This condo is located at 1312 Euclid St, NW:


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The flier says:

“THIS IS TRULY ONE OF THE FINEST CONDOMINIUMS IN COLUMBIA HEIGHTS AND BEYOND. IIT’S FLOOR PLAN, IMPECCABLE CONDITION, SPACIOUS ROOMS, HIGH END FINISHES, GORGEOUS HARDWOODS, EXPOSED BRICK, ABUNDANT CLOSET SPACE, LARGE BALCONY AND 2 PRKG SPACES MAKE IT IDEAL . FHA FINANCING PENDING. BLOCKS TO YELLOW AND GREEN LINE METRO STOP. MUST SEE V-TOUR TO APPRECIATE STYLE AND QUALITY.”

You can find more info here and a virtual tour here.

$579,900 ($471 monthly condo fee) sound realistic for this 2 bed/2 bath?


This rental is located at 3513 11th St, NW:


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The Craigslist ad says:

“Located at 3513 11th st, this apartment has everything including central heat/AC, off-street parking (included), disposal, full bathroom with a bathtub, new windows, etc. It is also in a great location within 7 blocks of the Columbia Heights metro and everything that Columbia Heights has to offer. It is available October 1st, and we are showing it today (Monday) at 6pm, so please come see it.”

$1050 sound right for this 1 bedroom?



Rendering for Caprice to be located at 3460 14th St, NW

Back in Aug. ’10 we first learned of plans for a :

“French coffee shop and bakery, with authentic French pastries and several varieties of bread– including real baguettes!– baked on site.”

It’s been a long year of anticipation but I am overjoyed to say that a lease has been signed and construction has begun on Caprice, a new French Bakery coming to the Allegro retail space at 3460 14th St, NW.

I sat down with the owners on Tuesday afternoon and have been smiling ever since. It is an insane coincidence that I’ve just returned from Paris so every time they explained a pastry or a baguette, I could actually taste what they were talking about.

So let me share some details first:

Construction is slated to be completed around the end of November.

There will be a small indoor sitting area for about 10-12 people and later in the Spring there will likely be a small outdoor patio area.

The Chef Baker lived in France for 20 years.

The bakery is locally owned by a family that lives 2 blocks away.

While there will be a variety of breads including real baguettes baked daily on site, the head Chef Baker also has a passion for pastries so expect to see Pain au Chocolate, Croissants, Macarrons, Petits Choux and more. In the future they will also offer soups and sandwiches. Think cheese and butter on a baguette. Ham on a baguette…

The hours will be 7am – 7pm though they could be extended if there is enough demand (see questions below.)

You can see from the photo about that there are actually two big spaces. They are both roughly 900 square feet with one being the public area and the other being the baking area.

So this leads me to a few questions that owners had for you guys: You can see that the baking area can be visible from the street so if you wanted you could actually watch the baking process – is that something you’d be interested in? Would you like to be able to watch the kitchen/baking area from the street.

Another question they had was about coffee – is there a particular brand you’d like to see served? Illy? Counter Culture? Something else?

Finally, how do you like the hours of 7am – 7pm? Are they good or would you prefer earlier? Later?

Stay tuned for more info/details as we get closer to the opening date.



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“Dear PoP,

I live right near by 11th & Fairmont. This is the 2nd dead person they have found in this area, I feel like in the last 6 months.

Sounds like there isn’t much info yet, but I was wondering if this was on your radar?

CM Jim Graham sends an email to the Columbia Heights listserv this morning titled “Do you Know this Man? Death Investigation 11th St., NW”. He writes:

“He was the man found dead on the 2600 block of 11th. If so, please respond— Anyone with information about this case is asked to call the Metropolitan Police Department at (202) 727-9099. Callers wishing to remain anonymous may call 1-888-919-CRIME (2746). Anonymous information may also be forwarded to the department’s TEXT TIP LINE by text messaging 50411.”

More info from metro weekly here.

