Photo: Rudi Riet, CC BY-SA 2.0
Nationals Park
81 home games a year in your neighborhood — you can hear the fireworks from the roof decks.
Photo: Duane Lempke, CC BY-SA 4.0
Navy Yard, Washington DC
Home financing by the riverfront.
From Nats Park to the Anacostia waterfront — condo and home loan guidance for DC's fastest-growing neighborhood.
What it costs here
$1.1M
Median house price · 40 sales
$689
Median per square foot
Recorded arm’s-length sales from DC’s assessment records, through August 12, 2026. Not an appraisal or a valuation of any particular home. Compare every DC neighborhood
Why here
Nats Park, the boardwalk, and the river.
Navy Yard built a whole lifestyle in fifteen years — ballpark summers, a boardwalk for a backyard, and a riverfront that doubles as the main street.
Photo: AgnosticPreachersKid, CC BY-SA 4.0
Yards Park
The boardwalk, the wading fountain, and Friday summer concerts on the lawn — the riverfront lives like a resort amenity that happens to be public.
The riverfront table
The Point and the Salt Line on the water, Bammy's island plates, Dacha's beer garden, and Catahoula's rooftop — dinner here comes with a marina view.
Play, year-round
Canal Park's winter ice rink, Audi Field a short walk west, and rooftop pools on a good share of the buildings.
Who's moving in: young professionals making the rent-to-own leap inside the neighborhood, and military buyers from Joint Base Anacostia-Bolling putting VA benefits to work.
Getting around
Car, train, bus, or bike — how Navy Yard moves.
- Metro
- Navy Yard–Ballpark (Green) — one entrance at the ballpark gates, one at M Street.
- Bus
- M Street SE is the crosstown corridor, linking Capitol Hill and Southwest.
- Bike & trails
- The Anacostia Riverwalk Trail runs the waterfront in both directions, and the Douglass Bridge carries a walkway to the east bank.
- Parking
- Meters, ballpark event restrictions, and permit blocks share the streets here — buildings sell or rent garage spaces separately, so plan on one.
Photo: Ben Schumin, CC BY-SA 3.0
Daily life
Living in Navy Yard, day to day.
Schools, suppers, parks, and errands — the practical texture of the neighborhood, named specifically.
- Schools
- Van Ness Elementary reopened as the neighborhood grew; Jefferson Middle School Academy's renovated campus sits just west, with Eastern High as the feeder and the citywide application schools in easy reach.
- Dining & nights out
- Albi's Michelin-starred kitchen and Bluejacket's brewery inland, the marina restaurants on the water, and 81 home games a year at the ballpark.
- Parks & recreation
- Yards Park's boardwalk and wading fountain, Canal Park's winter ice rink, Diamond Teague's kayak piers, and the Riverwalk Trail in both directions.
- The library
- The new Southwest branch — one of the system's architectural standouts — is one stop or a short ride across South Capitol.
- Groceries
- Whole Foods at New Jersey and H, Harris Teeter on M Street — both inside the neighborhood's walkshed.
- On foot
- Car-optional by design: groceries, Metro, the ballpark, and the boardwalk all inside a ten-minute walk of every building.
Photo: Almonroth, CC BY-SA 3.0
Three stages
Start from where you actually are.
Buying takes most first-time DC buyers the better part of a year. The useful next step depends on which part you're in.
01 · Still running numbers
What can we actually afford?
Start with the payment, not the price. DC property tax, insurance and any condo fee move it more than buyers expect — and the condo fee counts against your ratios in full.
See what you can afford →02 · Saving up
How do we get to the down payment?
What you actually need down at Navy Yard prices is usually less than people assume, and the property type moves it as much as the program does.
See what you'd need →03 · Writing offers
We need to look credible.
DC listing agents expect a pre-qualification letter attached to the offer. Ninety seconds, no credit pull to start.
Get pre-qualified →
You asked
Will FHA or VA work in Navy Yard?
How much does a condo in Navy Yard cost?
Studios start around $300,000-$400,000, one-bedrooms run $400,000-$550,000, and two-bedrooms range from $550,000 to $800,000. Penthouses and townhouse-style units can reach $1 million or more. Prices have appreciated steadily since 2015 as the neighborhood has developed.
Are Navy Yard condos FHA- and VA-approved?
Many Navy Yard buildings have proactively obtained FHA and VA approval to attract the broadest buyer pool, including military personnel from nearby installations. Check HUD's condo lookup tool for FHA approval or the VA's approved condo list. Verify that the approval is current, as approvals can expire.
Can I use a VA loan to buy in Navy Yard?
