The 2013 housing market is reinvigorated with talk of improvement, but for the first time since the bust in 2007 there is data supporting these claims. Research and statistics reveal the positive forecasts aren\’t just wishful thinking or fiction, but 2013 is quickly becoming a competitive seller’s market. According to a Fox Business report, “housing starts, prices and confidence are on an upward trend and the tide may be turning this year to favor home sellers.” As in any market that stands the test of time, real estate has its seesaw of highs and lows. Right now, the market is making a comeback.
From my experience, the residential real estate market in Washington, DC can be broken down by property value. There is the market below $1 million, the market between $1.5-3 million and the market consisting of properties selling at $3 million up. The market below the one million dollar threshold is extremely competitive, with buyers often over paying for property. The inventory is low and the demand to get into this price bracket is huge. These properties are going instantly, often with multiple offers. Properties listed between $1.5 million and $3 million are a good value in DC’s 2013 market. There is low inventory in this market as well, but prices aren\’t inflated so it\’s a great time to move into this price range. When priced right, houses will sell quickly, usually within a matter of days. According to Kathryn Vasel for Fox Business, “Home sellers are shifting into the driver’s seat with experts expecting bidding wars to break out in certain markets due to the low inventory. While homes will sell quicker this year, they still have to be priced right.” When the price is right, even luxury homes are selling. Homes asking more than $3 million are not as aggressively sought after, but there are definitely buyers out there willing to pay list price. In past years this group of sellers struggled and homes sat on the market for many months, sometimes even a year or more. So far in 2013, there have been plenty of sales in this price range, indicating that you can sell in this market, even if you aren\’t receiving multiple offers at once.
The Washingtonian Magazine\’s April issue has a great article about the DC real estate market–definitely worth a read: http://www.washingtonian.com/articles/cover-archive/april-2013-contents-best-places-to-live/index.php
