October 2025- MLS Report
The High–Country Real Estate Market, which consists of Alleghany, Ashe, Avery, and Watauga counties, saw 237 closed sales on single-family, including condo/ townhouse properties, during October 2025, with a combined closing total of 168.9 million for the month. That combined median sales price for the month was $553,500.
Nationally: First-time buyers have dropped to a record low of 21%. Meanwhile, the average age of first-time buyers climbed to an all-time high of 40 years of age, according to the National Association of Realtors' 2025 Profile of Home Buyers and Sellers.
In turn, the implications for the housing market are staggering because buyers are building less housing wealth. As a result, they’ll likely have fewer moves over a lifetime.
According to McGahn, our focus must be on policies that address the root cause of the affordability crisis: inadequate housing supply. “That means both unlocking existing inventory and enabling new construction.”
Inventory: During the month of October, Alleghany, Ashe, Avery, and Watauga Counties had 1,027 active single-family and condo/ townhouse listings, down by 2.8 % compared to September 2025, with an additional 276 new listings, increased by 23.2% during October 2025, creating a 4.3 month’s supply of inventory.
Land: Alleghany, Ashe, Avery, and Watauga reported a combined closing total of 8.1 million, with sixty-eight land sales during October, and the median land sales price landing at $66,000, which was down 9.6%. There were 1,431 active land inventories, with an additional 139 new listings, resulting in a 21.0 month supply of inventory for October 2025, down 13.9% from this time one year ago.
Commercial: There were five active commercial properties listed in the High-Country Multiple Listings Service during October 2025, and two commercial sales during October totaling just over two million.
Alleghany County: Realtors closed fourteen residential sales in October 2025, a decrease of 36.4% from September 2025. The county’s median sales price for October 2025 was $426,000, up 29.1% compared to September 2025. Currently, there are seventy-six active residential listings, a 7.3% decline from September 2025, with seventeen new listings, which increased by 41.7% from last month. In October 2025, there were five land closings with a median sales price of $30,000, and there were 244 active land listings with sixteen new listings. There is a 48.8 month supply of land in Alleghany County.
Ashe County: Ashe closed at forty-six residential sales in October 2025, with a 12.2% increase from September 2025, with a median sales price reported at $ 470,000, down 8.7 % compared to September 2025. In addition, there were 176 active residential properties in Ashe County with fifty-six new listings, an increase of 7.7% from September 2025. There were twenty-eight land sales, with median sales price was reported at $55,000, with 346 active inventories, with forty-one new listings, down 12.8% for Ashe County in October 2025 compared to last month.
Avery County: Fifty-five residential properties closed in Avery County in October 2025. The median sales price was $532,000 for October 2025, which was up 45.8%. in addition, there were 327 active residential properties in inventory, with seventy-nine new listings, which were up 43.6% in October 2025. There were 325 active residential properties in inventory, with fourteen land sales in October 2025, with a median sales price of $119,500, which represents it being up by 29.2% compared to September 2025. Moreover, there are 325 active listings in inventory, and thirty- five new land listings in Avery County.
Watauga County: Watauga reported 122 property sales in October 2025, an increase of 11.9% from September 2025. The median sales price was $615,000, representing a 1.1% decrease from the previous month. There were 448 active residential properties in inventory, and 124 new listings in October 2025, an 18.1% rise from September 2025. Additionally, there were twenty-one land closings in October 2025, a 32.3% decline from September 2025. However, the median sales price for land was $110,000, a significant 37.5% increase compared to last month. Watauga County had 516 active listings, along with forty-seven new listings in October 2025.
Disclaimer: Figures are based on the High-Country Multiple Listing Service information. Data is for informational purposes only and may not be accurate due to MLS reporting processes. This data reflects a specific point in time and cannot be used in perpetuity due to the fluctuating nature of markets.
Report graphics generated from Domus Analytics pulled from the HCAR Web API feed. HCAR Realtor® members can access these detailed and customizable reports and graphics for professional use by logging into the HCAR dashboard. A public graphic is available on our website homepage at highcountryrealtors.org.