Northern Virginia Guide › Fairfax County › Great Falls
Great Falls, Virginia
An acre or more. Not one townhouse sold.
At a glance
Six numbers that describe Great Falls.
The median single-family home sold for $1,885,000 in 2026, went under contract in ten days, and one in four buyers did not need a mortgage. Townhouses: none.
What a house actually costs in Great Falls this year, who is buying it and how, what it rents for, which school it feeds, what septic and well mean on moving day, and how long the drive is. Every number below is from Bright MLS closed sales, pulled on October 2, 2026, not from a listing site's estimate.
Single-family means a detached house with at least three bedrooms and two full baths, which is what a family searching Great Falls is looking at. Townhouse means end-of-row and interior-row homes. Condos are not included. Source: Bright MLS, closed sales January 1 to October 2, 2026, Postal City = Great Falls, pulled by Ahmed Makkiyah on October 2, 2026.
Prices
What $1.885 million buys, and what the range looks like.
Great Falls' cheapest single-family sale of 2026 was $800,000 and its dearest was $12 million, and the median is $415,000 and $120 a square foot below McLean for roughly twice the land.
The typical 2026 sale was a colonial of 5,000 to 7,000 square feet built between 1980 and 2000 on two acres off Georgetown Pike, Beach Mill Road, Leigh Mill Road or Springvale Road, sold between $1.5 million and $2.5 million. Below $1.5 million (41 sales this year) you are buying a 1960s or 70s house to renovate, or a lot with a house on it. Between $1.5 and $3 million (75 sales) is the heart of the market. Above $3 million (23 sales) the houses are custom estates with a pool, a barn or a view of the river, and that is where the average ($2.24 million) comes from.
There is no townhouse market to describe. Zero sold and zero rented in 2026, because Great Falls is zoned for large residential lots, most streets have no public sewer, and the stock was never built. The nearest townhomes are in McLean ($1,100,000 median this year) and Reston.
At $505 per square foot, Great Falls is cheaper per foot than McLean ($625) and dearer than the county ($457 in September 2026). You pay for the house; the acre comes with it.
Median single-family sale price, 20262
Bright MLS closed sales, 2026 year to date, except the Fairfax County row (September 2026 alone). The town rows are filtered to 3+ bedrooms and 2+ full baths and leave out condominium-regime homes; the Fairfax County row has no size filter. Fairfax, Alexandria and Falls Church mean the Fairfax County addresses, not the independent cities, and Chantilly means its Fairfax County side. Arlington County, the neighbor to the east, is one row for the whole county (pulled October 3, same filters). The Cities of Fairfax, Falls Church and Alexandria are independent cities next to the county, shown under their own names. Oak Hill (20 sales) and Dunn Loring (12) are too small to chart.
| Measure | Great Falls | McLean, for comparison |
|---|---|---|
| Homes sold | 139 | 335 |
| Median sold price | $1,885,000 | $2,300,000 |
| Average sold price | $2,240,018 | $2,647,943 |
| Median price per square foot | $505 | $625 |
| Median days to contract | 10 | 7 |
| Median sold-to-list | 99.3% | 99.0% |
| Lowest sale | $800,000 | $925,000 |
| Highest sale | $12,000,000 | $13,500,000 |
| Total dollar volume | $311.4M | $887.1M |
| Townhouses sold | 0 | 49 |
What can you afford in Great Falls? Start from the monthly payment you can live with, not the price. The calculator adds Fairfax County tax and insurance for you; there is usually no HOA out here.
Follow the money
Above $3 million, more than half of Great Falls buyers pay cash.
In 2026, 37 of 139 single-family sales closed without a mortgage, and those buyers spent $106 million, 34% of every dollar that changed hands, mostly on the biggest houses.
Share of single-family sales paid in cash, by price range
Unlike McLean, there is no cash spike at the bottom. Nobody is buying two acres to tear down the house; the cash is in the estates.
How 139 single-family purchases were paid for
Cash buyers bought bigger: a median of $2,500,000 against $1,685,000 for financed buyers. They closed a little faster, 9 days against 10.5, and they negotiated harder, paying 97.1% of asking where financed buyers paid the full price. The year's top sale, $12 million for a 16,550-square-foot house, was cash at full asking price after one day on the market.
What that means if you need a loan: under $3 million, five out of six Great Falls buyers are financing too, so a mortgage is not the handicap it is in McLean. Where it matters is the estate market, and there the seller will take a clean cash contract over a higher financed one. In either band, the paperwork that wins is a full pre-approval and a lender who has closed on septic and well before.
