Luxury homes in Hampton Roads, bought and sold from the record, not the brochure.
At the top of this market there are fewer sales, fewer true comparables and more ways to misprice a house. I’m John King, a Navy veteran, REALTOR® and Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices Luxury Collection Specialist with RW Towne Realty. Every number on this page comes from my own closings in the REIN MLS, including the slow ones.
John King, a U.S. Navy veteran and Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices Luxury Collection Specialist with RW Towne Realty, has closed 30 Hampton Roads sales at $600,000 and up ($23.1 million), 11 at or above $750,000 and 5 above $1 million, in East Beach, Bay Island, Little Neck Cove, Quail Point Cove, Pungo, Indian River Plantation and Chesapeake’s Hunningdon Woods among others. His record shows that homes between $600,000 and $750,000 went under contract fastest of any price band (a median of 12 days), but the very top behaves differently: his eleven $750,000-plus sales took a median of 37 days, and the most unusual properties, including waterfront acreage, took three to six months. So luxury sellers should not price off the general upper-market pace, and buyers at this level have more room to negotiate on one-of-a-kind homes. Three of those eleven sales were financed with VA loans, which carry no loan limit for a veteran with full entitlement. Call or text (757) 270-3994.
Written by John King, Virginia license 0225211050 · Last reviewed October 17, 2026 · Source: John King’s closed sales in the REIN MLS, June 2014 – August 2026, and the 13-year sales study
The record: every sale at $750,000 and up
Eleven closings, listed by price. These are the sales a luxury seller or buyer should judge me on, so they are all here, fast and slow.
| Closed | Neighborhood | City | Price range | Represented | Financing | Days to contract |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | East Beach | Norfolk | $1M+ | Buyer | VA | 13 |
| 2021 | Bay Island (waterfront) | Virginia Beach | $1M+ | Seller | VA | 98 |
| 2025 | Marina Cottages at East Beach | Norfolk | $1M+ | Buyer | Conventional | 2 |
| 2023 | Little Neck Cove | Virginia Beach | $1M+ | Seller | Conventional | 84 |
| 2025 | Bay side, 23518 | Norfolk | $1M+ | Seller | Conventional | 37 |
| 2016 | Pungo (waterfront acreage) | Virginia Beach | $750K–$1M | Seller | Conventional | 189 |
| 2016 | Indian River Plantation | Virginia Beach | $750K–$1M | Buyer | Cash | 11 |
| 2022 | Quail Point Cove | Virginia Beach | $750K–$1M | Buyer | Conventional | 2 |
| 2022 | Bay Point | Norfolk | $750K–$1M | Buyer | VA | 85 |
| 2024 | Hunningdon Woods | Chesapeake | $750K–$1M | Seller | Conventional | 7 |
| 2025 | Ocean Park | Virginia Beach | $750K–$1M | Seller | Conventional | 114 |
The work has moved up-market. Nine of the eleven closed in 2021 or later, and four in 2025 alone. Across the wider $600,000-plus band, 21 of my 30 closings came in 2022 or later.
Both sides of the table. Six of the eleven I listed and sold for the owner; five I bought for the client. Pricing a luxury home well depends on having done both.
Where my luxury sales have been
The 30 closings at $600,000 and up, by city. Hampton Roads luxury is not one market; it is a handful of small ones with different buyers.
Virginia Beach
The north-end bays and Lynnhaven water (Bay Island, Little Neck Cove, Quail Point Cove), Sandbridge, and the acreage of Pungo and the southern end of the city.
Chesapeake
Newer and larger homes on bigger lots: Hunningdon Woods, Vance Level, Lake Thrasher, Etheridge Lakes, Las Gaviotas and Patriots Ridge.
Norfolk
The bay side of 23518. Three of my five $1 million-plus sales are in and around East Beach, plus Ocean View East and Riverpoint on the Lafayette.
Portsmouth & Hampton
River Pointe in Portsmouth and Salt Ponds in Hampton, both on the water.
Closings at $600,000 and up, REIN MLS, June 2014 – August 2026 (30 of 428 MLS transactions). On the water? The waterfront homes guide covers all 70 of my waterfront closings.
Selling a luxury home: what the record says
Three things I tell every seller above roughly $750,000, before we talk about a list price.
The fast-market rules stop at the top
In my record, homes from $600,000 up went under contract in a median of 12 days, faster than any other price band. My eleven $750,000-plus sales took a median of 37. If you price a top-tier home off the general upper-market pace, you will read a normal first month as a failure and cut too early.
One-of-a-kind takes a runway
The quick ones were homes with clear comparables: 2 days in Quail Point Cove, 7 in Hunningdon Woods. The long ones were the unusual properties: waterfront acreage in Pungo at 189 days, Ocean Park at 114, Bay Island at 98. All of them sold. The plan has to budget for the wait instead of panicking through it.
The appraisal is the real negotiation
With few true comparables, the lender’s appraiser has to make judgment calls. I go into every luxury listing with a comparable package ready for the appraiser: recent sales, adjustments for water, lot and finish, and the reasons behind them. A gap discovered at appraisal is a renegotiation you did not plan for.
