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MoCo Areas
- Bethesda
- Clarksburg
- Darnestown
- Gaithersburg
- Germantown
- North Potomac
- Olney
- Poolesville
- Potomac
- Rockville
- Silver Spring
Article Topics
Past Articles
- August 2010 (3)
- July 2010 (8)
- June 2010 (22)
- May 2010 (15)
- April 2010 (4)
- March 2010 (5)
- February 2010 (3)
- January 2010 (8)
- December 2009 (53)
- November 2009 (4)
- October 2009 (5)
- September 2009 (4)
- August 2009 (21)
- July 2009 (6)
- June 2009 (14)
- May 2009 (6)
- April 2009 (5)
- March 2009 (3)
- February 2009 (7)
- January 2009 (8)
- December 2008 (5)
- November 2008 (8)
Bethesda, Chevy Chase and Kensington
Bethesda (zips 20814, 20816 and 20817) is largely confined to inside the Beltway and I-270 spur. Cabin John and Glen Echo (20818 and 20812) are small communities south of Bethesda along MacArthur Blvd. Chevy Chase (zip 20815) is located inside the Beltway wedged between Bethesda and the District of Columbia. Kensington (20895) is to the north of the Beltway along Connecticut Avenue. Public schools assignments are summarized below. Always verify a home’s school assignment at MCPS.
- Bethesda - Walt Whitman H.S., Walter Johnson H.S., Bethesda-Chevy Chase H.S. and Winston Churchill H.S.
- Chevy Chase - Bethesda-Chevy Chase H.S.
- Kensington - Walter Johnson H.S., Bethesda-Chevy Chase H.S. and the Downcounty Consortium
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| Bethesda, Chevy Chase and Kensington are great places to live. Call anytime at 301-527-9079 or send an email for help buying and selling in this great part of Montgomery County. |  |
Bethesda Contracts in 2010
June 14th, 2010 Categories: Bethesda
The overall contract activity in Bethesda, Chevy Chase and Kensington is 15% higher than 2009. Compared to other areas, this increase may seem tepid. Don’t be fooled – the market here is very healthy and has weathered the recent boom-and-bust years better than any other area in Montgomery County. Foreclosures and short sales continue to be rare keeping home prices stable.
Contact us for information about the market in Bethesda and see these stats for other areas in Montgomery County.
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Home Tour in Bethesda
December 2nd, 2009 Categories: Bethesda
What can you get for $1 million dollars in Bethesda? How much would one pay for a nice, new construction in Bethesda? OK, how about something cheap. What will $700,000 buy?
These are common questions that we get from home buyers interested in a great Bethesda location. With this in mind, I toured three homes that answer these basic questions.
8809 Honeybee Lane, Bethesda
Listed at $725,000 with Coldwell Banker, this is the cheapest home on the tour. This brick split-level home was built in 1964 and sits on a nice lot. Inside, it’s small with just over 1,500 square feet of living space. This home hasn’t been updated. Typical of it’s age, it has very nice hardwood floors on the main and bedroom level. The kitchen, baths and windows haven’t been updated. Bedrooms and baths are small. It’s livable but could use some work. It may be priced a little high, but it’s not too far off the mark given recent sales for similar homes.
6212 Verne Street, Bethesda
Listed at $995,000 with Long and Foster, this home is located just off of River Road at the end of a quiet cul-de-sac. Inside, rooms are freshly painted and feature very nice hardwood flooring. Built in 1979, this home has some nice updates in the master bath and kitchen. The lot is wooded and there’s a pool in the back yard. The two-room master suite features two bathrooms and a brick fireplace – very nice. Is it worth a million dollars? It’s not a knock-out, but it’s in good condition in a great location. It’s only been on the market for 3 days, so I’ll keep an eye on this one to see how it does.
7605 Arden Road, Bethesda
This home is actually in Cabin John. This is one of my favorite communities in Montgomery County — I definitely need to dedicate an article to this quaint community. The original home on this site was built in 1958. It was leveled and the current, modern home sits in its place. Its front porch and craftsman style fit perfectly into the neighborhood. This home has many of the features that I love about new construction in Bethesda — high quality finishes, turn-of-the-century moulding, weighted doors and fantastic finishes throughout. This home has nearly 3,800 square feet of above-grade finished space. The second level has three bedroom and the fourth level has a bedroom, full bath and office. It is listed for $1,395,000 with Washington Fine Properties. The overall market for homes priced between $1.3M and $1.5M in Bethesda is pretty healthy with only about 2.5 months available inventory.
Bethesda is home to numerous established neighborhoods and elegant homes of many styles. Contact us anytime to learn more about this great place to live in Montgomery County.
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Bethesda and Chevy Chase Pricing Trends
August 9th, 2009 Categories: Bethesda
Bethesda continues to prove it’s a rock solid real estate market in Montgomery County. Compared to the previous six months in 2008, home prices have been pretty consistent in all price segments. Transaction volume for only the priciest homes have been lower this year. Overall, the number of contracts are up 11%. Here’s a breakdown of the contracts by price range:
See the overall Montgomery County market update and the Bethesda area’s inventory by price range from June’s market update.
