Let me start off by saying that one of the greatest gifts we have is the very roof above our heads. It is a deeply personal space where we feel safe, are honest and, of course, a place for many happy moments. To find that space is a milestone and to change it is a big BIG deal. It’s easy to get caught up in the minutiae or let other’s opinions outweigh your own feelings. That being said, however, being aware of trends + resale value is important. Below I have laid out incredibly easy to digest statistics based on the main counties I serve.
*All of these statistics come directly from the MLS closed sale history from January 2019-December 2019. I chose to use the median sales price for comparison and pulled data from standard sales only (no auction, short sale or REO/Bank-Owned sales).
My ‘in a nutshell recap’ of the 2019 Maryland housing market:
it was bananas.
While interest rates were predicted to rise, they didn’t. On the fence buyers were sent into a tizzy- But- the inventory did not reflect that change in demand and it too remains low like the rates. MEANING: there are a lot of buyers and not a lot of houses. On several occasions this Summer + Fall we were in multiple offer scenarios within the first day or two a property was listed. Even at the end of the year right now, I am under contract on a property we wrote the offer for before it was listed.
it might be a good time to call me if…
- you’ve been in your home a few years and are considering selling: inventory is low right now which means there are more buyers than sellers-that’s good for you!
- you’ve been in your home for a year or two: check your interest rate, refinancing might save you money each month with the current market- that’s good for you!
- you’re on the fence about buying and feel overwhelmed or don’t know where to start: I’d love to chat about your best case scenario- that’s also good for you!
Roughly 225 homes sold over $1M in AACO this year, the highest sale was a cash deal in Annapolis for $4.6M. Within the top 10 cities in Anne Arundel, some of our favorites saw more growth than the County average, specifically: Crofton, Crownsville, Dunkirk, Pasadena and Arnold. In the neighborhood of West Annapolis, the median sale for 2018 was $835,000 and 2019 saw a median sale of $2.8M. In a more modest growth, one that I witnessed first hand, was in the Chelsea Beach + Lake Shore area of Pasadena. From $314,000 median sale in 2018 to finishing the year at $390,000 median sale. HERE are all the homes for sale in Anne Arundel.
It is probably no surprise that the some of the highest median sales in the city happened in Homeland, Rockland Ridge, Harbor East, Canton, Bolton Hill and Locust Point. But what I’m looking at are the neighborhoods that are sneaking into the ranks like Belvedere: 2018 their median home sale was $190,000 and 2019 that number jumped to a median $274,000. Similarly in Hamilton+Lauraville, the median sale 2018 was $175,000 and in 2019 it is $216,000. Just under the City average growth is Parkville with an increase in median sale price by 9.9% – watch that neighborhood 2020! HERE are all the homes for sale in the City.
Something is definitely going on in Stevenson just north of Pikesville outside of the 695 beltway. Not only did they have the highest median sale price of $699,000 but they had a the largest jump of 32.4% from last year’s median $528,000. Now I don’t want to say, ‘I told you so’, but I went on record over a year ago telling people to watch the area around Halethorpe. With a 8.4% increase in media sales to $230,000 they land in the top ten towns within Balt. Co for overall property value growth. A few other honorable mentions that saw higher than average growth: Cockeysville, Sparrows Point, Kingsville and Gywnn Oak. HERE are all the homes for sale in Baltimore County.
The lowest average median sales price in all of Howard County is $290,000- that’s crazy! Glenelg and Clarksville remaining in the top two spots another year with median sales of $804,000 & $765,000. Steady increases across neighborhoods overall without major spikes. This is the consistency that people love about Howard County. For as small as HoCo is, there were nearly 100 homes sold over $1M in 2019. HERE are all the homes for sale in Howard County.
Ok Montgomery County, you win! We get it! Out of the 11,000 sales this year over 1,000 closed for over $1M. Highest sale closed $6.9M. The majority of these sit in Bethesda and Chevy Chase but where might be a good place to invest in this County with a more palatable price…Derwood (median sale up 3.8% to $488,000), Gaithersburg (median sale up 1.2% to $420,000) and Damascus (median sale up 4.4% to $365,000). HERE are all the homes for sale in MoCo.
So you scrolled to the bottom for a synopsis…
- If you want more specifics about your neighborhood or a community someone just told you about email me NOW! Or your next available moment. I really enjoy researching trends and finding out what is moving neighborhoods in various directions.
- Montgomery County continues to lead the area with the highest median sales prices
- Pasadena came out of nowhere with a particularly good year
- Howard County remains stable without freakishly high growth rates in any one particular area
- Baltimore City has pockets of neighborhoods receiving a lot of incentives from the Gov’t and those neighborhoods (Hamilton+Parkville+Lauraville) in particular are reaping the benefit.
