Redfin Has Two of the Top Ten Buyers’ Agents

November was another great month for our DC-area agents!

Of the 4,900+ buyers’ agents in the Baltimore-DC region who closed at least one deal, Taylor Connolly is #2 and we have two agents in the top ten:

Five more of our Baltimore-Washington, DC area agents closed deals in November:

When you work with Redfin, you get great customer service while working with some of the best agents in the Baltimore-Washington, DC region. Our agents know what’s going on in the market right now because they spend all of their time serving clients: touring homes, writing offers and closing deals.

We pulled these numbers from MRIS, the database for real estate transactions and listings for Baltimore-Washington, DC region, and ranked agents who represented home-buyers of single-family homes and condominiums in November based first on number of deals, then by total dollar amount.

Our Clients Love Our Service

We survey every client and track every transaction in a central customer database. For the surveys we received in November from our clients in the Baltimore-Washington, DC area:

• 63 clients responded to our customer-satisfaction survey and posted a review online, up from 46 in October.
• 63 of those clients, or 100%, would recommend Redfin to a friend, up from 98% in October.

In these surveys, we ask customers to rate the likelihood that they would recommend Redfin to a friend on a 0-to-10 scale. Customers who rated 6 or higher count as people who would recommend Redfin to a friend. To learn more about how we survey our clients and calculate the customer ratings, check out our FAQ on agent reviews.

The October Market Wrap Up

Let’s take at look at the numbers for single-family homes and condos that sold between $100,000 and $5,000,000 in October and see how they compare to a year ago.

Washington, DC

• 582 homes sold, up from 414 in October 2008
• The median sales price was $380,000, down from $394,450 in October 2008
• The average days on market for homes sold was 91 days, up from 77 days in October 2008
• On average, homes sold at 93.36% of the list price, in October 2008 it was 92.67%

Fairfax County, Fairfax City, Arlington County, Alexandria City & Falls Church City, VA

• 1,604 homes sold, up from 1,457 in October 2008
• The median sales price was $356,800, down from $359,000 in October 2008
• The average days on market for homes sold was 58 days, down from 94 days in October 2008
• On average, homes sold at 94.56% of the list price, in October 2008 it was 92.21%

Montgomery County

• 942 homes sold, up from 678 in October 2008
• The median sales price was $330,000, down from $370,000 in October 2008
• The average days on market for homes sold was 80 days, down from 116 days in October 2008
• On average, homes sold at 92.52% of the list price, in October 2008 it was 91.20%

Prince George’s County

• 710 homes sold, up from 408 in October 2008
• The median sales price was $210,000, down from $260,000 in October 2008
• The average days on market for homes sold was 122 days, down from 136 days in October 2008
• On average, homes sold at 89.37% of the list price, in October 2008 it was 88.00%

Greater Baltimore: Anne Arundel, Baltimore City & County, Carroll, Harford, Howard

• 2,219 homes sold, up from 1,631 in October 2008
• The median sales price was $235,000, down from $252,900 in October 2008
• The average days on market for homes sold was 117 days, down from 125 days in October 2008
• On average, homes sold at 91.09% of the list price, in October 2008 it was 90.52%

We pulled the numbers in this post from MRIS.

Dig Deeper Into the Trends

These numbers county-level trends. To see what’s happening in your neighborhood, check out our stats & trends pages.

Redfin Has Five Agents In The Top 3%

October was another great month for our DC-area agents. Of the 5,300+ buyers’ agents in the DC area who closed a deal in October, Taylor Connolly is number three and we have four agents in the top 3%:

When you work with Redfin, you’ll be working with some of the best agents in the Baltimore-Washington, DC region. Our agents know what’s going on in the market right now because they spend all of their time serving clients: touring homes, writing offers and closing deals.

We pulled these numbers from MRIS, the database for real estate transactions and listings for Baltimore-Washington, DC region, and ranked agents who represented home-buyers of single-family homes and condominiums in October based first on number of deals, then by total dollar amount.