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| Do you have questions about the Bethesda and Chevy Chase real estate market? Call us at 301-527-9079 or send an email for more info about buying, selling and living in Bethesda and Chevy Chase, Maryland. |  |
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Home Prices in Walt Whitman H.S. Cluster
August 1st, 2009 Categories: Bethesda, Potomac, Schools
The Walt Whitman Cluster follows the Potomac River and includes neighborhoods in Bethesda and Potomac (and a few others) and is the 2nd most popular cluster on this site. Homes are the priciest here due to a close-in location and predominance of single family homes. 87% of the sales over the last six months have been for single family homes, 9% for condos and 4% townhomes.
Here’s a breakdown of contracts and inventory by price range:
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| Looking for homes in a specific school district in Montgomery County? Call us at 301-527-9079 or send an email and we can establish a custom home search. | |
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Home Prices in Bethesda-Chevy Chase H.S.
August 1st, 2009 Categories: Bethesda, Schools, Silver Spring
The B-CC school page is the 4th most popular on this site. The overall market is pretty balanced for the Battlin’ Barons with 359 contracts over the last six months with 255 homes currently available indicating just over 4 months’ available inventory. 32% of the contracts were for condos and 65% single family homes.
Here’s the breakdown of contracts over the last six months and available inventory by price range:
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| Looking for homes in a specific school district in Montgomery County? Call us at 301-527-9079 or send an email and we can establish a custom home search. | |
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Home Prices in Walter Johnson H.S. Cluster
August 1st, 2009 Categories: Bethesda, Rockville, Schools
The Walter Johnson page is the 5th most popular school area on this site. Homes in this cluster are the most affordable of the ‘Top 5′. Looking at the last six months, home sales here have been brisk with around 460 contracts and only about 230 homes are currently available giving an overall inventory of 3 months. 51% of the sales were detached homes, 35% condos and 13% townhomes.
Here’s a breakdown of sales and inventory by price range:
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| Looking for homes in a specific school district in Montgomery County? Call us at 301-527-9079 or send an email and we can establish a custom home search. | |
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Bethesda Beauty
July 29th, 2009 Categories: Bethesda
Home buyers love Bethesda. Homes here are minutes to D.C., the Beltway, employment centers and a restaurant mecca. The challenge is finding an affordable home on a spacious lot. This home has it all. Priced well under $700,000, a buyer can make updates needed to really make it sparkle.
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Bethesda Market Update
June 28th, 2009 Categories: Bethesda
The overall real estate market for homes in Bethesda, Chevy Chase and Kensington is healthy in most price ranges. The entry level market is primarily condominiums. The overall condo market in Montgomery County is softer than for fee-simple homes (most townhomes and single family homes) which explains the higher inventory for homes priced under $300,000. Most mortgage providers require a higher down payment and condo fees also reduce affordability for first-time buyers. The market is blazing for homes priced $500,000 to $700,000 with just over two months’ availabile inventory. Inventory creeps up with the price. There’s tons of available homes price over $1.3M with over a years worth of inventory.
These stats show inventory in late June 2009 and the number of contracts for the previous six months.
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| Do you have questions about the real estate market in Bethesda, Chevy Chase and Kensington? Call us at 301-527-9079 or send an email for more info about buying, selling and living in this great area in Montgomery County, Maryland. | |
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The lure of bargains in the upper brackets
April 1st, 2009 Categories: Bethesda, Buying, Potomac
Sometimes a bargain is just too seductive too ignore. Reduced prices for upper bracket homes in Montgomery County can be a strong lure inviting buyer interest based on price alone. Still, are these bargains really a great deal? As with most things in life, the answer is “it depends”.
Overall for Montgomery County, there are 357 homes priced over $1.3M available, and 51 in this price range have gone under contract from January 1st through March 31st. So for the county, we currently have about 22 months’ inventory. 90% of all home sale activity in this price range takes place in the Bethesda and Potomac areas:
| Area | Available |
Contracts |
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| Bethesda, Chevy Chase, Kensington Clarksburg, Damascus Darnestown Gaithersburg, Derwood, Mont. Village Germantown, Boyds North Potomac Olney, Ashton, Brinklow, Sandy Spring Poolesville, Dickerson, Barnesville Potomac Rockville, North Bethesda Silver Spring, Burtsonsville, Takoma Park |
185 1 12 7 0 3 6 6 131 11 5 |
29 0 0 1 0 0 1 0 17 2 1 |
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So is that home really a great deal for you? Bargains are definitely out there, but with so many homes available, make sure you have an in-depth understanding of the market for your areas of interest. And, above all, make sure that a getting a “deal” doesn’t distract you from finding the right home for your needs.
