Area Home Prices Slowly Falling

VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. (September 2022) – The median sales price (MSP) of residential real estate in the Hampton Roads region continues to decline ever so slowly. That’s good news for home buyers who are faced with rising mortgage rates.

After reaching an all-time high of $328,795 in May 2022, the MSP has dropped slightly each month since and was down by 4%, to $315,990 in August, according to data compiled by the Real Estate Information Network, Inc. (REIN). The multiple listing service (MLS) serving Hampton Roads reported that year-over-year, the MSP is up nearly 6.4%, from $297,000 in August 2021.

The falling prices locally are in-line with what is happening across much of the nation.

“For the first time in a long time many sellers are reducing their asking prices in order to get their homes sold as quickly as possible,” said REIN Board President Liz Moore of Liz Moore & Associates. “Still, limited inventory is keeping prices higher than they might otherwise be, especially considering inflation and the increase in mortgage rates.”

Moore said that the MSP for August has risen by 23.9% over the past four years. In August 2019, the MSP was just $255,000.

• Active residential listings for August were 4,117. That’s down both month-over-month (4,129 in July 22) and year-over-year (4,467 in August 2021). During August 2019, prior to the COVID pandemic, active listings recorded in the region that month totaled 8,824.
• Settled sales during the month were 2,991. That’s up slightly from 2,909 in July, but down year-over-year from 3,666 in August 2021. It’s also up almost 2% from 2,934 in August 2019.
• Pending sales for August were 2,820. That’s up a bit from 2,777 in July, but down year-over-year from 3,647 in August 2021. In August 2019, pending sales stood at 2,844.
• The MSI for August was 1.39. That’s up from 1.37 in July, but down from 1.41 in August 2021. In August 2019 the MSI was 3.71.
• Median days on market (DOM) for residential listings was 15 for the month, up from 12 in July, and up also from 12 in August 2021.
• Residential new construction sold in the MLS during August was 285. That’s up month-over-month from 237 in July, but down year-over-year from 304 in August 2021.