The question every market update tries to answer is this: is it time to buy or time to sell?

We search the data for something that indicates either, or both. Real estate agents talk A LOT about this. What we heard over and over this summer was: it feels like things are slowing down. So, did the Outer Banks real estate market slow this summer and will it continue?

Yes, the number of sold properties decreased and the number of contracts written (and accepted) decreased. Here’s the data. According to September’s numbers, it looks like it was only a typical, seasonal dip. Great news for sellers!

Number of active, under contract and sold property by month since Feb 2021. Provided by OBAR MLS.

 So should a buyer sit out the fall? Are there really not enough listings to go around?

In fact, the number of new listings has been about the same for each month over the previous year, since 2011. As you can see in the graph below, the number of available properties cycles through each year. This number has stayed relatively constant year over year for over 10 years.

Number of properties for sale since August 2004 to date. Provided by OBAR MLS.

It’s not that there are less properties for sale- it’s that there are more buyers interested in the Outer Banks.

It appears it’s a good time to be a seller AND a buyer. A rare cycle in a sales market. But who’s winning? I think the tie-breaker is Days on the Market and it goes to the sellers.

Average days on market since January 2018 to date by month. Provided by OBAR MLS

The amount of time it takes to sell a property has fallen each month since August of 2020. Thanks to years of old inventory finally all being sold off, the current average Days on Market is less than 30 days. We are seeing new inventory moving quickly with no old stale inventory to drag down the average.

Number of properties under contract since January of 2013. Provided by OBAR MLS.

 These are all averages, however. Some markets, like the luxury $1.8M+ is beginning to see some restrictions. Longer days on market and price reductions point to a cooling of the super jumbo market.

For the average-priced seller, values have never been higher. For the average-priced buyer, the fall will produce plenty of prime beach properties to consider- but you better hurry up!