The first week
is worth the most.
For a DC row house owner deciding when and how to list, and for a buyer deciding how hard to push on a house that just came on. If you are selling a condo, the sales here are not yours.
How long does it take to sell a DC row house?
A median of 18 days on the market. Of 1,717 fee simple row houses that sold in DC over the last twelve months, 31.2% went under contract within a week, 45.5% within two weeks and 61.6% within a month. 22.5% took more than 60 days.
What is the first week on the market worth?
About 9 points of the first asking price. Houses under contract within a week sold at a median 100.1% of the first ask. Houses that sat more than 60 days sold at 90.9%. On a house first listed at $1M, that is $1,001,000 against $909,000.
| Days on market | Share of sales | Median, % of first ask | Sold over ask | On a $1M first ask |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| A week or less | 31.2% | 100.1% | 51% | $1,001,000 |
| 8 to 14 days | 14.3% | 100% | 37% | $1,000,000 |
| 15 to 30 days | 16.1% | 98% | 13% | $980,000 |
| 31 to 60 days | 15.8% | 95.2% | 7% | $952,000 |
| More than 60 days | 22.5% | 90.9% | 3% | $909,000 |
Do DC row houses sell over asking?
About one in four does. 25.2% of fee simple row houses sold for more than the first asking price in the last twelve months. Inside the first week it was 51%. After 60 days it was 3%.
Should I take an offer in the first week?
Weigh it against the record, not against the hope of a better one. The houses that sold in the first week got a median 100.1% of their first ask. The longer a house sat, the lower the median went: 98% at 15 to 30 days. After 60 days it was 90.9%. The strongest offer usually arrives while the house is new.
I am buying. What does this mean for my offer?
It tells you when you have room. A house in its first two weeks is competing with the 45.5% that sold that fast, often at or over the ask: bring clean terms and be ready to move. A house past 30 days belongs to the group that sold at 95.2% of the first ask or less. There, the first asking price is not the number to negotiate from.
How do I know how fast houses sell on my block?
Look at the closed sales on your block, with the days each one took and the share of its first asking price it got. The Block Report lists every one for 24 months, in two sections: the houses under contract within two weeks at 98% of their first ask or better, and the rest.
Read next: what a price cut costs, and Spring or Fall, the math on when to list.
Every closed sale on your block for 24 months, in two sections. No charge, no obligation.
Send me every sale on my blockSources. BrightMLS closed sales, DC fee simple row houses (interior and end-of-row), the twelve months to October 24, 2026: days on market, original list price and sale price.