Capitol Hill State of the Market?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:1225 Independence is the only home that caught my eye this week (look away PP with the very tight geographic preferences). How are they getting away with listing as a 5BR when the note says that 2 of the BRs aren't legal

Link: https://www.redfin.com/DC/Washington/1225-Independence-Ave-SE-20003/home/9911545

There's also no chance you could ever make either of the basement bedrooms legal. This is within the historic district, so they won't let you dig out the front to allow you to install an egress window. The back basement bedroom appears to back into a storage space, which appears to be a crawl space, so that's not happening either.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:1225 Independence is the only home that caught my eye this week (look away PP with the very tight geographic preferences). How are they getting away with listing as a 5BR when the note says that 2 of the BRs aren't legal

Link: https://www.redfin.com/DC/Washington/1225-Independence-Ave-SE-20003/home/9911545

There's also no chance you could ever make either of the basement bedrooms legal. This is within the historic district, so they won't let you dig out the front to allow you to install an egress window. The back basement bedroom appears to back into a storage space, which appears to be a crawl space, so that's not happening either.

It’s…optimistic… to be positioning this as a 5br. They should have called it a 3br with finished basement and moved on

[Anonymous]

Some great houses hit the market this weekend - but seemingly all 2BRs at a wide variety of price points. Have the young families gotten fed up of the smaller spaces?

- 30 9th St SE - 2br/2.5ba asking $1.25m - I've always admired this house from the street, but it's surprising to me they have 1700sq feet that look this cramped inside (https://www.redfin.com/DC/Washington/30-9th-St-SE-20003/home/9904798)
- 142 D St SE - 2br/1.5ba asking $850k - this is in bounds for brent with a big yard, so I assume will go for over ask. It's a cozy 1300sq feet
- 643 A Street SE - 2br/2.5ba asking $1.4m. I personally don't love the super mod re-do here but it's a spectacular block (https://www.redfin.com/DC/Washington/643-A-St-SE-20003/home/9899960)
- 10 8th St SE - 2 bed/1.5ba asking $975k. This is probably my least favorite of the bunch (not a fan of basement kitchens) https://www.redfin.com/DC/Washington/10-8th-St-SE-20003/home/9903321)

[Anonymous]

- 643 A Street SE - 2br/2.5ba asking $1.4m. I personally don't love the super mod re-do here but it's a spectacular block (https://www.redfin.com/DC/Washington/643-A-St-SE-20003/home/9899960)

The noise in this house will be terrible! Brick party wall and I see zero drywall on the ceiling plus exposed ventilation all looks like a nightmare. The yard looks great though.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Some great houses hit the market this weekend - but seemingly all 2BRs at a wide variety of price points. Have the young families gotten fed up of the smaller spaces?

- 30 9th St SE - 2br/2.5ba asking $1.25m - I've always admired this house from the street, but it's surprising to me they have 1700sq feet that look this cramped inside (https://www.redfin.com/DC/Washington/30-9th-St-SE-20003/home/9904798)
- 142 D St SE - 2br/1.5ba asking $850k - this is in bounds for brent with a big yard, so I assume will go for over ask. It's a cozy 1300sq feet
- 643 A Street SE - 2br/2.5ba asking $1.4m. I personally don't love the super mod re-do here but it's a spectacular block (https://www.redfin.com/DC/Washington/643-A-St-SE-20003/home/9899960)
- 10 8th St SE - 2 bed/1.5ba asking $975k. This is probably my least favorite of the bunch (not a fan of basement kitchens) https://www.redfin.com/DC/Washington/10-8th-St-SE-20003/home/9903321)

Is anyone a fan of a basement kitchen? We had Hill friends who had one and it was a logistical disaster. They only bought it because they were desperate to own on the Hill and the basement-kitchen discount got it into their price range (tho they only lasted 5-6 years before moving).

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:1225 Independence is the only home that caught my eye this week (look away PP with the very tight geographic preferences). How are they getting away with listing as a 5BR when the note says that 2 of the BRs aren't legal

Link: https://www.redfin.com/DC/Washington/1225-Independence-Ave-SE-20003/home/9911545

There's also no chance you could ever make either of the basement bedrooms legal. This is within the historic district, so they won't let you dig out the front to allow you to install an egress window. The back basement bedroom appears to back into a storage space, which appears to be a crawl space, so that's not happening either.

And yet the current owner of my old townhouse right there did exactly this! (dig out). They took a two story, no basement townhouse and have dug out an english basement apartment and added a third floor. It's now three units.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Some great houses hit the market this weekend - but seemingly all 2BRs at a wide variety of price points. Have the young families gotten fed up of the smaller spaces?

- 30 9th St SE - 2br/2.5ba asking $1.25m - I've always admired this house from the street, but it's surprising to me they have 1700sq feet that look this cramped inside (https://www.redfin.com/DC/Washington/30-9th-St-SE-20003/home/9904798)
- 142 D St SE - 2br/1.5ba asking $850k - this is in bounds for brent with a big yard, so I assume will go for over ask. It's a cozy 1300sq feet
- 643 A Street SE - 2br/2.5ba asking $1.4m. I personally don't love the super mod re-do here but it's a spectacular block (https://www.redfin.com/DC/Washington/643-A-St-SE-20003/home/9899960)
- 10 8th St SE - 2 bed/1.5ba asking $975k. This is probably my least favorite of the bunch (not a fan of basement kitchens) https://www.redfin.com/DC/Washington/10-8th-St-SE-20003/home/9903321)

Don't forget 422 Independence - $1.6m for a 2br/3.5ba. I really have a hard time imagining that much for a 2br, but especially for a home with no private outdoor space

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:- 643 A Street SE - 2br/2.5ba asking $1.4m. I personally don't love the super mod re-do here but it's a spectacular block (https://www.redfin.com/DC/Washington/643-A-St-SE-20003/home/9899960)

The noise in this house will be terrible! Brick party wall and I see zero drywall on the ceiling plus exposed ventilation all looks like a nightmare. The yard looks great though.

Me: "Super mod re-do? That could actually be—" *looks at the photos* "—oh, no. No, no, no, no, no."

Remember the reaction of the newly dead couple in Beetlejuice when the new owners re-did their house? That's me with this "mod re-do." There is nothing about what they've done to that house I like. Paint over the brick walls? Hate it. Dark gray paint outside? Hate. Gray and white "color" scheme inside? The wire stair railings that were already bordering on passé five years ago? The white-painted bare ceilings? Hate, hate, hate.

The backyard is nice, though. I'll give them that.