In many ways, D.C.’s real estate industry has been insulated from the worst effects of the pandemic — but property owners and prospective buyers are clearly pulling back from the commercial market.
Property sales and transfers have fallen off a cliff as this coronavirus-tainted year has dragged on, according to the latest numbers from D.C. Chief Financial Officer Jeffrey DeWitt. A report released by his office last week shows that the value of those transactions in October was down 33.7% compared to the same time a year ago.
And the three-month moving total value of such transactions, about $2.6 billion, was 42.5% below the same period in 2019.
The cause is entirely on the commercial side. According to DeWitt’s numbers, the value of home sales rose 15.2% in October, while the value of all other property transfers was 62% below the same time frame last year, showing the outsized effect of the pandemic on the commercial market.
