When it came to home sales, October was warmer than September in Alexandria and Fairfax County this year, according to the Northern Virginia Association of Realtors monthly report.
While both months showed declines compared to the same periods in 2006, October sales did not fall as far as they had in September.
Specifically, the slide was 25.03 percent for October, to a total of 1,123 homes sold, compared to 30.70 percent for September, or 1,072 units.
Another indicator showed the same modest improvement. The average number of days on the market was up by 7.23 percent for October, to a total of 89. For September, the rise was 11.84 percent, to 85.
Only the median price showed a steeper decline for October than it had the month before. It was down by 5.20 percent for October, to $435,000, compared to 1.12 percent for September, to $440,000.
September and October sales both fell further than they had in August, although that month had suffered the sharpest drops of the year so far. August sales declined by 15.57 percent to a total of 1,713, as compared to the same month in 2006. The number of days on the market rose by 11.94 percent, to 75. On the other hand, the median sales price for August actually increased, by 3.49 percent to $475,000.