The president of the Northern Virginia Association of Realtors (NVAR) says a significant reduction in mortgage rates in 2024 will help boost spring home sales in the region.
“We expect 2024 to bring more options as lower interest rates encourage more sellers to return to the market. The demand is there, so this could be positive news.” , said Better Homes & Gardens Real Estate Premier Thai Hung Nguyen, who will head the organization's board of directors in 2024.
Interest rates have fallen slightly in recent weeks, and each drop in interest rates persuades some buyers and some homeowners looking to buy or sell something else to enter the market. It helps to do.
Lower interest rates and higher market inventories should help fuel the spring season. The spring season typically begins in February and then culminates in March, April and May. (In good years, the spring season begins with the start of his new year in early January. In so-so years, buyer activity is delayed a little.)
The spike in interest rates in early 2022 felt like a frying pan to the face across local and national real estate markets. Some prospective buyers declined to buy because they didn't want to pay much higher monthly costs for a typical home, while some potential sellers declined to take advantage of the historical gains made during the pandemic. They happily sat on low interest rates and maintained the status quo.
But the traffic jams may be starting to clear up.
“As people adjust to higher interest rates, and as rates are lowered somewhat, we expect there to be more thaw in the market and lower monthly rates.” [year-over-year] “While home sales are down, consumers should prepare for home prices to remain high,” said Ryan McLaughlin, CEO of NVAR.
December home sales across the NVAR basin were emblematic of 2023 as a whole, with weak sales, declining inventory, and rising prices.
Data for the region including Arlington and Fairfax counties, the cities of Alexandria, the cities of Fairfax, and the cities of Falls Church:
• The number of closed sales in December 2023 was 894 units, a decrease of 16.3% compared to December 2022. The five-year average for closed sales in December is 1,475 homes.
• The average sales price of a home in December 2023 was $804,126, an increase of 13.7% from December 2022.
• Total sales in December 2023 were $722,827,632, a decrease of 5.3% compared to December 2022.
• The number of active listings in December 2023 was 986, a decrease of 25.6% compared to December 2022. The number of new listings was 559.
• The total number of new pending sales in October 2023 was 773, a decrease of 3% compared to December 2022.
For more information about the local housing market, visit NVAR.com/public.
