Northern Virginia Guide › Loudoun County › Cascades
Cascades, Virginia
A 1990s planned community of pools, trails and Potomac parkland in Sterling, where the median house sold for $1.01 million in 2026.
At a glance
Six numbers that describe Cascades.
The median single-family home in Cascades sold for $1,010,000 in 2026 after a median five days on the market, and 16 of the 27 houses sold above the asking price.
Cascades is a planned community of about 6,500 homes on 2,500 acres in eastern Loudoun County, built from 1990 on what had been a few large farms. It is unincorporated: there is no town and no town tax, and its homes carry a Sterling or Potomac Falls mailing address in zip 20165. Bright MLS has no Cascades postal city, so Ahmed selected these sales by zip 20165 plus the subdivision name (Cascades, Cascades Estates, Cascades/Potomac and Lowes Island/Cascades). Most of them are also counted on the Sterling page, which covers the whole Sterling address. This page shows what a Cascades house or townhouse costs, how buyers pay, what it rents for, which schools serve it, and the commute. Every number is from Bright MLS closed sales, pulled on October 4, 2026, not from a listing site's estimate.
Many Cascades townhouses and garden units are condominium-owned. Those are left out of the sales numbers on this page, so the townhouse figures cover fee-simple townhouses only; the townhome rental count does include condo-owned homes. Single-family means a detached house with at least three bedrooms and two full baths; townhouse means end-of-row and interior-row homes. Sales listed only as Lowes Island, next door, are counted separately. Source: Bright MLS, closed sales in 2026, County = Loudoun, zip 20165, Subdivision containing Cascades, pulled by Ahmed Makkiyah on October 4, 2026.
Prices
$1,010,000 for a Cascades house in 2026, and $695,000 for a fee-simple townhouse.
The median Cascades house cost $230,000 more than across the whole Sterling address ($780,000) and $340,000 less than in Lansdowne ($1,350,000). Per square foot it sold for $381, about the same as Sterling ($384) and more than Lansdowne ($360).
Houses. 27 houses sold, from $795,000 to $1,800,000. The median house had four bedrooms and 3,902 square feet on 0.2 acres, and was built in 1995. 59% sold above asking, against 53.2% across Sterling and 41% in Lansdowne; the median house sold for 101.0% of its list price, and 67% went under contract within a week.
Townhouses. 19 fee-simple townhouses sold at a median of $695,000, from $622,681 to $1,199,000, or $305 a square foot for a median 2,452 square feet. That is $102,500 more than across Sterling ($592,500), about the same as Leesburg ($700,000) and $117,500 less than Lansdowne ($812,500). 9 of the 19 sold over asking, and 79% went under contract within a week.
Against the county. Middleburg's Loudoun side ($1,765,000), Waterford ($1,425,000), Lansdowne ($1,350,000), Aldie ($1,348,862), Brambleton ($1,204,938), Hamilton ($1,200,000), Ashburn ($1,186,700), Leesburg and South Riding ($1,140,000) and Broadlands ($1,127,180) cost more. Purcellville ($920,000), Round Hill and Lovettsville ($850,000) and Sterling as a whole ($780,000) cost less.
Median single-family sale price, Loudoun County, 20262
Bright MLS closed sales, 2026 year to date, County = Loudoun, filtered to detached houses with 3+ bedrooms and 2+ full baths, condominium-regime homes left out. Brambleton and Broadlands are their own postal cities, so Ashburn here leaves them out. South Riding (20152) is the Loudoun side of the Chantilly mailing address, nearly all of it South Riding. Hamilton, Purcellville, Round Hill, Lovettsville, Waterford and Middleburg are western Loudoun; Middleburg means the Loudoun County side of its address only. Lansdowne and Cascades are communities selected by zip code and subdivision name inside the Leesburg (20176) and Sterling (20165) addresses, so their sales overlap those rows. Upperville, Bluemont, Hillsboro and the other small places have too few sales to chart.
| Measure | Houses | Townhouses (fee simple) |
|---|---|---|
| Homes sold | 27 | 19 |
| Median sold price | $1,010,000 | $695,000 |
| Average sold price | $1,098,241 | $724,720 |
| Median price per square foot | $381 | $305 |
| Median size and lot | 3,902 sq ft, 0.2 acres | 2,452 sq ft |
| Median year built | 1995 | 1995 |
| Median days on market | 5 | 5 |
| Sold-to-list, median and average | 101.0% and 101.2% | 100.7% average |
| Sold above asking | 16 (59%) | 9 (47%) |
| Under contract within 7 days | 67% | 79% |
| Lowest sale | $795,000 | $622,681 |
| Highest sale | $1,800,000 | $1,199,000 |
| Cash sales | 2 (7.4%) | 2 (10.5%) |
The lowest house sale, $795,000, and the highest townhouse sale, $1,199,000, were both cash purchases. Next door, sales listed only as Lowes Island are not in these numbers: 8 houses at a median of $945,000 and 5 townhouses at $699,900. Sales listed as Lowes Island/Cascades are included. The houses and townhouses on this page changed hands for $43.4 million in all.
