Which McLean Does This Postal Area's Median Describe? Reading the Apartment Buildings, the Falling Sold Prices and the City Gap

Which McLean price figure should an owner trust?

None alone. Redfin's median of $543,476, down 5.8%, implies about $576,938 a year earlier, and its price per square foot of $414, down 0.48%, implies about $416. Realtor.com's sold median of $474,900, down 42.80% in a year, implies about $830,245 a year earlier, and down 20.85% in a month implies about $600,000 a month earlier. The Realtor.com sold median is 12.6% below the Redfin median, and the two cover different windows, a single recent month and a quarter that ends in April.

The Realtor.com changes are too large to take at face value. A fall of 42.80% in a year and 20.85% in a month in a median is far more likely to come from a change in which homes closed, such as a month with many condominium sales and few house sales, than from a change in what any home was worth. That is an inference, not a statement from the page, and the page does not show the sales behind the figure. The asking median shows the same pattern, at $569,000, down 36.23% in a year, implying about $892,269, and down 3.17% in a month, implying about $587,628.

Price per square foot is steadier, which supports that reading. Realtor.com's $435 is down 1.79% in a year, implying about $443, and down 2.20% in a month, implying about $445. It is 5.1% above the Redfin figure of $414. When the price per foot barely moves while the median price falls by about two fifths, the homes that sold may be smaller, not cheaper per foot, which is an inference.

The Zillow figure of $1,459,672, up 2.5%, implies about $1,424,070 a year before it was calculated. It is 2.7 times the Redfin median and 1.5 times the Census median owner value of $955,500, plus or minus $111,630. The Redfin median is 43.1% below the Census owner value, which is plausible when the owner estimates include houses and the sales are mostly condominium units. The Census value is 6.2 times the median household income of $153,949, plus or minus $14,675.

The best guide is closed sales of similar homes in the same building type and the same neighborhood in the last few months. A seller of a condominium should compare it with other units in similar buildings, and a seller of a house should compare it with other houses, and neither should use a postal area median.

A seller reading a fall of 5.8% beside a fall of 42.80% should ask what the difference means for a particular home, and the first answer is that the two figures cover different windows and probably different mixes of homes. A median moves with the mix of homes that closed, and a single month can read very differently from a quarter. The practical answer is to compare a home with the homes most like it that sold in the last three months, and to treat every median here as a backdrop, not as an estimate of what a home will fetch.

Sources as cited. Ratios and earlier values in this section are computed from the published figures and percentages.

How fast do McLean homes sell, and what do buyers have to choose from?

The two pages disagree on how competitive the area is. Redfin shows a median of 35 days on the market, against 36 a year before, and says that the average home goes pending in around 28 days, while hot homes go in around 9 days. Realtor.com shows a median of 51 days, up 18.18% in a year, which implies about 43 days a year earlier, and up 6.12% in a month, which implies about 48 days a month earlier. Zillow's page for the city says homes go to pending in around 18 days.

Redfin describes the area as very competitive, with a score of 76 out of 100, and says that many homes get multiple offers, some with waived contingencies, though its text also says homes receive 1 offer on average. Its sale-to-list ratio of 98.4% is higher than Realtor.com's 97%, and Realtor.com calls the market a buyer's market, with homes selling an average of 3.06% below the asking price. The two pages describe different months, April and September.

Price cuts were falling in April. Redfin shows that 20.1% of homes had price drops, down 6.2 points from a year before, which implies about 26.3% a year earlier, and that 27.7% sold above list, up 1.2 points, which implies about 26.5% a year earlier. About one home in five took a cut, and more than one in four sold above asking. Redfin also shows 85 homes sold in April, up 33.3% on the page's own figure, from 64.

Supply is large. Realtor.com shows 180 active listings, up 1.16% in a month, which implies about 178 a month earlier, and up 7.36% in a year, which implies about 168 a year earlier. A buyer has choice, and a seller competes with many listings, many of them condominium units. A seller whose home is different from the mass of units, such as a detached house, competes with a smaller group.

Rentals are plentiful. Realtor.com shows 102 rental properties, down 14.62% in a month, which implies about 119 a month earlier, and up 12.12% in a year, which implies about 91 a year earlier. The median rent of $2,950, down 4.84% in a month, implies about $3,100 a month earlier, and it is flat in a year. The Census median gross rent of $2,497, plus or minus $82, covers all renters, and the asking rent is 18.1% above it.