Our Clients Love Our Service

We survey every client and track every transaction in a central customer database. For the surveys we received in October from our clients in the Baltimore-Washington, DC area:

• 46 clients responded to our customer-satisfaction survey and posted a review online, down from 51 in September.
• 45 of those clients, or 98%, would recommend Redfin to a friend, up from 96% in September.

In these surveys, we ask customers to rate the likelihood that they would recommend Redfin to a friend on a 0-to-10 scale. Customers who rated 6 or higher count as people who would recommend Redfin to a friend.

The $8,000 Home-Buyer Tax Credit Has Been Extended & Expanded

Earlier today, President Obama signed new legislation extending the deadline for the home buyer tax credit into 2010 and expanding it to include current home owners who are looking to buy a primary residence.

The Basic Requirements

You qualify for the tax credit if the:

• Home you’re buying will be your primary residence
• Purchase price isn’t more than $800,000

This credit is not a loan; it’s yours, but keep in mind you have to live in your new home for three years. If you sell the home in less than three years, you’ll have to pay back the money.

What’s Changed?

With the new legislation, buyers have more time to find a home and more buyers are eligible for the tax credit:

• New deadline: To qualify, you need to be in contract with a seller by April 30th & close on the home by June 30th (The previous deadline was November 30, 2009).
• Not just for first-time buyers anymore: Home buyers who’ve owned and occupied a home for at least five consecutive years during the past eight years are eligible for a credit up to $6,500.
• Increased income limits: Individuals making less than $125,000 and couples making less than $225,000 are eligible (The limits used to be $75K & $150K).

First-time buyers are eligible for a credit up to $8,000 on homes purchased between January 1, 2009 and June 30, 2010. Qualified homeowners can a credit up to $6,500 on homes purchased between November 7, 2009 and June 30, 2010.

Bonus Link

You can check out the full text of the bill. Scroll about halfway down to sections 11 & 12:

• Sec. 11. Extension and Modification of First-Time Homebuyer Tax Credit.
• Sec. 12. Provisions to Enhance the Administration of the First-Time Homebuyer Tax Credit.

Market Update for September

Let’s take at look at the numbers for single-family homes and condos that sold between $100,000 and $5,000,000 in September in the Baltimore-Washington, DC region and see how they compare to a year ago.

Washington, DC

• 552 homes sold, up from 409 in September 2008
• The median sales price was $371,568, down from $389,900 in September 2008
• The average days on market for homes sold was 94 days, up from 82 days in September 2008
• On average, homes sold at 91.78% of the list price, in September 2008 it was 93.78%

Fairfax County, Fairfax City, Arlington County, Alexandria City & Falls Church City, VA

• 1,684 homes sold, up from 1,650 in September 2008
• The median sales price was $375,000, up from $348,250 in September 2008
• The average days on market for homes sold was 63 days, down from 93 days in September 2008
• On average, homes sold at 94.67% of the list price, in September 2008 it was 92.56%

Montgomery County

• 859 homes sold, up from 768 in September 2008
• The median sales price was $330,000, down from $350,000 in September 2008
• The average days on market for homes sold was 83 days, down from 101 days in September 2008
• On average, homes sold at 91.50% of the list price, in September 2008 it was 91.31%

Prince George’s County

• 662 homes sold, up from 546 in September 2008
• The median sales price was $212,925, down from $266,000 in September 2008
• The average days on market for homes sold was 133 days, down from 141 days in September 2008
• On average, homes sold at 88.54% of the list price, in September 2008 it was 89.98%

Greater Baltimore: Anne Arundel, Baltimore City & County, Carroll, Harford, Howard

• 2,117 homes sold, up from 1,931 in September 2008
• The median sales price was $236,000, down from $255,000 in September 2008
• The average days on market for homes sold was 116 days, down from 124 days in September 2008
• On average, homes sold at 90.81% of the list price, in September 2008 it was 90.03%

We pulled the numbers in this post from MRIS.

Dig Deeper Into the Trends

These numbers county-level trends. To see what’s happening in your neighborhood, check out our stats & trends pages.

