Washington appreciation rates and housing market information

Washington housing market information

With 572,059 people, 274,845 houses or apartments, and a median cost of homes of $710,781, real estate costs in Washington are among some of the highest in the nation.

Large apartment complexes or high rise apartments are the single most common housing type in Washington, accounting for 49.16% of the city's housing units. Other types of housing that are prevalent in Washington include row houses and other attached homes (26.44%), single-family detached homes (13.22%), and a few duplexes, homes converted to apartments, or other small apartment buildings (11.01%). Cities that are predominantly high-density buildings are relatively uncommon in the US. Because of the density, these types of cities are often walkable and compact, and often have a lively downtown.

People in Washington primarily live in small (one, two, or no bedroom) units, chiefly found in large apartment complexes or high rise apartments. Washington has a mixture of owner-occupied and renter-occupied housing.

Washington's housing was primarily built during the period from the 1940s through the 1960s. A full 48.28% of the city's housing hails from this era. Other housing ages represented in Washington include homes built from 1939 and earlier (35.27%), and housing constructed from 1970-1994 (15.16%). There's also a few housing units in Washington built 1995 and later (1.29%).

Washington home appreciation rates

In the last 10 years, Washington has experienced some of the highest home appreciation rates of any community in the nation. Washington real estate appreciated 163.14% over the last ten years, which is an average annual home appreciation rate of 16.31%, putting Washington in the top 10% nationally for real estate appreciation. If you are a home buyer or real estate investor, Washington definitely has a track record of being one of the best long term real estate investments in America through the last ten years.

Over the last year, Washington appreciation rates have trailed the rest of the nation. In the last twelve months, Washington's appreciation rate has been -4.08%, which is lower than appreciation rates in most communities in America. In the latest quarter, NeighborhoodScout's data show that house appreciation rates in Washington were at -2.02%, which equates to an annual appreciation rate of -8.07%.

Notably, Washington's appreciation rate in the latest quarter is one of the lowest in America.

One very important thing to keep in mind is that these are average appreciation rates for the city. Individual neighborhoods within Washington differ in their investment potential, sometimes by a great deal. Fortunately, you can use NeighborhoodScout to pinpoint the exact neighborhoods in Washington - or in any city or town - that have the best track record of real estate appreciation, by the latest quarter, the last year, 2 years, 5 years, 10 years, or even since 1990, to assist you in making the best Washington real estate investment or home purchase decisions.