Inventory Reaches Highest Point of the Year

VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. (September 2023) – The number of homes listed for sale in the Hampton Roads region reached its highest point of the year in August, according to data from the Real Estate Information Network (REIN).

REIN is the Multiple Listing Service (MLS) for the region and the leading provider of real estate data in Hampton Roads.

Selling prices remain strong and both pending sales and settled sales were up from the previous month, but down year-over-year.

“There are a lot of factors that impact the local housing market, not the least of which is available inventory,” said Jon McAchran of AtCoastal Realty and REIN Board President. “Likewise, the median sales price is still near the record set in June, and mortgage rates remain stubbornly high.”

The Month’s Supply of Inventory, or MSI, also reached its highest point since October 2020, at 1.68. MSI is a calculation of how long there would be properties for sale on the market if no new inventory was added. It is used to gauge the amount of available inventory.

The median number of days homes are on the market was 14 in August. That’s up two days when compared to July, but down one day when compared to August 2022. “Despite current mortgage rates and a somewhat limited number of properties for sale, people are still willing to buy when the right home comes along,” said McAchran. “If inventory continues to rise, it will level off prices. However, we’re still historically low and we don’t anticipate anything drastic.”

August data points from REIN:

• Active residential listings for August were 3,680. That’s up 6.6% from 3,452 in July, but down 10.6% year-over-year from August 2022. 
• Pending sales stood at 2,289, up 1.06% month-over-month compared to 2,265 in July, but down year-over-year 15.66%.
• Settled sales during the month were 2,478. That’s up 6.99% when compared to July’s 2,316, but down 17.15% compared to 2,991 last August. 
• Median sale price (MSP) of homes sold during August was $341,100. That’s up slightly from $340,000 in July, and up 7.95% from $315,990 in August 2022. 
• Month’s Supply of Inventory (MSI) for August was 1.68. It was 1.54 last month and 1.39 last year. 
• Median days on market (DOM) for residential listings was 14, up from 12 last month and down from 15 during the same month last year. 
• Residential new construction sold in the MLS during the month was 249, compared to 202 last month and 285 last year.