DC REAL ESTATE MARKET UPDATE

District of Columbia Weekly Market Data

Bright MLS DATASET	WEEK ENDING 7/12/2026	PRIOR YEAR	PRIOR WEEK
WEEKLY SHOWINGS	1,822	2,455	1,551
NEW SALES CONTRACTS	125	124	126
MEDIAN DAYS TO CONTRACT	45	53	47
NEW LISTINGS	265	272	144
MEDIAN LIST PRICE	$665,000	$627,000	$639,950
ACTIVE LISTINGS	2,620	2,808	2,574
% ACTIVE WITH PRICE DROP	8.6%	9.3%	4.7%
CANCELLED LISTINGS	45	39	27

Summary

The District’s housing market settled into a relatively steady pattern last week, with buyer activity holding firm while inventory continued its gradual adjustment. New contracts were essentially unchanged from both the prior week (125 vs. 126) and the same week last year (125 vs. 124), suggesting that despite higher borrowing costs and affordability challenges, demand for well-priced homes remains resilient.

New listings rebounded sharply following the 4th of July holiday week, climbing from 144 to 265, nearly matching last year’s 272 listings. As expected, the previous week’s slowdown proved temporary rather than indicative of weakening seller confidence. Active inventory edged up to 2,620 homes, though it remains about 6.7% below last year’s level (2,808), continuing to limit buyer choice in many neighborhoods.

Homes are also selling a bit faster than they were a year ago. Median days to contract improved to 45 days, down from 53 days last year and slightly better than last week’s 47 days. Sellers who price accurately and present their homes well continue to find buyers, even as purchasers take a more deliberate approach than during the pandemic-era frenzy.

Pricing remains substantially firm. The median list price increased to $665,000, up nearly 6% from $627,000 a year ago and above last week’s $639,950. That increase reflects continued strength in the District’s upper-price segments, where demand has remained relatively insulated from affordability pressures affecting entry-level buyers.

One metric that bears watching is pricing strategy. The share of active listings with price reductions jumped to 8.6%, up from 4.7% the prior week, though still slightly below last year’s 9.3%. Some of that increase is seasonal as more listings accumulate after the holiday, but it also suggests sellers are becoming more realistic about today’s market conditions. Cancelled listings also rose to 45, compared with 27 last week and 39 a year ago, indicating that some sellers remain unwilling to adjust pricing or expectations.

The District of Columbia remains a market defined by balance despite its challenges. Inventory is increasing, buyers have more negotiating leverage than they did a few years ago. While affordability challenges persist, particularly for first-time purchasers, demand for quality homes in desirable neighborhoods remains resilient.

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Washington DC Metro Area Weekly Data

The DC Metro Area market consists of District of Columbia, Arlington Va, Alexandria Va, Alexandria City Va, Fairfax County, Fairfax City, Falls Church, Montgomery County Md, Loudoun County Md, and Frederick County Md.

Bright MLS DATASET	WEEK ENDING 1/13/2026	PRIOR YEAR	PRIOR WEEK
WEEKLY SHOWINGS	16,491	-10.6%	+23.2%
NEW SALES CONTRACTS	974	-3.1%	-13.8%
MEDIAN DAYS TO CONTRACT	36 days	+3 days	+6 days
NEW LISTINGS	1,584	-1.5%	+37.9%
MEDIAN LIST PRICE	$633,995	+3.9%	+5.7%
ACTIVE LISTINGS	10,898	+8.7%	+4.7%
% ACTIVE WITH PRICE DROP	10.1%	-0.9 pp	+3.4 pp
CANCELLED LISTINGS	172	+0.6%	+41.0%

Summary

The DCMA housing market returned to a more typical seasonal pace following the Fourth of July holiday, with buyer traffic and new listings rebounding sharply while contract activity softened. The result is a market that continues to offer buyers more choices than a year ago, even as sellers who price strategically are still finding success.

Weekly showings climbed 23.2% from the holiday-shortened prior week to 16,491, signaling that buyer interest remains healthy. However, that figure is still 10.6% below the same week last year, reflecting a market that remains constrained by affordability challenges and elevated mortgage rates rather than a lack of underlying demand.

New listings also surged, rising 37.9% from the previous week to 1,584 homes. Even so, listing activity remained 1.5% below last year’s level, suggesting many homeowners continue to hesitate before giving up historically low mortgage rates. The additional inventory pushed active listings to 10,898, an 8.7% increase from a year ago and another sign that buyers have more options than they did throughout much of 2024 and 2025.

