Weekly Real Estate Market Report for Delmarva - November 1, 2023

Here is the real estate market report for Delmarva for November 1st, 2023. 

We just got through Halloween, and we had a fantastic week. The past week's weather was just absolutely great. We had a fair amount of people in town. We had the Ocean City running festival, which was a great turnout for runners of all different experience levels. A lot of our local communities here embrace it and love to celebrate it. 

So, we have turned the calendar, and we are now into November. Let’s take a quick look at the last seven days to let you know what we have seen in the real estate market.

Worcester County, Maryland, Market Update

In the last 7 days in Worcester County, we have had 62 new listings come on, while we had 53 go under contract. Comparing that to last week, 63 new listings and 46 under contracts, so we've actually added one piece of inventory and then sold more properties here in the last week than we did the week prior. Countywide, 444 active listings, and we're selling 156 a month. That gives us a 2.8-month supply in Worcester County.

Wicomico County, Maryland, Market Update

In Wicomico County, for the week, we had 41 new listings come on while we had 26 go under contract. In the last 7 days, 32 new listings last week while we had 25 go under contract. So we've added some more inventory, while selling the same amount as we did the week prior. There were 191 our total actives in Wicomico County there, and we are moving 81 properties a month. That gives us a 2.3-month supply in Wicomico, which is up just a tad.

Sussex County, Delaware, Market Update

Over at Sussex County, in the last seven days, we had 33 new listings, while we had 118 going under contract. The week prior, we had 16 listings and 131 go under contracts, so a little bit of a difference there. Countywide, we had 1,475 total actives, with 426 selling a month. That's a 3.4-month supply, which is the largest supply we see here on Delmarva.

Interest Rates Update

What is going on with interest rates? Interest rates have been coming down the last few days. The Fed is meeting today; they're wrapping up their meeting, and we will know more as to whether they're going to raise the federal funds rate or keep it where it is. 

Most people are predicting it's going to stay where it is. We'll have to find out here at the end of that meeting, but mortgage interest rates here are averaging 7.75%. That's down from as high as just over 8%, so that's some relief for buyers.

The other thing I want to point out to buyers is that in the next two weeks, we should see our annual peak in inventory. It happens every year just before the holidays. We have a tendency to see inventory peak up a little bit, and then we have more opportunities, more choices for buyers. But as we get closer to the holidays, some people will ultimately take their property off the market. That's not my suggestion as their agent, as I think you can stand out in the holidays, but it just happens every year. 

So, we will now start to see, after the next 7 to 10 days, inventory start to decrease a little bit, and we'll just have to monitor it to see where we go with demand.

If you've been looking for a period of time and you want the most options available, it's going to happen between now and the next 7 to 10 days, is my prediction. Take that with a combination of a little bit lower interest rates, and you might just be able to find the right one. So there you have it. 

That is the market report here for Delmarva. We will see you next week with another edition of the Delmarva real estate market report.