Median sale prices were up in all but one area of the Hampton Roads real estate market in March, according to the Long & Foster Market Minute reports. The Hampton Roads region includes Chesapeake, Hampton, Newport News, Norfolk and Virginia Beach cities.

The median sale price increased by 14 percent in Newport News City in March, followed by a 9 percent increase in Norfolk City. In Hampton City, the median sale price dipped by 3 percent. A few areas also saw an increase in the number of home sales last month, including the cities of Chesapeake and Norfolk, where sales of homes rose by 4 percent.

The Hampton Roads region continued to see active inventory decline by double digits in March when compared to the same month in 2017. Hampton City saw the smallest decrease, falling by 39 percent, and Chesapeake City saw the largest decrease with a 46 percent drop. Days on market averages in March ranged from 60 days in Chesapeake City to 75 days in Hampton City.

“There’s never been a better time to sell,” said Gary Scott, president of Long & Foster Real Estate. “But the choices of where to go are challenging and there are a lot of different factors impacting inventory. In Hampton Roads in particular, we’ve seen these levels of declining inventory for two years in a row, compounding the lack of homes on the market.”

Scott said one group of homeowners who could benefit significantly by selling is those who became landlords during the recession because they were underwater on their mortgage. Putting their home on the market now would help them maximize the return on their investment.

Some homeowners are trying to maximize the sale of their property by listing it with a discount brokerage, but that could end up costing them more, Scott warns. The barrier to entry to get a real estate license is fairly low, and the cost of discount brokerages is often reflective of the skills and services offered. A home seller may pay a lower commission, but their agent may not be as skilled in negotiations or be as knowledgeable about real estate contracts.

“When hiring a real estate agent, you want to ask them result-oriented questions,” Scott said. “Ask them what percentage of their listings sell, what their list-to-sale price ratios are, as well as the difference between a home’s original price and its sale price. Just because a real estate agent lists a lot of homes doesn’t mean they’ll provide the level of service that’s best for each client.”

The Long & Foster Market Minute is an overview of market statistics based on residential real estate transactions for more than 500 local areas and neighborhoods and over 100 counties in eight states. The easy-to-read, easy-to-share reports include information about each area’s units sold, active inventory, median sale prices, list to sold price ratio, days on market and more.

Information included in this report is based on data supplied by Real Estate Information Network multiple listing service and its member associations of Realtors, which are not responsible for its accuracy. The reports include residential real estate transactions within specific geographic regions, not just Long & Foster sales, and they do not reflect all activity in the marketplace. Information contained in this report is deemed reliable but not guaranteed, should be independently verified, and does not constitute an opinion of REIN or Long & Foster Real Estate.