What can you afford in Cascades? Start from the monthly payment you can live with, not the price. Cascades has no town tax, but the Cascades Community Association charges dues, and a condo-owned townhouse adds a condo fee; the calculator adds them for you.
Follow the money
25 of 27 Cascades house buyers used a loan, and 5 of them a VA loan.
Only two Cascades houses sold for cash in 2026, at $795,000 and $1,325,000: $2.1 million of the $29.7 million paid for Cascades houses, 7.1% of the dollars. 20 house buyers used a conventional loan and 5 a VA loan.
Share of sales paid in cash, houses and townhouses
Cascades house buyers paid cash less often than buyers across Sterling (13.2%), in Leesburg (13.2%) or in Ashburn (16.9%), and a little more often than in Lansdowne (4.3%). With two cash sales of each type, one more or one fewer would move the share by about four points for houses and five for townhouses.
How 27 Cascades house purchases were paid for
Nearly one house buyer in five used a VA loan, 5 of 27, about twice the share across Sterling (24 of 280) or in Leesburg (45 of 433). No Cascades house sold with an FHA loan in 2026.
What that means if you need a loan: you are mostly up against other financed buyers, not cash, but 59% of houses sold over asking and two in three went under contract within a week. Have a full pre-approval before you tour, keep the inspection window short, and decide your appraisal-gap limit before the showing. If you are looking at a condo-owned townhouse, ask early whether the condominium is approved for your loan type.
Townhouses: 17 of 19 buyers used a conventional loan and 2 paid cash, at $760,000 and $1,199,000; cash buyers spent $2.0 million of the $13.8 million paid for fee-simple townhouses, 14.2%. Mixed cash-and-loan deals count as financed.
The interesting facts
$381 a square foot, about Sterling's $384, for a 3,902-square-foot house built in 1995.
Four things in the 2026 numbers that set Cascades apart.
Condo-owned homes are left out. Many Cascades townhouses and garden units are condominium-owned, and the condo filters remove them, so the 19 townhouse sales on this page are fee-simple townhouses only. The rental count is different: the 21 townhome leases include condo-owned homes. If you are shopping a condo-owned townhouse or a garden unit, ask Ahmed for those sales separately.
Sterling's price per foot, more house. A Cascades house sold for about what Sterling houses did per square foot, $381 against $384, but the median Cascades house was a 1995 build with 3,902 square feet, so its total ran $230,000 above the Sterling median. Against Lansdowne it was $340,000 less, about 1,700 square feet smaller (3,902 against 5,641) on a similar lot (0.2 acres against 0.23).
Lowes Island next door. Sales listed only as Lowes Island, beside Cascades on the river, are counted separately: 8 houses at a median of $945,000, $65,000 below Cascades, and 5 townhouses at $699,900, about the same as Cascades townhouses. Ask Ahmed to pull both when you compare a house near the line.
Rent or buy
A Cascades townhouse sells for 18.1 times the yearly townhome rent; only 3 houses were rented.
21 Cascades townhomes, condo-owned ones included, rented for a median of $3,200 a month in 2026; against the $695,000 fee-simple median, that is a price-to-rent ratio of 18.1. Three houses rented at a median of $4,950, too few leases to judge by.1
| Measure | Houses | Townhomes |
|---|---|---|
| Homes rented | 3 | 21 |
| Median monthly rent | $4,950 | $3,200 |
| Price-to-rent ratio | 17.0 (3 leases) | 18.1 |
| Gross rental yield | 5.9% (3 leases) | 5.5% |
| Rent range | $4,500 to $4,999 | $2,350 to $3,650 |
Gross yield is before the mortgage, tax, HOA, insurance and upkeep. Three house leases are too few to draw any conclusion from, so treat the house ratio as a placeholder, not a verdict. The townhouse ratio mixes two groups: the rents include condo-owned townhomes, while the price is for fee-simple townhouses only, so the two figures do not describe exactly the same homes. For a larger sample, Sterling as a whole had 75 house leases and 272 townhome leases in 2026, and its houses sold for 17.6 times their rent and its townhouses for 16.3.
Own in Cascades already? 16 of 27 houses sold above asking this year, in a median of five days. Ahmed runs a real comparative analysis against the 46 Cascades sales on this page and the condo-owned sales it leaves out, not a website estimate.
