REALTORS® around the lake agree that 2025 has been a challenging year for real estate sales.  The shortage of listings priced under one-million dollars continues as buyers wait eagerly to find affordable lake property.  Some buyers have already priced out of the waterfront home market.

In the first nine months of 2025 there were 136 waterfront homes sold, averaging $928,897 each totaling $126,330,021 in dollar sales.  The 2025 average price was up 13.05% compared to the same period in 2024. The median price of a waterfront home on Lake Gaston sold for $850,000 in 2025 compared to $752,500 in the same nine months of 2024. The total dollar sales of waterfront homes are up 18.26% in the first nine months of 2025 compared to the same time in 2024.

Offshore home sales this year totaled $18,937,725 compared to $17,037,861 in the first nine months of 2024 in dollar sales, an increase of 11.15%.  The average offshore home sold for $220,206 compared to $215,669 in 2024 during the same time, an increase of 2.10%.

Waterfront lot sales are down 32.0% in unit sales at 34 sold in 2025 and down 28.46% in dollars sales compared to 2024 sales for the first nine months.  The average waterfront lot has sold for $334,561 this year.  Offshore lot sales increased 23.66% in dollar sales in the first nine months of 2025 compared to 2024.

Our total market, homes and lots, dollar sales in the first nine months of this year total $166,948,956, an increase of 14,51% for the same time period of 2024. 

All figures are from the Roanoke Valley Lake Gaston Board or REALTORS Multiple Listing Service and do not reflect private sales.

If you have been thinking about putting your Lake Gaston property on the market now is a great time with interest rates beginning to decrease slightly.  We hope we will see the Federal Reserve cut interest rates more in the coming months.  We have buyers waiting for property priced according to the current market conditions. Give me a call or send me an email, I’ll be happy to give you my opinion of the value of your property.

Across the entire United States, National Association of REALTORS (NAR) reports existing home sales remained essentially the same in August 2025, falling 0.2% from July.

According to NAR Chief Economist Lawrence Yun, "Home sales have been sluggish over the past few years due to elevated mortgage rates and limited inventory. However, mortgage rates are declining, and more inventory is coming to the market, which should boost sales in the coming months."

In August 2025, NAR reports pending sales (homes that are under contract but not yet sold) rose 4% month-over-month in the Midwest, South, and West, and declined in the Northeast. Year-over-year, sales increased in all regions.

According to NAR Chief Economist Lawrence Yun, "Lower mortgage rates are enabling more homebuyers to go under contract. In the Midwest, low mortgage rates combined with high levels of affordability are attracting more buyers compared to other regions."

Freddie Mac reports that 30-year fixed rates fell this week to 6.30%, and 15-year rates to 5.53%, offering borrowers some relief.  They also report there is a very strong chance the Fed will cut interest rates another 25 basis points (1/4%) this month and the possibility of another cut in December. This is the rate banks loan each other money. The mortgage rates are tied more to the 10-year Treasury Note and the state of the economy.

The Consumer Confidence Index® dropped for a second straight month in September, falling 3.2 points to 94.2. This is the lowest level for the index in the past five months.

“Consumer confidence weakened in September, declining to the lowest level since April 2025,” said Stephanie Guichard, Senior Economist, Global Indicators at The Conference Board. “The present situation component registered its largest drop in a year. Consumers’ assessment of business conditions was much less positive than in recent months, while their appraisal of current job availability fell for the ninth straight month to reach a new multiyear low. This is consistent with the decline in job openings. Expectations also weakened in September, but to a lesser extent. Consumers were a bit more pessimistic about future job availability and future business conditions but optimism about future income increased, mitigating the overall decline in the Expectations Index.”

Some potential buyers may be sitting on the sidelines waiting for the uncertainty to play out. 

Barney Watson is the Owner of Lake Gaston Real Estate, LLC and Director of the Roanoke Valley Lake Gaston Board of REALTORS. Cell is 252-532-3274, email is This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. and website is www.lakegastonrealestate.com.