Price once, adjust honestly
If a price change is needed, it goes down, never back up. A luxury buyer remembers the history on the listing. The better plan is a launch price grounded in the comparables, so there is nothing to explain later.
Marketing reach. As a Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices Luxury Collection Specialist, I list qualifying homes under the Luxury Collection designation and marketing. Reach matters most for the homes that take longer, because the right buyer for a one-of-a-kind house is often not looking in Hampton Roads yet. Selling with the K.I.N.G. Method works the same way at this level, with more time built in.
Buying at the top of the market
The same record works in a buyer’s favor.
Where the leverage is
- A unique home that has been on the market for two or three months is often a different negotiation than its list price suggests.
- Homes with clear comparables still move fast here, even at $750,000 and up: two of the homes I bought for clients went under contract two days after they were listed. Have financing and proof of funds ready before you tour.
- Ask for the price history. A home that has already been reduced tells you something; so does one that has not.
What to check that the listing will not tell you
- Flood zone, elevation certificate and a real flood insurance quote, before you write the offer.
- On the water: bulkhead or riprap condition, dock and pier permits, and channel depth at low tide for your boat. The waterfront guide covers this in detail.
- Appraisal risk on a jumbo or VA loan: what happens if the appraisal comes in short, and how much cash you want to hold for a gap.
- HOA, architectural review and dock rules in the neighborhoods that have them.
My buying process is the A.N.C.H.O.R. Plan; at this price point the “Check” and “Outmaneuver” steps carry most of the weight. Selling one home and buying the next at the same time? See selling and buying in Hampton Roads.
A VA loan at $750,000 and up? Three of mine were.
Many senior officers, senior enlisted and retirees do not realize the VA loan reaches this price range.
Since 2020, a veteran or service member with full entitlement has no VA loan limit: the VA guaranty covers the loan regardless of size, so a zero-down purchase is possible at any price the lender approves. Lenders can still set their own maximums and credit requirements on large loans, so the lender choice matters more here than anywhere else.
The funding fee scales with the loan. On a zero-down $1,000,000 loan it is $21,500 at first use (2.15%) or $33,000 after first use (3.3%). Veterans receiving VA disability compensation, and service members with a proposed or memorandum rating before closing, pay none of it.
Three of my eleven $750,000-plus closings were VA-financed, including the two largest sales on this page. The VA appraisal has its own minimum property requirements, which matter on older or waterfront homes.
Read next
- Full vs partial VA entitlement
- The VA funding fee in Hampton Roads
- The VA appraisal guide
- Buying at military retirement
Funding fee rates: VA.gov. Confirm your own figures with your lender.
Neighborhood guides for the upper market
Each guide has its own sales data, current listings and median price.
Medians as published on each neighborhood guide (REIN MLS / Redfin, 2026). All neighborhood guides · Waterfront homes · Search the MLS
Luxury real estate in Hampton Roads: common questions
What counts as a luxury home in Hampton Roads?
There is no official line, and it moves by city. With citywide medians around $415,000 in Virginia Beach, $418,000 in Chesapeake and $330,000 in Norfolk, homes above roughly $750,000 behave differently from the rest of the market in my record: fewer buyers, fewer true comparables and a longer time to contract. Between $600,000 and $750,000 the market still moves very fast.
How long does it take to sell a luxury home in Hampton Roads?
In John King’s record, the eleven sales at or above $750,000 went under contract in a median of 37 days, against 12 days for all homes at $600,000 and up. Five of the eleven went under contract within two weeks; the most unusual properties, including waterfront acreage, took three to six months, and all of them sold.
Can I use a VA loan to buy a home over $750,000?
Yes. Since 2020 there is no VA loan limit for a borrower with full entitlement, so a zero-down VA purchase is possible at any price a lender approves, though lenders can set their own limits on large loans. The funding fee applies unless you are exempt, for example because you receive VA disability compensation. Three of John King’s eleven $750,000-plus closings were VA-financed.
How is a luxury home priced when there are few comparable sales?
From the closest true comparables, adjusted for the things buyers at this level pay for: water frontage and depth, lot size, age and level of finish. John King prepares that comparable package before listing and gives it to the appraiser, because with few sales the appraisal is where a luxury deal is most often renegotiated.
What is a Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices Luxury Collection Specialist?
It is a designation within Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices for agents who market high-end properties under the brand’s Luxury Collection. John King holds it at Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices RW Towne Realty, and lists qualifying homes with the Luxury Collection designation and marketing.
Where are most luxury homes in Hampton Roads?
In John King’s record, 13 of his 30 sales at $600,000 and up were in Virginia Beach (the north-end bays, Sandbridge and Pungo), 8 in Chesapeake (newer homes on larger lots), and 7 in Norfolk, mostly on the bay side around East Beach. Bay Colony, East Beach and Great Neck have the highest neighborhood medians on 757king.com.
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(757) 270-3994John King · U.S. Navy veteran · REALTOR® and Luxury Collection Specialist, Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices RW Towne Realty · 441 closings since 2014 · HRRA Circle of Excellence 2015–2025 · 5.0 ★ on 117 Google reviews