Despite the rebound in buyer showings, signed contracts slipped to 974, down 13.8% from the prior week and 3.1% from the same week last year. Some of that decline likely reflects the lag between renewed buyer activity and executed contracts following the holiday period rather than a sudden deterioration in demand.

Homes are also taking longer to sell. Median days to contract increased to 36 days, six days longer than the prior week and three days slower than last year. Buyers continue to move carefully, taking advantage of expanded inventory and greater negotiating leverage before making offers.

Pricing, however, continues to demonstrate remarkable resilience. The median list price rose to $633,995, up 5.7% from last week and 3.9% from a year ago. Higher-priced single-family homes continue to support overall pricing even as affordability pressures remain concentrated in the entry-level and condominium segments.

One of the clearest signs of today’s more balanced market is seller behavior. The share of active listings with price reductions climbed to 10.1%, up from 6.7% the previous week, although still slightly below last year’s level. Cancelled listings also increased 41% from the prior week to 172, suggesting some sellers remain reluctant to adjust pricing expectations when their homes don’t receive immediate offers.

The DC metro market continues its gradual transition toward balance. Inventory has expanded enough to give buyers meaningful choices and greater negotiating power, but demand remains sufficient to support home prices, particularly in desirable neighborhoods and move-up price points. Rather than signaling a weakening market, this week’s data reflects a healthier environment where buyers can be more selective and sellers must compete on price, condition, and presentation, a far cry from the frenzied conditions of just a few years ago.

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DC (City) Weekly Data

June 2026

METRIC	JUN 2026	YOY	MOM
TOTAL SOLD DOLLAR VOL	$
CLOSED SALES
MEDIAN SOLD PRICE
AVG SOLD PRICE
MEDIAN DAYS ON MKT
AVG DAYS ON MKT
MEDIAN PRICE PER SF
AVG PRICE PER SF

Source: SmartCharts Pro

Summary

Washington DC’s June 2026 real estate market coped, but it didn’t recover.

At first glance, June 2026 appears to mark another step forward for the DC housing market. Closed sales increased to 654 homes, up 7.2% from June 2025’s 610 transactions and nearly 15% above the 570 homes sold in June 2024. Total sales volume reached $633.2 million, a 4.8% increase over last year and nearly 15% higher than the $551.5 million recorded two years ago. Those figures have prompted many in the real estate industry to describe the market as ‘recovering.’

On closer study, though, there is a more nuanced picture. 2025 was a tumultuous year for the DC real estate market. Using YoY as the sole comparison for improvement would therefore be less than revealing. Let’s take a look at a 2024-2026 comparison.

While more transactions reached the closing table, the underlying pace of buyer activity has changed remarkably little over the past two years. New pending contracts (a leading indicator of future sales) totaled 614 in June 2026, virtually unchanged from the 618 recorded in June 2024 and actually below June 2025’s 668 pendings. Total pending contracts also remained relatively flat, increasing only modestly from 796 in June 2024 to 813 today. These figures suggest that today’s stronger closing numbers are not being driven by a significantly larger pool of buyers, but rather by a market driven by luxury sales, and completed transactions that had already entered the pipeline.

Pricing tells a similar story. The median sold price declined slightly to $700,000, compared with $708,500 in June 2025 and $710,525 in June 2024. Average sold prices also eased, falling from $966,604 in June 2024 to $955,963 this June. While these changes are modest and well within the range of normal monthly fluctuations, they demonstrate that price appreciation has largely stalled despite constrained inventory. Sellers are still achieving strong results, receiving an average of 96.5% of their original asking price, an improvement from 95.5% last year but still below the 97.8% achieved in June 2024. Homes also required more patience to sell, averaging 41 days on market compared with 34 days two years earlier, though slightly better than last year’s 42-day average.

The supply side of the market has also evolved. New listings have steadily declined over the past three years, falling from 939 in June 2024 to 882 in June 2025 and 835 in June 2026. Active inventory followed a different path, rising from 2,408 listings in June 2024 to 2,891 last year before easing to 2,721 this June. That pattern reflects a market that briefly accumulated inventory as buyers adjusted to higher borrowing costs before gradually absorbing much of that supply. Yet inventory remains historically constrained, limiting buyers’ options and continuing to provide underlying support for home values.

