As the DC Area Housing Market Went One Way in September, the DC Market Went Another

• October 11th 2019

by UrbanTurf Staff

When UrbanTurf covers the local real estate market, we differentiate between the DC area housing market and the DC proper housing market. Today, the September housing report from Bright MLS illustrates the current contrasts between those two markets. 

Last month, the median home price for the DC area set a record for September ($431,000) and marked the 36th month in a row that prices have risen in the region. Despite the high prices, sales volume rose 15 percent with closed sales increasing by 9 percent. With a high volume of sales and the number of new listings essentially flat year over year, inventory levels dropped to the lowest September level of the decade, adding more fuel to the seller's market narrative in the region.

In DC proper, September home prices rose almost ten percent year-over-year to $575,000, but record prices is where the similarities with the region end. Closed sales rose just one percent in the city, the smallest gain of any jurisdiction in the region. As for supply, DC saw the largest gains in the area for new listings and total inventory. 

These statistics point to the likelihood that while the larger DC-area market remains in a seller's market, the DC market is moving decidedly in favor of buyers. 

This article originally published at https://dc.urbanturf.com/articles/blog/as-the-dc-area-housing-market-went-one-way-in-september-the-dc-market-went-/16004.