If You Lived Here
H Street Corridor
Season 1 Episode 1 | 28m 20sVideo has Closed Captions
John and Christine tour three homes in Washington, D.C.'s historic H Street Corridor.
Series hosts Christine Louise and John Begeny join realtor Harrison Beacher to tour three homes and properties around the District’s historic H Street and explore the neighborhood.
Problems playing video? | Closed Captioning Feedback
Problems playing video? | Closed Captioning Feedback
If You Lived Here is a local public television program presented by WETA
If You Lived Here
H Street Corridor
Season 1 Episode 1 | 28m 20sVideo has Closed Captions
Series hosts Christine Louise and John Begeny join realtor Harrison Beacher to tour three homes and properties around the District’s historic H Street and explore the neighborhood.
Problems playing video? | Closed Captioning Feedback
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Learn Moreabout PBS online sponsorship♪ ♪ CHRISTINE: Hi, I'm Christine... JOHN: And I'm John.
CHRISTINE: We're producers at WETA and best friends.
JOHN: We love living in the DC area but finding a place to live here can both be exciting and challenging.
CHRISTINE: So join us as we tour homes and explore communities, one neighborhood at a time.
JOHN: And find out what it would be like...
BOTH: If You Lived Here.
(doorbell).
JOHN: We're here, on H Street, better known as the H Street Corridor and the heart of downtown Washington.
This area has seen its fair share of change and transformation.
CHRISTINE: Built in 1849, H Street was one of DC's most vibrant and thriving retail districts.
JOHN: Today, H Street is thriving once again.
CHRISTINE: There's art, retail, music, food, and the street cars are back!
JOHN: And it's a quick 15-minute walk to Union Station.
CHRISTINE: You know, it's even faster if you could hop on a bike or a scooter.
JOHN: Well, lucky for us, we are here all day.
We're going to tour three properties at three different price points.
CHRISTINE: And try to get the listing price without going over.
JOHN: Well, I can't wait.
CHRISTINE: Let's go!
(doorbell).
JOHN: This is just a stone's throw away from the Capitol and look at that detail on that window.
It's really cool.
CHRISTINE: And you know what, nothing says community more to me than a front porch.
JOHN: Yeah, that's nice.
You got all these different styles homes too Victorian and Federal.
I love how some of these are set back and they're all different.
CHRISTINE: They are, and I love the architectural detail.
JOHN: And here's the man of the hour.
CHRISTINE: Hi, Harrison.
JOHN: Hi Harrison, nice to meet you.
HARRISON: Nice to meet you as well.
Welcome to the H Street Corridor.
JOHN: I haven't really been in this neighborhood a lot so could you tell us a little bit more about it?
HARRISON: Absolutely.
It's all about proximity here.
We use a website called walkscore.com, right?
It rates what stuff is nearby.
And this one has a walk score of 95, almost the best you can get.
So that means, in terms of your everyday amenities, like grocery, shopping, things like that, they're close by, but you also have attractions, restaurants, historical, and cultural things to do and outdoor spaces.
CHRISTINE: So this place obviously has a history to it.
So why don't you share that with us.
HARRISON: Absolutely.
Welcome to the Masonic Temple Condominium originally constructed in 1914, by renowned DC developer, Lucien T. Williams.
And at the time it was constructed, this was a rooming house as well as administrative offices for the Freemasons.
Then the style here, which is cool, is a Beaux Arts architectural style, which is really identified by the casements around the windows and also the dormers up top too, so a really kind of iconic DC style.
JOHN: Well, this is the first of three homes you're showing us today.
And the first home that we see always kind of sets the bar for the neighborhood, it kind of informs us of kind of what the market is like, so it's a little bit more challenging when we play our game... HARRISON: A little competition game, you got going on?
JOHN: Just a little.
CHRISTINE: Just a little, you know, whoever gets closest to the listing price without going over... JOHN: Wins bragging rights.
CHRISTINE: Yeah, pretty much.
HARRISON: Well, don't waste any time, go ahead and check it out and make sure you see a special surprise in the lobby on the way in.
JOHN: Ok. CHRISTINE: We love surprises.
Let's go check it out.
JOHN: We'll see you in a bit.
CHRISTINE: Alright.
Oh, so this is the surprise that Harrison told us about.
JOHN: Cool.
CHRISTINE: You know, it's so great that their preserving the history of this building and of the Freemasons.
JOHN: You know, Freemasons are the world's oldest and largest fraternity.
CHRISTINE: Ah, George Washington was a Freemason.
JOHN: Paul Revere was a Freemason.
CHRISTINE: Was he really?
JOHN: Yeah.
CHRISTINE: I didn't know that.
BOTH: Wow!
JOHN: This is not what I expected.
This place is cool.
CHRISTINE: This is, look at the ceiling height.
JOHN: Yeah, the ceiling height is everything for this place.
CHRISTINE: What a great architectural feature it has.
JOHN: Wood burning fireplace.
CHRISTINE: Ah, look at the window.
JOHN: I like spaces like this.
Watch your step.
CHRISTINE: Thank you, you're such the gentleman.
JOHN: Well, you know, here we at the dining room and kitchen.
I love these floors.
This woodgrain tile, very much on trend right now, but I love it.
And there's another big window and it looks like they have the floors splitting the window, part of the light comes in through the kitchen and part for the bedroom.
CHRISTINE: That was really smart to get a little bit of it in this room because there's not another window in this kitchen, but still.
JOHN: This is a good starter place for someone.
CHRISTINE: It is, plenty of room for cooking.