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| Do you have questions about upper bracket homes in Montgomery County? Call us at 301-527-9079 or send an email for more info about buying, selling and living in Montgomery County, Maryland. | |
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Snapshot of million dollar homes in Montgomery County
January 21st, 2009 Categories: Bethesda, North Potomac, Potomac
Amidst declining home values in Montgomery County, we still have a healthy market for homes in the upper brackets. In 2008, 770 homes priced $950,000 or more sold for a total of $1.1 billion (with a ‘B’). For all price ranges, about 8,500 homes sold for a total of $4.27 billion. So even though 770 homes represents only about 9% of the number of homes sold, this was over 25% of the total sales volume for the year.
Over 80% of all homes in this price range sold in Bethesda, Potomac and Chevy Chase. Of these areas, Chevy Chase has the lowest inventory with about 6.8 months available. Bethesda has 7.8 months and Potomac has 9.7 months worth of inventory. It’s a bit trite but true: in real estate, it’s all about ‘location, location, location’. In our market, the closer to metropolitan D.C., the more expensive the home.
Looking across the County, the area with the lowest inventory in this price range is (surprisingly) North Potomac. Granted, the market in North Potomac is very different that that of ‘the big three’. In 2008 the average sales price for Bethesda, Potomac and Chevy Chase in this price range was $1.4M, $1.6M and $1.5M respectively over a much larger number of sales. The average sales price in North Potomac was about $1,140,000 over just 29 sales.
The table below summarizes the units sold, active listings and available inventory for each area. Contact us for more information about a particular neighborhood or for more details on this analysis. What are your thoughts on this segment of the real estate market? Add a comment below and let us know.
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Chasing turkeys in Bethesda – a great Thanksgiving tradition
November 26th, 2008 Categories: Bethesda, Things to Do
In Bethesda’s earliest days in the 1800s, the swiftest Bethesdians would leave their homes before dawn on Thanksgiving day, enter the ancient and remote forests of Rockville and search for the largest and fiercest turkeys of the woodlands. Once found, the runners would surround and chase the birds through down-town Bethesda. Much like the running of the bulls in Pamplona, the entire town would come out to run with the noble birds on a 6 mile loop through town. After the turkeys escaped back into the forest, residents would hitch-up their German-engineered wagons and drive to Balducci’s to buy everything required for a tasteful and environmentally responsible Thanksgiving meal. For nearly 200 years, runners in Montgomery County have continued this tradition on Thanksgiving day.
OK, I confess. I made all of that up. Disappointingly, the organizers of this annual 10K run don’t release wild turkeys to be chased by more than 6,000 runners through downtown Bethesda. Still, this is a great run and a great local tradition that’s in its 25th year. Although it’s Montgomery County’s largest road race, it may be our most relaxed race. It’s a great way to spend the morning before settling into a day of eating and football. Proceeds of the race support the YMCA Bethesda-Chevy Chase and the Bethesda-Chevy Chase Rotary Club Foundation. See the official web site for more information and pictures from past races. Start a new tradition this year!
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The spigot may be closing for Bethesda new construction
November 3rd, 2008 Categories: Bethesda
I’ve recently been working with a couple clients interested in new construction “infill” homes in Bethesda. We’ve seen quite a few homes, but notice fewer homes are coming to the market. This is an interesting segment of our market in which older homes have been demolished and replaced with new construction. The average quality of these homes is very good with extensive use of hardwood flooring, fantastic kitchens, custom mouldings and premium bathroom amenities. Add a great ‘close-in’ location, and you have product that area home buyers love. A few trends are working to reduce the introduction of new homes in Bethesda.
First, let’s take a snapshot of the current market. I analyzed all sales of new infill homes priced from $1.2M to $1.7M. Over the last six months, 27 have gone under contract and sold, and 8 more have gone under contract but haven’t closed — 35 contracts. There are currently 25 available. So, there’s between 4 and 5 months available inventory. That’s pretty good for the sellers – definitely not a glut of homes. Still, with recent sales we see that demand is softening with higher price concessions. Many recent sales are closing $50,000 to $100,000 or more off of list price. There’s also a couple bank-owned properties from builders which is another sign of softening demand.
Three other factors make it tougher for builders to make a profit on new construction: a very long permitting process, elevated prices for older homes, and more expensive (and harder to find) construction loans. I spoke with a couple of builders who confirm that it’s very risky to start new projects right now. Construction costs haven’t come down, and higher loan costs still require premium sales prices. Taking all permitting processes into account, it can take 18 to 24 months to deliver a new home to the market. Add it all up, and it’s a lot of risk for new home builders.
As we see fewer homes in the pipeline, I expect current inventory to be worked down sooner in Bethesda compared to other areas of Montgomery County. The fundamentals for the market here are still very good, so I believe that a more limited supply of newer homes will keep demand very healthy in the coming months. Contact us for a detailed analysis of this segment of the housing market. What do you think? Add a comment!
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