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Articles on DC loan programs, closing costs, taxes, refinancing and neighborhoods.
The Federal Reserve raised its target rate on September 16, 2026, its first increase in more than three years, and mortgage rates rose with it. Steps to take if you are buying or refinancing in DC.
How to budget for a DC fixer-upper that needs some TLC. DC's recorded sales show what renovated houses and houses that need some TLC sell for per square foot in every neighborhood. Use the price difference to set the renovation budget, then finance the purchase and the work with an FHA 203(k) or Fannie Mae HomeStyle loan.
DC's assessment records separate renovated houses from ones that need some TLC. Citywide, a renovated house sells for $813 per square foot and a house that needs some TLC for $489, a $324 difference (recorded sales through August 2026). The difference is widest in the lowest-priced neighborhoods.
A 65,000-seat stadium and 5,000–6,500 homes are planned for the 174-acre RFK campus, with the stadium targeted for 2030. DC's recorded sales from 2021 through August 2026 show homes nearest the campus trailing the citywide median.
The $400 million Bridge District, the 11th Street Bridge Park, St. Elizabeths East, Skyland Town Center, Reunion Square, and the DHS campus: the projects under way east of the Anacostia, and what recorded sales through August 2026 show for owners and buyers.
The 183-acre East Campus above Congress Heights was the nation's first federal psychiatric hospital for 160 years. DC is redeveloping the campus with the Entertainment and Sports Arena, Sycamore & Oak retail, and District Towns, the first 88 for-sale townhomes, already built and sold.
Historic Anacostia began in 1854 as Uniontown, Washington's first planned suburb, chartered to bar Black and Irish buyers. Frederick Douglass bought Cedar Hill there in 1877, and the neighborhood became the Anacostia Historic District in 1978.
From 1894 to 1900, Washington society rode tally-ho coaches across the new Pennsylvania Avenue bridge to the Overlook Inn, a resort hotel on Hillcrest's plateau beside the earthworks of Civil War Fort Baker. Fort Baker Drive still traces the approach.
The Pennsylvania Avenue crossing of the Anacostia dates to the 1790s. The ferries, the 1890 iron bridge, the 1898 trolley line, the 1939–41 Sousa Bridge, and the houses of Fairlawn and old Twining that each one brought.
Congress Heights and Randle Highlands share a founder: Arthur E. Randle (1859–1929), a newspaper publisher who bought the high ground east of the Anacostia and then built the streetcar lines to reach it. His history, and what his housing stock means for financing today.
How the Anacostia's four boat clubs, the swimming holes, Langston Golf Course, and Anacostia Park came to be between 1898 and 1945, and who is cleaning the river now.
Cash-out refinancing for DC homeowners: the 80% LTV limit for conventional and FHA, the VA rules, what sets the rate, the closing-cost line items, and why DC's recordation tax is $0 on residential refis with the ROD 21 affidavit.
How a cash-out refinance, a HELOC, and a home equity loan differ in structure, rate type, closing costs, and combined LTV limits, and which one fits a one-time lump sum, a phased renovation, or a fixed payoff schedule.
How a cash-out refinance consolidates credit-card and personal-loan debt for DC homeowners: the 80% LTV limit, the closing costs, the $0 DC recordation tax, and when a HELOC or home equity loan fits better.
A ten-step timeline for first-time buyers in DC, from checking your credit to closing day, with FHA, DC's reduced recordation tax, Tax Abatement, the homestead deduction, DC Open Doors and HPAP at the step where each applies.
Housing stock, price tiers, and loan considerations for Capitol Hill, Navy Yard, Logan Circle, Dupont Circle, Shaw, Columbia Heights, and Brookland, plus FHA, DC's recordation tax and first-time buyer rate, Tax Abatement, the homestead deduction, and the 2026 conforming limit.
What a lender reviews about a condo building before approving your loan: Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac warrantability rules, HOA financials, litigation, and the FHA and VA approval lists.
How to finance a Navy Yard condo: FHA and conventional building approval, HOA dues, rental caps, down payment options, and DC first-time buyer tax benefits.
Financing a Capitol Hill rowhouse: DC's $1,249,125 high-balance ceiling, jumbo requirements, appraisal issues on 1850s–1900s construction, English basement rental income rules, and the first-time buyer rules on conventional loans.
