The local real estate market kicked off 2025 with higher prices and total sold volume, but slightly fewer sales and a lot more homes on the market against a backdrop of uncertainty with the potential for major changes in the federal workforce. Total sold dollar volume was up over 9%, coming in at approximately $167.1 million compared to just under $153 million for January of 2024. That increase was fueled by a nearly 7% year-over-year median price increase with the January median price settling at $462,000 compared to $432,000 last year. The pace of sales cooled very slightly with a less than 2% decrease in units sold this past month. The market saw 319 properties transacted compared to 324 properties last January.
Days on market, the time it takes from when a listing enters the market until it receives a ratified contract and is removed from active status on the multiple listing service stayed nearly static from last year, going from 39 days last January to 38 days this year. Nearly a third of homes on the market sold in 10 days or less.
Active listings showed significant improvement from last year with exactly 800 homes on the market at the end of January 2025 compared to 634 last year, a more than 26% increase. New listings and new pending contracts were down in January, with a 9% and 5% drop respectively. January of 2024 saw 467 new listings on the market compared to 427 this year and 383 pending contracts compared to 363 for this year.
“We’ve all seen first-hand over the past couple of years how interest rates have had a significant effect on our real estate market,” comments FAAR Board Member Meghan Kala. “Not only are potential buyers feeling the squeeze on what they can afford, but many sellers are hesitant to sell. I think many consumers have been waiting for significant relief on interest rates but now have realized that’s not happening. I believe that we will see sales start to rise in our area as we enter the typically busy spring market. Home prices are increasing in our region at a steady pace, however, overpriced homes are no longer flying off the market. There has been some much-needed pullback on prices as it’s just not sustainable. Many buyers have been able to negotiate a better deal on their contracts, and sellers are being a lot more deliberate and preparatory in their listing process. Even though the lack of inventory is still very real, which keeps us in this perpetual sellers’ market, there’s a lot more balance right now which I find to be positive as we enter spring.”
