2012_04_REPORT

VIRGINIA HOME SALES REPORT A

PR

IL

2012

Published by Virginia Association of REALTORS®, the advocate for real estate professionals and property owners in Virginia.

April 2012Virginia Monthly Home Sales Report

Published by the Virginia Association of REALTORS® Page 2

6,752

8,380

9,214

7,9658,120

6,904

6,2446,035

6,667

4,948

5,724

7,1317,442

0

1,000

2,000

3,000

4,000

5,000

6,000

7,000

8,000

9,000

10,000

Apr-11 May-11 Jun-11 Jul-11 Aug-11 Sep-11 Oct-11 Nov-11 Dec-11 Jan-12 Feb-12 Mar-12 Apr-12

Virginia's Monthly Pace of Residential SalesSingle Family, Townhomes, Condos

After a 4% increase in Virginia home sales last month (March 2012 compared to March 2011) home sales experienced another strong gain in April with an impressive 10% increase as compared to last April.

This strength in the housing market early in the year may be partly due to the warmer than normal winter that was experienced in most regions of Virginia. Warm temperatures in February and March had home buyers out searching for homes earlier than ever. Regardless of the reason, these strong gains are an indicator that the overall Virginia housing market may be starting to stabilize.

+10%



$2

31

,00

0

$2

35

,00

0

$2

49

,00

0

$2

56

,73

0

$2

50

,00

0

$2

39

,90

0

$2

30

,00

0

$2

36

,75

0

$2

32

,64

0

$2

05

,00

0

$2

13

,90

0

$2

15

,00

0

$2

30

,00

0

$2

25

,69

4 $2

45

,00

0

$2

41

,50

0

$2

39

,97

5

$2

24

,00

0

$2

15

,00

0

$2

21

,00

0

$2

25

,00

0

$2

01

,95

0

$2

10

,70

0

$2

25

,00

0

$2

39

,00

0

$100,000

$150,000

$200,000

$250,000

$300,000

Med

ian

Sal

es P

rice

Virginia Median Residential Sales PriceSingle Family Homes, Townhomes, Condos

Alongside a strong increase (+10%) in the pace of home sales in Virginia (see Page 2), we are also starting to see year-over-year increases in median sales prices in Virginia. The median sales price in April 2012 ($239,000) marked a 3.9% increase from one year earlier ($230,000), and a 3.5% increase from two years ago ($231,000). As the pace of buyer activity continues to increase, we will likely see further stabilization and growth in median sales prices.

It is typical in Virginia to see a steady increase in median sales price between January and June, thus we should expect to see median prices continue to rise over the next several months, likely to somewhere around $250,000 at the peak of the summer months.

+3.9%

+3.5%



1,953

2,401

2,836

2,408 2,420

1,957

1,711 1,692

1,860

1,282

1,509

1,996

2,200

0

500

1,000

1,500

2,000

2,500

3,000


Mill

ions

of

Dol

lars

of

Res

iden

tial

Sal

es

Virginia Monthly Residential Sales VolumeSingle Family Homes, Townhomes, Condos

The total volume of real estate sold in Virginia during April 2012 ($2.2B) marks a significant 13% increase in the volume of real estate being transferred as compared to last April. Given the recent increases in median sales prices (see Page 3), we should expect to see further increases in overall sales volume as the pace of sales increases (see Page 2).

+13%



82

7678

80 80

85 86

9195

100 10199 99

96

88 8992

9799 100 100

104 103101

90

0

20

40

60

80

100

120

Ave

rage

Day

s O

n M

arke

t

Virginia Average Days On MarketSingle Family Homes, Townhomes, Condos

After a 21% increase in average days on market between April 2010 (82) and April 2011 (99) the 9% decline in this metric over the past year is a welcome change in trajectory.

It is typical to see a decline in average days on market during the summer months, thus we will likely see this metric continue to decline over the next few months.

+21%-9%



7.4

%

6.7

%

6.8

%

7.0

%

6.9

%

6.9

%

6.5

%

6.4

%

6.5

%

6.4

% 6.9

%

6.6

%

6.3

%

6.1

%

6.0

%

6.0

%

6.1

%

6.3

%

6.5

%

6.4

%

6.2

%

6.1

%

5.8

%

5.7

%

5.6

%

4%

5%

6%

7%

8%

9%

Mar-10 Jun-10 Sep-10 Dec-10 Mar-11 Jun-11 Sep-11 Dec-11 Mar-12

Virginia Unemployment RateSource: Bureau of Labor & Statistics

Virginia’s unemployment rate fell to its lowest level (5.6%) in the past two years in March 2012. Virginia’s unemployment rate has now stayed below 6% for several months. The current level of 5.6% places Virginia in 9th place in the country for lowest unemployment rates.

4.78%4.60%

4.51% 4.55%

4.22%

4.01%4.10%

3.98% 3.95% 3.98% 3.95% 3.99%3.88%

3.0%

3.2%

3.4%

3.6%

3.8%

4.0%

4.2%

4.4%

4.6%

4.8%

5.0%


Average 30-Year Mortgage Interest RatesSource: FreddieMac

Average 30-year fixed mortgage interest rates hit a new historic low in April 2012 with an average of 3.88% at the end of the month. This marks almost a full percentage decline as compared to one year ago. These tremendously low interest rates make it quite compelling for buyers to step into the market, given how they can protect themselves from inflation by fixing their housing costs at such a low, long term rate.



The Virginia Association of REALTORS® (VAR) is the business advocate for real estate professionals in Virginia. VAR represents more than 29,000 REALTORS active in all phases of real estate brokerage, management, development and appraisal. Our mission is to enhance our membership’s ability to achieve business success.

All inquiries regarding this report should be directed to:

Stacey Ricks, Director of Public RelationsVirginia Association of REALTORS®10231 Telegraph Road, Glen Allen, VA 23059(804) 249-5716 [email protected]/HomeSales

Information sourced from multiple listing services across the state with data compiled by R E Stats Inc.All information is deemed reliable but is not guaranteed. Figures might not match those reported elsewhere.

Documents

2012_04_REPORT