In Arlington…sort of. By definition:
Buyers Market is > 6 months of inventory
Balanced Market is = 6 months of inventory
Sellers Market is is <6 months of inventory
Based on February’s sales, Arlington County is currently at about 8 months of inventory. However, Northern Virginia as a whole is at 6 months of inventory.
I have to tell you, i’m very surprised at this number. It definitely does NOT feel like a buyers market in Arlington right now. In February, 47% sold within the first 30 days, 64% sold within the first 60 days, and 15% of all of the February sales sold at or ABOVE list price.
Taking a step back, let’s look at the market above $1M. Only 4 properties in February sold above $1M, and currently there are 133 active/pending properties in this price range. At that rate, it would take 3 YEARS to sell through all of the current inventory. That’s without a doubt a buyers market. Now taking that market out of the inventory calculations brings up down to about 28 weeks, or 7 months, of inventory.
I’m seeing more properties with multiple offers and contract deadlines. We’re seeing more people wave contingencies, yes, if you can believe it, it’s actually happening.
Based on recent sales, observations on the market, etc. it’s hard to really say it’s a buyers market. There really is no way to say you can assume an automatic X% price reduction on the current list price. It’s just not happening in Arlington. Now don’t let me burst your bubble, of course there are things that are overpriced or have been sitting for a while, or that you’re the only one bidding on…those you can try to negotiate.