"Other" financing here combines 2 other, 2 adjustable-rate and 1 private deal. Two outliers, a $2.11 million cash sale on a $1.5 million list and a $1.33 million private sale with no days on market, do not move the medians.
The interesting fact
Not one townhouse was sold or rented in Great Falls in 2026.
That is the number that separates Great Falls from every other town in Fairfax County, and it decides who can live here.
Why. Great Falls is zoned almost entirely for residential estate and one-acre lots, and most of it is outside the county's sewer service area, so every house needs its own septic field. Townhomes need sewer and density. Neither exists here, and the planning rules are written to keep it that way.
What it means for buyers. The entry ticket is a detached house, and in 2026 the cheapest one was $800,000. A family that wants Langley High School at a townhouse price looks at McLean, where 49 townhomes sold this year at a median of $1,100,000, or at Reston and Herndon, which feed other pyramids.
What it means for renters. You rent a house or you do not rent in Great Falls. Forty-three houses leased this year, the median at $5,250 a month and the cheapest at $3,200, and they took a month to lease, so there is time to negotiate.
Rent or buy
By the math, Great Falls is a place you rent. People buy the acre anyway.
A single-family home rents for a median of $5,250 a month and sells for $1.885 million, a price-to-rent ratio of 30 against the 20 where renting usually wins.1
| Measure | Great Falls | McLean, for comparison |
|---|---|---|
| Homes rented | 43 | 164 |
| Median monthly rent | $5,250 | $6,000 |
| Average monthly rent | $6,021 | $6,781 |
| Median rent per square foot | $1.95 | $2.36 |
| Median days to lease | 29 | 20 |
| Rent range | $3,200 to $15,000 | $3,200 to $30,000 |
| Townhomes rented | 0 | 91 |
Gross yield is before the mortgage, the $21,700 a year in property tax, insurance, the generator and the lawn service, so a Great Falls house is not an income play. At $1.95 a square foot it is the cheapest rent per foot in this part of the county, which is why executives on a two-year posting rent here rather than in McLean. Owners are buying the land, Langley, and the quiet.
Own in Great Falls already? Acreage is the hardest thing to value from a website, and the estimates miss by hundreds of thousands here. Ahmed runs a real comparative analysis against the 139 sales on this page.
The houses
Two acres, a long driveway, and your own water.
Great Falls is about 15,000 people on one- to five-acre lots along Georgetown Pike between McLean and the Loudoun line, with the Potomac and Great Falls Park as its northern edge.
The original stock. Colonials and contemporaries from the 1970s to the 1990s on two acres, 4,000 to 7,000 square feet, in Falcon Ridge, Lexington Estates, Seneca Ridge, Hickory Creek and along Beach Mill and Leigh Mill roads. Many have had one kitchen since they were built. These are the $1.5 million to $2.5 million family houses.
The estates. Custom builds of 8,000 to 16,000 square feet with a pool house, a barn or river frontage, on Georgetown Pike, Innsbruck Avenue and the lanes down to the Potomac. These are the $3 million and up closings, and the only part of the market where cash is the rule.
The 1960s houses and lots. Below $1.5 million, 41 sales this year: ramblers and split-levels on an acre that need everything, bought by families who will renovate in stages. Unlike McLean, builders are not bidding against you here, because the rebuild is a $4 million project with a two-year permit.
What to inspect. The septic system, separately from the house: capacity against bedroom count, the drainfield, and whether the county requires a certification on sale. The well: flow, pressure tank and a water test. The driveway and any private road maintenance agreement. Radon. The generator, because power lines here run through trees. And the plat, because the acre may include a stream buffer you cannot build on.
Schools
One high school, and it is Langley.
Every Great Falls address feeds Langley High School, ranked second of Fairfax County's 25 high schools on Niche's 2027 list and fourth in Virginia by US News, so there is no boundary question to ask here.3
A+
Langley High School
Niche #2 in Fairfax County, US News #4 in Virginia for 2026-27. All of Great Falls, plus northern McLean. Great Falls students get there through Cooper Middle School.
K–6
Three elementaries
Forestville, Great Falls and Colvin Run. Great Falls Elementary runs the county's Japanese partial-immersion programme, one of a handful in FCPS.
K–12
The private options
The Potomac School and Madeira (girls, day and boarding) are on Georgetown Pike at the McLean end; the Langley School is in McLean; Nysmith in Herndon is 15 minutes. Tuition $45,000 to $58,000.
Masjid
McLean Islamic Center and ADAMS
McLean Islamic Center on Jarrett Valley Drive is 15 minutes; the ADAMS Center in Sterling about 20. Al Fatih Academy in Reston is the nearest full-time Islamic school.
