DC Home Searches Increased During Polar Vortex
✉️ Want to forward this article? Click here.

They probably wanted to move to Orlando, too. Image via 20002ist.
Do DC’s frigid temperatures have you considering a move or an investment in a vacation home? You’re not alone.
That’s what Trulia’s team discovered when they looked at user searches during the recent polar vortex. Nationwide, Trulia found that home searches increased 2.6 percent for every 10 degrees the thermometer dropped between December 1, 2013 and January 21, 2014.
Unsurprisingly, those searches were mostly targeted at cities in warmer parts of the country. Searches targeted in those areas increased 4.4 percent overall using the same temperature metric.
Trulia economist Jed Kolko ran some DC-specific searches for UrbanTurf. These figures come with a few caveats: because there is less data to work with, the numbers are more volatile and less reliable than when the data is looked at across the country. Kolko looked at the changes in average daily search volume when the maximum temperature in DC was 10 degrees or more below the average daily high. Comparing the coldest days between December 1 and January 21 with other days during that period, average daily search traffic by those in the region was:
- 6% higher for homes in the DC metro (i.e. DC residents looking for homes in the region)
- 3% higher for homes in New York metro
- 3% higher for homes in Miami metro
- 15% higher for homes in Houston metro
- 22% higher for homes in Orlando metro
- 1% lower for homes in Chicago metro
Time to pack your bags for Orlando, DC.
This article originally published at https://dc.urbanturf.com/articles/blog/as_temps_go_down_home_searches_go_up/8059.
Most Popular... This Week • Last 30 Days • Ever

When you buy a home in the District, you will have to pay property taxes along with y... read »

In this article, UrbanTurf explores what renters insurance is and what it covers.... read »

The application filed with Montgomery County seeks to extend the validity of a plan t... read »

Even as the housing market has slowed this year in the DC region, there are still ple... read »

1834 16th Street NW was originally designed by one of the most influential architects... read »
- First-Timer Primer: Tax Relief for DC Homeowners
- What is Renter's Insurance?
- Are Plans For The Redevelopment of GEICO's Headquarters Inching Forward?
- 8 Days Or Less: The DC Neighborhoods Where Homes Are Selling Fastest
- A Gorgeous, Newly Renovated Victorian Hits the Market on the Avenue of the Presidents
DC Real Estate Guides
Short guides to navigating the DC-area real estate market
We've collected all our helpful guides for buying, selling and renting in and around Washington, DC in one place. Start browsing below!
First-Timer Primers
Intro guides for first-time home buyers
Unique Spaces
Awesome and unusual real estate from across the DC Metro