Market segmentation continues to define the District’s housing landscape. Attached homes accounted for 547 of June’s 654 sales, a 10.7% increase over last year, while detached home sales declined to 107, down 6.1% from June 2025. Despite fewer detached transactions, average detached sale prices increased slightly to $1.64 million, while attached homes remained essentially flat at $821,493. These figures suggest that buyers continue gravitating toward relatively more attainable housing options while the detached-home market remains supported by limited inventory and higher-income households.

Taken together, the June data suggest that Washington’s housing market is reaching for equilibrium rather than a return to the exceptionally competitive conditions of earlier years.

The market has proven remarkably resilient despite elevated mortgage rates, affordability challenges, and the volatility that has affected the Washington region since 2024. Transaction volume has improved, but the underlying drivers of the market have changed. Buyer demand remains disciplined rather than exuberant, sellers continue to face a smaller audience of upper-tier purchasers, and limited inventory continues to prevent meaningful price declines.

The Condominium Market: Washington’s Weakest Link
One of the biggest stories of the past two years has been the steady deterioration of the District’s condominium market. While detached homes have remained relatively resilient, condominiums have become the weakest segment of Washington’s housing market and account for a disproportionate share of the city’s inventory surplus.

Condos are highly reactive to market and economic conditions. They are typically the first housing segment to weaken during market downturns and among the last to recover. Condominiums were just beginning to recover from a severe demand drop during the pandemic when the city’s economic trajectory reversed due to government-related events in January and February 2025. The decline continued as the city experienced economic reversals.

New pending condo sales fell from 300 in June 2024 to just 237 in June 2026, a decline of 21% in only two years.

That is a tremendous loss of buyer demand.

Here’s what demand shock looks like:

Inventory climbed 23%. Active listings increased 23%, rising from 1,323 to 1,621 available units
Prices slipped. Median condo prices have fallen from $505,000 to $487,500, a decline of 3.5%
The Contract Ratio, which measures buyer demand relative to available inventory, has declined from 0.28 to 0.19
Condominiums are taking longer to sell, averaging 48 days on market
When possible, sellers are accepting less for their homes, with the average sold-to-original-list-price ratio declining from 97.4% to 95.8%. Why not more? Read on.
Declining Values

Some may say lower condo prices would help the market. But that’s not the way it’s playing out. It’s in the math. Sellers can’t lower their prices significantly in many cases because condos have the thinnest equity cushion.

Unlike detached homeowners who often:

• Bought years ago
• Accumulated significant appreciation
• Paid down principal
• Have flexibility to negotiate;

many condo owners:

• Purchased more recently
• Put 3–10% down
• Paid peak-pandemic prices (this is the part where you care more about what you paid for your condo than what you pay per month)
• Financed mortgage insurance
• Paid premiums on new construction
• Experienced little or no appreciation and in many cases loss
• Continue paying rising HOA dues, insurance and utility costs.

Their margins are erased, or even negative.

When prices soften, it doesn’t matter a great deal to those with 40% equity, but it is a sale-killer for others. And as inventory levels continue to rise, prices continue to lower, widening the gap between what’s owed and current market value. Even modest price declines can make it difficult to sell without bringing cash to closing, leaving some owners effectively trapped in their homes.

Washington’s condominium market has historically depended on two primary buyer groups:

The first is first-time homebuyers. Condominiums have long served as the entry point into homeownership for young professionals beginning careers in government, law, consulting, lobbying, nonprofits, healthcare, and related industries. These buyers traditionally purchase a condominium as their first home before moving up to a rowhouse or detached property;
The second is part-time or pied-à-terre buyers. Members of Congress, federal executives, diplomats, attorneys, corporate executives and other professionals have historically purchased condominiums because they wanted a low-maintenance residence close to Capitol Hill, downtown, or federal agencies. They weren’t necessarily looking for the least expensive housing, they were buying convenience, security and a lock-and-leave lifestyle.
Both groups have backed off.

Certainly the first-time buyer pool shrank because affordability deteriorated, mortgage interest rates rose, and cratering federal employment caused many younger households to search elsewhere. But also, the city’s overall desirability has suffered over the past two years. Net migration in the District was −4.1k in 2025. Fewer of the city’s new residents are entering its for-sale housing market this year.

That’s a real problem for condominiums.