The January 2026 county boundary change moved students between McLean High and Langley but did not touch Great Falls. Confirm any address at the FCPS Boundary Locator anyway, and ask Ahmed to pull the assigned schools from the MLS record.
Commute
Forty minutes to downtown on a good day, and no train.
Great Falls has two roads out, Georgetown Pike and Route 7, and the nearest Metro station is a 15-to-20-minute drive, which is the price of the acre.
| To | Drive | Drive to Metro, then train | Route |
|---|---|---|---|
| Downtown DC (Farragut) | 40 to 60 min | 45 min | Georgetown Pike to the GW Parkway, or Route 7 to the Beltway; Silver Line from Wiehle-Reston East or Spring Hill |
| Pentagon | 35 to 50 min | 55 min | GW Parkway to I-395; Silver to Blue at Rosslyn |
| Tysons | 15 to 25 min | — | Route 7 or Georgetown Pike to Route 123 |
| Reston Town Center | 15 to 20 min | — | Route 7 to Reston Parkway |
| Dulles Airport | 25 to 30 min | — | Route 7 to Route 28 |
| Reagan National | 35 to 45 min | — | GW Parkway |
Georgetown Pike is two lanes, scenic and closes when a tree comes down; Route 7 is the alternative and is wider now that the widening to Reston is done. The 495 NEXT express lanes end at the GW Parkway, which helps the Beltway leg. Nobody in Great Falls walks to a train. The real test is to drive it on a Tuesday at 7:45. Ahmed will do that drive with you.
Daily life
A village crossroads, a national park, and your own well.
The village. Georgetown Pike at Walker Road: the Safeway, the Old Brogue, the Great Falls Grange and the Saturday farmers market. That is the town centre. Everything else is in McLean, Tysons or Reston, 15 to 25 minutes.
Outdoors. Great Falls Park and Riverbend Park on the Potomac, Colvin Run Mill, the Cross County Trail's northern start, and the bridle paths, because this is still horse country with stables on Beach Mill and Springvale roads.
Halal and Middle Eastern. Zamarod, the Afghan restaurant in the village, is halal. For everything else, McLean, Tysons and Vienna are 15 minutes: Divan and Aracosia in McLean, Agora and Joon in Tysons, Yas Bakery and the new Mashahweez shawarma in Vienna. The full top-five-per-cuisine list is on the McLean page.
Water, sewer, power. Most homes are on a well and a septic field. The county requires some septic systems to be certified on sale, the well gets tested, and a whole-house generator is the common upgrade because outages come with the trees. Budget for pumping the tank every three to five years.
Hospitals and airports. Reston Hospital Center is 15 minutes; Inova Fairfax, the region's Level I trauma centre, about 25. Dulles is 25 to 30 minutes; Reagan National 35 to 45.
Taxes.4 Great Falls is unincorporated, so there is no town tax and no community-centre district: the 2026 county rate is $1.12 per $100 plus about $0.034 in county fees, about $1.15 all in. On a $1.885 million house that is roughly $21,700 a year. The car tax is $4.57 per $100 of each vehicle's value.
Who buys here
People who want the acre more than the train.
Executives and owners who want land and privacy within half an hour of the Beltway, equestrian families, multigenerational households that need 7,000 square feet, and McLean families trading up for the lot.
Buyers choose Great Falls over McLean for the acre and the quiet, and over Loudoun for Langley and the shorter drive. They pay for it with Georgetown Pike at 8 am and a septic inspection. The ones who leave are usually trading the acre for a Tysons condo or a McLean house near the Silver Line once the children are through Langley.
Questions
What people ask about Great Falls.
How much does a house cost in Great Falls, Virginia in 2026?
The median single-family home (3+ bedrooms, 2+ full baths) sold for $1,885,000 in 2026 through October 2, across 139 sales in Bright MLS, at a median of $505 per square foot. Sales ran from $800,000 to $12 million. The average, $2,240,018, is pulled up by the estates.
Are there townhouses in Great Falls, Virginia?
Almost none. Not a single townhouse was sold or rented in Great Falls in 2026. The community is zoned for large residential lots, most streets have no public sewer, and the housing stock is detached houses on one to five acres. Buyers who want a townhome near Langley High School look in McLean, where the 2026 median townhouse was $1,100,000, or in Reston and Herndon.
What percentage of Great Falls home buyers pay cash?
About 27%: 37 of 139 single-family sales in 2026 closed without a mortgage, and those buyers spent 34% of all the money. Cash is concentrated at the top: 56% of buyers between $3 million and $5 million and 57% above $5 million paid cash, against 17% under $2 million. The year's top sale, $12 million, was cash at full asking price after one day on the market.
