A national survey of 1,100 baby boomer-aged parents revealed that over two-thirds want to help their children or grand children with a down payment to purchase a home. Nearly 20% of the surveyed boomers have already provided financial assistance to their children for the purpose of buying a home. 75% of the surveyed boomers said that buying a property is a good investment for their offspring and 58% believe that homeownership is part of the American Dream.

Here in the District where condo prices are among the highest in the nation, it is quite common for first time buyers to get assistance from their parents. We often work with a young first time buyer to identify their top purchase choices…..then meet the parents to gain their buy-in as well. More often than not, the out-of town parents are initially shocked at just how expensive real estate is in the District. Often at this point in the process, the target price range is raised with mom and dad helping out more to allow for conveniences like parking and laundry to be included with the unit.

Here is a resource which categorizes DC real by neighborhoods, housing styles and more to use for your new home search. It is quite easy to share individual listings with mom and dad using the "send to a friend" link in the right menu bar of each listing.

There is an online resource available courtesy of the DC Government that provides sales history for a condo or home in the District.  This resource titled District of Columbia Real Property Sales Database provides sales history back to January 4, 1999.  The database is searchable by address or property ID.

The Real Property Sales Database is a valuable tool for determining the last selling price of a particular condo unit.  In addition, current year and proposed next year assessed value are displayed.  From a particular property record, links are available to tax payment information as well as property features including year built, square footage and number of bedrooms and bathrooms.

The Real Property Sales Database search mechanism can at times be a bit finicky. It does support truncated word searches for street names and I have had better success using partial street names.  Good luck in your fact finding and research to support your quest for the perfect DC Condo.

DC condo buyers can qualify for 3.5% down mortgages at FHA approved buildings.  This represents a major savings over the 20% or more down payments required for condos with conventional financing.



The FHA maintains a website with a list of FHA approved projects.  We have extrapolated a list of FHA approved projects for the West End neighborhood and offer 1-click access to all the available MLS listings in these buildings.  If the West End isn't your neighborhood of choice, we have previously highlighted FHA approved buildings in other neighborhoods.



The FHA approval list changes routinely, these are selected West End developments that are currently approved at the time of this posting:

• 22 West
• Columbia Condos
• West End Flats
• West End Place
• Westbridge

Being an analytical type, I wanted to look at some MLS data to validate the extent of this database flaw.  Here are the number of active properties listed for sale or rent that were constructed in the years 1898 - 1902:

While 1900 was a great year for America and Washington, DC, there is no way that new construction peaked so rapidly in a single year and then immediately dropped off to previous levels. This simple analysis highlights the extent of the flaw in the property assessment database.

Many of the "1900" listings are in Georgetown, with Capitol Hill and Dupont Circle also prominently represented.  The most expensive "1900" home is located in Dupont Circle at 1824 R Street, NW and is listed for $15.5M. 

An article titled, DC area's renters are caught in a squeeze, in yesterday's WaPo covers the continued escalation of rents in the Washington, DC area.  Remarkably, the average monthly rent in DC apartment buildings jumped 8.2% this year to $1,643.  The rental challenge is even greater in popular Mid-city neighborhoods like Dupont, Logan and the U Street Corridor as these areas command a significant premium to the District average.

Compounding the problem is a supply issue as vacancy rates in the DC area are the second lowest in the nation, only trailing New York City.  The shortage of rental units will not improve in the near-term as very few new residential projects were started in the District over the past couple of years due to capital constraints in the housing market.

District renters who are facing significant rate increases may want to consider buying a condo.  There are programs available to DC buyers to assist in this effort. A tax credit of up to $5,000 is available to moderate and low income DC first time buyers. 

Also many condo projects in the District qualify for 3.5% Down FHA financing.  FHA approved developments are available throughout the District including Adams Morgan, Columbia Heights and U Street.  Our team tracks these FHA approved projects and can help buyers identify the best opportunities in FHA approved developments.  

Today President Obama signed an extension through 2011 for DC's First-time Homebuyer Tax Credit program.  The program offers a tax credit of up to $5,000 for low and moderate income first-time buyers in the District.

The program specifics are as follows:

Eligibility:



Any first-time buyer in the District, you can even qualify even if you own or previously owned a home in another jurisdiction as long as it is not the District.



Amount of Credit:


Up to $5,000 for married joint-filing taxpayers and $2500 for individual taxpayers



Income Restrictions:



Married joint-filing taxpayers up to $130,000 and individual taxpayers up to $90,000 in modified adjusted gross income (AGI) are eligible.  A credit phase out kicks in for AGI above $110,000 for married joint-filing and $70,000 for individual taxpayers.



Ownership Interval Penalties:



Unlike the Federal tax credit which requires a three year period of ownership, there are no restrictions on the timeframe that a taxpayer must own a home under the DC program.

Dwelling Types:

Qualifying dwelling types include house, houseboat, housetrailer, cooperative apartment, condominium, or other type of residence.



Exclusions:



Homes purchased from related persons, by gift or inheritance are not eligible.  Related persons include but are not limited to grandparents, spouses, children and grandchildren.  The credit can only be claimed once, so if you have previously taken the credit on another DC property, you cannot claim it a second time.  Homes that are not your main home where you live the majority of the time are also not eligible. Homebuyers filing for the Federal First Time Buyers Tax Credit are also not eligible for the DC tax credit.



Filing Requirements:



Filers claiming the credit must use IRS form 1040 or 1040NR and and attach IRS Form 8859 District of Columbia First-Time Homebuyer Credit.

If you would like to be notified of any new listings that come on the market in a development, just check the save search box and we will automatically send you any new listings in the development.  You can save as many different developments as you like.

DC condo buyers can qualify for 3.5% down mortgages at FHA approved buildings.  This represents a major savings over the 20% of more down payments required for condos with conventional financing.

The FHA maintains a website with a list of FHA approved projects.  We have extrapolated that list for the Mount Vernon Triangle neighborhood and offer one-click access to all the available MLS listings in an FHA approved building.  If Mount Vernon Triangle isn't your neighborhood of choice, we have highlighted FHA approved buildings in other popular DC neighborhoods.

The FHA approval list changes routinely, these are selected Mount Vernon Triangle FHA approved developments at the time of this posting:

• City Vista
• Quincy Court
• The Whitman
• Yale Steam Laundry

DC condo buyers can qualify for 3.5% down mortgages at FHA approved buildings.  This represents a major savings over the 20% of more down payments required for condos with conventional financing.

The FHA maintains a website with a list of FHA approved projects.  We have extrapolated that list for the Columbia Heights neighborhood and offer one-click access to all the available MLS listings in FHA buildings.  If Columbia Heights isn't your neighborhood of choice, our site has detailed information about FHA buildings in other popular DC neighborhoods.

The FHA approval list changes routinely, these are selected Columbia Heights developments that are currently approved at the time of this posting:

Berkeley
Cityscape on Belmont
Embassy Condos
Flats at the Meridian
Kenyon Square
Lamont Street Lofts
Magdaline
Nova Vitalis
Solea
Vista Hill