Roundup: The Best Streets in DC

• July 1st 2010

by UrbanTurf Staff

Here’s a quick rundown of interesting real estate stories making headlines this week:

• Last week smart growth blog Greater Greater Washington published a list of its 20 least favorite streets in the District based on pedestrian unfriendliness, ugliness, safety, and other factors. This week GGW published the opposite: its favorite DC streets (Part 1 and Part 2). Among the chosen: Good Hope Road in Historic Anacostia, Beach Drive in Rock Creek Park, Georgia Avenue/7th St NW/SW that stretches from the Southwest waterfront all the way to Silver Spring, and Connecticut Avenue NW. (Here is Part 1 and Part 2 of last week’s least-favorite streets.)

• Yesterday the District’s Department of Housing and Community Development (DHCD) auctioned off 18 vacant properties and lots located across all Wards except 3 and 4. It was the second such auction that DHCD has conducted with the dual aim of rehabilitating the properties and generating revenue for the city. (See our coverage of last year’s auction here.) Housing Complex has coverage of yesterday’s auction, including the video below:

• Mortgage rates went even lower this week, after hitting their lowest point on record last week. Last week the rate for a 30-year fixed-rate mortgage hit 4.69 percent; this week it sunk to 4.58 percent, according to Freddie Mac. Record-breaking lows notwithstanding, demand for mortgages and refinancing is weak. The Wall Street Journal argues that this counter-intuitive trend is likely because tightened lending standards are making it hard for people to qualify for a new mortgage, while those who would refinance probably already did so last year when rates started their descent below 5 percent.

Finally, here are UrbanTurf’s five most popular posts of the last week in case you missed them:

1. The Matheson: DC’s Newest Boutique Condo Project
2. Ted Kennedy’s Embassy Row Estate Hits the Market
3. DC Buyer: The Eager First-Timer Looking for Peace and Quiet
4. Roundup: DC’s Housing Market Wins Gold, DC’s Worst Streets
5. The DC Real Property Database: For Serious Buyers

This article originally published at https://dc.urbanturf.com/articles/blog/roundup_the_best_streets_in_dc/2228.