The houses
About 6,500 homes on 2,500 acres, with five pools, 15 tennis courts and Algonkian Park on the river.
Cascades was a few large farms until about 1990, when its homeowners association was formed. The association now runs five community centers, five swimming pools, 15 tennis courts and paved walking trails, and Algonkian Regional Park borders the community on the north along the Potomac.
Houses. The median house sold in 2026 was built in 1995, with four bedrooms and 3,902 square feet on 0.2 acres. Prices ran from $795,000 to $1,800,000.
Townhouses and condos. Cascades mixes single-family homes with townhouses and condominiums. Fee-simple townhouses sold at a median of $695,000 for 2,452 square feet; condo-owned townhouses and garden units also trade here but are not in this page's sales numbers.
Lowes Island. On the river side, Lowes Island at Cascades is centered on Trump National Golf Club, formerly the Lowes Island Club, whose courses cover 465 acres along more than two miles of the Potomac. Listings marked Lowes Island/Cascades are in this page's numbers; those marked only Lowes Island are not.
Countryside next door. Cascades, Countryside and Lowes Island are considered the three main parts of the Potomac Falls community. Countryside, with more than 2,500 homes finished by 1991, is on the Sterling page.
What to check. The Cascades Community Association resale package, with dues, rules and any special assessment; whether a townhouse is fee simple or condo-owned, and the condo fee if it is; the age of the roof, windows and HVAC on a house built around 1995; and which elementary school the address feeds.
Schools
Potomac Falls High, #102 in Virginia on US News, and Lowes Island Elementary, #7 in Loudoun on Niche.
Cascades is Loudoun County Public Schools. The schools listed for the Cascades area are Potomac Falls High, River Bend Middle, and the Lowes Island, Potowmack and Horizon elementary schools; which one serves a house depends on the address.3
A-
Potomac Falls High School
On Algonkian Parkway, opened in 1997, with about 1,660 students and 12 per teacher. Niche #71 in Virginia, US News #102 in Virginia, and 91% graduate in four years.
B+
River Bend Middle School
About 1,137 students and 11 per teacher. Niche #14 among Loudoun County public middle schools and #113 in Virginia.
A
Lowes Island Elementary School
On Whitewater Drive. Niche #7 among Loudoun County public elementary schools and #44 in Virginia.
STEM
Academies of Loudoun
LCPS's application-based STEM and technical high school program, on one campus on Loudoun Academy Drive in Leesburg, open to students from every Loudoun high school, Potomac Falls included.
Masjid
ADAMS Center
On Sugarland Road in Sterling, about 10 to 15 minutes from Cascades, founded in 1983. ADAMS serves more than 5,000 families through ten branches, with daily and Friday prayer.
Masjid
AQSA and NAIF
The AQSA Center on Acacia Lane in 20166, with daily prayer and Qur'an classes, and the NAIF Center on Shaw Road in 20164.
Halal
Halal 4 All
Al Rehma Halal Meat and Supermarket on Davenport Drive, in 20165 with Cascades; the owners are Muslim and say everything they sell is certified halal.
Halal
Sunshine and Fair Price
Sunshine Grocery & Halal Meat on Dulles Eastern Plaza cuts meat and fish to order; Fair Price Market on Overland Drive has Indo-Pak and Middle Eastern groceries and halal meat.
Two Cascades houses a few streets apart can feed different elementary schools, and the listing is not always right. Check any address with the LCPS school boundary locator, and ask Ahmed to confirm it before you offer.
Commute
Route 7 east to Tysons, Route 28 to Dulles, and commuter buses from Loudoun Gateway.
Cascades sits just north of Route 7, the main road east to Tysons, with Algonkian Parkway running through it. Route 28 runs south to Dulles Airport and the Dulles Toll Road, and the Silver Line's Loudoun Gateway station is the nearest Metro.
| To | Drive | Route |
|---|---|---|
| Downtown DC | 50 to 85 min | Route 28 to the Dulles Toll Road and I-66, or the commuter bus |
| Pentagon | 45 to 75 min | Dulles Toll Road to I-66, or the 482 bus |
| Tysons | 25 to 40 min | Route 7 east |
| Reston Town Center | 20 to 30 min | Route 28 to the Dulles Toll Road |
| Loudoun Gateway Metro station | 15 to 20 min | Route 28 south |
| Dulles Airport | 15 to 20 min | Route 28 south |
Since April 1, 2026, Loudoun County Transit's commuter buses leave from the Loudoun Gateway station, where garage parking is free. Routes 481 and 486 run to downtown DC in the morning and route 482 to Rosslyn, the Pentagon and Crystal City, with return trips in the late afternoon.5 The Silver Line from the same station runs through Tysons to DC. The Dulles Toll Road charges a toll each way, so a daily drive adds up; Route 7 is free but slow at rush hour. Ahmed will do the 7:45 drive with you before you offer.
