A Real Estate Market in Escalation

Ever been to an open house on a Tuesday? Me neither… until last week.

My client and I walked into a single-family home in Reston priced in the golden $700,000s for (what I thought) was a private showing. The cul-de-sac was packed with cars, and I counted at least five other groups touring the home at the same time.

When I noticed the listing agent sitting at the kitchen table, I asked her if I had my time wrong. She replied, “No, we just had so much interest we decided to open it up today and tomorrow from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.” She also informed me that six offers had already come in on this listing before it went on the market officially. By Wednesday evening, the house was under contract.

Is this a true depiction of today’s market? Not exactly, but in some areas and particularly with detached single-family homes, this is our new reality.

The average sales price is up more than $50,000 compared to last year. Despite interest rates starting to creep back up, this will continue to be a seller’s market for the foreseeable future. If you are looking to buy a home (especially a detached single-family home) be prepared to bid well above asking.

This month instead of highlighting active or coming soon listings, I want to share with you some homes sold in the past few weeks that went tens (or hundreds) of thousands of dollars over list price.

A little overwhelming, right? Call me, text me or email me. I would love to help you develop the right strategy for this escalating market.

Mackenzie Horne, MBA is a licensed REALTOR® in the Commonwealth of Virginia with McEnearney Associates in McLean. Send Mackenzie a message at 571-594-9136, mhorne@mcenearney.com, or @MackHorneRealtor.