A DSNews.com post - Are Cash Sales Creating a Dangerous Mirage? - covering the latest RealtyTrac report has been making its way around the Twitterverse today, with an ominous opening paragraph:

"Home prices and home sales have been rising over the past few years, pointing to a recovery in the housing market, but RealtyTrac warns that what we are seeing may not be a true recovery but instead a mirage created by investors—a dangerous mirage that could lead to trouble in the years to come."

According to the report, cash purchases made up nearly half of home sales across the nation in September. So we took a look at our local data to see how we compare to the national rate reported by RealtyTrac.  Fortunately the investor boogeymen artificially propping up prices doesn't appear to be "creating an unsustainable housing bubble" locally.  

Median price increases for all jurisdictions in the region

Overview

Demand in the Washington DC Metro Region housing market continues to grow, with sales and pending contracts increasing 19.1 percent and 1.7 percent, respectively, from last October.  Total inventory increased from the prior year for the first time in over two years, driven by townhomes and condo properties.  Despite the uptick in active listings, total inventory is still at historic lows and is only 35.7 percent of its 2007 peak level.  New listings increased 19.2 percent from this time last year and contributed to the increase in total inventory.  The median sales price increased in all jurisdictions as compared to last October.  The regional median sales price also increased 4.8 percent from last year, which is a slower pace than earlier this year primarily as a result of a slower increase in the median sale price of single-family detached homes.