Condominiums are not just another housing type in Washington. They are the foundation of the District’s homeownership ladder. When fewer buyers enter through that first rung, fewer owners move up to larger homes, reducing liquidity throughout the entire housing market.

Unfortunately, the challenges facing condominium owners are poised to become even greater.

Beginning this summer, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac are implementing sweeping underwriting changes that will make financing more difficult for many condominium and cooperative buildings. Higher reserve funding requirements, stricter reserve study standards, lower deductible thresholds, and the elimination of limited reviews for most projects will leave many underfunded or poorly managed associations unable to meet agency standards. Buyers may not discover that a building is non-warrantable until late in the financing process, causing transactions to fail just before closing.

At the same time, the DC Council is considering the Condominium Insurance Amendment Act of 2025 (B26-0495), legislation that would substantially increase the financial exposure of condominium owners by raising deductible pass-through limits, expanding insurance requirements, and requiring broad waivers of subrogation. Although presented as consumer protection, the proposal could shift significantly more financial risk from condominium associations onto individual owners, particularly in situations where the origin of property damage is disputed, a common occurrence in multifamily buildings.

Taken together, these trends suggest the District’s condominium market is no longer facing a temporary cyclical slowdown, it’s undergoing a structural shift. A smaller pipeline of first-time and part-time buyers, rising ownership costs, tighter financing standards and additional legislative uncertainty are all reducing the buyer pool. Until that buyer pipeline begins to expand again, condominiums are likely to remain the weakest segment of Washington’s housing market, and the first place where broader economic changes become visible.

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DC Metro Area Monthly Data

JUNE 2026

July 2026 data will be released Aug. 12, 2026

METRIC	DEC 2025	YOY	MOM
TOTAL SOLD $ VOLUME	4,118,792,988	+5.9%	+10.7%
CLOSED SALES	5,638	+0.2%	+6.4%
MEDIAN SOLD PRICE	$585,000	+3.5%	+2.6%
AVG SOLD PRICE	$724,957	+5.1%	+3.9%
MED DAYS TO CONTRACT	19 days	+58.3%	-9.5%
AVG DAYS TO CONTRACT	32 days	+28%	0%
MEDIAN PRICE PSF	$287	-0.7%	+1.8%
AVG PRICE PSF	$321	-1.5%	+0.9%

Sources: Smart Charts Pro

Summary

Unlike the District of Columbia, the broader Washington DC Metro Area housing market continued to strengthen in June.

Closed sales rose 8.0% year-over-year to 7,231 homes, while median sold prices increased 2.5% to $625,000. Total sales volume climbed more than 11%, reaching $5.58 billion, reflecting both higher transaction volume and modest price appreciation.

Supply also continued to improve. Active listings increased 11.9%, while new listings rose 6.4%, providing buyers with more choices than they had a year ago. Unlike the District, however, those additional listings have been met with healthy buyer demand. New pending contracts increased 0.9%, and total pending sales rose 3.2%, indicating that buyers have largely kept pace with the growing supply.

Homes sold in an average of 25 days, only slightly longer than last year’s 23-day average, while sellers continued receiving nearly 99% of their original asking price. Detached homes remained the strongest-performing segment, with sales increasing 11.4% and average prices rising 3.1%, while attached homes posted more modest gains.

Overall, the metro market continues to demonstrate a healthier balance between supply and demand than the District itself. Inventory is growing without significantly weakening prices, buyers remain active despite elevated mortgage rates, and transaction volume continues to expand. While affordability challenges persist, the broader region has shown greater resilience than the District’s more segmented housing market.

Featured Areas
Arlington, VA – June 2026
Arlington remained one of the Washington region’s strongest housing markets in June, even as overall sales activity moderated. Closed sales declined 9.4% year-over-year and total sold dollar volume slipped 6.1%, reflecting fewer transactions than last June. Despite the slower pace, buyers continued to compete aggressively for desirable properties. The median sold price climbed 17.8% to $859,950, while homes sold in a median of just eight days, nearly 47% faster than a year ago, demonstrating that well-priced homes continue to attract strong demand.

