DMV Buyers Are Getting More Selective
September 8, 2026
September 8, 2026
The DMV market enters Fall with more inventory and more choice. Active listings hit 11,431 in July, up 11.2% year-over-year — the highest since 2019. Year-to-date demand still holds (pending sales +2.5%, closed sales +2.0%), but July itself cooled: pending sales fell 4.2%, showings dropped 4.7%, even as new listings rose 3.3%. Buyers haven't left. They're just choosier.
That shift isn't uniform. The high end keeps outperforming, pushing the metro median to $650,000 (+1.6% YoY). Detached single-families hit a $850,000 median and sold in 11 days. Condos tell a different story: median price down 1.6%, pending sales down 11.8%, inventory up 23.7%. Geography matters too — Arlington's median jumped 15.9%, while D.C. and Montgomery County slipped 0.4% and 0.6%.
The real story isn't whether the market's "up" or "down." It's which properties still command competition. As inventory grows and casual buyers pull back, truly scarce properties — in location, architecture, land, privacy, views, condition — stand apart. We expect this selectivity to define the Fall, rewarding well-priced, well-positioned listings and disciplined buyers alike.
For national trends, we're pleased to share Compass' just released August National Market Insights Report here.
If you're thinking about making a move, please call me for a private consultation. I'm always happy to help.
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Wydler Brothers have been selling residential real estate for over 20 years in the DC metro area. Along the way, they’ve achieved numerous awards and recognitions, including being recognized as “The Most Innovative Real Estate Agent in America” (Inman, 2014), written several articles for The Washington Post, authored a book, “Inside the Sell”, co-founded a real estate tech company which sold to Move, Inc. in 2013, and built Wydler Brothers into a highly respected boutique brokerage with 70 agents and employees which they sold to Compass in 2019. Currently, Wydler Brothers is among the top 3 teams in the DMV and was the #1 Compass Team in 2022.