living in the Watergate with children??

[Anonymous]

The Watergate is fugly and kids are not going to be crossing busy RockCreek Pkwy to play on one strip of land next to the dirty Potomac.

I lived in Gtown and my jogging route was on the path right by the Kennedy Center and Watergate. There's the crappy gas station and all those roads with traffic. It is very isolating.

It is not so green as ppl speak of...yes---I would choose one of the other locations orig. mentioned---georgetown, dupont, kalorama--at least you are in a 'city' and not in a fortress surrounded by roads and virtually sitting in VA.

I gotta laugh when Watergate is putting down Arlington when the Watergate is virtually sitting in Arlington with none of the benefits.

I wouldn't want to live there with or without kids.

I think you are misinformed about the grounds. If you walk behind WaterGate East there is a very, very large green space in front of and surrounding the pool area. The general public would have no reason to go back there so you probably never saw it and you probably never walked back to the pool area. I would never have kids play on that strip of land next to the Potomac that are referring to above. My running route was from the back of WE, behind the Kennedy Center and then over to Roosevelt Island, the mall or memorial bridge. I loved the location. DuPont is wonderful but too busy and loud. Georgetown in my opinion is incredibly isolated, no metro and you can basically walk to well Georgetown. Neither DuPont or Georgetown offer large high rise apartment style living. The problem with the Watergate really is the residents. FTR, I like Arlington too.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:One other thing to bear in mind is that many of the residents are very old and not long for this world.

How would your kids react to finding a corpse in the elevator?

Just something to think about....

lol. because that must happen all the time...

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:One other thing to bear in mind is that many of the residents are very old and not long for this world.

How would your kids react to finding a corpse in the elevator?

Just something to think about....

lol. because that must happen all the time...

I don't want to die in a hospital, with tubes running everywhere. I want to die at home in my coop, or at least one of its elevators.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The Watergate is fugly and kids are not going to be crossing busy RockCreek Pkwy to play on one strip of land next to the dirty Potomac.

I lived in Gtown and my jogging route was on the path right by the Kennedy Center and Watergate. There's the crappy gas station and all those roads with traffic. It is very isolating.

It is not so green as ppl speak of...yes---I would choose one of the other locations orig. mentioned---georgetown, dupont, kalorama--at least you are in a 'city' and not in a fortress surrounded by roads and virtually sitting in VA.

I gotta laugh when Watergate is putting down Arlington when the Watergate is virtually sitting in Arlington with none of the benefits.

I wouldn't want to live there with or without kids.

The WG is not for everyone, but I take it that you have actually never been inside? The units can be spectacular, and the views of the Potomac are stunning. There is also, as PP mentioned, a large green lawn that is well-maintained behind WG East, as well as a private pool.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:CAn someone explain to me why you would want to be part of a co op? Seems to make no financial sense to me.

I live in a co-op and have occasional frustrations. But if you're a fan of grand pre-war buildings, you'll find that many of them in this town have been set up as co-ops. The Watergate's fees are uncharacteristically high. We pay a lot, but not in the same range at all.

I don't agree that the Watergate is fugly on the outside. I think it's an architecturally interesting building that provides more novelty than anything else on our waterfront.

Although I've never been inside the apartments, I've read articles about renovation projects there with interest. The problem for me is that the ceilings are super low in keeping with the fashion during the era it was built. (A lot of Arlington and beyond residents would recognize this particular bit of fug from their downmarket "townhomes" and split-levels of similar vintage.) This makes the (Boomers' and older residents') renovations with traditional ambitions look silly-- it's not a building in which classical pillars and mouldings make any sense at all. I also saw one done up in cottage style-- another Boomer who thought this was a good place for '80s shabby chic. The only renovations I've seen that worked followed more sympathetic modernist lines with very little visual clutter and lots of low, horizontal furniture. In these cases, the results were stunning when coupled with river views. I'd still prefer a higher ceiling, though.

[Anonymous]

The problem for me is that the ceilings are super low in keeping with the fashion during the era it was built.

The ceilings are actually higher than most condos. This is one of the reasons I loved my unit. The newer buildings have lower ceilings and much smaller rooms. The ceilings in my house (built in the late 70s) now has lower ceilings. Most units have lots of built-in bookshelves and good closet space. I wanted to live in a condo or co-op and didn't want to deal with a townhouse for maintenance or even safety living alone. The balconies are long and good for entertaining. I loved having a two story unit. It felt like a house with the benefit of being in an apartment building with a great view.

The two story units have a lower re-sale value because of the demographics of who can qualify and buy into the building. Senior citizens, understandably are looking to avoid stairs. They are popular with younger buyers but few younger buyers can get past the association or end up getting very turned off by them.

If the unit has white marble counters in the bathrooms, parquet block floors, or zebra wood striped cheap looking cabinents then the owner has not renovated since the unit was built. These are from the original building. The radiators can leak and you have to check them. If you go out of town you should ask someone to check your unit.

