Sales of New Condos in DC Rise 35%, Bucking Area Trend

• April 12, 2016

by Nena Perry-Brown

Rendering of 525 Water, a new condo project in Southwest.

A lack of new condo development in the region has kept supply and sales low and prices on the rise, according to a new quarterly report from Delta Associates. However, DC proper bucked the trend as sales for new condos rose 35 percent in the first quarter of the year.

Overall, there were 323 new condo sales in the DC area, a slight decrease from the first quarter of 2015. While sales rose in DC, they dropped 41 percent in northern Virginia and were flat in suburban Maryland.

Over the past year, the price of new condos in the area has risen by an average 2.7 percent, although the actual change in each sub-market varies widely. Prices fell in Montgomery and Prince George’s Counties, by 10.3 and 0.5 percents, respectively, but rose in Central DC (12.6 percent) and Fairfax/Falls Church (7.4 percent).

“Prices for new condos in Central DC are higher than in most downtown areas in the U.S. and similar to those in Seattle, but below other gateway cities such as New York and San Francisco,” the report stated. “Meanwhile, per-square-foot prices in Upper NW DC are currently on par with San Francisco.”

Looking forward, the report predicts that new condo prices will increase by single digits over the next 24-36 months, and that there will be between 1,600 and 2,000 sales in 2016 as new units come online.

Sub-market definitions:

• Central DC includes West End, Dupont Circle, Logan Circle, East End, and Mt. Vernon Square/Triangle.

This article originally published at http://dc.urbanturf.com/articles/blog/dc_condo_sales_increase_35_bucking_area_trend/11097