Neighborhood performance varied considerably across Arlington. Rosslyn (ZIP 22209) posted one of the area’s strongest gains, with the median sold price surging 50.5% year-over-year to $760,000, while Aurora Hills/Crystal City (22202) increased 49.7% to $1.10 million. Ashton Heights/Clarendon (22201) also delivered exceptional appreciation, with median prices rising 31.5% to $672,500, and Ballston (22203) climbed 19.7% to $565,000. At the upper end of the market, North Arlington (22207) continued to command the region’s highest median sold price at $1.59 million. Not every neighborhood shared in the gains, however. West Arlington (22213) and Westover (22205) experienced year-over-year median price declines of 10.5% and 6.8%, respectively, underscoring that even within one of the region’s strongest markets, conditions continue to vary significantly by neighborhood.

Alexandria, VA – June 2026

Alexandria City delivered another month of solid price appreciation despite a modest slowdown in sales activity. Closed sales declined 9.7% year-over-year to 205 homes, while total sold dollar volume fell 8.6% to $174.1 million, reflecting fewer overall transactions. Despite the slower pace, the median sold price climbed 11.5% to $760,000, and the median price per square foot increased 11.5% to $515, demonstrating that buyers continued to compete for desirable properties. Homes sold in a median of just 10 days, only one day longer than last year, indicating that well-priced homes continue to move quickly.

Among Alexandria’s strongest-performing neighborhoods in June were:

Fords Landing (+91.2%)
Jefferson Park (+89.3%)
Old Town (+59.0%)
Potomac Yard (+41.1%)
Del Ray (+10.9%).
Not every neighborhood shared in those gains, however:

Rosemont (-22.2%)
Yates Gardens (-30.0%)
Colecroft (-37.9%)
These were all neighborhoods that recorded lower median sold prices than a year earlier, illustrating that market performance varied considerably within Alexandria City.

Market Insight: Is there another “Alexandria” VA?

Yes, there is. One source of confusion in Northern Virginia real estate data involves the distinction between Alexandria City and neighborhoods with Alexandria mailing addresses. Outside of the independent City of Alexandria, the broader Alexandria market includes numerous Fairfax County communities, and even some well-known neighborhoods associated with Arlington, because postal addresses, neighborhood names and MLS market areas don’t always align with municipal boundaries. As a result, buyers and sellers should be careful to compare homes within the same market area rather than relying solely on the mailing address.

A substantial portion of what many buyers simply think of as “Alexandria” is actually located in Fairfax County, where neighborhoods share an Alexandria postal address but follow Fairfax County government, schools and tax structure. These communities often behave differently from Alexandria City and should be analyzed separately.

The subdivision data highlight just how diverse this broader Alexandria market has become:

Exchange at Van Dorn posted a 39.3% increase in median sold price year-over-year to $425,000
Watergate at Landmark increased 13.9% to $430,000
Parkside at Alexandria rose 9.3% to $448,000.
Other communities, however, moved in the opposite direction:
Parkfairfax declined 12.6% to $330,000
Harbor Terrace fell 22.4% to $316,000
Palazzo at Park Center declined 28.1% to $295,878
This demonstrates that performance varies significantly even within the Fairfax County Alexandria market.

But wait, there’s more!

The lines blur even further in Fairlington, where neighborhoods span the Arlington–Alexandria boundary:

Fairlington Towne (Alexandria) remained essentially unchanged, increasing 1.2% to $535,000
Fairlington Village (Arlington) was flat at $525,000
Fairlington Villages declined 36.4% to $350,000.
These communities share a common identity and history, yet municipal boundaries, tax jurisdictions and neighborhood composition can produce noticeably different market outcomes.

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National Market Insights | Monthly Update

Median List Price: $424,200 +0.4% YoY
Active Listings: 1M+ million +15.3% YoY
Median DOM: 63 days +5 days YoY
Price Drops: 20.2% of listings +1.6 pp
Pending Sales: -1.9% YoY

• Inventory Growth Slowing: Active listings rose for the 24th consecutive month, but growth slowed since May
• Stagnant Prices: The national median list price was mostly flat compared to the same time in 2024
• Slower Pace of Sales: The listing-to-contract cycle was 63 days, +5 days from last year
• Mortgage Rates: Rates briefly reached their lowest point in 12 months, but rose again following the Fed’s 0.25% benchmark rate cut
• Government Shutdown Impact: The ongoing federal government shutdown led to a pause in housing activity, with a decrease in new listings and buyer searches, particularly in metro areas with a high percentage of federal employees, such as Washington DC. It also caused delays in the processing of FHA, VA, and USDA loans.