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December 2021 Market Update

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It’s the Most Wonderful Time of the Year….

Wow, it is the holiday season already! This year has gone by so fast. I hope you had a great time with your family over Thanksgiving and continue to enjoy this month full of fun for the upcoming holidays and into the New Year.

As I run into family and friends at neighborhood events and gatherings, the conversation frequently turns to the real estate market. The most common question I am asked is, “how is the market today?” My latest response is a good one; from a historical perspective, it’s insane (in my opinion)! Inventory of homes for sale in our area has dropped to only 1,886 homes for sale for the first time during this time of year. Additionally, new sales contracts written the previous seven days were the second-highest ever; only 2020 had more contracts written.

Typically, approximately 415-460 contracts are written during Thanksgiving week; we had 653 this year! Demand continues to outpace the supply by a wide margin. So, this leads me to the next question I usually get asked, “should I sell my house during the holidays?” My answer remains; it depends. If you really need to sell, now is a great time as inventory levels are low and demand is high. Houses typically “look” festive this time of year which is an added staging bonus.

The important aspect to keep in mind is that pricing still needs to be on point for a house to sell, even in the environment we are currently experiencing. If you are looking to “cash-out” and take advantage of the market, now is not the best time to sell as buyers are still being very selective when choosing a home, and price is always high on the list along with condition. This is not the time of year to push prices. If you want people coming through during the holidays, it is 100% up to you. So, if you are considering a move now or in the future, please call me.  We can get you positioned for success.

Have a great holiday season with your family and friends!

November 2021 Market Update

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Groundhog day in November?? It seems that way to me in the day-to-day operations of running a real estate business. What we continue to hear over and over is – “wow, the market sure has slowed down,” but I am here to tell you that it hasn’t. The number of sales is higher today than at any other time in Northern Virginia during this same time in previous years. The pace is not as frenetic as it was early in the year, but the numbers are still strong (versus any other year since I started keeping track of the numbers in 2005). Houses are staying on the market for an average of 18 days now versus 14 days previously. Does this mean the market is slow? Not at all.

In 2008, we had an 11-month supply of houses – nearly 330 days on market. That was a slow market; this one is not. It is important to keep everything in perspective and have the right expectations when selling your house. If the house is in the right condition and priced properly, your house will sell. It may not have double-digit contracts, it may only have one, and it may take a couple of weeks, but it will sell as we continue to have a high demand for housing. 

So, what does this mean from the buyer’s perspective? With low inventory levels, some buyers are still facing challenges. As I mentioned, we are not seeing many double-digit contracts on listings. However, we still see some homes receive multiple offers, so it is essential to put your best foot forward when making a strong offer. We can give you the right advice to make your offer stand out, so call me to discuss your plans for moving. 

Interest rates are creeping up, and prices are creeping up, so the cost of ownership is increasing. If you are considering a move, don’t delay. Instead of waiting a few months, buying now could make a few hundred-dollar difference in your mortgage payment. It’s time to get off the fence.

I hope you have a wonderful Thanksgiving and enjoy the start of this holiday season.

February 2021 Market Update

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Again, I have said it before, and I will repeat it, inventory levels on homes for sale in Northern Virginia are critically low! We currently have just 1,701 homes for sale in all of the counties we serve in Northern Virginia. The amazing fact is the number of condos that are currently for sale – 792 – which represents just under 50% of the total inventory. Condos typically do not reflect nearly 50% of the inventory levels … more on this later. 

Continuing with the numbers; there are only 646 single family homes currently on the market. Are you kidding me? There are only 235 townhouses total, again, WOW! Do you know what this means? The chances of multiple contract situations are possible on virtually every home on the market. We have had as many as 30 contracts submitted on one house in Gainesville priced at $635,000. It escalated above $700,000. We had another home in Aldie that had 78 showings and 62 visitors at the open house. This one was priced at $772,000 that had 21 offers and escalated to $831,700. It is insane – I cannot think of another word to describe it. 

A question I am frequently asked is when will it end? I think it will be a long time, as I believe it will be rate driven, and rates will remain low for the foreseeable future. Once rates rise to the 4 or 5% range, we will see a slowdown in contracts/purchasers, but not an inventory increase. Another question is, when will buyer burnout take them out of the market? My answer: it depends as this is and has always been an individual question. I have heard about prospective buyers writing as many as 15 contracts (on different homes) and still in the fight, while others are not even entering the market because of these “bidding” war situations. Typically, buyers will write until they win a bid on a property.  Usually, in a market like this, it has been between 3-5 times in my experience. 

One more question I hear is how do I buy if I must sell my house first? This one is more complicated, but I can give you details if you are interested. We have nine ways to make this work!

If you or someone you know would like to discuss their situation with me in more detail, whether it is purchasing or selling a home, please feel free to call me.

Have a Happy Valentine’s Day!!

January 2021 Market Update

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Happy New Year!  Welcome to 2021!  I predict this will be yet another exciting year with lots of new challenges, adversity, change, and so much more. The good thing to note is out of these situations come positive outcomes for many if you keep the right mental attitude, stay adaptable, and take care of yourself and those around you. We do not know what lies ahead but keeping strong is as vital as ever.

