People just can’t list homes fast enough in the nation’s capital.
Even though the entire country is struggling with low supplies of available homes, the Washington, D.C., problem is pronounced and multi-faceted.
Now in D.C., supply is at about two months. Inventory has been below the six-month level since July 2009, and dwindled steadily since then to where we are now.
It’s not that there is a shortage of sellers; quite the contrary. According to data from RealEstate Business Intelligence, for September 2015, there were 1,220 new listings. The five-year September average is 1,089. Year-over-year, the increase in that metric was just below 1 percent, with 1,209 new homes offered first in September 2014.
September’s five-year average of 1,602 listings is way above current conditions, with 1,425 listings active in 2015. But here’s the smoking gun: active listings fell year-over-year from 1,469.
Buyers are grabbing what they can quickly; in the recently concluded third quarter of 2015, the median days on the market is a blistering eight days.
[graphiq id=”8BBe8Q3A3iJ” title=”Mortgage Cost Distributionin Washington D.C.” width=”600″ height=”462″ url=”https://w.graphiq.com/w/8BBe8Q3A3iJ” link=”http://places.findthehome.com/l/294012/Washington-D-C” link_text=”Mortgage Cost Distributionin Washington D.C. | FindTheHome”]
In Q3 of 2010, homes would spend a month on the market.
So the tide is rising on prices, closed and pending sales, and rental prices while inventories, days on market, and interest rates are ebbing.
Even high-tier homes are being demanded. In August, 53 homes in the $1 million to $2.5 million range hit the market, with half of those under contract in less than 10 days. In fact, things are moving so quickly that buyers are getting close to 100 percent of the asking price for homes they sell in the entire D.C. metro market.
Individual neighborhoods vary. If you’re looking at Observatory Circle, you can expect that homes will be on the market for about three weeks. But in AU Park, prepare for a fast current– the average is closer to a week.
Buyers should be prepared to have their financing in good order, and be pre-qualified, or pay in cash to be competitive in DC, where the average home will get more than one offer, and will likely sell above the asking price. And prepare to ride world-class rapids to get there.