Bethesda, MD - Is Residential Housing Ready to Awaken? This article presents many layers and perspectives on the impending rebound of housing with many variables weighing on the recovery nationally and locally ... from the employment outlook to next year's election outcome, possible cuts in Federal and defense budgets, stable vs rising interest rates and how the banks manage the release of pent-up distressed properties. We are fortunate that the Bethesda real estate market is among the most stable housing markets in the country. See my monthly Bethesda Market Trends reports which are the most detailed market statistics available by zip code and town: Bethesda and Chevy Chase real estate plus Potomac, … [Read more...]

Real estate will always be inherently LOCAL.  It's a fact that there can be a seller's market in one community and a buyer's market in a different nearby community!  One of the challenges of trying to analyze any market is to have access to the most RELEVANT and the most CURRENT data available.  When you read articles about the real estate market these days - most of it is about national averages and trends that have little to do with our market in the Bethesda area.  And when you do read about local market data, most of it is based on information that is 90 days old or more.  In order to provide my clients with the most relevant information, I have invested in real-time stats that analyze current real … [Read more...]

Locally, we are coming off the most active August in 4 years (read article) where home sales finished with the highest number of signed contracts in four years.   Buyers are getting less reticent about getting back into the market.   A fascinating set of statistics was just released showing that an investment in real estate in 2000 returned 41.3% while dramatically outperforming the Dow, S&P and NASDAQ according to Case Shiller & MSN Money.  Investing in real estate for the long-term is becoming even more compelling especially with the historically low interest rates. … [Read more...]

I have lived in Bethesda my entire life and cannot recall a crazier mix of extreme heat to a hurricane and earthquake then this past summer!  But I DO recall when I took out my first mortgage in the early ‘80’s and had a 16% interest rate!  While the Fed has assured us that the rate they offer banks will not go up for 2 years, that does not fully protect consumers from rising rates.  Look at this 30-year rate history ... this is why you should at least consider buying or selling in the near future. … [Read more...]