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2013 vs. 2008: Double the Sales, One Third the Inventory

  • May 6th 2013

by Shilpi Paul

2013 vs. 2008: Double the Sales, One Third the Inventory: Figure 1
DC area inventory levels.

Two recently published charts provide a sense of just how different the DC area housing market is today versus the frenzied activity that preceded the beginning of the downturn in 2008.

The chart below, courtesy of a post on RealEstate Business Intelligence by Chris Sicks, lines up the number of contracts that were signed in March 2008 next to those in March 2013. In DC, the number of contracts signed this past March came in just below 800; compare that number to 2008 when the total number of pending sales for the month came in just above 400. A look across counties in the rest of the region showed that the contract level was higher in almost every jurisdiction in March 2013 versus the same month in 2008.

2013 vs. 2008: Double the Sales, One Third the Inventory: Figure 2
DC area contract activity.

While contracts showed a notable increase, inventory has taken the opposite trajectory. In the District, there were 1,000 homes on the market in March 2013. In March 2008, there were more than 3,000 homes listed for sale. The inventory differences are far more stark in other parts of the region. Back in 2008, there were over 7,000 homes on the market in Fairfax County. Now the inventory for the county sits at just over 1,200.

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This article originally published at https://dc.urbanturf.com/articles/blog/double_the_sales_and_one_third_the_inventory_since_2008/7024.

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