Redfin Has Four Agents In The Top 2%

September was another great month for our DC-area agents. Of the 5,200+ buyers’ agents in the DC area who closed a deal in September, Taylor Connolly is number two and we have four agents in the top 2%:

When you work with Redfin, you’ll be working with some of the best agents in the Baltimore-Washington, DC region. Our agents know what’s going on in the market right now because they spend all of their time serving clients: touring homes, writing offers and closing deals.

We pulled these numbers from MRIS, the database for real estate transactions and listings for Baltimore-Washington, DC region, and ranked agents who represented home-buyers of single-family homes and condominiums in August based first on number of deals, then by total dollar amount.

Our Clients Love Our Service

We survey every client and track every transaction in a central customer database. For the surveys we received in September from our clients in the Baltimore-Washington, DC area:

• 51 clients responded to our customer-satisfaction survey and posted a review online, down from 61 in August.
• 49 of those clients, or 96%, would recommend Redfin to a friend, up from 95% in August.

In these surveys, we ask customers to rate the likelihood that they would recommend Redfin to a friend on a 0-to-10 scale. Customers who rated 6 or higher count as people who would recommend Redfin to a friend.

The Market Wrap-Up For August

Let’s take at look at the numbers for single-family homes and condos that sold between $100,000 and $5,000,000 in August in metro Washington, DC and see how they compare to a year ago.

Washington, DC

• 602 homes sold, up from 501 in August 2008
• The median sales price was $365,000, down from $395,000 in August 2008
• The average days on market for homes sold was 85 days, up from 80 days in August 2008
• On average, homes sold at 92.49% of the list price, in August 2008 it was 92.33%

Fairfax County, Fairfax City, Arlington County, Alexandria City & Falls Church City, VA

• 1,813 homes sold, up from 1,812 in August 2008
• The median sales price was $395,000, up from $389,000 in August 2008
• The average days on market for homes sold was 63 days, down from 87 days in August 2008
• On average, homes sold at 94.65% of the list price, in August 2008 it was 92.88%

Montgomery County

• 967 homes sold, up from 787 in August 2008
• The median sales price was $355,000, down from $408,000 in August 2008
• The average days on market for homes sold was 85 days, down from 99 days in August 2008
• On average, homes sold at 91.41% of the list price, in August 2008 it was 91.22%

Prince George’s County

• 638 homes sold, up from 430 in August 2008
• The median sales price was $216,500, down from $280,000 in August 2008
• The average days on market for homes sold was 133 days, up from 132 days in August 2008
• On average, homes sold at 88.33% of the list price, in August 2008 it was 89.89%

Greater Baltimore: Anne Arundel, Baltimore City & County, Carroll, Harford, Howard

• 2,144 homes sold, up from 2,047 in August 2008
• The median sales price was $250,000, down from $275,000 in August 2008
• The average days on market for homes sold was 120 days, up from 115 days in August 2008
• On average, homes sold at 90.65% of the list price, in August 2008 it was 91.41%

We pulled the numbers in this post from MRIS.

Dig Deeper Into the Trends

These numbers county-level trends. To see what’s happening in your neighborhood, check out our stats & trends pages.

What Other People Said

Keith’s posts at DC Home and Condo Prices are always insightful and a great place for people looking for data-rich analyses of the market. Check out his preliminary analysis of the August numbers.

Check out Annys Shin’s first-hand account in the Washington Post of selling her Petworth rowhouse and buying in Silver Spring.

What trends did you see in August?

46% of Offers Are On Homes With Multiple Offers

In August, our agents presented 63 bids on homes for sales and 29 of them, or 46%, were on homes with at least one other offer.

Marshall Park, the #2 ranked buyers’ agent in metro DC, is seeing a lot of multiple offer situations especially Falls Church and Fairfax:

Right now, homes in the $250,000 – $350,000 range that are priced well and show well are getting a lot of attention from buyers and going under contract quickly. Anything that is still on the market in this price range over 30 days is either overpriced or it doesn’t show well.