Sources as cited. Earlier values and differences are computed from the published percentages.

Who owns a home in McLean, and who rents?

Renters are a slim majority. Of 13,541 occupied homes, 7,015 are renter-occupied, 51.8%, and 6,526 are owner-occupied, 48.2%. Of 14,635 units, 1,094 are vacant, 7.5%, and the Census counts 284 for rent, 224 rented and not yet occupied, 68 for sale only, 81 sold and not yet occupied, 153 held for seasonal use and 284 other vacant units.

Renters have arrived recently. Of 7,015 renter households, 1,170 moved in during 2023 or later, 16.7%, 3,366 between 2020 and 2022, 48.0%, 2,191 in the 2010s, 31.2%, 220 in the 2000s, 28 in the 1990s and 40 before 1990. Owners are more settled but still fairly new: of 6,526, 286 moved in during 2023 or later, 4.4%, 767 between 2020 and 2022, 11.8%, 2,520 in the 2010s, 38.6%, 1,344 in the 2000s, 20.6%, 919 in the 1990s, 14.1%, and 690 before 1990, 10.6%.

The population is working-age. Of 29,184 people counted, 5,186 are under 18, 17.8%, 2,543 are 18 to 24, 8.7%, 5,538 are 25 to 34, 19.0%, 4,238 are 35 to 44, 14.5%, 7,105 are 45 to 64, 24.3%, and 4,574 are 65 or older, 15.7%. Renter homes are small. Of 7,015, 2,940 have one bedroom, 41.9%, 2,858 have two, 40.7%, 756 have none, 10.8%, 320 have three and 141 have four or more. Owner homes are mixed: of 6,526, 1,901 have two bedrooms, 29.1%, 1,806 have five or more, 27.7%, 1,187 have four, 18.2%, 829 have three and 761 have one.

Owner debt is moderate. Of 6,526 owners, 3,910 have a mortgage, 59.9%, and 2,616 do not, 40.1%. Among the 3,910 mortgage holders, 1,116 spent 30% or more of income on housing costs, 28.5%, and 487 spent 50% or more, 12.5%. Among the 2,616 owners without a mortgage, 595 spent 30% or more, 22.7%, and 341 spent 50% or more, 13.0%, mostly the cost of taxes, fees and upkeep.

Renters carry a heavy burden. Of 7,015 renters, 6,784 with a computed figure, 2,467 spent 30% or more of income on rent, 36.4%, and 1,001 spent 50% or more, 14.8%. A median asking rent of $2,950, over a year, is 23.0% of the median household income. The owner base is small, and owners of houses are the group that Maison Off-Market speaks to.

With owners a minority and most renters arriving since 2020, the owner base is a smaller group than the renter base, and it includes owners of units as well as houses. Owners who bought in the 2010s have had a long run of gains in the wider region, though this brief does not measure them. Those sellers may find that commissions and closing costs take a large share of a modest gain, which makes the third and fourth benefits, no commission costs and no closing costs, worth weighing.

Source: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020-2024 five-year estimates, tables B01001, B25003, B25004, B25038, B25042, B25070 and B25091, via Census Reporter. Shares are computed here.

How old is the McLean stock, and how few homes are detached houses?

Most of it was built from the 1970s on. Of 14,635 units, 178, or 1.2%, were built before 1940, 136, or 0.9%, in the 1940s, 282, or 1.9%, in the 1950s, 1,573, or 10.7%, in the 1960s, 2,570, or 17.6%, in the 1970s, and 2,706, or 18.5%, in the 1980s. After that, 1,750, or 12.0%, were built in the 1990s, 1,713, or 11.7%, in the 2000s, 3,250, or 22.2%, in the 2010s and 477, or 3.3%, in 2020 or later. Homes built since 2010 total 3,727, or 25.5%, and homes built before 1980 total 4,739, or 32.4%.

