While many of the country’s housing markets struggled in the early months of this year, Washington D.C. area sales were up 31 percent[1]. Not only are those good numbers for the current market, but the leap is actually the highest monthly and yearly increase in pending sales activity in more than ten years, reported the Metropolitan Regional Information Systems (MRIS)’s Real Estate Business Intelligence Division today. MRIS measured pending sales, meaning that it charted the number of contracts signed in the area in January rather than sales that actually closed. 3,298 purchase contracts were signed in the region, and median sales prices also rose 7.5 percent over prices in January 2010.

Nearby Baltimore also flourished in January 2011, with pending home sales in that area “surging” 47.2 percent over January 2010[2]. As more and more people opt to live in Baltimore and commute to D.C., this increase in activity is to be expected. However, while the new numbers certainly look good for the area and one might expect a similar growth pattern to that of Washington D.C. in the Baltimore area, Jonathan Miller, an MRIS analyst, says that ethere are a few areas of concern. He pointed out that new inventory in the area declined and that it is taking longer to sell homes in the area now than a year ago. Additionally, median sales prices in Baltimore are falling and are now 3.2 percent lower than this time last year. On the up side, however, Miller points out that the Baltimore housing market is absorbing inventory faster than many areas of the country because of the lack of new properties on the market in that area.

By the looks of these numbers, D.C. and the surrounding areas could be a good place to invest in the near future. Are you considering investing in this area or do you own properties there already?

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[1] http://www.bizjournals.com/washington/news/2011/02/10/area-pending-home-sales-jumped-31.html

[2] http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20110210006307/en/Pending-Home-Sales-Surge-Baltimore-47.2-January