The Northern Virginia November housing market gained compared to November 2015 in the Northern Virginia Association of Realtors region, which includes the counties of Fairfax and Arlington, and the cities of Alexandria, Falls Church, Fairfax and Clifton.
“More local buyers and sellers reached agreements this November, resulting in a 25 percent rise in home sales compared to last year, perhaps because of a sense of urgency,” said 2016 NVAR Chairman Virgil Frizzell in a press release. “The changing political landscape and likely increases in interest rates may have spurred this decisiveness. Also, strong employment and pent-up demand were factors,” he said. In addition to the 1,542 closings that occurred, the number of days houses stayed on the market declined by 7%, he added.
“No question that Northern Virginia residents have confidence in our local economy regardless of who occupies the White House,” said NVAR CEO Ryan Conrad in the release. “The half of a percentage point increase of interest rates right after the election could be the first other increases to come. Savvy buyers want more house for their dollar once they decide to let go of their current home and mortgage.” The cost of borrowing money is expected to rise, so eager home buyers act, according to Ryan.
“Elections always leave a taste of uncertainty and change; this is standard in our region,” said Genevieve Concannon of Advon Real Estate in Falls Church. “We already have colleagues who have sold homes to incoming cabinet members in November. It did seem that home buyers were asking the predominant question: ‘what is going to happen after the election?’,” she said. “Buyers have been hamstrung all year by low inventory, she explained, but they “dethroned uncertainty by empowering themselves with strong offers on homes to help move the market forward.”
According to Concannon, in Falls Church City and Arlington, buyers have been looking in the mid-high median income ranges with far fewer luxury purchases this past November.
