Headlines: First-time DC homebuyers flourish. And there’s an app for that.

Fall predictions: Watch the inventory

The prospects for the region’s housing market for the rest of 2014 and into 2015 will be determined by the inventory trends over the next few months. If the ratio of inventory to sales continues to increase, sales price growth will remain modest at best. However, if the pace of sales picks up or inventory begins to diminish, prices should recover. — DC Urban Turf

MLS arming agents with app that calculates buyer and seller closing costs

The app, MRIS Close It!, allows agents to calculate cash-to-close and net proceeds for real estate transactions. Users can instantly create, edit and share nonbinding HUD-1 Settlement Statements and net sales sheets for their buyer and seller clients. — Inman News

DC area housing costs are highest in America

But in aggregate, Washingtonian (and nearby suburbanite) households spent an average of $17,603 on housing costs in 2012, beating out (or losing to, really) every other metropolitan area that the BLS looked at. D.C.-area expenses were nearly twice those in Cleveland, which sits at the bottom of the list. — Washington City Paper

Why DC is the No. 1 market in the country for first-time homebuyers

DC’s real estate market has some serious advantages when it comes to national rankings. In addition to a metropolitan area with a lot of inventory that keeps moving and local closing costs that are some of the lowest in the country, the District’s nature as a city with high-paying jobs tends to attract a lot of first-time homebuyers. — In the Capital

MRIS teams with Federal Title on closing apps

Through the partnership, MRIS, which facilitates nearly $125 million a day in real estate transactions, now offers a custom, specially licensed version of Close It! to calculate total cash-to-close and net proceeds for real estate transactions. — Geek Estate