There isn't the electrical capacity to have in-unit normal sized washer and dryers. You have to be the lower powered mini ones which I would hate to have with kids. There is a laundry room downstairs but the machines are not great. It usually takes two runs of the dryer to get anything dry.

The large windows are wonderful but they are not sealed very well. You have to constantly clean because dust and dirt comes in.

On the financial pros and cons of a condo, it depends. When people are buying a house for the first time they often overlook what maintenance and utilities will cost. For a 2800 sq foot home this can be expensive. You get nailed in the summer for air conditioning and in the winter for heat. If you buy an older house, you will be replacing major systems over time. If you buy a new house, you seem to end up with expenses too. If you have a yard you are either mowing or paying someone to mow. Many neighborhoods have HOA fees. If you have a pool then this is a major expense.

If interest rates are low, you have enough for large downpayment, and the condo is in good shape then a condo makes more financial sense. If interests are high though then paying a smaller mortgage, unless you can use the tax break, and higher co-op fee can make sense. A co-op can be a good option for a professional with a secure high income that wants to invest his/her capitol in other ways or not blow out all their savings on the downpayment. Because co-ops cost less then condos, they can appeal to a broader market except of course for the Watergate. They really do themselves a disservice and lower the value by keeping it only to senior citizens.

[Anonymous]

OP: I have worked at the State Dept for 20 years and lived down there for about 6 months once. Once you are outside the WG, it is a wasteland, despite GW snapping up everything and making the area into one big university campus. It is very isolating. We have a 3 bedroom condo on upper Connecticut: plenty of families, in-bounds for Oyster, Eaton, Hearst and Murch. You can do better financially and emotionally elsewhere if you are committed to apartment living.

There are also some great old buidings coming open in Columbia Heights/Adams Morgan. It would be worth your time to poke around more. We also have friends that bought 3 bedroom condos in close-in Bethesda in good school districts.

[Anonymous]

what building?

Anonymous wrote:OP: I have worked at the State Dept for 20 years and lived down there for about 6 months once. Once you are outside the WG, it is a wasteland, despite GW snapping up everything and making the area into one big university campus. It is very isolating. We have a 3 bedroom condo on upper Connecticut: plenty of families, in-bounds for Oyster, Eaton, Hearst and Murch. You can do better financially and emotionally elsewhere if you are committed to apartment living.

There are also some great old buidings coming open in Columbia Heights/Adams Morgan. It would be worth your time to poke around more. We also have friends that bought 3 bedroom condos in close-in Bethesda in good school districts.

[Anonymous]

OP here.

I've been convinced that the Watergate is not the best choice. We really do prefer a condo/co-op over a house. Budget is not the issue.

We have absolutely no desire to live in Maryland and prefer to stay closer to the center of the city. We would never live in Virginia.

There are a few 3 bedrooms in Kalorama, but we really want a 4br or at least 3 bedroom, plus den.

[Anonymous]

OP, can you buy neighboring apartments in a new building and combine them?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP, can you buy neighboring apartments in a new building and combine them?

OP here. I'm not aware of any new buildings in which to do that. Do you have any specific suggestions?

[Anonymous]

I checked around: there are at least 6 listings of 4/5 bedroom condos in Kalorama, Georgetown, Woodley Park, North Dupont. You might want to look on Sotheby's or Washington Fine Properties, OP.

I know my condo would not let me merge apartments though I was very keen.

[Anonymous]

God, I wish I had these types of problems.

[Anonymous]

Here is a website with 4+ BR DC condos listed for sale: http://www.dccondoboutique.com/dc-condos-4-or-more-bedrooms.php

[Anonymous]

I think the Watergate would be a nice place for children. As noted earlier, the lawn is beautiful and peaceful. And many of the apartments have balconies. Another option is Watson Place in Observatory Circle which has a few apartments combined to have 4 bedrooms.

I love the architecture of the Watergate. Perhaps the lack of symmetry is the best feature. I'm considering buying an apartment there, so this thread provides great information. No one earlier mentioned the excellent wine shop (with great sales) and the fabulous Watergate Pastry. The Chinese restaurant is also quite good. I also like the cramped layout of the Safeway!

If the previous posters are still reading, do the water problems, income/savings documentation, and grouchy seniors outweigh the amenities and interesting style of apartments? I'm living in a 1960s building and have suffered with plumbing problems and would like to get away from that. I much prefer older buildings over the new ones, with The Westchester and Watergate being my two favorites. But they are coops which present the challenges mentioned above.

Another perspective on coop fees: I used to think the Westchester had the lowest in the area. Currently the one bedrooms with 1050 square feet are now over $1000. A storage bin has a one year waiting list and costs $100 a month. There's a charge to use the (very limited) fitness center. Garage parking has an eight year waiting list and costs over $100 a month. Compare that to a similarly sized apartment at Watergate East with a $1250 coop fee with garage parking and storage included, plus an added feature of a pool. Many apartments at the Watergate don't include parking, but I've found garage parking for $200 a month. I agree that Watergate South's fees are astronomical, but I don't like the layout of their small one bedroom apartments, so I'm not considering that building.