With Apologies to Led Zeppelin – The Song Remains the Same

Contract activity in the Metro DC area from June 1 to 7, 2025, increased by 1.2% compared to the same seven-day period last year.

Key Takeaways

• OK, that reference to Led Zeppelin is a bit dated (1976!), but the market seems to have settled into some consistency.
• We’re seeing modest week-over-year improvement in the number of newly ratified contracts, and homes are taking about a week longer to sell
• And has been the case almost all year, the Northern Virginia suburban markets are holding up better than those on the other side of the Potomac River.
• Montgomery County is holding steady, DC is down a bit, and Prince George’s County is having a tougher time.

Why It Matters

• For the first time, year-to-date contract activity in Northern Virginia has tipped into the positive category – up 0.6%.  Loudoun County has been positive for months, and Prince William County is almost there, down just 0.3% YTD.
• Montgomery County contract activity has flirted with a positive year-to-date (YTD) contract count but hasn’t reached it yet, with a decrease of only 1.5%.  Washington, DC is off 5.2% year-to-date while Prince George’s County is off more than 10%.
• The move-up market is also performing better than the affordability-challenged first-time buyer market.  Year-to-date, contract activity for homes priced $750,000 and higher is up 5.6%, while homes under that mark are off 6.4%