Daily life
Five pools, Algonkian Park on the Potomac, and halal shops on Davenport Drive.
Outdoors and sights. The Cascades Community Association runs five pools, five community centers, 15 tennis courts and paved trails through the neighborhood. Algonkian Regional Park, on the community's north edge, runs along the Potomac River. Claude Moore Park and the W&OD Trail are a short drive south in Sterling, and Dulles Town Center is the nearby mall.
Food and groceries. Cascades Marketplace has the sit-down restaurants closest to home, among them Local Provisions, Brasserie Royale and The Dons' Wood-Fired Pizza; Countryside, next door, has Sortrel Thai and Naz's Halal. Along Route 7 and Route 28 in Sterling are many Middle Eastern, Afghan, Pakistani and halal places, with Toosso and Halal 4 All on Davenport Drive in 20165.
Taxes.4 Cascades is unincorporated Loudoun County, so there is no town tax. The 2026 rate is $0.805 per $100: about $8,100 a year on a $1,010,000 house, or $5,600 on a $695,000 townhouse, before Cascades Community Association dues and any condo fee.
Car tax. Loudoun cut its vehicle tax rate to $3.09 per $100 for 2026 and plans $2.94 for 2027.
Where to eat
"Ahmed, where do you go to eat?" The Cascades list.
Up to five picks within about fifteen to twenty minutes of Cascades in each cuisine, the one doing best at the top, and halal marked. Cascades Marketplace and Countryside are closest to home; the Middle Eastern, Afghan and Pakistani kitchens and the halal grocers are along Route 7 and Route 28 in Sterling, with a few of the best in Herndon.7
Closed, so not listed: A Taste of Burma and Countryside Pizzeria & Cafe, both on Edds Lane in Countryside, show as closed on Yelp in 2026. Naz's Halal shows its Yelp review count because no star rating could be confirmed, and Karahi Boys and Halal 4 All show their Zabihah listing because no Yelp count could be confirmed. Rankings weigh current Yelp ratings by review count; the halal note comes from Zabihah, Yelp or the restaurant itself, and "ask about halal" means it could not be confirmed. Hours change, so call ahead. Know one that belongs here? Tell Ahmed.
Who buys here
Move-up families, VA buyers, 5 of 27, and townhouse buyers at $695,000.
Families moving up to a four-bedroom 1990s house with pools, trails and parkland in the HOA; military and veteran families, 5 of the 27 house buyers on VA loans; buyers of a fee-simple townhouse at a median of $695,000; and Muslim families who want to be near the ADAMS Center and the halal shops on Davenport Drive.
Buyers choose Cascades over the rest of the Sterling address for a bigger, newer house and the association's pools and trails, at $230,000 more than the Sterling median. They choose it over Lansdowne for $340,000 less and accept about 1,700 fewer square feet, and over Ashburn ($1,186,700) to save $176,700 and keep Route 7 to Tysons. If you are torn, decide on the commute and the school first; the price follows.
Questions
What people ask about Cascades.
How much does a house cost in Cascades, Virginia in 2026?
The median single-family home (3+ bedrooms, 2+ full baths) in Cascades sold for $1,010,000 in 2026, across 27 sales in Bright MLS, from $795,000 to $1,800,000, at $381 per square foot. The median fee-simple townhouse sold for $695,000 across 19 sales, at $305 per square foot. That is $230,000 more than the Sterling address as a whole ($780,000 for a house) and $340,000 less than Lansdowne ($1,350,000). Condo-owned townhouses and garden units, common in Cascades, are not included.
How competitive is the Cascades housing market?
Fast: the median house and the median townhouse each went in 5 days in 2026. 16 of 27 houses (59%) sold above asking, at a median of 101.0% of the list price, and 67% went under contract within a week; 79% of fee-simple townhouses did. Have a full pre-approval before you tour.
Do Cascades buyers pay cash or use VA loans?
Most finance. Only 2 of 27 house buyers paid cash in 2026 (7.4%), against 13.2% across Sterling, while 20 used a conventional loan and 5 a VA loan, nearly one in five. Among fee-simple townhouses, 17 of 19 buyers used a conventional loan and 2 paid cash.
What is rent in Cascades, Virginia?
