Trends in Housing Report - Washington Area

Hi! I've been reading the MRIS Q3 2007 Trends Report which was just released. Here are some of the highlights for the Washington area. I'll cover the Baltimore area tomorrow, followed by trends analyses for Houses for Sale and the Condo Market and a summary for the area.


Overall, the Washington area economy continues to expand, but at a slower pace.

Job Growth:

With 3.0 million payroll employment jobs, the Washington metro area has the fourth largest job base among metro areas, behind New York, the LA Basin and Chicago.

• Over the 12 months ending August 2007, 47,600 new payroll positions were added to the Washington metro area – 5.8% above the 15-year annual average of 45,000.
• Northern Virginia created 41% of all new payroll positions in the Washington metro area in the last 12 months. Suburban Maryland created 37% and the District of Columbia created 22%.

Unemployment Rate:

• The Washington area unemployment rate was 3.0% in August 2007, down from 3.3% one year ago. The current rate is the lowest in the nation among major metro areas and compares favorably to the national rate of 4.6%.

Washington Area Outlook:

We expect the Washington metro area economy to end 2007 on solid footing. Although growth has slowed compared to the past three years, we predict conditions will improve over the next two years, compared to 2007.

The Professional and Business Services sector should continue to lead job growth, as government contractors and law firms spur growth in this sector. The shift in Congress to Democratic control should not reduce procurement spending, as the 2008 election is near. However, how the spending is delegated in the near-term could transfer some of the spending from Northern Virginia’s defense contractors to Suburban Maryland’s health contractors.

Coulda, Woulda, Shoulda...

Hi - hope you had a happy Halloween! We had fun taking my 9 month old grandson, Tommy to visit our new granddaughter, Maddison. She is 3 weeks old and unimpressed with Halloween, but Tommy made a cute angel. :)

Our youngest son, Matt also had a great concert at Glenwood Middle School on the 30th. They pulled together an awesome concert with an eclectic mixture of songs from the Andrews Sisters to Gnarls Barkley and topped off with a Tribute to Queen and Ode To Joy by Beethoven in English and German! Way to go Cobras!

Today's title refers to an ad a friend of mine wrote recently. She said something to the effect of "Avoid the Woulda, Coulda, Shoulda - Why aren't you buying now? Interest rates are great and sellers are selling at reduced prices with loads of concessions." Just what I've been saying, too! With interest rates down again, just think what you could do with a new house for your Christmas or Hanukkah present to yourself! :)

Have a great week! I'll be in Annapolis and Richmond for conferences, so I won't be writing tomorrow. See you Monday!