We looked at this section (1300 Block) of 9th Street, NW in Shaw over the summer and it’s really starting to look good. (More on this strip in a “possibly coming” post at 5pm) No word yet on the retail space on the first floor, I’ll update as that info becomes available.

The Nine is a new small condo projected that was recently completed located at 1316 9th St, NW. Full disclosure: Hipchickindc is involved in this project. There are only four units two of which are accessible through Naylor Alley. That is my favorite part. The carriage house was renovated and extended being rebuilt with the original 1850s brick.

What do you think of the look?

There is also a sweet green roof visible off the balcony in one of the units:

Prices range from $359,900 – $449,900. Hipchickindc provides some inside photos:


“Dear PoP,

As a soon-to-be Petworth resident, I wonder what most people do about receiving FedEx or UPS packages in the neighborhood. I’m an Amazon Prime member, and do the majority of my shopping through them. My first try sending a package to my soon-to-be house resulted in UPS leaving a slip for missed delivery, and a refusal to allow a dropoff.

My new place has a decent sized front porch, so I was thinking the ideal solution would be some kind of self-locking box that the UPS or FedEx guy could drop the stuff into. (ie: a metal locking box that I could leave propped open, but once someone puts something in, they could snap the lid down all the way, thus locking it). I can’t find anything that quite fits the bill – does anyone know of anything like this?

I *have* been able to find a monstrous mailbox (that’s pretty much the same as a USPS mailbox) at dvault.com – but this just seems to be overkill: http://www.dvault.com/residential.html

Any help would be greatly appreciated – I really don’t want to have to shell out money to the UPS store to pick up my packages for me.”

I think most people get their packages delivered to their work address. We spoke about the issue a bit here. But if work delivery is not an option what do you guys recommend?


This home is located at 1421 1st Street, NW:


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The flier says:

“This home features hardwood floors, exposed brick, and tons of light. Renovated in 2003. Walk to METRO. IMPORTANT sale includes Lot 843 which is a large parcel in the back. Email for copy of survey. Combined total sq feet estimated to be 3213. Zoned R4. Property shows well and is sold in AS IS condition.”

More info and photos found here.

I don’t know why I keep finding these 2 bedroom houses but here’s another. I do like the exposed brick. And the backyard is pretty sweet too. It’s interesting that it includes a parcel of land as well. Not sure what one would do with that? Build a garage? What do you think of the home itself? Does $379,000 sound reasonable for this 2 bed/1.5 bath (and adjacent lot)?



Photo by PoPville flickr user LGography

You can talk about whatever is on your mind – quality of life issues, a beautiful tree you spotted, scuttlebutt, or any random questions/thoughts you may have. I’ll open this thread every Monday and Friday. Anything good happen this week?


In real life, hipchickindc is licensed as a real estate broker in the District of Columbia and Virginia, and as a real estate salesperson in Maryland. Unless specifically noted, neither she nor the company that she is affiliated with represented any of the parties or were directly involved in the transaction reported below. Unless otherwise noted, the source of information is Metropolitan Regional Information Systems (MRIS), which is the local multiple listing system. Information is deemed reliable but not guaranteed.

Featured Property: 3700 13th St NW

Original List Price: $549,999.

List Price at Contract: $498,999.

List Date: 10/01/2008

Days on Market: 313 (this may be a record for a settled GDoN-R)

Settled Sales Price: $475,000.

Settlement Date: 09/30/2009

Seller Subsidy: $11,000.

Bank Owned?: No

Type Of Financing: Conventional with $95,000. (20%) down payment.

Original GDoN Post is: Here.

Recent Listing is: Here.

Perseverance, a good solid price reduction, and dwindling inventory finally resulted in a settled sale for this upper Columbia Heights property. Located just a tad over half a mile from DC USA (referred to in the listing as “USA Mini Mall”), my buyers in this price range would consider this close in. It looks like the Seller invested in several updates since it was purchased during the pre-Target era back in the 1997 for $139,000. Someone noted in the “Good Deal or Not” (GDoN) comments that being an end unit was not an advantage, but I find that people like the extra windows and not having an immediate neighbor on one side.
The original GDoN post ran last November, shortly after the house was first listed. With the combination of insanely low mortgage interest rates and the looming deadline of the Federal First Time Homebuyers Tax Credit, Fall 2009 is finding us in a very different market than the same timeframe in 2008.


In a previous thread one of the commenters mentioned that there isn’t a great diversity of ethnic restaurants in our neighborhoods. I think downtown and in some neighborhoods there is a pretty good variety but it got me thinking – what type of ethnic restaurant do you think your neighborhood is missing? Personally I’m a huge fan of Italian and Greek restaurants and would love to see some a bit closer to home. I’m excited for some more Pho options. But in a perfect world – what type of ethnic restaurant would you like to see closer to home?


By the time you’re reading this Tynan Coffee & Tea will be open at 1400 Irving Street, NW in Columbia Heights. I was able to get a sneak preview of the spot Thursday evening while the finishing touches were being completed. They have recently updated their Web site and you can see their menus here. Currently their hours are Monday – Friday 6:30am – 8pm and Saturday – Sunday 8am – 8pm. Those hours could change based on customer demand. In addition to coffee and tea you’ll also have the option of getting beer and wine. There is free Wifi and the seating capacity is 52 indoors. In the warmer months there will be some outdoor seating as well. While Friday is their soft opening on Saturday they will have their grand opening from 8am – 8pm though from 10am – 2pm there will be a sampling of free 8oz brewed coffee so you can check out the spot.

More photos after the jump. (more…)


Congrats to CHisOK:

“Why pay full price to be unsatisfied with your place in life? Stop by Stan’s for some discount loathing. We’ll mock your financial status, emotional insecurity and any repressed issues from your childhood. All at a discount price!”


I had heard about these “H” planter boxes before but before but only just saw them last weekend. There are spaced very close together around 10th Street, NE on Eastward towards Bladensburg Road. I think individually they look alright but packed together one after the other in different colors they seem kinda silly. Do you think these are a nice addition to H Street, NE?


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