Yes, if the building is VA-approved. VA loans offer zero down payment, no monthly mortgage insurance, and competitive interest rates. Navy Yard's proximity to Joint Base Anacostia-Bolling and the historic Navy Yard makes it popular with military buyers. A one-time VA funding fee applies at closing; the amount depends on your down payment and whether you've used the benefit before, and it's waived for veterans receiving VA compensation for a service-connected disability.
How much are HOA dues in Navy Yard?
High-rise luxury buildings typically charge $500-$700/month, mid-rise buildings $350-$500/month, and townhouse-style condos $200-$350/month. Dues usually cover amenities like gyms, pools, rooftop terraces, water, trash, and common area maintenance. Higher dues reduce your borrowing power since lenders include them in your debt-to-income ratio.
What is the minimum down payment for a Navy Yard condo?
It depends on the program — VA, conventional, and FHA each set different minimums, and the building's warrantability can move them. DC's HPAP and DC Open Doors programs can help cover the down payment and closing costs for qualifying first-time buyers, and we'll put the actual figures in writing for your scenario.
Are Navy Yard condos warrantable?
Most are. New-construction buildings with professional HOA management, well-funded reserves, and high owner-occupancy ratios typically meet Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac warrantability requirements. This means the widest range of loan options and best rates. Always verify with the HOA questionnaire, as buildings with high investor concentrations can lose warrantability.
Is Navy Yard a good investment?
Navy Yard has consistent rental demand, continued development and infrastructure investment, and a decade of price growth behind it — none of which is a forecast. Investment financing requires 15-25% down and higher rates. Check the building's rental cap before purchasing — many buildings limit the percentage of rentable units.
What are closing costs for a Navy Yard condo?
Expect $10,000-$20,000 in total closing costs on a typical purchase. This includes DC's recordation tax on the purchase price — 1.1% below $400,000 and 1.45% at $400,000 and above — your share of the transfer tax at the same rates, title insurance, lender fees, and prepaid items. First-time DC homebuyers qualify for a reduced recordation tax rate of 0.725%.
Does parking come with Navy Yard condos?
Not always. Some units include a parking space; others sell spaces separately for $30,000-$75,000 or rent them for $150-$300/month. Given Navy Yard's Metro access and walkability, some buyers forgo parking entirely. If you need a space, factor the cost into your total purchase budget.
How long does it take to close on a Navy Yard condo?
Plan for 45-60 days from contract to closing. Condo purchases take longer than single-family homes due to HOA document review, lender project approval, and warrantability verification. New-construction buildings may have additional documentation requirements. Getting pre-approved and starting document collection early helps streamline the process.
Is District Mortgage a bank or a mortgage broker?
District Mortgage is a licensed mortgage broker, not a bank or direct lender. We do not fund loans with our own money. We take your application and shop it across our wholesale lender network, so the lenders compete for your loan and you take the winning offer. NMLS #2819502 — verify us at nmlsconsumeraccess.org.
Can District Mortgage do a loan on a property outside Washington, DC?
No. We are licensed in the District of Columbia only, so the property has to be in DC. We cannot accept an application or a pre-qualification request for a property in Maryland, Virginia, or any other state. If your property is elsewhere, nmlsconsumeraccess.org will show you licensed originators in that state.
Where do the rates on this site come from?
Our rates page is the canonical source for our pricing and carries an effective date, the APR alongside every rate, and the borrower assumptions each example is priced on. Rates shown anywhere on this site are current rate examples priced for the borrower assumptions published alongside them, not offers of credit or commitments to lend, and pricing moves daily. Anyone quoting a rate from us should cite the effective date it was published with.
Didn't see your question?
Ask it here and you'll get an answer by email within one business day — written by a licensed DC loan officer, not an autoresponder.
Local expertise
Built for how Navy Yard buys.
Almost everything here is a condo — which makes the building you choose as important as the loan you choose.
Condo-first financing
Navy Yard is DC's newest condo market, and condo loans have their own rules: building warrantability, HOA review, and project approval. We know which questions to ask before you write an offer — not after.
VA loan expertise
With Joint Base Anacostia-Bolling and the historic Navy Yard nearby, this neighborhood draws military buyers. Many buildings carry VA approval, and we help eligible veterans and service members put VA benefits to work.
First-time buyer friendly
New construction, Metro access, and a deep rental market make Navy Yard a natural first purchase — and pricing across the buildings spans from starter one-bedrooms to penthouse territory.
Ready to land in Navy Yard?
Answer a few questions and we'll match you with loan options from our lender network.