Hampton Roads Market Check: October 2026
Rates are over 7% and more homes are for sale than at any point in six years
This is the first of a monthly note on the Hampton Roads housing market. Each month we'll track the same handful of numbers, say what we think they mean, and leave it there. We buy, renovate and rent homes across the region, so these are the figures we watch anyway.
The numbers
30-year mortgage rate: 7.40%, up from 6.30% a year ago (Freddie Mac, week of October 8)
Median sale price: $375,000, up 2.7% from last September (REIN, September)
Homes for sale: 6,357, up 16% from a year ago and the most since April 2020
Months of supply: 2.97, up from 2.63 a year ago
Median days on market: 30, up from 27 a year ago
Pending sales: 2,009, down 7% from a year ago
Apartment vacancy in Norfolk and Virginia Beach: under 3% (Marcus & Millichap, second quarter)
What it says
Rates are the story this fall. The 30-year average crossed 7% in late September for the first time since January 2025 and has climbed every week since late August. Buyers feel that right away. Pending sales, the best early read on where closings are headed, fell 7% from last September even with more homes to choose from.
Supply is the other half. There are more homes listed in Hampton Roads than at any point in six years, and they're sitting a few days longer. Three months of supply still isn't a buyer's market by the usual rule of thumb, where six months is the line most people use, but it's the most room buyers have had here in a long time. Prices haven't cracked. The regional median is up 2.7% year over year, with Virginia Beach leading the major cities at 8.4% and Suffolk the only one down, at 3.3%.
Rentals tell a different story. Apartment vacancy in Norfolk and Virginia Beach is below 3% according to Marcus & Millichap's mid-year report, and older Class C buildings are under 2%. When a mortgage costs more than 7%, a lot of people who would have bought keep renting instead, and that shows up as steady demand for well-kept rentals.
For us it means patience on purchases and attention on the rental side. More inventory and longer days on market give a buyer room to negotiate, and tight vacancy supports the homes we hold. We'd rather buy the right house a few months late than the wrong one on time.
We'll post this update each month after REIN releases its numbers. If you'd like it in your inbox, sign up below.
Sources: Freddie Mac Primary Mortgage Market Survey (October 8, 2026); Real Estate Information Network (REIN) September 2026 market report; Marcus & Millichap Norfolk-Virginia Beach Multifamily Market Report, 2Q 2026.
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