In N.Va., a $500,000 House Has Become a Rarity

Condos Remain More Affordable

Pimmit Hills, a community of more than 1,600 homes off Route 7, is one area where prices still are under $500,000. (By Nancy Szokan -- The Washington Post)

Northern Virginia is home to some of the region's most expensive single-family houses and townhouses.

The median sale price of a single-family house or townhouse in the Virginia suburbs in 2005 was $491,447, up more than $100,000 -- 26 percent -- from 2004, according to a Washington Post analysis of government records around the region.

Condominium prices in Northern Virginia appreciated even more quickly last year, rising 31.1 percent, to $308,000. The median is the point at which half the sales were more expensive and half less.

Alexandria was Northern Virginia's highest-priced jurisdiction in 2005, with a median sales price of $585,000. Prices in Alexandria increased 17.2 percent -- the slowest appreciation in the Washington area, but still astronomical by historical standards.

Conversely, Prince William County's $398,000 median price was the lowest in Northern Virginia but reflected the region's highest growth from 2004 -- 32.7 percent.

Arlington sales prices rose 23.9 percent, to a median of $570,000.

In Fairfax County, the region's largest jurisdiction, prices were up 26.5 percent, to $529,900. Prices in neighboring Loudoun rose at the same rate, reaching $535,000.

But there are pockets of lower-cost housing throughout Northern Virginia. In Arlington, look near Baileys Crossroads, suggested Luis Lama, president-elect of the Northern Virginia Association of Realtors and an agent with Long & Foster in Falls Church.

"These are older homes, and there are some good buys because of their location, but the houses need some help. But an owner can repair and renovate," he said.

Reston, Chantilly and Herndon also offer good values, Lama said.

Betty Holmes, managing broker with Weichert Realtors' Vienna-Oakton office, recommends Pimmit Hills, right inside the Beltway near Tysons Corner. The community's modest houses, built a few years after World War II, are priced at less than $500,000.

"Pimmit Hills is still a reasonable area inside the Beltway. In the past, I think it was in the lower range and kind of overlooked. But it's a good location and school system," Holmes said.