What is rent in Great Falls, Virginia?
In 2026 the median single-family rental (3+ bedrooms) leased for $5,250 a month across 43 closed leases in Bright MLS, taking a median of 29 days to lease. Rents ran from $3,200 to $15,000. No townhouses were rented, so renting in Great Falls means renting a house.
Is it better to rent or buy in Great Falls?
By the numbers, renting is cheaper: the price-to-rent ratio is 29.9 ($1,885,000 against $63,000 a year in rent), well above the 20 where renting usually wins, and gross rental yield is 3.3%. People buy in Great Falls for the land, the privacy and Langley High School, not for monthly savings.
Which schools serve Great Falls?
All of Great Falls feeds Langley High School, rated A+ by Niche and ranked second in Fairfax County for 2027 and fourth in Virginia by US News, through Cooper Middle School and Forestville, Great Falls and Colvin Run elementary schools. Great Falls Elementary runs Fairfax County's Japanese immersion programme. The Potomac School and Madeira are on Georgetown Pike at the McLean end.
How long is the commute from Great Falls to Washington, DC?
About 40 to 60 minutes by car at 8 am via Georgetown Pike and the GW Parkway, or Route 7 to the Beltway. There is no rail: the nearest Metro stations are Wiehle-Reston East and Spring Hill in Tysons, each 15 to 20 minutes away, then about 25 minutes to downtown on the Silver Line. Tysons is 15 to 25 minutes and Dulles Airport 25 to 30.
What should I know about septic, wells and taxes in Great Falls?
Most Great Falls homes are on a private septic system and a well. Get a separate septic inspection, confirm the system's capacity matches the bedroom count, and test the well water. Great Falls is unincorporated Fairfax County, so the 2026 tax is $1.12 per $100 of assessed value plus about $0.034 in county fees, with no community-centre district: roughly $21,700 a year on a $1.885 million house.
Ask Ahmed
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Tell me what you are looking for in Great Falls.
Buying, selling or just deciding between Great Falls and McLean. Send the situation and get the numbers back, in English or Arabic, not a pitch.
REALTOR®, Douglas Realty of Virginia · VA License #0225242357
Direct 703.957.0060 · Mobile 734.383.6945 · English and Arabic
Ahmed's take
Two or three sentences in Ahmed's own voice go here: who Ahmed sees choosing Great Falls over McLean, what the acre does to them, and the first thing Ahmed tells them about septic.
دليل شمال فرجينيا
السكن في غريت فولز، فرجينيا.
بلغ السعر الوسطي للبيت المستقل 1,885,000 دولار في 2026، على أرض مساحتها فدان أو أكثر، ولم تُبع أي وحدة تاون هاوس طوال العام.
غريت فولز هي منطقة الأراضي الكبيرة في مقاطعة فيرفاكس: بيوت على مساحات من فدان إلى خمسة فدادين بين ماكلين وحدود لاودن، ويحدها نهر بوتوماك وحديقة غريت فولز من الشمال. لا يوجد مترو، وتعتمد أغلب البيوت على بئر وخزان صرف خاص (السبتك)، ولا توجد وحدات تاون هاوس أصلاً. يأتي الناس إليها من أجل الأرض والهدوء ومدرسة لانغلي الثانوية، ويدفعون ثمن ذلك في التنقل وفي فحص خزان الصرف. جميع الأرقام من Bright MLS، مبيعات مغلقة من 1 يناير إلى 2 أكتوبر 2026.
حسابياً، الإيجار في غريت فولز أرخص من الشراء: نسبة السعر إلى الإيجار 30. لكن الناس يشترون هنا من أجل الأرض والخصوصية ولانغلي، لا من أجل القسط الشهري. وإذا أردت الاستئجار، فستستأجر بيتاً كاملاً، لأنه لا توجد وحدات تاون هاوس. هل تفكر في غريت فولز، أو تحتار بينها وبين ماكلين؟ أرسل لي تفاصيل وضعك، وسأحسب معك أرقامك الحقيقية، بالعربية أو بالإنجليزية.
وكيلك العقاري الموثوق في شمال فرجينيا.
McLean
Langley, the river, Tysons.
$2.3M
Median house, 2026
Vienna
A real town on the Orange Line.
$1.453M
Median house, 2026
Buying power
Start from the payment.
Tax, insurance and HOA included
Home valuation
Priced on evidence.
A real comparative analysis, not a website estimate
Fairfax County
Fifty-one years of prices.
$950K
Median house, September 2026
بالعربية
Every step, in Arabic.
بالعربية أو بالإنجليزية، كما تفضّل