Home sales in Virginia fell for the eighth consecutive month in April, while the median home price soared from a year ago, the Virginia Association of Realtors reported Friday.
Closed home sales totaled 9,781 last month, down approximately 14 percent from April 2005 when 11,370 sales were recorded.
Areas actually showing increases in closed transactions for the month included the Charlottesville area, Martinsville/Henry County, New River Valley, Southwest Virginia, Hampton Roads/Peninsula, Williamsburg, and the Greater Augusta County (Staunton) area.
In April, 11,483 homes were put on the market, a 22 percent decrease from 14, 780 listings a year ago. The average number of days on the market in April was 104, up from 94 for the same period last year.
Virginia’s median existing-home price for April was up 19 percent to $227,225, compared with $191,000 for April 2005. The median is a typical market price where half of the homes sold for more and half sold for less. Compared to the March 2006 median of $176,093, April’s median represented a gain of 29 percent.
“We’ve had five years of incredible market activity for real estate in Virginia,” said VAR President Kit Hale of Roanoke, “and we’re now making the transition back to a more normal marketplace where conditions show better balance between buyers and sellers. Pricing a home correctly is more important now than ever, and sellers can do that best with the help of a real estate professional. Spring is the time when buyers are looking, and a great time to think about putting a property on the market.”
The Virginia Association of Realtors represents more than 38,000 Realtors active in all phases of real estate brokerage, management, development and appraisal.
