Market Update - November

The surge in new contract activity last month translated into a rise in sales for November.  Sales are higher than last year, but new contracts are down slightly compared to November 2011. The inventory of homes for sale continues to shrink, and new listings remain at their lowest level in over a decade. The low supply is putting upward pressure on median sales prices around the region and price gains have been most pronounced in the townhome segment, which has led in year-over-year growth for 3 consecutive months. Other key points from November include:

CLOSED SALES
The 3,556 sales in November in the Washington DC Metro Area was a 21.5 percent gain from this time last year, the highest year-over-year jump since May 2010. Sales typically fall between October and November in the region, but the surge in new contracts in October has caused overall sales numbers to rise 8.8 percent from last month. Similar month-over-month gains have occurred in all property segments. Townhomes led in growth, up 31.4 percent from last November. Condos and single-family homes rose 22.0 percent and 16.2 percent respectively. All property segments had their highest November sales in 3 years.

PRICES
Median sales price continues to climb late in the year and townhomes saw the highest price gains since 2005. At $370,000, the median home price in the DC Metro Area is 10.4 percent higher than this time last year, and the highest November median in 5 years. Falls Church City leads all jurisdictions with a 40.7 percent gain from last November and all other jurisdictions within the DC Metro region experienced median price gains with the exception of Alexandria City, which fell 3.5 percent from this time last year.

NEW CONTRACTS
The 3,732 new contracts signed in November in the DC Metro region was down 1.3 percent from this time last year and is typical for this time of year as new contract activity typically falls between October and November. The unseasonable rise in new contracts last month could have muted the numbers this month as many buyers may have purchased earlier than planned. It could also be reflective of the low inventory of homes for sale. Buyers have fewer options, so many could be waiting it out.

INVENTORY
There were 7,830 active listings in the DC Metro Area at the end of November, 37.8 percent lower than this time last year. The inventory of active listings is now about one third of its peak, which was over 25,000 in the fall of 2007. All property segments continue to see inventory absorption, with active listings down over 40 percent across the board from last November. New listings are following a similar pattern, though the declines are not as dramatic. The low inventory of homes for sale continues to drive down the median days on market, which at 22 days, is half of what it was just a year ago. The average sale-to-list-price ratio also continues to rise, up to 96.6 percent from 93.7 percent last November.