P.G. County Ranked 12th Worst Housing Market for 2010

• January 11, 2010
• 10 Comments

by Tim Brown

A report released recently from the website Housing Predictor forecasts that Prince George’s County will be one of the worst performing markets in 2010. In a qualitative study done by the website, the county will sustain double digit deflation in 2010, making it the 12th worst housing market in the country.

Prince George’s County was among the last of the Washington area counties to be affected by the housing boom. The affordability it offered was overshadowed by high crime rates, a struggling school system, and its distance from the region’s largest employment centers. As neighboring jurisdictions became less and less affordable to homebuyers, more people began looking for homes in the county. It experienced its own construction boom, but the collapse of the housing market left it with a huge surplus of inventory and several unfinished developments. It was also hit particularly hard by mortgage fraud, and now has one of the highest foreclosure rates in the metro area.

Data from MRIS, the DC area’s multiple listings service (MLS), paints a picture similar to Housing Predictor’s report. According to Christopher Richardson of RE/MAX Professionals, the average home price in the county in November 2009 was $218,027, down from $264,885 just one year ago. Richardson attributed the sharp price decline to foreclosures, which increased sharply doing that time period.

Despite the grim prospects for the county, there are several programs that may aid in helping speed its recovery. In addition to the federal homebuyer tax credit, there is the Neighborhood Stabilization Program. This program gives buyers down payment and closing cost help to buy vacant foreclosed properties. Also, in an effort to crack down on mortgage fraud, several amendments were made to the state’s Protection of Homeowners and Foreclosure Act, and the county now has its own Mortgage Fraud Unit.

Housing Predictor composed its list of the Worst 25 Markets based on cities that have the highest probability of reaching their forecast price deflation in 2010. The forecast is based on research that examines twenty market characteristics, including income levels, employment and business trends, regional political influences, real estate sales history and current housing market velocity. It gathers this information from “hundreds of independent sources the staff develops without bias to the real estate industry” to develop these forecasts.

This article originally published at http://dc.urbanturf.com/articles/blog/p.g._county_ranked_12th_worst_housing_market_for_2010/1664

10 Comments

1. Lauren said at 12:59 pm on Monday January 11, 2010:

   Interesting… also, #17 on that list is “Bethesda, MY” - I wonder if that is a typo that is supposed to be Bethesda, MD? Are there any other Bethesdas?

1. benji said at 1:32 pm on Monday January 11, 2010:

   Interesting, but not surprising. P.G. County’s market is hurting right now.

1. gina said at 1:37 pm on Monday January 11, 2010:

   It is Bethesda, MD but I think the estimate is based on the huge drops in multimillion dollar listings.  It’s quite likely that low or “average” priced dwellings will not lose their value to that degree.

1. Matt said at 3:56 pm on Monday January 11, 2010:

   Please… Arlington, VA is forecasted to rise 4.8% but Bethesda is forecasted to drop 10%? Arlington has the same McMansions Bethesda does and an oversupply of condos to boot.  Its telling you can’t find prior years estimates online to compare!

1. Hellmut said at 12:00 pm on Tuesday January 12, 2010:

   Thanks for the report.  I don’t understand the reference to double digit inflation.  Aren’t housing prices dropping?

   By the way, my children are attending Prince George’s County schools and are getting an excellent education.  If you make sure that your children are taking advantage of the programs that are available, they will be fine.

1. Hellmut said at 12:03 pm on Tuesday January 12, 2010:

   OK.  I looked it up in the report.  Prince George’s County will have double digit DEflation rather than inflation.

   Please, correct that in your essay, Tim.

1. lloyd baskin said at 12:24 pm on Tuesday January 12, 2010:

   There is no question that the County has been hard hit by mortgage fraud and high foreclosure rates. However there is still quite a bit of affordable housing compared to other jurisdictions in the Metro area and neighborhoods like Capitol Heights, Cheverly, Hyattsville, Clinton, Glenarden, College Park and Ft. Washington offer good value for the dollar because they are conviently located near major employment centers and Metro Stations.  The lack of retail shopping and sit down restaurants continue to limit the appeal of these neighborhoods in the County.  I would like to continue the conversation and talk with you more about the County and its housing market.

1. Michael Cerrito said at 8:21 pm on Wednesday January 13, 2010:

   Look at the stats from the mutiple listing system and you wont see the doom and gloom that this article throws out.  Inventory in Prince Georges is down, decline in price is easing, time on market is lessening, contracts are being written at a feverish rate, multiple offers are common, settlements above listed price are also common.  NSP has been a great success.  Prince Georges is affordable and convenient!

1. Paul said at 2:44 pm on Thursday January 21, 2010:

   The county has definitely been hit hard.  But I can’t tell you how many people I know who have lived in more “reputable” places like Rockville, DC, and other locations, are moving over to Laurel, MD to step up.  With the downturn, these young professionals are able to buy the homes they want in preparation for starting a family.  I think when the ICC is done in the next year and a half, things will be quite good as access in and out of PG county will be strengthened.  And the Marc train going straight into Union Station is a huge plus that will only increase in value over time.

1. Jeff Cohen said at 6:32 pm on Wednesday February 24, 2010:

   It’s not all gloom and doom. January was a great month for us (local PG builder)and we move alot of product. February was hindered by the snow, but all the brokers and agent I speak with are excited about the spring. We have to remember that the Banks are the irrational sellers. We are always the last to recover, but when we do, the gloom and doom will be a distant memory. “When there is blood in the streets that’s when you buy.” PG is the place right now.

Join the discussion