Ask Eli: Cost of new construction homes in Northern Virginia

This regularly scheduled sponsored Q&A column is written by Eli Tucker, Arlington-based Realtor and Arlington resident. Please submit your questions to him via email for response in future columns. Video summaries of some articles can be found on YouTube on the Ask Eli, Live With Jean playlist. Enjoy!

Question: How has the cost of new construction single-family homes changed over the last few years?

Answer: First, thank you to everybody who voted in last week’s poll to decide how we would donate to locate charities. Arlington Food Assistance Center (AFAC) received almost 2/3 of the vote and thus a donation of nearly $1,000 to help feed our neighbors in need. Now on to this week’s real estate topic…

The cost of a single-family home has skyrocketed locally and nationwide, with the average cost of a single-family home in Northern Virginia increasing 31.6% from October 2019 to October 2021. This data includes resales of existing homes and new construction, with the majority of the sales being resales. Let’s take a specific look at how the cost of a new single-family home in Northern Virginia has changed over the last three years (hint: they also got much more expensive!).

A few quick notes about the data:

• The data is limited to what has been entered into the MLS (Realtor database of record) and not all new construction makes it into the MLS, but the majority does and thus gives us an accurate reading of the market
• Northern Virginia aggregate totals includes Arlington, Fairfax, Loudoun and Prince William Counties plus the Alexandria, Falls Church, Fairfax and Manassas Cities
• In the table below Alexandria, Falls Church, Fairfax and Manassas refer to the County, not City, portions

Here are some highlights from the data I reviewed:

• The average cost of a new single-family home in Northern Virginia increased a staggering 25.9% to an average sold price over $1.6M from 2019 to 2021
• The biggest increase from the localities I reviewed was in Aldie, which increased 37.5% to an average cost over $1.25M from 2019 to 2021
• The most expensive County for a new single-family home is Arlington, coming in at an average sold price just over $2M in 2021, trailed only slightly by Fairfax County, with an average sold price about $100,000 less than Arlington
• The best value, on a price per square foot basis, for new construction in 2021 is in Manassas ($173/SqFt) and Dumfries ($183/SqFt) and the least value, on price per square foot, is McLean ($380/SqFt) and Arlington ($379/SqFt)

If you are interested in learning more about new construction options in Northern VA or the DC Metro, feel free to email me at [email protected].

If you’d like a question answered in my weekly column or to discuss buying, selling, renting, or investing, please send an email to [email protected]. To read any of my older posts, visit the blog section of my website at EliResidential.com. Call me directly at 703-539-2529.

Video summaries of some articles can be found on YouTube on the Ask Eli, Live With Jean playlist.

Eli Tucker is a licensed Realtor in Virginia, Washington DC, and Maryland with RLAH Real Estate, 4040 N Fairfax Dr #10C Arlington VA 22203. 703-390-9460.