It seems that the capital is not only the seat of the federal government; it is also faring much better than the rest of the country when it comes to the housing market.

Economists attending a U.S. Chamber of Commerce in Washington, D.C. explained why the district’s real estate market is somehow in a better position than other metropolitan areas in the country. According to Stan Humphries, chief economist at real estate information website Zillow, said that economic sectors that have done well recently benefited the area.

Some of these sectors are the government, education, and military-related businesses. He expects the same sectors to continue helping the D.C. housing market remain relatively stronger. “We’re cautious about saying they’re out of the woods,” he said.

In May, some 36% of homes in Washington, D.C. were worth less from a year ago. That figure was significantly better than April’s 47%. Across the country, 57% of homes were worth less than last year in May. The figure stood at 52% in April.

Mark Zandi, chief economist at Moody’s Analytics, said that the housing market is underwent a “relative stability in the past year. However, he cautioned that home values may still go down in the coming months. “The housing crash is about over, but not quite,” he said.

Humphries also believes in the possibility if further price drops. He expects home values to fall at least until the third quarter of the year. According to the economist, unemployment remains a huge problem; people are selling the homes for less than their actual value. Despite this, a lot of areas still have a surplus of homes. He also noted the expiration of the federal government’s first-time home buyer tax credit program.

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