Spectacular Charlottesville Virginia Real Estate

The Charlottesville Virginia real estate market has taken a decided shift away from the seller's market of the recent past to a buyer's market in 2007 and the first quarter of 2008.

Unlike many areas nationwide that have seen dramatic downturns in the market in the past year, Charlottesville real estate has remained steady despite the shift in focus, with a positive increase in certain key areas like median selling price highlighting the potential and attractiveness of the Charlottesville area for buyers and investors.

Despite dramatic reductions in the home sales of surrounding areas throughout the first quarter of 2008 as compared to the first quarter last year, Charlottesville home sales have remained solid, with a drop of just 7% from the first quarter of last year.

Coupled with a 12% increase in median sale price, this highlights a trend that has been seen in other markets as well, as higher priced homes continue to perform well, being less affected by the mortgage crisis nationwide.

This is not an indication that prices for Charlottesville Virginia homes are increasing, as the market has generally stabilized in the light of greater competition for sales.

This is more than evidenced by the fact that homes for sale in Charlottesville have increased nearly 20%, and the average amount of days on the market for these homes before being sold has increased a whopping 250% over the first quarter last year, a year which was also the previous high mark for the past 5 years.

The quick turnaround from a red hot seller's market to a buyer's market has left sellers scrambling and prices higher than many Charlottesville homes dictate.

This should lead to steady decreases in home prices throughout the remainder of the year, especially on homes valued at under $300,000, putting Charlottesville Virginia real estate buyers in a great position of both quantity and quality.

When home prices fall to more reasonable figures in line with current market conditions, we should see the number of homes for sale level out and drop, with Charlottesville property reaching a steady middle ground between the seller's market of the past and the buyer's market of the present.

There's certainly no better time to be in a position to buy Charlottesville VA real estate.

Right now, the Charlottesville home market IS flooded (as seen on our local Charlottesville mls), many of which have been on the market for a long time and sellers are reaching the point where they have no choice but to drop the prices on their properties to compete. If you can wait out this process as a buyer, you'll be in a great position to get a sterling deal on Charlottesville homes.

Sellers in this tough market have two choices. They need to either quickly adapt to the trends and take advantage while other home sellers remain stubborn, or endeavour to wait out the buyer's market and hang on to their property for the time being.

Just remember that though you may be forced to sell lower than you would have in the past, you can also buy lower as well.

There are plenty of deals to be found for the shrewd Charlottesville area real estate dealer in any market conditions.