Existing home Sales Up For November In Northern Virginia & Nationwide

According to the National Association of Realtors ( NAR), Existing Home Sales were up 7.4% in November.  This accounts for 6.54 million units and is the highest increase since February 2007. This is an increase of some 44% since November 2008, and marks a new record.

The National Association of Realtors believes this number was juiced up due to the expected expiration of the First Time Home Buyers Tax Credit.  51% of all sales in November were bought by First Time Home Buyers.  Inventories have also decreased to a 6.5 month supply.

The Median Home Price of a home in November was $172,600 this marks a decrease in value of nearly 4.3%.  Distressed Sales are those made up of Short Sales and Foreclosures which made up 33% of all Sales.

Single Family Home Sales rose nearly 8.5% while Condo Sales were essentially flat.

Regional Breakdown:

All areas were up.

North East: Sales were up 6.6%

Midwest: Sales were up 8.4%

South: Sales were up 4.8% ( Virginia )

West: Sales were up 10.6%

Most of the activity is on the low end of the market.  71% of all home sales in November were under $250,000

We should see mortgage rates begin to climb, especially after the Fed ends their program of buying Mortgage Backed Securities at the end of March.  Already we are seeing them move upward.

The wild card to sustaining a market correction in the Housing Market is Foreclosures which are still rising as well as many banks holding onto a lot of inventory.

Northern Virginia Real Estate Times