In the above video, Michael Diggin of RE/MAX Town & Country in West Chester breaks down how the real estate market in Chester County performed at the end of last year and what the outlook is for 2021.

The median sales price for all homes in Chester County was $385,000 at the end of December. That represents a 12.7 percent increase from the same time the previous year.

The extremely low inventory – the total number of active listings in Chester County was less than 50 percent of 2019 levels – made it a seller’s market.

“Homes in Chester County are being sold at 99.1 percent of the original list price,” said Diggin. “That’s incredible!”

“Homeowners are smiling because they are seeing price increases,” said Lawrence Yun, Chief Economist for the National Association of Realtors. “The frustration is coming from first-time buyers.”

Right now, interest rates remain low nationwide, as 2020 ended with a 2.75 percent rate, which is almost a full point less than the 3.6 percent rate that 2019 ended with.

“That puts more people in a position to buy more expensive homes,” said Diggin. “Or it puts more people in a position to enter the market.”