The mix of building types is the key fact. Of 14,635 units, 3,285 are in detached homes, 22.4%, 722 are attached, 4.9%, 141 are in two-unit buildings, 250 in buildings of three or four units, 709 in buildings of 5 to 9, 1,623 in buildings of 10 to 19, 1,147 in buildings of 20 to 49 and 6,758 in buildings of 50 or more. Buildings of five or more units total 10,237, or 69.9%, and buildings of 50 or more alone are 46.2%.

That mix means a postal area median is a median of mostly apartments and condominium units. A house in this postal area has little in common with most of the sales behind the figure, and a buyer of a house compares it with other houses, in other places, including the wider city. A seller of a house should look at the city and neighborhood sales of houses of the same size and age, and should treat the postal area figures as describing another market.

Homes of the 1970s and 1980s make up 36.1% of units, and many are in larger buildings. Older buildings and older houses can have original roofs, heating and cooling systems and plumbing, and a buyer's inspector may list several items. That is a general point about homes of this age, not a figure from the sources, and each home is different.

A seller who would rather not have an inspector's list negotiated on a public listing can choose a private sale, in which a buyer buys the home as it stands. That is the fifth benefit of Maison Off-Market, avoiding inspections and repairs, and it is not a claim that a private sale always yields a higher price. Readers comparing markets can also read the Great Falls brief and the McLean brief.

Source: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020-2024 five-year estimates, tables B25024, B25034 and B25042, via Census Reporter. Shares are computed here.

What should a McLean owner ask before choosing a listing or a private sale?

Five questions are worth asking. Is my price based on closed sales of homes like mine, of the same type and in the same area, and not on one median? How many months might a listing take, and how many price cuts are likely along the way? What will inspections and repairs cost me on a home of this age? Who will see the home during showings, and who will hear about the sale? And what date do I need to close, given where I plan to live next?

Fees are simple arithmetic, and no rate is assumed here. Each 1% of a $1,200,000 sale is $12,000, of a $2,000,000 sale is $20,000, and of a $3,000,000 sale is $30,000. At 3%, those sales cost $36,000, $60,000 and $90,000, and at 5% they cost $60,000, $100,000 and $150,000. At the Redfin median of $543,476, 1% is $5,435 and 5% is $27,174, and at the Zillow city figure of $1,459,672, 1% is $14,597 and 5% is $72,984. Maison Off-Market does not charge commissions or closing costs.

A private sale has no showings and no neighbors talking about it, which is the first benefit. The second benefit is a closing date the owner can set, which gives time to find a new home. The third is no commission costs, the fourth is no closing costs and the fifth is avoiding inspections and repairs. For an owner of a house in a place where most listings are condominium units, a sale without showings and with a closing date the owner controls is worth weighing against a public listing.

In a market with plentiful supply, an owner is right to compare a listing with a private offer. The comparison includes the commission, the closing costs, the repairs a buyer may ask for, the weeks of preparation and showings, the price cuts that may come, and the privacy given up. A fair comparison puts all of those items on the same page, and the listing result should be a realistic one, not the best case.

Maison Off-Market buys luxury homes and estates directly from their owners and speaks only to sellers. It does not say that every private sale beats a listing. An owner who wants to see what a direct purchase would look like, with no public listing and no showings, can use the contact form below and ask for an offer before deciding.

Sources as cited. Fee illustrations are arithmetic only and assume no commission rate.

Methodology and limitations

Each page's date, title and place were read before use. The Redfin page covers the three months ending April 2026 and the Realtor.com page is dated September 2026, so the two cover different windows, and the Redfin page is the older of the two. The Zillow page is for the city of McLean, not the postal area, and is dated August 31, 2026. The Realtor.com changes of 42.80% in a year and 20.85% in a month are implausibly large for a price, and the brief treats them as a sign of a change in the mix of homes sold. The Realtor.com neighborhood tables were not relied on. The Census figures are five-year survey estimates with margins of error, and the vacancy and tenure counts are survey counts, not a count of every home. Earlier values are computed from published percentages and are approximate. No figure here is a forecast.

Conclusion

The record for this part of McLean, as far as the pages allow, is a renter-majority postal area of apartment and condominium buildings, a sold median that falls on one page by more than a price could, and a city figure that is nearly three times the postal area figure. For an owner of a house, the practical step is to ask for closed sales of comparable houses, compare the cost of a listing with a direct offer, and decide how much of the showing, inspection and timing risk to carry.