2010-2011 Projection: Washington DC Home Prices +1.84%

You know that all real estate is local. This is the local forecast for our market for 2010-2011. According to data recently released by First American Core Logic, home prices for Washington DC- Arlington- Alexandria including sale of distressed homes (foreclosures & short sales), would increase by 1.84%.

  

[via First American Core Logic]

The price outlook for across the US, "..the Home Index Price (HPI) for the year will continue to go down well into the spring before beginning to stabilize and then recover modestly in the remainder for the year."

If you're selling, you should feel much better now because the prices started to pick up again - locally.

Market pulse for Northern Virginia as of February 2010, via MRIS.

• Condo sales grew 12%
• Single family, townhouse showed slower activity
• Good news for sellers: Northern Virginia home prices up 20% from a year ago from $267,500 to $320,660. Compare that to 2008-2009 period where 2009 Feb prices was down -26.7% at $267,500 from previous year at $365,000.

For DC, Maryland suburbs, February sales 2010,  it's a mixed bag.

• Number of homes sold up 35.8% for the month, from 1,573 to 2,136 homes. On the longer track, it wasn't as strong as 2007 sales.
• Sales of lower home prices pulled the sales price down to $270,000 from $287,000 a year ago. 2009 prices were down -22.4% from a year earlier.

Incentives work. Overall for DC metro area, the perfect buying conditions come from: federal tax credit for buyers, low interest rates and low prices.

The one thing that could continue to drive prices up is this: low inventory of homes.