The average length of time between when homeowners buy their home and sell it — called homeowner tenure — is a record 13.5 years in the D.C. metro area, up from an average of nine years a decade ago.
The often-cited “aging in place,” or seniors choosing to stay in their current home and renovate it to suit their aging lifestyle, is part of the reason homeowner tenure is so long, but a lot of younger homeowners are also staying put.
“Home prices have gone up quite a bit, and maybe you’d like to move to a different neighborhood or to a different home, but those prices might have gone up even faster than the price of your home,” Redfin chief economist Daryl Fairweather told WTOP.
“Plus, if you’re an older person, and you want to stay in your home longer and don’t want to move to assisted care, you have the ability to do that because you can tap the home equity that you’ve been able to gain during this time.”
The increase in homeowners staying put has a ripple effect on the entire housing market, particularly in the District, where inventory is so tight that buyers struggle to find what they both want and can afford.
“If we had enough homes for everybody who wanted a home, this wouldn’t be a problem. But when people stay in place it means there are fewer homes for first-time homebuyers available,” Fairweather said.
Across the D.C. metro area, the number of homes currently for sale is down 40% from a decade ago. In ultratight markets like Alexandria City and Arlington County, inventory is half what it was just one year ago.
