If you search for homes for sale in Herndon VA, you'll see one town on the map and two very different markets underneath it. Herndon has two zip codes, 20170 and 20171, and right now they're behaving differently enough that knowing which one you're shopping in can change your strategy, your budget, and how fast you need to move.

Here's what recorded sales through July show, using data from TopHap. In 20170, the median sale price was about $710,000, up 5.7% from the year before, across 473 sales over twelve months, with sales up 7.5%. In 20171, the median is around $818,000, up 9.8%, across 467 sales, but sales dropped 15.1%. So 20171 costs more and has appreciated faster, while 20170 has been the busier of the two.

Loudoun County's median sale price in July was $814,000, about 7% higher than the same month last year. If you own in Ashburn and you've been wondering whether now is a good time to sell, that's a strong place to start. But the number doesn't tell the whole story, and the sellers who do best in this market understand what buyers think before they ever walk through the front door.

When we moved to Northern Virginia in 2001, I had no idea Herndon would become home. We've been here since 2002, which is long enough to have heard "big changes are coming downtown" more than once. So when the town started talking about a 25-year plan this spring, I did what a lot of longtime residents did. I raised an eyebrow, and then I started reading.

Here's what's actually happening. The Town Council voted to begin Herndon 2050, a new comprehensive plan that will guide land use, development, and economic policy for the next generation. The town expects to wrap it up around the end of 2027 or early 2028. Before the full plan arrives, two early action plans will take a closer look at the Metro station area and downtown, and that's where I'd pay the closest attention if you own a home nearby. Town staff held a public workshop at the community center on October 1, and engagement is expected to continue through the review process.

n six weeks, the average 30-year mortgage rate climbed from 6.71% to 7.40%. If you've been watching listings in Fairfax, Loudoun, or Prince William and wondering whether to hit pause on your search, you're in good company. Plenty of buyers are asking the same thing right now.

Let's start with the numbers, because they're not small. Freddie Mac's weekly survey had the 30-year fixed at 6.71% on September 3. It crossed 7% on September 24 for the first time since January 2025, then reached 7.40% by October 8 and held there in the October 15 reading. A year ago, it was hovering around 6.3%. On a $600,000 loan, that's about $4,154 a month in principal and interest today versus about $3,714 then. Roughly $440 more, every month, before taxes and insurance. I won't pretend that doesn't sting.

Showings in Fairfax County were down almost 17% in September compared to a year ago, and the average sales price still went up. That is the whole story of this market in one sentence, and if you're thinking about selling a home in Herndon before the holidays or heading into the new year, it's worth understanding why both of those things are true at once.

More than half of all vacation rental reservations in the country now go through Airbnb. KeyData's latest national report, which tracked short-term rental performance through the second quarter of 2026, found that. Airbnb's share of reservations climbed to 51%, up from 47% a year earlier, and its share of revenue jumped from 36% to 43%. In that same stretch, Airbnb has rewritten a lot of the rules owners and guests signed up for. If you own a vacation rental, or you're thinking about buying one, the Airbnb vs. direct booking question deserves a fresh look.

I personally own four homes on the Outer Banks, so this isn't abstract for me. Every policy change shows up in my calendar, my payouts, and my guest messages.

If you've been watching the Herndon VA 20170 real estate market this fall, you've probably noticed something that feels a little contradictory. Buyers are telling me things feel calmer out there. More houses to look at, less of that frantic first-weekend scramble. And yet the data still says sellers have the advantage. Both things are true at the same time, and understanding why matters if you're trying to time a move in this zip code.

If you've heard someone say the Herndon VA real estate market is cooling off, I want to stop you right there. It's not cooling off. It's getting more selective, and that's a very different thing to navigate as a seller.

Here's what I mean. In 20170, the median sale price in August came in around $700K, basically flat compared to last year. If you stopped reading right there, you might assume buyers have backed off. But 46.1% of homes in 20170 sold above asking price last month. That's up more than 13 points from a year ago. Buyers are still showing up and still competing hard. They're just being a lot more careful about which house gets that competition.

There's a moment in every closing that means something a little different to me, and it happened again this week at 4579 Derring Ln in Fairfax. My buyers weren't people who found me through a Google search or a yard sign. They came to me because a family I've worked with before, people I genuinely consider friends at this point, picked up the phone and said, "Call LeAnne." That kind of trust doesn't happen by accident, and it's exactly why being a referral-based Realtor in Northern Virginia is the part of this job I take most seriously.

