Big Lick Home Buyers reports 7.6% fall in Roanoke Valley third-quarter sales

Big Lick Home Buyers has released its Roanoke housing update, reporting that residential sales in the Roanoke Valley Association of REALTORS MLS area fell 7.6% year on year in the third quarter of 2026. The company cited 1,369 sales between July and September, down from 1,481 in the same period of 2025, while September’s average sale price increased 1.5%.

The figures present a mixed local housing signal: transaction activity weakened, but the average price recorded for homes sold in September remained higher than a year earlier. For sellers and buyers, the divergence can mean that fewer completed transactions do not necessarily coincide with lower prices for every type of property.

September recorded 430 residential sales, compared with 434 a year earlier, according to the announcement. The average sale price was $390,516, against $384,718 in September 2025.

What do the Roanoke Valley sales figures mean for sellers and buyers?

An average sale price is calculated by dividing the combined value of completed sales by the number of sales. It can rise or fall as the types of properties sold change, including the relative share of higher-value homes. Big Lick noted that the September average reflects that sales mix, so the increase alone does not establish a broad rise in values across all Roanoke Valley homes.

Seth Redman, the company’s founder, described the figures as evidence of slower sales activity without a general price decline. The data in the update cover the association’s MLS reporting area, rather than an individual neighbourhood or property category.

The contrast between lower volumes and a resilient average price may leave pricing, condition and timing more central to local real-estate decisions. A homeowner considering a conventional listing can compare recent nearby sales of properties in similar condition with the likely cost of preparing a home for sale. For vacant or inherited homes, holding costs can include mortgage payments, taxes, insurance and utilities during the marketing period.

Big Lick is a Roanoke-based real-estate investment company that buys residential properties directly from homeowners in the Roanoke Valley and other Virginia markets. Its direct home-purchase service in Virginia offers an alternative to listing through an agent.

The company recommends comparing anticipated seller proceeds under different routes to sale, including repairs, fees, carrying costs, proposed closing dates and conditions that may affect completion. Its website says that qualifying properties may receive a cash offer within 24 hours and could close in as little as seven days; those are company projections and depend on the property and transaction.