Ashburn, VA Market Report – 11/29/10

Ashburn is following the normal seasonable pattern of softening prices and reduced inventory as we approach the holiday season. For some very focused buyers, the next six weeks will be the best time of year to buy a new home since there are fewer buyers in the marketplace to compete with. The stats and analysis for Ashburn are as follows:

• Homes for sale: 466 (down from 495 in September and up from 391 one year ago)
• Homes sold: 90 (down from the 101 units in September and down from last year’s 102 units)
• Average sold price: $410,646 (down from $445,265 last month but still up from $382,665 last year)
• Average days on market: 50 (amazingly stable in the 40-50 day range for the last year)

When you read in the paper about falling real estate prices nationwide, they are NOT talking about Ashburn.  This area has had steadily rising prices for almost two years now. Not only are the prices stable to rising, it is also a genuinely great place to live!

Market report provided by David Hess, Executive Vice President, Avery-Hess, Realtors.

Search for Homes in Ashburn, VA: www.averyhess.com

Leesburg, VA Market Report – 11/15/10

Leesburg is a very stable real estate market. Check out the stats below and see for yourself.
The figures below reflect the Leesburg, Virginia market during the month of September 2010.

• Homes for sale: 570 (down a little from 585 in August and about the same as 571 one year ago)
• Homes sold: 87 (about equal to 86 last month and 88 one year ago)
• Average sold price: $410,491 (down from 431,213 in August but up from $400,991 same time last year.)
• Average days on market: 57 (down from 63 in August and down from 66 one year ago.)

One year ago the sales were influenced by the First Time Homebuyer Tax Credit. This year’s numbers are without benefit of a tax credit. Proof that buyers do not need stimulus from the government to know a good value when they see it and here in Leesburg it can’t be missed!
Interest rates are in the 4s. Is now a good time to buy? You decide.

Market data and  commentary provided by David Hess, Executive Vice President and Managing Broker.

Search for homes in Leesburg, and all of the DC Metro: www.averyhess.com

Sterling, VA Market Report 10/27/10

After the big price increases that occurred after the December 2008 bottom, the Sterling, Virginia real estate market looks stable. See the details below.

• Homes for sale: 478 for sale at the end of June, July and August (compare to 443 one year ago.)
• Homes sold: 86 sold in September. (Down from 98 in August. And down from 132 one year ago when a homebuyer tax credit was in place.)
• Average sold price: $335,573 (similar to the August level of $335,137, but up from $304,717 one year ago.)
• Average days on market: 38 (very stable, been in the high 30s all year and was 49 days one year ago)

Personally I would rather see a stable market than a rising or falling market. A stable market gives a buyer the opportunity to take their time and enjoy the excitement of buying a new residence. No need to be in a rush or have to compete with a throng of other buyers bidding up the prices. No auction or greed mentality. The buyer and seller can each negotiate on the price and terms and each can feel at an equal amount of anxiety wondering if they can come to an acceptable agreement. And both can do so without any prodding or need for incentives from the government.

Commentary and analysis provided by David Hess, Executive Vice President.
Search for homes in Sterling, VA and the entire DC Metro: www.averyhess.com

Ashburn, VA Market Report – 10/19/10

Ashburn remains a stable and attractive residential real estate market. The stats and analysis are as follows:

• Homes for sale: 494 (same as in August and up from 404 one year ago)
• Homes sold: 101 (down from the 117 units in August but up a smidge from last year’s 97 units)
• Average sold price: $435,266 (down from the statistical spike of $460,373 in August but up from $424,550 last year)
• Average days on market: 47 (amazingly stable in the mid 40s for the last year)

Ashburn is a very stable market based on the stats and what agents are telling me. After the financial panics, people get back to the basics and ask, “where is a good place to live?” Then they go buy a home there. This is exactly what we have seen in Ashburn for the past 21 months since prices bottomed in November 2008.

The market place has normalized in the absence of any more government intervention. Hello Congress did you hear that! Consumers can actually make good decisions on their own.

Market report provided by David Hess, Executive Vice President, Avery-Hess, Realtors.

Search for Homes in Ashburn, VA: www.averyhess.com

Leesburg, VA Market Report – 9/16/10

Leesburg is a very stable real estate market. Check out the stats below and see for yourself.

The figures below reflect the Leesburg, Virginia market during the month of June 2010.

• Homes for sale: 585 (up a little from 576 in July and from 541 one year ago)
• Homes sold: 86 (down from 119 in July and 117of one year ago)
• Average sold price: $431.213 (down from 439,662 in July but up from $412,245  same time last year.)
• Average days on market: 63 (very stable through 2010, and down from 84 one year ago.)

The numbers in Leesburg prove that we do not need tax credits to sell houses. People know a good value when they see it and here in Leesburg it can’t be missed.

Market data and  commentary provided by David Hess, Executive Vice President and Managing Broker.

Search for homes in Leesburg, and all of the DC Metro: www.averyhess.com

Sterling, VA Market Report 9/10/10

We saw a big statistical fluke in Sterling for the July closings. Read the details below:

• Homes for sale: 467 for sale at the end of June and July (very stable! 454 in May, 470 in April, 460 in March and down from 491 one year ago.)
• Homes sold: 89 sold in July. (Way down from the tax credit frenzied 133 in June. And down from 135 one year ago when another tax credit was in place.)
• Average sold price: $305,155 (down from $305,155 one year ago.)
• Average days on market: 42 ( very stable, 39 in June and 32 days one year ago)

Note that in the past 13 months prices in Sterling had risen from an average of under $320,000 to over $365,000. Then suddenly with the July closings, we saw an average sales price of only $305,155. This tells me that we had an absence of higher priced units selling and that had the effect of a big drop in the averages. We went from 133 closings to 89. The big difference was the majority of these closing were lower priced houses. Much of the trade up market took the opportunity to buy and close in time to get the tax credit. As the market stabilizes in the absence of any more government stimulus, it is this writers hope that there will be no more government intervention in the market so the market can normalize without stimulus. Stimulus, or even the expectation of a stimulus, distorts the market by influencing behavior. It is also very expensive to our national budget, since in a majority of cases we are paying people to do what they were going to do anyway.

Commentary and analysis provided by David Hess, Executive Vice President.
Search for homes in Sterling, VA and the entire DC Metro: www.averyhess.com