I’ve been a bit busy lately and haven’t gotten around to this post, my apologies for that.
Certainly some adjustments from the report last month, and in-line with where we typically are in the winter months. If you look at the overall average of 9.89 months, you’ll see that it’s very much a buyer’s market. 10 months worth of inventory, on average, spells a slow market for the winter. It’s interesting how quickly things turn, though … last month, Montgomery County was at 6.8 months, Floyd was at 9 months and Pulaski was at less than 4 months. Now? Almost 12 months, 6 months and 10 months, respectively. Watch the big picture – think of this market as if you’re driving a car … a buyer’s car. Sometimes, you’re driving and you go up a hill – as a buyer, that’s indicative of a seller’s market. It’s harder to get up the hill, things just keep coming off the market before you can get to them – you’ll get there, but it might take you a little longer. And sometimes, you go through a dip in the road. Your speed increases (there’s more on the market), things get a little faster (and rates are a little bit better) and you’re cruising right along – everything’s in your favor. Eventually, that hill or that dip will turn into a culdesac, and you’ll be right back out onto the street again. Don’t be left on the street …
I’ve said it for the last couple of months, and I’ll continue to say it. If you’re looking to buy a home, now is your time. I spoke with Mark Weddle at Salem Financial today and he’s quoting rates as low as he has in quite some time … that’s in your favor as a buyer, so take advantage of that. Remember that the problems throughout much of the nation are felt on a much smaller scale in the New River Valley, which continues to remain insulated from heavy blows to the market. We’ll go up and down, just like everyone else, but over the long haul the dip will even back out.
Blacksburg’s absorption rate increased from last month, and virtually every other area went up as well. As a whole, the market average is 9.89 months worth of inventory – almost identical to where we were last month (9.45 months). Again, we’re looking at how long it would take to sell the existing residential inventory in a particular area, if nothing else came on the market until supply was exhausted. Anything over 5 months is typically a buyers’ market, and anything less than 5 months is typically a seller’s market. 
| Area | Active | Sold | Absorption Rate | Buyer/Seller Market |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Blacksburg | 204 | 19 | 10.74 Months | Buyer |
| Christiansburg | 274 | 26 | 10.54 Months | Buyer |
| Montgomery County | 71 | 6 | 11.83 Months | Buyer |
| Floyd County | 80 | 14 | 5.71 Months | Balanced |
| Giles County | 59 | 5 | 11.80 Months | Buyer |
| Pulaski | 126 | 12 | 10.50 Months | Buyer |
| Dublin | 118 | 19 | 6.05 Months | Buyer |
| Radford | 80 | 11 | 7.27 Months | Buyer |
Take Note – this is not a bad time to be considering buying or selling real estate. If you’re selling, we need to talk about ways to really get you the right kind of exposure for your home. We should be adjusting our marketing to be specific for your house, not just "’cause this is the way we’ve always done it". I’m still taking listings because people are still moving – but we need to be realistic and patient, among other things. And if you’re buying, we need to talk. Opportunities abound out there, let’s take advantage of them.
If you’d like more specific data about this report, or anything else pertaining to real estate in the New River Valley, don’t hesitate to contact us by email or Instant Messenger! Or, hit us up on our Twitter account!
Happy buying and selling!