Photo of the deceased after the jump. (more…)


Senor Chicken is located at 3100 14th St NW (on Park Rd) and opened back in Nov. ’09. I was intrigued to see a Thrillist report this morning about “Secret” Ramen Noodles offered on Saturdays:

“Run by the chef behind People’s Bao catering, the Noodle Bar is a Saturday-only popup ramen shop inconspicuously “located” behind the counter of Columbia Heights’ Peruvian poultry-ists Senor Chicken; to place an order, just walk up and ask for a ramen menu”

Anyone try the ramen out yet? Any fans of the chicken?




Hipchickindc is a licensed real estate broker and a professional artist. Her official real estate bio is here and her art website is here. 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: 3624 New Hampshire Ave NW

Legal Subdivision: Columbia Heights
Advertised Subdivision per Listing: Columbia Heights

Original List Price: $515,000.
List Price at Contract: $515,000.
List Date: 07/09/2011
Days on Market: 13

Settled Sales Price: $505,000.

Settlement Date: 08/19/2011
Seller Subsidy: $7,000.
Bank Owned?: No Short Sale? No
Type Of Financing: Conventional

Original Good Deal or Not post is: here

The 2008 GDoN Edition for this home can be seen
: here.

The listing can be seen: here. Pics can be seen by clicking through the arrows on the main pic after opening the listing link.

I believe this may be our first example of a home that has withstood not one, but two go arounds as a Good Deal or Not (GDoN) subject*. PoP noted that the listing description on the 2008 listing was nearly identical to the 2011 listing, which makes some sense, since it was the same agent. Same agent, however, it’s important to note that 2011 is a much different real estate climate than 2008. Subsequently, what looks like pretty much the same listing in 2008 was withdrawn after 35 days on the market and a price reduction to $504,000. In 2011, it’s not a surprise that a house this close to Metro, busy street or not, was under contract in less than two weeks.

Not even taking into consideration the decrease in active listing inventory in downtown DC since 2008, the immediate area has seen a significant increase in commercial development between 2008 and 2011. There are few pockets of DC left that are relatively close in to downtown and on top of Metro. The Georgia Avenue corridor has recently seen quite a bit of property purchased by developers, with numerous moderately priced condo projects planned or in process.

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Urban Turf speculates:

“3047 15th Street NW is particularly intriguing because it is zoned as R-5-B. Such zoning means the building could be used for residential purposes and that a developer could convert the building into a condo project.”

It’s yours for $8,950,000.

We judged the building back in Oct. ’08.

I’m also quite curious what will happen to the school? Will they combine with the uppers school campus? Whenever we’ve spoken about the school in the past – parents have been very happy with them. You can learn more about Capital City Public Charter School here.

Anyone have the inside scoop on why they are selling?

Ed. Note: This sale follows the July news of Maya Angelou Public Charter School sale at 9th and T St, NW for $9,500,000.


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11th and Rhode Island St, NW

“Dear PoPville,

I’ve been using the Good Buy Laundromat at 11th and Lamont for a little over two years. I’ve generally had good experiences there, but since the management changed several months ago, the wash prices have nearly tripled (from as low as $0.75 to $2 or more per load). At the same time, all of the top-load machines have been unplugged and labeled “out of order” — presumably because their coin slots can only accommodate four quarters. On top of all of that, the place is only open until 7 p.m. during certain times of year.

Can anyone recommend a laundromat in the area that is either cheaper or open later? The place on Park between 13th and 14th seems to have some of the same issues. Alternatively, does anyone want to invite me over to use their washing machine?”

Back in April ’11 we learned that the one at 11th and Rhode Island Ave, NW had closed. When I walked by last weekend, it was completely gutted. Some workmen said that it should reopen as a new laundromat in the next 2-3 weeks. Though that’s obviously not particularly close to Columbia Heights and I’m not sure how much it will cost. I’d recommend looking into the Cardozo-Shaw Laundromat at 2710 11th St, NW. Does anyone know how much that one costs? Know of other low cost options?


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