I have been asked, “what is going to happen with real estate in 2021”?  It depends on whether you are a buyer, seller, renter, landlord, or investor. Inventory levels in Northern Virginia continue to decline. We ended the year with only 1,737 houses for sale in Arlington, Fairfax, Prince William, Loudoun, and Fauquier Counties and all the cities located within this area. As you can imagine, this number is extremely low, historically speaking. This makes purchasing a home extraordinarily difficult for buyers. I am currently working with a buyer where we have bid $30,000 over list, $40,000 over list, and $50,000 over list and on three separate houses, and we have lost out on each of them. They are in the $400,000 – $500,000 price point. The listing agents said they were overwhelmed with offers and calls – one had 17 offers in hand in less than 24 hours. So, you can see the buying environment is uber-competitive. On the flip side, this makes it a great time to sell a home if you are looking to move. Depending on the price point, location and condition, sellers can expect multiple showings as well as multiple contracts with purchasers paying more than the sales price and waiving many, if not all, the contingencies associated with a sale. Renting houses is also a challenge as there is a .4-month supply of homes available, and of those, 40% are single-family or townhouses. Again, this makes being a landlord easier to get results as there is a brisk rental market in Northern Virginia. Most investors like houses that cash flow, and with prices being bid up, many investors are choosing to wait on the sidelines to see if more inventory comes on the market prior to getting into bidding wars. Time will tell if we get more inventory or not, but I believe we will experience low inventory throughout 2021. Call me to discuss your situation in more detail so we can help you make the right decisions.

So, the market that is struggling the most right now in our area is condos. In Arlington County, 84% of the resale inventory is condominiums. The average days on the market for a condo in Arlington is 76 days and the average overall days on the market for all properties in NOVA is 16. Quite a difference, right? The rental market is remarkably similar in all of NOVA – condos are on the market for 126 days, and single-family and townhouses are on the market for 42 days. Be careful when considering an investment in condos right now.

As always, I am happy to speak with you about your situation as each one is different.  Happy New Year, and as always, be safe, make wise decisions when you go in public, so you

August 2020 Market Update

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As we enter the dog days of summer and the Month of Miracles…

And prepare for a new version of back-to-school, I hope you and your family are safe, remaining healthy, and are making wise decisions when going out in public.

This month’s update may seem like a broken record, but it is what it is these days. Inventory levels of resales homes in Northern Virginia remain extremely low – 41% below last year’s levels.  Currently, there are only 2,714 houses for sale throughout our area, which includes Arlington, Fairfax, Prince William, Loudoun, and Fauquier Counties, as well as all the cities in between. Even with low inventory levels, sales remain strong as they are up 18% week-over-week from last year and up 17% over the previous 30 days from last year. This result is a .7 month’s supply of houses – last year it was a 1.5-month supply. We are still receiving multiple offers on our listings, and the median days on market are a mere seven days making it an exceptionally strong seller’s market. I believe we are going to be in this market for some time as the discussions I am having with homeowners and agents is that they are not likely to sell or they don’t have a lot of houses coming on the market. This has resulted in the increased prices we are seeing. Year to date, prices are up 6.25% over the same time frame from last year. As I’ve said before, it is an excellent time to be a seller. If you are considering selling, call me to discuss your situation in
more detail.

Buyers do have challenges in today’s low inventory, multiple contract situation market we are in, but we are getting our clients into homes! Our team has exclusive strategy sessions where we share ideas on how we are negotiating to get our clients the home of their dreams. These sessions and strategies have been working, which is great for our clients. In addition to this, interest rates are now below 3%! The expectation is they are going to stay in this range for some time, so there is good news for those looking to become owners or potentially moving up to their “forever” homes. If you are considering looking into the option of purchasing a home, call me to set up a private consultation. I am here to help!

Please remember, even if now is not the right time for you to buy or sell, it may be the perfect time for you to refinance! I can put you in touch with one of our lender partners, so feel free to reach out.

Stay cool in this heatwave we are experiencing. Good luck to all of the students out there! Curious what the Month of Miracles is? Give me a call, I’d love to tell you all about it!

July 2020 Market Update

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As We Begin to Reopen…

As we transition into Phase III with some areas beginning to open up while others remain on restricted status, I encourage you to stay safe, make wise decisions when you go out in public, so you and your family continue to remain healthy.

The result of the pandemic has limited the number of houses coming on to the market here in Northern Virginia. Potential sellers are still concerned about people coming into their homes, which is understandable during this time. The crazy thing is – the pandemic and various Phases we have been in have not slowed down home sales! The inventory level of houses for sale is down 43% from this same week last year, yet sales are up 16.5%. It is critical that we find people looking to sell their home and are comfortable doing so because we are continuing to see multiple contracts on houses throughout Northern Virginia (in most price points). It is not uncommon to receive 15-25 contracts on a house in less than 48 hours when it is priced right, in the right condition and location. Most recently, I heard about a condominium in Falls Church that received 44 contracts – one of our fellow agents lost out on that one just last week.

The onslaught of offers has prices escalating, and as a result, we are experiencing some appraisal issues. I make sure to set the proper expectations for both sellers and buyers if I feel the house will not appraise.  In addition to this, I meet the appraiser at the property to keep them informed on the situation – the number of contracts, prices, the quantity of showings, etc. to try to avoid low appraisals. However, they still are happening in some cases, as some prices just cannot be supported by the appraisers. We have had several people waive the appraisal contingency to secure a home, which has been great for my sellers. We have also had many appraisal waivers from lenders when the borrower has excellent credit, is putting down 20% or more, and the neighborhood can support the pricing. To learn more about this, please call me.

Buyers – get in the game!  We can help, and rates are still amazing. Today’s rates are below 3% on 30-year fixed loans. Additionally, if you aren’t planning to move and you haven’t refinanced, now is a great time. Call me to learn more about this and our strategies to win in multiple contract situations or for a connection to one of my preferred lending partners. I am always here to help!

I hope you had a great 4th of July!!

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