Bethesda, Chevy Chase Real Estate News

Bethesda Homes in 20814 - A Tale of two Quarters

This market report draws on data from the Downtown Bethesda area, its surrounding suburbs, and a small pocket of properties to the north. As I've noted before in previous Bethesda (20814) reports, this area is an especially difficult area to analyze because of the diversity of property types and price-points. From Multi-million dollar properties in the luxurious Downtown Bethesda suburb, Edgemoor, to the low $500Ks to the in the northern part of the zip code. Please don't get me wrong, $500,000 is by no means a bargain by anyone's standards, just pointing out the "relativity of things" in this extraordinary and diverse zip code :-)

Bethesda Homes and Property Report (20814) - Comparing "Final Quarter Stats" in 2007 vs. 2008 

	2007	2008
Number of Homes Sold	37	49
Average Sold Price*	$944,391	$822,168
Average Days on Market*	62	70
Average Sales Price as a % of Ave. List Price*	97%	96%
Number Sold over $1M	...

Now that we’re back to the days when purchasers can “safely” make a home inspection contingency part of their purchase offer, I find that first time buyers are curious about the inspection process and what to expect. I personally hated those days when buyers couldn’t compete without giving up a home inspection and often recommended “pre-inspections” in order to gain at least some knowledge about the house, so I’m thrilled that this basic contingency is again available to buyers.

In the Washington DC Metropolitan Area, buying a house is not a simple process. Buyers often think that the hardest part will be actually finding the home of their dreams, but agents know that when the buyer says “wow” the fun has only just begun!! And, although complicated, it CAN be fun. In our marketplace, we first have to get through a contract that consists of well over 50 pages. In our Addendum of Clauses is the Home Inspection Contingency which assures the purchaser an opportunity to have the home evaluated within a short time period (usually 5 to 7 days). After that time, the purchaser lets the seller know if they still want to buy the property and, if so, if there are things that the seller MUST fix (the contract defines certain systems that have to be in normal operating order) and/or things that the purchaser would LIKE fixed (which starts another negotiation on these items).

So, the home inspection is an extremely important part of the buyers’ decision making process. But how does a buyer know (1) who to hire to do the home inspection, (2) what to expect of the inspection and (3) how to react to what the inspector finds? This is usually something that I try to discuss with sellers before they actually have to face it. When we meet, or as we’re viewing properties, I like to talk about the process so that there’s some knowledge about what’s coming next. I let buyers...