October 2023 Monthly Housing Market Trends Report for Arlington, VA, Washington DC and Montgomery County. This is our monthly update and insights based on year over year numbers on these three markets. What do the numbers mean to you? How can they be translated to your current needs when buying or selling?
The housing market tends to slow in the late fall. As mortgage rates approached 8%, transactions and listings remained low in October in the Washington D.C., metro area. However, even though activity is constrained, prices are still rising and homes are still selling quickly. There were 3,752 new pending sales in the D.C. metro area, which is 136 fewer pendings than there were in September. Pending sales activity is 9.2% lower than a year ago. However, the gap between 2022 and 2023 monthly pending sales is at its lowest level of the year. New listings remain limited. There were 4,460 new listings coming onto the market in October, down 20.3% compared to last year. New listing activity was also down from September. Low supply has kept pressure on home prices in the region. The median price in October was $568,000. The median price is 3.3% higher than a year ago, and is also up 3.3% compared to a month ago. Home prices peaked during the summer, which is a typical seasonal pattern. However, prices have been up year-over-year for five consecutive months. Homes are still selling very quickly. The median days on market in October was nine, which is nearly a week faster than last October.