Pat Kennedy - Your Washington, DC Real Estate Connection

In 1935, when Harry Truman rented a 2-bedroom apartment at the Kennedy-Warren, his rent was an outrageous $150 per month.  Today, there is one available for a montly rent of $7,500. 

This Art Deco landmark is located at 3133 Connecticut Avenue NW, sitting on about four city blocks between Klingle Valley and the National Zoo. 

Architect Joseph Younger designed the building for Edgar Kennedy and Monroe Warren, and soon after it opened in 1931, the Depression caught up with them.  At that time – and since then – the Kennedy Warren has been a bank owned property.  And B.F. Saul, the local lender that took it over when Kennedy and Warren bellied up, completed the building according to Younger’s original plan (the plans turned up after being lost for decades).  They started the project in 2002 and finished it three years later. 

What amazes me about the Kennedy Warren is that the new section has perfectly duplicated the architectural detail.

If the Kennedy Warren ever goes condo, and if I can live there with Willie the hyperactive Labradoodle puppy, I will be the first in line to buy a place there – after all, my name’s on the building marquis!

Oh! and here is Joseph Younger's original drawing, which is now, after more than seven decades, a reality!

Whether you are visiting Washington, DC or you live here, the National Zoo is one of the city's favorite attractions for children of all ages.

The zoo opened in 1889, and a year later it became part of the Smithsonian.  The oldest building now standing is the old monkey house (recently renovated and reopened as The Think Tank).  Today, the zoo is home to about 2000 animals, not counting a large population of mice who hang out in the gorilla cages.

The best time of day to visit the zoo is in the morning.  The animals are pretty lively then, and for most of them, it's mealtime.  In the morning, you'll find the cheetahs racing around their area after a white rag on a pulley - they think it's a rabbit.  When they're exhausted from their run, the caretakers throw meat at them - sort of like the chase in the wild!

If you show up late in the afternoon like I did today.  most of the animals are taking their nap time.  But I gotta say, I've never ever been to the zoo when the pandas have been awake!  All they do is snooze!

A highlight of any trip to the zoo is a visit to the elephants and the hippos.  They are in the process of building a huge elephant run in the middle of the park.  Today, there was a lone elephant out in the yard.  And the hippo spent most of the time under the water, finally opening his big mouth to the excitement of the crowd of people with their photos.

You can reach the zoo by Metro, getting off at the Woodley Park stop, and when you've walked your feet off, and need a rest at the end of the day, drop in at the Zoo Bar, where the food is good though greasy and the beer is cheap.

As you cross the Taft Bridge heading north on Connecticut Avenue, you’ll see a mural of Marilyn Monroe.  This is your welcome to Woodley Park, one of Washington, DC’s most popular neighborhoods.

Builder and real estate developer, Harry Wardman (1872-1938), left a large footprint in the neighborhood with his Wardman Towers.  He also designed many of the brick townhouses that are famous for beautiful oak floors with mahogany inlays and for their dysfunctional galley kitchens.

While most of the houses have had their kitchens redone over the decades, you can live in Woodley Park and never cook or wash a dish.  Between the Metro stop and your home, you’ll find restaurants serving up cuisines from around the globe, and most offer takeout or home delivery.

For runners and cyclists, there is an entrance to Rock Creek Park’s trails on Calvert Street, the southern border of the neighborhood. 

Oyster Elementary School offers the neighborhood children a special bi-lingual immersion program.  And another important educational institution, The National Zoological Park, is a place where children of all ages can have a great time checking out the animals, including the giant pandas.

Since the first of the year, prices for homes in Woodley Park ranged between $751,000 for a 2000 square foot row house to a high of $2,730,000 a new home on Cathedral Avenue

OK, all you stagers out there!  Today, I learned beyond a doubt how important your role is in getting a home ready for the market.

I started off my first day back at work on a high.  And not from having just gotten off an airplane.  I was going to show a fabulous house to some favorite clients, and I really thought it would make their hearts skip beats.

Last year, I showed this Wardman bayfront townhouse in Woodley Park to some friends who were coming back to town.  The place had been beautifully restored by owners who obviously had great respect for Harry Wardman's original work.  Last year's buyers loved it, but their timing was a little off.  This had been our first outing, and their home in California wasn't even on the market yet.  By the time they were ready to buy, someone else had snapped it up.

Sheila Mooney of Coldwell Banker Residiential Property, was the listing agent.  Last year, the home sold fairly quickly due in large part to Sheila's knowledge and professionalism.  This home was just a shameless flirt.  It was not only pretty, but it was aslo priced right, perfectly staged, and easy to show, and I know that I jump at the chance to have Sheila as the agent on the other end of a transaction.

So while I was at Cape Cod, the house showed up on the Multiple Listing Service!  Holy gorgeous houses, Batman!  And I had another couple I wanted to have see it!

So today, with the husband on a Code Orange House Alert, I picked up the wife to see it first.  I tried not to act too excited, but I knew - I just knew - this was THE ONE! 

But wait! 

I opened the front door expectantly.  We walked in. 

And nothing. 

No flirting. 

No chemistry. 

It just fell flat!

Sure, they had tidied up and then some, but the mid-century furniture just didn't work with the 1914 woodwork.  The place looked kind of ordinary.

There was another difference.  This time around, instead of being listed by one of the most professional agents in the city, it was a FSBO listed with a limited service company.  The sellers aren't doing everything wrong - at least it was easy to show with a lockbox on the front door.  But they need advice on pricing (it's a little too high) and staging (it just looks lived-in).

My bet is that the sellers feel like they have to sell it themselves to save the listing half of the brokerage fee - that they can't really afford to hire and pay a traditional brokerage.

But I really think that they can't afford not to.