, up 12.37% from the 1,690 sales recorded in November 2023 but down from October’s 2,115 sales, according to Real Estate Information Network (REIN) data released Tuesday.

“The year-over-year improvements are encouraging, and while November’s numbers were down from October, in a typical real estate environment, that dip is a seasonal expectation,” Gary Lundholm with The Real Estate Group, president of REIN’s board of directors, said in a statement.

“The year-over-year improvements in sales can be attributed to lower mortgage rates,” he added, “but also perhaps to additional inventory, which gives consumers more choices.”

Hampton Roads pending sales totaled 1,779 in November, down from 2,159 pending sales in October but up 10.22% from the 1,614 recorded in November 2023.

Hampton Roads had 4,565 active listings last month, down from 4,765 active listings in October but up 14.7% from November 2023’s 3,980 active listings.

The region’s MSI in November was 2.23, down from 2.35 in October and up from 1.91 in November 2023.

The median sales price in November stood at $350,000, down from October’s MSP of $354,000 but up 6% from the MSP of $330,000 recorded in November 2023.

Homes spent a median of 27 days on the market last month, unchanged from October. In November 2023, homes spent a median of 19 days on the market.

Founded in 1969, REIN is a regional multiple listing service that covers an area stretching from Williamsburg east to Virginia Beach and south across the North Carolina border.