First Quarter '09 Home Sales Show Promise

Existing home sales in Virginia during the first quarter of 2009 totaled 15,795 units, down 4.7% from the same period in 2008. In the fourth quarter of 2008, the state had 16,998 total sales. Knowing that home sales are cyclical and that the first quarter is typically the slowest period during the year, the decline from the last quarter amounted to 7.1%. The northern area, including Blue Ridge, Dulles, Fredericksburg, Greater Piedmont, NVAR and PWAR all had positive increases in sales compared to the same period in 2008.

Median sales prices in the state of Virginia continued to decline. The statewide median of $223,221 was 14.1% lower than the median in the first quarter of 2008. The good news though was that the median actually increased 7.8% from the last quarter of 2008 indicating that prices may have reached bottom and now are on the rise. However, average sales prices continued to decline. Read the entire report HERE.

Listen to summary of first quarter 2009 home sales report (31-minute MP3)

(NOTE: You do NOT need to be a subscriber or to log in to view the report or listen to the MP3 file.)