The Virginia housing market, by the numbers.
Median sale price, days on market, and what a traditional sale really costs a Virginia seller — every figure on this page comes from the source cited next to it.
- Median sale price: $499,000
- Median days on market: 28
- Typical selling costs: ~6.6% of the price
- Foreclosure timeline: 2 to 4 months
Planning a Virginia sale?
This page is a free educational snapshot — no signup, nothing to fill out.
The headline numbers.
Each figure comes from the source cited under it. Medians describe the middle of the Virginia market, not any specific house.
| Virginia metric | Value | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Median sale price | $499,000 | Redfin state market tracker, May 2026 |
| Median days on market | 28 days | Redfin state market tracker, May 2026 |
| Average agent commission | 5.5% (≈ $27,445) | Clever, Feb 2026 survey (state avg) |
| Seller closing costs | 1% (≈ $4,990) | Redfin national est., May 2026 (low end of 1-3% range excl. commission, transfer tax itemized separately) |
| Seller transfer tax | 0.1% (≈ $499) | VA grantor tax $0.50/$500, seller-paid; buyer-paid recordation taxes excluded (HomeLight, Jan 2025) |
Data updated: September 2026
Selling the traditional way in Virginia: the math.
The same arithmetic an agent would run at your kitchen table, worked on the Virginia median sale price.
How to read this: on the $499,000 median sale, the traditional route leaves roughly $466,066 before loan payoff, repairs, and the holding costs (effective property tax ~0.82%/yr per the Tax Foundation, plus insurance and utilities) that stack up while you wait about 28 days on market. These are estimates worked on the Virginia median; your actual costs vary by county, property, and buyer.
The cost of waiting: Virginia's effective property-tax rate runs about 0.82% a year (Tax Foundation). Worked on the $499,000 median home, that's roughly $4,092 a year in property tax — call it $314 accrued across the 28-day (about 4-week) median wait for a traditional sale, before insurance and utilities, and on top of the selling costs above. The longer a Virginia listing sits past the median, the bigger that carrying cost grows.
The Virginia foreclosure clock.
Virginia uses a non-judicial foreclosure process, and a typical case runs 2 to 4 months — that window is how much real time an owner has to catch up, refinance, or sell.
How long it really takes: PRACTITIONER ESTIMATE (not statutory): Virginia is one of the fastest foreclosure states. Federal rules (12 C.F.R. §1024.41) generally bar starting foreclosure until 120+ days delinquent; after that, the 60-day owner-occupied notice plus 2-4 weeks of advertising can complete a sale in as little as 60-90 days. Total from first missed payment to sale: roughly 6-8 months, sometimes faster.
Primary statute: Va. Code §55.1-320 et seq.. This is general information, not legal advice — confirm the specifics with a local attorney.
If you need to sell fast.
The numbers above describe the traditional route in Virginia: roughly 6.6% of the price in selling costs and about 28 days of waiting before a financed buyer even closes. When time is the real problem — a foreclosure date, back taxes, a move that can't wait — some owners trade part of the headline price for speed and certainty by selling as-is to a cash buyer.
Your cash option: You can request offers on Virginia houses sold as-is — no repairs, no commissions, no fees to you. Requesting offers is free, and you decide what happens next.
See what the Virginia numbers mean for your house.
Compare the traditional math above with a fast as-is sale — free tools, sourced data, and a timeline you control.
Selling fast in Virginia →