Active Residential Listings Lag Behind Past Years

VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. (August 2022) – Active residential listings in the Hampton Roads region for the month of July continue to lag behind totals recorded during the same month when compared to the previous four years.

According to the Real Estate Information Network (REIN), there were 4,129 homes across the region actively listed for sale as the month ended. That’s down from 4,621 in 2021, 5,576 in 2020, 9,052 in 2019, and 10,057 in 2018.

Despite the limited supply, at 1.37, the month’s supply of inventory (MSI) is the highest it’s been since September 2021, when it was 1.39. Year-over-year, the MSI is down slightly from 1.47 in July 2021. MSI is a calculation of how long it would take for all inventory to be sold if no new properties came on the market.

Active listings have dropped steadily every July since 2014.

“Right now, there’s some lingering uncertainty in the real estate market,” said REIN Board President Liz Moore of Liz Moore & Associates. “Interest rates on home loans are up and down a bit, and the record inflation we’re experiencing is still impacting families.”

Moore suspects that the reason more people aren’t selling at this time is that they understand they’ll then need to turn around and buy a home.

“Many of these sellers are living with 3% or even 2.5% rates on their current house and are not excited about the prospect of a 5.5% rate when they trade up,” she said.

July data points from REIN:

• Active residential listings totaled 4,129. That’s down 10.65% year-over-year and up slightly, .36%, month-over-month.
• Pending sales were 2,777, which was down 19.3% year-over-year and 9.66% month-over-month.
• Settled sales during the month were 2,909, that’s down 23.4% year-over-year, and down 12.38% month-over-month.
• The median sales price (MSP) of homes for the month was $322,500. That’s up from $300,000 last year, but down slightly from $325,750 the month prior.
• The MSI for the month was 1.37. That’s down year-over-year from 1.47 in July 2021, but up month-over-month from 1.33 in June 2022.
• Median days on market (DOM) for residential listings was 12. That’s a month-over-month increase of 33.3% from nine days in June.
• Residential new construction sold in the MLS during the month totaled 237. That’s 92 fewer new homes sold, a drop of 28%, from 329 in July 2021.