Your mortgage rate in DC is set by the bond market plus seven borrower and property factors: credit score, loan-to-value, loan type, property type, occupancy, loan amount and lock period. How each one changes your pricing.
How a cash-out refinance pays for a DC renovation: contractor cost ranges for kitchens, baths, basements, ADUs and rowhouse guts, how much equity you can borrow, and how FHA 203(k) and HomeStyle renovation loans compare.
FHA insures a condo loan only in a HUD-approved project or through single-unit approval. The requirements, how to check HUD's list, and the options when a building is not approved.
How to finance a Logan Circle condo in a small Victorian conversion or a 14th Street mid-rise: warrantability, FHA approval, HOA review and DC's $1,249,125 conforming limit.
FHA mortgage insurance lasts the life of the loan when you put down less than 10%. A DC homeowner whose balance is 80% or less of the home's value can refinance to conventional and drop it.
DC closing costs line by line: the recordation tax, lender and title fees, prepaid items, a $500,000 worked example, and six ways to reduce the total.
VA rules allow a cash-out refinance up to 100% LTV with no PMI. Eligibility, the 2.15–3.3% funding fee, seasoning rules, and how the VA cash-out compares to the IRRRL.
How to buy in DC with little cash: FHA and conventional low-down-payment loans, DC's first-time buyer recordation tax, Tax Abatement and homestead deduction, and the DC Open Doors, HPAP and EAHP assistance programs: who qualifies and how they combine.
The VA Interest Rate Reduction Refinance Loan refinances an existing VA loan with no appraisal and no income verification. Eligibility, the net tangible benefit test, seasoning, and the 0.5% funding fee.
Renovation loans finance the purchase and the rehab of a DC historic-district fixer-upper in one mortgage. How FHA 203(k), Fannie Mae HomeStyle and Freddie Mac CHOICERenovation work.
How lenders size a DC mortgage: debt-to-income ratio, DC property tax, HOA dues, insurance, and the minimum down payment each loan type requires.
Why a DC condo building fails Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac project standards, and the portfolio, credit union, and jumbo non-warrantable programs that finance one at 20–30% down.
How the FHA Streamline and VA IRRRL work: the net tangible benefit tests, 210-day seasoning, appraisal and income waivers, and the 1.75% UFMIP and 0.5% funding fee.
DC's 2026 conforming loan limit is $1,249,125. Which Logan Circle purchases need a jumbo loan, and the jumbo rules for down payment, credit score, reserves, DTI and documentation.
How loan programs, agency pricing, HOA dues, down payment minimums, and insurance differ for a condo, a townhouse, and a single-family home.
How financing an investment condo in DC differs from a primary residence: 15–25% down, agency pricing adjustments, six months of reserves, rental income at 75%, building rental caps, and the tax treatment.
Six ways to lower a DC mortgage payment: refinance to a lower rate, extend the term, remove PMI, recast after a lump sum, appeal the OTR assessment, and shop homeowners insurance.
How to use a VA loan to buy a Navy Yard condo: eligibility, the 2.15% funding fee, VA condo building approval, DC's $1,249,125 entitlement ceiling, and occupancy rules.
How FHA and conventional loans compare for a DC first-time buyer: down payment, credit score, mortgage insurance, condo approval, seller concessions, and which DC programs work with each.
How a rate-and-term refinance and a cash-out refinance differ in pricing, loan amount, equity position, and DC recordation tax ($0 on both with the Security Affidavit).
The steps to buy a first home in DC: credit score and savings, pre-approval, FHA and conventional loans, DC recordation tax and Tax Abatement, the search, and closing.
DC's 0.85% residential rate, the $91,950 (tax year 2026) homestead deduction, the 10% assessment cap, how to appeal an assessment to OTR and RPTAC, and how property tax flows into your escrow.
Seven refinance mistakes to avoid in DC: skipping the break-even, paying recordation tax you don't owe, taking one quote, resetting to 30 years, keeping mortgage insurance, rolling in costs, and waiting for rates.
How mortgage credit scoring works, the score tiers lenders price from (780+, 740, 700, 660, 620, below 620), and five steps to raise a score before you apply.
Five reasons to price out a refinance (rate drop, better credit, loan-type switch, cash out, dropping mortgage insurance) and three cases where the closing costs are never recovered.
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