Virginia home sales down sharply in May: Signs of rebound on horizon?

The overall number of home sales in Virginia dropped sharply in May, but there may be a silver lining inside the numbers.

Homes sold in average in 38 days, nine days faster than homes were selling in May 2019, according to the May 2020 Home Sales Report released by Virginia REALTORS®.

There were 10,411 total sales statewide in May 2020, down 20.5 percent from a year ago. Sales activity was down in regions throughout the state, with the biggest drop in the Northern region.

The inventory of available homes across the Commonwealth also continued to drop. At the end of May 2020, there was a total of 26,828 active listings throughout Virginia, down nearly 14,000 compared to the end of May 2019, a decline of 34 percent.

This downward trend in inventory has occurred over the past few years, illustrating that the constrained housing market is also a result of continued low housing inventories, not solely due to COVID-19 and the economic downturn.

As Virginia moves to Phase Three of the reopening from COVID-19, there is an expectation that the market could be poised for a rebound.

“This will create a sense of confidence among both buyers and sellers, which should increase market activity in June,” says Virginia REALTORS® Chief Economist Lisa Sturtevant, PhD. “Also, the strong demand in the market that we saw prior to COVID-19 will still be present. Those who delayed purchasing their home this spring will be back in the market this summer.”