In 2026, 21 townhomes, condo-owned ones included, rented at a median of $3,200 a month, from $2,350 to $3,650. Only 3 houses were rented, at a median of $4,950, from $4,500 to $4,999, too few leases to judge by.
Is it better to rent or buy in Cascades?
A fee-simple townhouse sells for 18.1 times the median yearly townhome rent, a 5.5% gross yield, though the rents include condo-owned homes and the price does not. The house ratio, 17.0, rests on just 3 leases and should not be relied on. Across Sterling, with far more leases, houses sell for 17.6 times their rent and townhouses for 16.3.
Which schools serve Cascades?
Cascades is in Loudoun County Public Schools. The schools listed for the area are Potomac Falls High (Niche A-, US News #102 in Virginia), River Bend Middle (Niche B+) and Lowes Island Elementary (Niche A, #7 in Loudoun County), plus Potowmack and Horizon elementary schools. The assignment depends on the address, so check it with the LCPS school locator.
How long is the commute from Cascades to DC?
At 8 am on a weekday, downtown DC is about 50 to 85 minutes by car on Route 28, the Dulles Toll Road and I-66, the Pentagon 45 to 75, Tysons 25 to 40 on Route 7, Reston Town Center 20 to 30 and Dulles Airport 15 to 20. Loudoun County Transit commuter buses to DC and the Pentagon leave from the Loudoun Gateway Silver Line station, 15 to 20 minutes away. These drive times are estimates.
What is the property tax in Cascades, Virginia?
Cascades is unincorporated Loudoun County, so there is no town tax. The 2026 rate is $0.805 per $100 of assessed value, roughly $8,100 a year on a $1,010,000 house or $5,600 on a $695,000 townhouse, before Cascades Community Association dues and any condo fee. The vehicle tax rate is $3.09 per $100 for 2026.
Ask Ahmed
Your Trusted Realtor in NOVA.
Tell me what you are looking for in Cascades.
Buying your first townhouse, choosing between a fee-simple townhouse and a condo-owned one, moving up to a house near the pools and trails, or selling where most houses went over asking. 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 buying in Cascades, how Ahmed helps a family weigh Cascades against the rest of Sterling or Lansdowne, and the first thing Ahmed checks on a listing (fee simple or condo, the HOA package, and the school for that address).
دليل شمال فرجينيا
السكن في كاسكيدز، فرجينيا.
كاسكيدز مجمّع سكني مخطط من التسعينيات في شرق مقاطعة لاودن، وعنوانه البريدي ستيرلنغ أو بوتوماك فولز (20165). بلغ السعر الوسطي للبيت المستقل 1,010,000 دولار، وللتاون هاوس (ملكية كاملة) 695,000 دولار، وبيع 27 بيتاً في 2026.
السوق سريع: بيع 16 بيتاً من 27 بأكثر من السعر المطلوب، وبقي البيت الوسطي في السوق خمسة أيام. ودفع 2 فقط من مشتري البيوت نقداً، واشترى 5 بقرض VA. البيت هنا أغلى من ستيرلنغ ككل (780,000) بـ 230,000 دولار، وأرخص من لانزداون (1,350,000) بـ 340,000. انتبه: كثير من وحدات التاون هاوس والشقق في كاسكيدز مملوكة بنظام الكوندو، وهي ليست محسوبة في أرقام البيع هنا. لا توجد ضريبة بلدة، لكن ضريبة المقاطعة 0.805 دولار لكل 100، أي نحو 8,100 دولار سنوياً على البيت الوسطي، تُضاف إليها رسوم جمعية الملاك (HOA). المدارس: بوتوماك فولز هاي، وريفر بند ميدل، ولوز آيلاند الابتدائية. يقع مركز آدمز على شارع شوغرلاند رود في ستيرلنغ، ومتاجر اللحم الحلال على دافنبورت درايف. جميع الأرقام من Bright MLS، مبيعات مغلقة في 2026 حتى بداية أكتوبر.
قبل أن تقدّم عرضاً، تأكد مما إذا كان التاون هاوس ملكية كاملة أم كوندو، واطلب أوراق جمعية الملاك (HOA). هل تحتار بين كاسكيدز وبقية ستيرلنغ؟ أرسل لي تفاصيل وضعك، وسأحسب معك أرقامك الحقيقية، بالعربية أو بالإنجليزية.
وكيلك العقاري الموثوق في شمال فرجينيا.
Sterling
Close to Dulles, $384 a foot.
$780K
Median house, 2026
Lansdowne
Golf and the Potomac in Leesburg.
$1.35M
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
Ashburn
The end of the Silver Line.
$1.187M
Median house, 2026
بالعربية
Every step, in Arabic.
بالعربية أو بالإنجليزية، كما تفضّل