Author: Scott McCaffrey

Fairfax County’s jobless rate declined slightly from August to September, part of a regional trend that saw little to no month-over-month movement up or down.

With 649,140 employed in the civilian workforce and 17,187 looking for jobs, the county’s unemployment rate was 2.6 percent for September, according to figures reported Nov. 1 by the Virginia Employment Commission.

Apartment-seekers in Tysons had to pay slightly more, in October, than was the case a year before, according to new data.

The median rent of $1,839 for a one-bedroom unit and $1,817 for two bedrooms in Tysons in October was effectively unchanged from a month before but was up 1.1 percent from a year ago, according to new data reported Oct. 31 by Apartment List.

Mexico’s return to the highest Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) safety level is likely to aid the Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority’s efforts to lure additional traffic to and from the U.S.’s neighbor to its south.

Dividends already are being reaped, as Aeromexico has announced plans to bring daily service from Mexico City to Washington Dulles International Airport starting next year.

Options for home-buyers across the GazetteLeader swath of Fairfax County remain constrained, and as a result, their interest level was equally limited in September, according to new data.

Every single ZIP code in the coverage area showed low levels of buyer interest for the month, as the market segued from summer to fall.

The 2023 “Raise the Region Gala,” held Oct. 13 to support the Community Foundation for Northern Virginia, brought in $770,000 to support the organization’s mission.

“Our theme for the event was renewal, as every community, and everything in it, must be continuously renewed and reimagined,” said Eileen Ellsworth, the organization’s president/CEO.

More than $275,000 for student scholarships and other initiatives was raised during the annual “ARTS by George!” celebration, sponsored by the George Mason University College of Visual and Performing Arts.

The benefit was headlined by Grammy and Tony award winner Renée Elise Goldsberry, also supported the Mason Community Arts Academy, Green Machine Ensembles and the Great Performances at Mason season at the Center for the Arts.

Autumnal cooling occurred across the local region’s homes market for the week ending Oct. 15.

That’s according to Bright MLS, which reported that the 1,112 new listings represented a decline of 9.4 percent from a week before and were down 14.4 percent from a year ago.

Sales were down year-over-year owing to affordability and availability issues across Fairfax County, but those homes that did sell in September moved quickly from listing to ratified contract, according to new data.

Despite the briskness, the sluggish market resulted in a 20-percent year-to-year drop in overall market volume for the month.

It may not be an indication that a bubble is about to pop, but for the first time in six months, the average sales price of single-family homes across Fairfax County fell below $1 million in September.

The dropoff between August and September was 11 percent, with the average sales price of the 385 single-family homes going to closing last month standing at $993,138. In August, the average had been an all-time high of $1,122,304.

New listings were up slightly but other indicators were down across the region’s home-sales market for the week ending Oct. 8.

That’s according to Bright MLS, which reported that the 1,228 new listings represented an increase of 3.1 percent from the week before, albeit remaining 7 percent below the same period a year ago.