The Winchester / Frederick County, VA real estate market moved sideways in April 2015. There was no radical change in volume of sales, days on the market or average price. The only noticeable change was in distressed properties. There was a 6.3% drop in foreclosures and short sales.
April 2015 saw 124 sales. Of that number, 4 were short sales and 10 were foreclosures. April 2014 had 125 sales. Five of those sales were short sales and 17 were foreclosures. That's a 36% drop in distressed properties year to year. If there is good news in the April 2015 sales, that's it. Fewer homes were distressed, meaning more home sellers were able to sell their homes with profit potential than a year ago.
A better historical view of where the market is may come from April 2013 and April 2015. There were 143 sales in April 2013. Current sales are down 15% from that period, but current distressed sales are down 54%. The market continues to seek equilibrium.
The decline of overall sales in 2014 and 2015 may be attributed to a first quarter of severe weather. The weather does play a major role in the number of overall sales. Often, sellers are not willing to put their homes on the market if there is a chance of potential buyers tracking slush and mud through their homes on a daily basis.
The market does seem to be moving horizontally rather than vertically. May will give a little insight into the health of the market, and with June, we'll have a better idea of where we are on a quarterly basis. The good news is that home sellers are becoming able to sell without the stress of a pending foreclosure or short sale.
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