DC in The Top Five for Market Value

Study: D.C. ranks No. 6 for retail growth
Washington Business Journal - by Tierney Plumb Staff Reporter
The D.C. area is the sixth most likely region to experience retail growth this year and next, according to Pitney Bowes Business Insight.

Four of the top five cities are in Texas, with Austin at No. 1, followed by Baltimore, Houston, Dallas and San Antonio.

The business research group compared sales growth for the past six quarters -- from the first quarter of 2008 through the second quarter of 2009 -- to pick out cities that have kept up relatively stable retail sales through the economic downturn. It also compared sales projections for six quarters, starting in the third quarter of 2009.

D.C., which is in the top five for value and drug sectors and top 10 for mid-tier and high-end retail stores, also stood out for its projected increase in employment in 2010. It’s also expected to have continued modest gross metro growth fueling the comparable sales growth in all sectors, said the report.

Monday, December 14, 2009, 11:58am EST

Survey: D.C. area execs expect conditions to improve
Washington Business Journal - by Tierney Plumb Staff Reporter
A majority of regional business executives — 59 percent — predict the area’s business and economic conditions will get better over the next six months, according to a survey conducted for the Greater Washington Board of Trade.

Six percent of those surveyed think conditions will get worse and 35 percent expect them to stay the same.


The business outlook index for the region has gone up since the first survey was conducted in February, increasing from 40 to 65.

Clarus Research Group surveyed 200 business executives across the region from Dec. 5 to Dec. 9.

Some regional business executives (32 percent) expect the number of jobs in their businesses to increase over the next six months and 12 percent say they will decrease. Thirty-five percent said their jobs number would remain the same.

“These findings show greater possibility for new employment in the region during the first two quarters of 2010,” said Jim Dinegar, president and CEO of the Greater Washington Board of Trade. “This is hopeful news.”

About 60 percent of survey respondents expect their business to strengthen and 9 percent say it will soften in 2010.

And 55 percent expect their total revenues or sales to go up in 2010 while 12 percent expect them to drop.

Respondents are split on whether obtaining financing and credit will be different, with 37 percent expecting it to get easier and 38 percent expect it will get tougher.

Other findings include:

47 percent of business executives and owners said current business and economic conditions in the region are “mostly good” while 40 percent said “mostly bad”
25 percent said their company’s overall financial situation has improved over the past year while 40 percent say it has declined and 34 percent said it has stayed the same
Plans to increase advertising and promotion have risen from 30 percent to 46 percent since February
About 64 percent continue to say that doing business in Greater Washington is easier than in most other places in the U.S. – by 64 percent to 19 percent
Monday, December 14, 2009, 12:08pm EST

Homes sales up in November for D.C. area
Washington Business Journal - by Sarah Krouse Staff Reporter
Houses in the Washington area spent less time on the market in November than they did a year ago netting at least 90 percent of the average list price.

According to Metropolitan Regional Information Systems Inc., every local jurisdiction except Prince William County saw an uptick in sales volume year-over-year and all Virginia jurisdictions saw a rise in median prices from November 2008.

In Arlington County the median sales price for the 230 units sold in November was $466,500 compared to $445,000 in November 2008. Homes spent an average of 53 days on the market in November of this year compared to 69 days in November 2008. In November 2008, 130 units sold.

The average sale price in the county was 94.53 percent of the average list price compared to 92.87 percent a year ago.

There were 179 units sold in the City of Alexandria in November, a 129.49 percent increase from a year ago. The units spent 61 days on the market, 29 percent less time than in 2008. The median sale price was up 8.44 percent from November 2008 at $392,000 with the average sale price at 94.46 percent of the average list price.

The median price for a home in Fairfax County in November was $350,000, a 9.38 percent increase from last year. The county saw 1,113 units sell in an average of 48 days in November 2009 compared to 872 units in 95 days in November 2009.

The average sale price was 94.82 percent of the average list price compared to 90.60 percent in November 2008.

Loudoun County homes sold in November went for a median price of $325,000, 6.56 percent more than the same time last year. The county saw 391 homes sell and spend 47 days on the market. In November 2008 the 317 homes sold spent an average of 91 days on the market.

In November, the average sale price was 94.8 percent of the average list price compared to 91.59 percent of the average list price in 2008.

In Prince William County there were 651 homes sold in November, 24.21 percent fewer than a year ago. The units spent only 44 days on the market compared to 106 days on the market in 2008 and fetched a median sale price of $213,000 in November compared to 175,000 homes in November 2008. The average sale price in the county was 96.74 percent of the average list price a marked increase from November 2008, when the average sale price was 89.65 percent of the average list price.

Montgomery County, Prince George’s County and D.C. median sales prices stayed the same or fell from November 2008 to November 2009.

Montgomery County’s median sales price stayed at 330,000 in November. The county saw 923 sales in the month compared to 528 in November 2008 and units spent 36.79 percent less time, or 67 days on the market.

The average sale price in the county was 94.21 percent of the average list price. In November 2008, the average sale price was 90.59 percent of the average list price.

The median sale price in Prince George’s County was $205,000, a dip from $246,000 in November 2008. Still, 632 homes sold in November compared to just 333 in the same period last year. Those units sold in 119 days this year compared to 141 days in 2008.

The average sale price was 90.24 percent of the average list price in November 2009. A year ago the average sale price was just 86.25 percent of the average list price.

D.C.’s median sale price was $364,000 in November 2009, down from $389,000 in 2008. The 620 units sold spent 72 days on the market compared to 75 days in November 2008. The number of units sold rose significantly — 98.08 percent — from November 2008.

The average sale price in the District was 92.64 percent of the average list price in November 2009, a very slight increase from that percentage in November 2008. The average sales price was 92.24 percent in November 2008.




Payam Bakhaje
Realtor®
Direct: (202) 345-2778
Office: (202) 363-1800
Toll Free: (800) 336-0655
Fax: (202) 234-6111
pbakhaje@lnf.com
http://www.dcrealtyonline.com
Long & Foster Real Estate
3201 New Mexico Ave , NW, Washington, DC 20016