WASHINGTON — Sales of houses and condos in the District were largely lower in December — with some neighborhood exceptions — but prices continued to rise and the number of homes listed for sale was up from a year ago.
Inventory was significantly up in two D.C. neighborhoods. Long & Foster Real Estate said active inventory in Foggy Bottom and the West End was up 67 percent from a year ago. Inventory in Logan Circle and Dupont was up 36 percent and up 26 percent in Penn Quarter and Shaw.
Overall, D.C. real estate inventory in December was up 7 percent from a year earlier, with about 1,500 active listings and more than 500 new listings coming on the market.
The number of sales in December in the District was down 12 percent from a year ago. The median price, at $598,550, was up 7 percent.
Sales by neighborhood tend to be small numbers, but based on closed transactions, Long & Foster said sales in Capitol Hill Southeast jumped 66 percent and sales in Chevy Chase D.C. were up 33 percent.
“D.C. is different from neighborhood to neighborhood,” said Larry “Boomer” Foster, president of Long & Foster Real Estate. “Each area of the city is its own market where there’s a melting pot of different things happening, which just goes to show us that all real estate is hyperlocal.”
The overall slowdown in sales reflects the national trend.
The National Association of Realtors this week reported closed sales of existing homes in December fell 6.4 percent and were down more than 10 percent from a year ago, to a three year low.
Below is a chart of D.C. neighborhood residential activity in December, courtesy of Long & Foster. Click on the graphic for a larger view.
