December Market Stats

Hey everyone! Happy 2026! Now that the holiday decorations are put away, it’s time for my favorite tradition: seeing exactly how our local market ended the year.

When you're a real estate agent, people love to talk to you about the market. Lately, I’ve had so many conversations that start with, “Rachel, I heard on the news that the housing market is finally crashing,” or “Aren’t prices supposed to be plummeting by now?”

Well, the truth is that here in our area, the market is like the little engine that could! It just keeps chugging along, steady and strong, regardless of the national headlines.

Let’s look at the numbers: The average home price in December was $510,442. This is a nice jump from both the previous month ($498,226) and last December ($485,910). Despite what you may have heard on the news, prices are not falling here. While we aren’t seeing the wild, overnight spikes of a few years ago, home values are definitely not getting any lower.

Homes are taking a little longer to sell. The average time on the market was 64 days this past month, compared to 58 days in November and 61 days last year. Remember, this is just an overall average! Some neighborhoods are still moving in a heartbeat, while others take a bit more time. That’s why it’s so important to have a local agent who knows the "vibe" of your specific street!

As for the number of homes sold... We had 812 homes close this past month. That is a slight dip from the 885 sales we saw in November, but that’s not surprising at all! Most transactions take about 30 days, and let’s be real—most people are busy opening presents and hosting family in December, not packing moving boxes! Interestingly, we actually outperformed last December, which only had 795 sales. We are ending the year with an improvement!

So, what’s the bottom line for 2026? If you’ve been sitting on the sidelines waiting for a "miracle" drop in prices or rates, I’ll be honest with you: I don't think we're going to see any massive shifts. Rates will hopefully continue a slow downward trend, and prices will likely stay steady.

While there are always unpredictable elements in the economy, I don't see any reason to believe the sky is falling. What I do know is that over a lifetime, real estate is one of the best ways to build wealth. You start building equity the very day you close. So, if you're waiting for the "perfect" moment... what are you waiting for?