April 2009 Northern Virginia Home Statistics
Northern Virginia: April 2009
The Northern Virginia Association of Realtors® reports on April 2009 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 1,544 homes sold in April 2009, a 6.12 percent increase above April 2008 home sales of 1,455.
Active listings decreased by 23.04 percent from last year, with 8,234 active listings in April, compared with 10,699 homes available in April 2008. The average days on market (DOM) for homes in April 2009 decreased by 15 percent to 85 days, compared with 100 days in April 2008.
Sales prices continue to remain lower than those realized last year. The average sales price in April fell by 16.29 percent from April 2008, to $405,514, compared with last April's average of $484,432.
The median price of homes sold in Northern Virginia in April was $356,750, which is a decline of 13.72 percent compared with April 2008's median price of $413,500.
Greater Northern Virginia: April 2009
Sales activity in Greater Northern Virginia (NVAR jurisdictions plus Prince William, Loudoun and the Greater Piedmont counties) for April 2009 continues to show an increase from 2008.
The number of Greater Northern Virginia region homes sold in April was 2,904, a 5.75 percent increase from April 2008's total of 2,746 sales. This marks the thirteenth consecutive month of increased year-over-year sales totals for Greater Northern Virginia.
The average sales price of $331,600 in April 2009 continues to lag behind the 2008 average by 18.63 percent. The April 2008 average sales price was $407,519.
Across Greater Northern Virginia, the number of listings showed a decrease from 2008 numbers, with 15,683 listings active, which is 33.18 percent less than this time last year, when 23,471 homes were available. The average DOM for a home sold in April 2009 was 89 compared with last year's 112 DOM, a decrease of 20.52 percent.
Northern Virginia's Market Hits Bottom, Expert States at NAR Summit at Mid-Year
Elizabeth Razzi, of The Washington Post, covered the panel of speakers at the Summit at the NAR Midyear Event.
She wrote the following item on her May 13 blog, citing Tom Lawler, founder of Lawler Economic & Consulting in Vienna:
Beware Dated Housing Stats
"Anyone here from Northern Virginia?" asked Lawler. He was one of the panelists in that marathon economic summit meeting that the NAR held at the Marriott Wardman Park [on May 12]. "Northern Virginia is actually starting to bottom," he said.
He warned participants that all the home-price indexes reported in the news rely on dated information. "Case-Shiller not only has a lot of foreclosures, but the last index was based on January-February closings and those contracts were made a month or two earlier," he said, referring to the closely followed index of home prices.
~Provided by Northern Virginia Association of REALTORs
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