Pondering
DC REAL ESTATE VALUES

Did you ever wonder how real estate agents calculate values for homes? Whether you’re in the market for a condominium, single family home, co-op or townhouse, learning to calculate DC real estate values will empower you to make better decisions when buying or selling Washington DC real estate. As the saying goes, real estate is “local” and values vary by neighborhood, home type, market saturation time of year and other factors. Hyper-local data, market and neighborhood knowledge are essential tools when determining DC real estate values. Here’s How It Works:

DC Inventory and Absorption Rates
Inventory and absorption rate are important measures in determining DC real estate values. Current ‘Active’ inventory divided by sold properties (typically within 30 days), shows how many months it would take to clear all the current inventory from the market at that point in time. Generally, a healthy, balanced real estate market is considered to have an inventory and absorption rate of six months. A rate greater than six months indicates a buyer’s market, and a rate under four months is a seller’s market. To target specific trends, the same analysis can be conducted by price, home type and/or by neighborhood.
 
DC Listing Price Trends
Are listing prices in your DC neighborhood flat, decreasing or increasing? These numbers provide insight on pricing trends that can be beneficial in structuring your offer. Remember to drill sold data down to the specific micro-neighborhood in which the listing is located. Washington DC real estate values can vary within just a few blocks, even less. Use comparable sales and pricing trends within a 1 mile radius of the subject property, then narrow your research to the specific block you want to target for results.
 
'Median' and 'Average' Data Sets - What's The Difference?
Median and Average values are another component used in determining DC real estate values. Median Sales Price is the half of all purchases falling below the target sales price, and the half above purchase price during a specified period of time. Median Sales Price is considered an indicator of market strength.  Median Sales Price is considered a stronger indicator than Average Sales Price, which is the sum of all sales prices divided by the total number of sales. One low or high sale can skew this indicator, making less reliable.
 
Number Of Homes Sold
Compiled on a monthly basis, the number of homes sold in any particular neighborhood in Washington DC provides a measure of demand. You can evaluate month-to-month trends, or look at a month, quarter or year relative to the same time period one year ago on our DC Market Data page. This data adds perspective to your analysis, since certain months are often considered more or less active than others, and economic or other events affect the market.
Average Sales To List Price Ratio
The Average Sales Price to Listing Price Ratio in any particular neighborhood can help provide some understanding of your local real estate market. Unfortunately, listing prices are not a true measure of a home’s worth and some may be unrealistically high or low. Averages can be altered by just one sale, so this is not the most important factor in determining DC real estate values.
Price Per Square Foot
The price-per-square-foot metric can vary by neighborhood, street or condominium building. These values can also be affected by market conditions, time of year and location, among other factors. Building codes could affect this metric as they relate to livable square footage. Learn the values for your target property and if the data is supportive of your negotiating position, factor this in, though don’t over-emphasize it. All square footage is not considered equal in DC.
Relative Property Condition
Relative Property Condition is one of the most difficult of values to compute because it is somewhat subjective. Buyers often do not have the expertise or objectivity to accurately assess the condition of competing properties as it relates to market value rather than their personal interests. This metric is the value of a home’s location, condition, features, finishes and other attributes relative to similar properties currently on the market at that particular time. Relative property condition is a valid tool in structuring your negotiating strategy if you have physically inspected the competing listings. Photos and old listing descriptions are not an accurate measure of this metric, nor is price per square foot. Buyers should seek expert advice when using this metric in formulating offers.
Listing Price
If you’re disciplined (and experienced) in thoroughly assessing a property by researching and evaluating condition, attributes, the absorption rate, median sold price and price-per-square-foot along with other important factors, you’ll greatly improve the likelihood that you can approach negotiation with objectivity. This includes ignoring, to some degree, the property’s list price. The list price is the point from which the negotiation begins, but not all list prices are reasonable. The goal of assembling a solid basis for your offer is to weigh all metrics for Washington DC real estate values against your and others’ desire for the property and ability to purchase. In the end, the old saying is true; “A property is worth what someone is willing and able to pay for it at any given point in time.”
Value Markers
Property value can be summed up as an equation of assessed value, appraised value and market variables (value and availability of the home and its features against others in the immediate neighborhood or similar neighborhoods and demand for the home), the property’s location within a neighborhood and general neighborhood desirability, along with list price, days on market, market conditions and time of year. But there’s another key element to determining DC real estate market value.
"Spidey Sense"

Yes, ‘Spidey Sense‘ is a legit thing in the Washington DC real estate market if you define it as experiential market knowledge combined with awareness of external market influences. Pricing DC real estate is not all about the numbers and data is just a snapshot of the past. Our market often moves ahead of data and demand, location, timing and the home’s attributes are frequently key drivers of value. It’s not uncommon to find that there are no ‘comparables’ for a desired property. That’s where expert neighborhood and market knowledge come in. Hire The Isaacs Team. We’re in and out of homes throughout The District daily, and have been for years. That archived mental knowledge gives us a “spidey sense” of value even when there are no apples-to-apples comps, or when comps don’t exist at all. This knowledge is perhaps most important in determining DC real estate values because what translates on paper and in electronic data does not present a full picture of property value. We provide an advantage in analyzing neighborhoods, identifying properties of interest and evaluating price due to our experience and familiarity with the market.