NatureFest is back at Runnymede Park on September 27th from 1 to 5 pm. It's free, no tickets required; you just show up. If you haven't spent an afternoon at Runnymede Park, you're missing one of the most beautiful green spaces in Northern Virginia, and NatureFest is the perfect excuse to finally go. Interactive nature stations are set up throughout the park, plus a Bird Bingo game the kids always end up loving more than the adults expect, the Web of Life game, and nature exhibits that make learning feel like playing. It's low-key, it's outdoors, and it's exactly the kind of afternoon that reminds you why you live here in the first place.

If you haven't driven down Elden Street in the last few weeks, you're going to be surprised. I've lived in Herndon since 2002, and I can't remember the last time this much new food energy landed in one corridor at once.

Let's start with the beignets. Beignets and Brew just opened at 348 Elden Street, and it's the first Northern Virginia location for this Southeastern chain known for its coffee and warm, sugar-dusted beignets. If you've had them in New Orleans or on a trip further south, you know exactly what I mean. Now you don't have to leave town for that fix.

I get this question at least once a month from buyers weighing Oakton vs Vienna, VA, and honestly, it's one of my favorite conversations to have. Both towns sit close enough together that you could argue over which one is "better" for pizza, but they feel completely different once you're actually living there. I've walked clients through both markets for years, and the right answer almost always comes down to what your daily life looks like, not just what the listing photos show you.

I've had more buyers ask me about the W&OD Trail this year than about school ratings, and honestly, that tells you something about how people are choosing where to live in Northern Virginia right now.

The Washington and Old Dominion Trail runs 45 miles from Shirlington all the way out to Purcellville, and it cuts straight through some of the most sought-after real estate in our region. I've sold homes in nearly every community it touches, and I can tell you firsthand that living near the W&OD Trail changes how people actually use their neighborhood. It's not a nice-to-have amenity buried in a listing description. For many of my clients, it's the main reason they're moving.

I've lost count of how many buyers have told me the same thing after a Saturday afternoon in downtown Leesburg. They came for lunch and left texting me asking what's for sale nearby. That's the effect this town has on people, and honestly, I get it. There's something about walking down King Street with a coffee in hand that makes you start picturing your life there.

If you're weighing a move to Loudoun County, or you're just local and looking for a new favorite spot, let me walk you through what I love about Leesburg, VA restaurants and shops, and why the real estate around here keeps me busy.

I get some version of this question almost every week now. A buyer wants a shorter commute, a home that doesn't need a lawnmower, and enough space to actually spread out. Nine times out of ten, that leads us straight to the townhome market along the Silver Line.

If you're looking at Reston Herndon townhomes near Metro, you're already thinking about this the right way. The Silver Line changed what "convenient" means out here. You're not choosing between a walkable lifestyle and Northern Virginia space anymore. You can have both, and the townhome inventory around Wiehle-Reston East, Reston Town Center, and the Herndon and Innovation Center stations reflects that shift.

There's a version of Saturday in Chantilly that I've watched play out a hundred times, and it usually starts the same way. Someone's standing in their driveway with a coffee, not in a rush to be anywhere, and that's the whole point. If you're trying to picture what living in Chantilly, VA actually feels like day to day, forget the listing descriptions. Let me walk you through one good Saturday instead.

If you've been watching Zillow and wondering whether Herndon is still a seller's market, the honest answer is: it depends entirely on the house. I just pulled an 180-day snapshot of every closed and active listing in zip code 20170, and the pattern is clear once you know what to look for. Herndon, VA home prices are still strong, but the days of "list it and watch the offers roll in no matter what" are behind us for a meaningful chunk of this market.

People ask me all the time what makes Reston different from the rest of Northern Virginia, and honestly, it's not one thing. It's that Reston isn't really one neighborhood at all. It's a collection of villages, each with its own feel, price point, and kind of buyer. If you're looking at Reston neighborhoods and trying to figure out where you'd actually be happy, that distinction matters more than most listings let on.

I've walked clients through nearly every corner of this town over the years, and the first thing I tell them is to forget the idea that "Reston" is a single answer to "where should I live." It's more like six or seven answers, depending on what you're after.

Oakton doesn't have a Main Street, a downtown, or a Metro stop with its name on it, and that's precisely why people who find it tend to stay for decades. If you're browsing Oakton VA homes for sale, you're looking at one of the quieter, higher value corners of Fairfax County, and I want to walk you through what actually makes this market different before you start touring.

People ask me all the time why Chantilly doesn't get talked about as much as Reston or Herndon, and honestly, I think that's exactly why it's worth a closer look. If you're moving to Chantilly, VA, you're landing in one of the more underrated pockets of western Fairfax County, and I want to walk you through what it's actually like to live here, not just what a listing description tells you.