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Fairfax County’s spring housing market gained momentum in May, with more closings and higher prices lifting residential sales volume to $1.32 billion.
A total of 1,427 properties closed during the month, an 11.7% increase from 1,278 in May 2025, according to preliminary Bright MLS data reported June 10 by MarketStats by ShowingTime. Overall sales volume was reported up 17% year over year, compared with $1.28 billion a year earlier.
The countywide average sales price reached $940,507, rising 5.7% from the previous May. Prices increased across every major housing category.
Detached single-family homes sold for an average of $1,222,684, up 7.1%. The average for attached properties, including townhouses and condominiums, climbed 3.2% to $586,999. Condominiums alone averaged $431,752, a 1% increase.
Detached homes accounted for 53% of the county’s May transactions, down slightly from 56% one year earlier.
The average price per square foot rose from $370 to $378, edging above the year-to-date average of $377.
Homes that closed in May spent an average of 14 days on the market, matching last year’s pace. They sold for an average of 100.9% of their listing prices, up from 100.1% in May 2025.
The market also ended the month with 1,453 pending sales, an increase of 10.3%. Pending contracts generally become completed transactions within one or two months.
Active listings totaled 1,810 at the end of May, 2.4% more than a year earlier.
Fairfax City moves in the opposite direction
The City of Fairfax recorded 27 home sales in May, down from 39 in the same month last year.
Despite the decline in transactions, the city’s overall average sales price increased 4% to $811,882. Single-family homes averaged $931,061, up 3.3%.
Fewer closings pushed total sales volume down 28% to $21.65 million. Pending sales also fell sharply, dropping 43% to 35.
Washington region sets price records
Across the Washington metropolitan area, the median sales price reached a record $680,000 in May. The median price for a single-family home also set a record at $900,000.
Lisa Sturtevant, chief economist for Bright MLS, described the region as two distinct markets. Higher-income buyers are helping drive single-family prices upward while inventory remains limited, she said, but fewer first-time and moderate-income buyers are participating.
Townhouse and condominium shoppers may have more negotiating power because inventory in those segments is expanding, Sturtevant said.
Even with fewer new listings, regional buyer activity remained strong. Closed sales increased 8.7% from a year earlier to 5,207, while the median time needed to sell a home held steady at eight days.
The figures cover most, but not all, homes offered for sale. May 2026 data remain preliminary and may be revised.