In previous years, the real estate market has cooled as the summer winds down and school starts. We’re not seeing that in the DC region this year and Marshall believes there are three reasons for this:

1. A lot of first-time buyers in the market hoping to buy before November 30th so they qualify for the federal tax credit
2. Sellers have a better understanding of the market and are pricing their homes closer to market value
3. Buyers have seen pretty much everything that’s for sale in their price bands and target neighborhoods, so when something nice gets listed it’s going to get a multiple bids

3 Tips For Buyers

Marshall has three pieces of advice for you anyone trying to buy a home in Northern Virginia:

1. Know what’s for sale: so you’re ready to pounce when you see something you like.
2. Bring your strongest offer: so sellers know you’re serious from the start. If you start too low, they might not even counter your offer.
3. Expect to bid on more than one home. Right now, it’s taking most buyers 1 -2 failed offers before they win one.

For more numbers, download the spreadsheet with the data on what happened in August.

Where else are you seeing multiple offer situations?

Our Agents Are In The Top 4% Of Buyers’ Agents

August was another great month for our DC-area agents. Of the 5,200+ buyers’ agents in the DC area who closed a deal in August, Marshall and Taylor are in the top ten and all of our agents are in the top 4%:

When you work with Redfin, you’ll be working with some of the best agents in the metro Washington, DC region. Our DC agents know what’s going on in the market right now because they spend all of their time serving clients: touring homes, writing offers and closing deals.

We pulled these numbers from MRIS, the database for real estate transactions and listings for metro Washington, DC region, and ranked agents who represented home-buyers of single-family homes and condominiums in August based first on number of deals, then by total dollar amount.

Our Clients Love Our Service

We survey every client and track every transaction in a central customer database. For the surveys we received in August from our clients in the metro Washington, DC area:

• 61 clients responded to our customer-satisfaction survey and posted a review online, up from 33 in July.
• 58 of those clients, or 95%, would recommend Redfin to a friend, up from 94% in June.

In these surveys, we ask customers to rate the likelihood that they would recommend Redfin to a friend on a 0-to-10 scale. Customers who rated 6 or higher count as people who would recommend Redfin to a friend.

First-Time Buyer Hoping To Get The $8,000 Tax Credit? You Have Three Weeks To Find A Home

The federal government is offering first-time home-buyers a tax credit of 10% of a home’s sales price up to $8,000. To qualify you must close on a home by November 30th; if you close on December 1st, you’re out of luck.

If you’re a first-time buyer in metro Washington, DC, you have just over three weeks left to find a home, make an offer and negotiate terms if you hope to close in time to get the $8,000 tax credit.

Close By November 13th

In a normal month, about 20% of closings slip from the last week of a month to the next. This number will almost certainly be higher in November due to the expected rush of buyers trying to get the tax credit and because November 30th falls on the Monday after Thanksgiving this year.

If you’re hoping to get the tax credit, you want to make sure you’ve closed before the week of Thanksgiving because it’s not a full work week:

• Thursday, November 26th: Turkey day. A day to give thanks and watch the Detroit Lions go for six Thanksgiving Day losses in a row.
• Friday , November 27th: Unofficial holiday. Everybody is recovering from their day of gluttony.
• Saturday & Sunday, November 28th & 29th: The banks aren’t open so you can’t close.
• Monday, November 30th: The last day to close and qualify for the first-time buyer tax credit. It’s going to be a goat rodeo.

To give yourself the best chance of getting the tax credit, plan on closing by November 13th. If you run into any problems during closing, you’ll have more than a week to work things out and still qualify for the tax credit.

Get An Offer Accepted By October 1st

Right now, it’s taking our DC-area clients an average of 43 days to close once they reach initial agreement on terms. This means if you want to close by November 13th, you need to get an offer accepted by October 1st. That’s a little more than three weeks away.

For more information, check out the Home Buyer Tax Credit FAQ from the IRS and get all the details about the tax credit from the agency giving the credit. Also, check out the report that this program may be extended.

Find A Home You Like

Don’t rush into a purchase. Make sure you’re buying because you’ve found a home you want to live in, not because you want the $8,000. You don’t want to end up in the wrong house in the wrong neighborhood with the wrong commute just for a few thousand dollars.