You've got great cabinet space, a full-size fridge, so... JOHN: It's adorable.
CHRISTINE: It is, again, a bigger space than what I thought.
JOHN: Hall closet.
CHRISTINE: More closet space.
JOHN: Entryway phone, like, Hello, oh, Christine's here?
No, don't buzz her in.
Thank you.
CHRISTINE: Okay.
Now what do you think of the stairs?
I know you're kind of picky about your stairs.
JOHN: No, they're fine.
CHRISTINE: Yeah, I think so.
JOHN: Loft-living.
And, here's the bedroom, which is kind of, you know, like a loft.
CHRISTINE: Yeah.
JOHN: This is fine.
It's little, but it's cozy.
CHRISTINE: But it even has... JOHN: Storage.
CHRISTINE: Storage.
JOHN: Nice storage.
CHRISTINE: Yeah.
But look, it goes all the way back.
You can put a lot of stuff back in there.
JOHN: Sure could.
CHRISTINE: They used every inch that they could.
So is this the... JOHN: Bathroom?
CHRISTINE: Let's see.
Oh, more storage space.
JOHN: Do not go to the bathroom in there.
CHRISTINE: I wouldn't.
JOHN: That's a closet, not a water closet.
CHRISTINE: There's a difference.
JOHN: Onto the bathroom.
The door looks small, but the bathroom is big.
CHRISTINE: This is really a nice size.
JOHN: I love that tile.
CHRISTINE: That is nice tile.
I thought it was going to be much smaller.
JOHN: There's a light in the shower.
Wow.
It's home networks.
It's music.
So that's actually a speaker.
CHRISTINE: Oh my gosh.
I love this bathroom.
JOHN: Hooked up, hooked up.
I love it.
Okay.
Shall we go downstairs?
CHRISTINE: Let's go talk to Harrison.
JOHN: All right, very cool building Harrison.
CHRISTINE: Super cute condo.
And a surprise as soon as you walk in, I love when a piece of history still is visible in a building.
HARRISON: Tells the story, right?
CHRISTINE: It does.
HARRISON: It's okay to have just kind of regular condos that are brand new builds, but when you create something, that's got some historical context and history, it's been here, you know, over 106 years at this point... JOHN: Yeah.
HARRISON: It's really cool.
CHRISTINE: We have some questions for you.
HARRISON: Okay.
CHRISTINE: Okay, so what's the parking situation?
HARRISON: So there's one garage parking spot here.
CHRISTINE: Okay.
JOHN: Fantastic.
That's always a check for us.
HARRISON: A huge plus in this neighborhood.
JOHN: Okay.
So condo fee?
HARRISON: Low, um, for only right around 300 bucks for the building.
CHRISTINE: Oh, that is good.
JOHN: That's good.
CHRISTINE: So now is when I like to give John the opportunity to hear about the entire place again, for his benefit of guessing.
HARRISON: Okay.
So remember we're one bedroom, one bath.
Just over 700 square feet.
Got the historical context of being originally built in 1914, renovated in the 90's.
So you got a younger kind of interior and guts, but with brand new kitchen and brand new bath as well.
CHRISTINE: So, oh boy, after everything you've mentioned parking, location, I'm going to say... A listing price of $410,000.
HARRISON: 410?
Are you sure?
CHRISTINE: No.
HARRISON: Okay.
JOHN: I would have probably guessed something similar to that, so I'm going to go slightly higher and I will go for 435.
HARRISON: Four-three-five?
$435,000.
JOHN: $435,000.
HARRISON: All right, so we've got one vote 435, one 410.
All right, so the actual price of the unit is... $450,000.
CHRISTINE: Oh.
HARRISON: 4-5-0.
CHRISTINE: Okay, well, all right, you, you're starting this off with the first win.
JOHN: Thank you, H Street.
HARRISON: Well, you were in the ballpark, right?
So we'll keep getting you educated.
JOHN: Yeah.
CHRISTINE: He's being nice.
JOHN: Yeah.
CHRISTINE: I cannot wait to see more of this neighborhood.
HARRISON: That's right.
CHRISTINE: Let's check out the next two places.
HARRISON: I can't wait to show it to you.
Shall we begin?
CHRISTINE: We'll follow you.
HARRISON: Alright, let's do it.
CHRISTINE: Since Harrison clearly knows his way around the H Street Corridor, we asked him to take us on a tour, some of his favorite spots.
So did you grow up here?
HARRISON: Actually, didn't grow up right on H Street but I went to high school and college, in the city and spent the majority of my young adulthood kind of hanging out here and actually DJ'ing in some of the bars on this block.
CHRISTINE: Well, tell us what you love about this area.
HARRISON: Well, where we are specifically between the 1300 block and 1200 block of H has been like the historic kind of epicenter of the cool stuff and Smith Commons, really cool spot right across the street.
was a spot that I actually used to DJ at.
That parking lot, right across the street is actually the only parking lot close by.
So when folks would come in from Maryland or elsewhere, you'd have to go by a spark plug or something so that you wouldn't get towed away from parking at Auto Zone before going out to the bars.
CHRISTINE: Well, you know what they say?
You can never have enough sparks plugs.
HARRISON: You can never have enough spark plugs.
JOHN: That's a very good tip and I'm going to use that one.
CHRISTINE: I want to take you back to your DJ days and tell us about the music scene.
HARRISON: For sure.
No better place to talk about music and H Street than between the 1300 and 1400 blocks.
It was this fascinating mix between the original music of the city of funk, soul, hip hop, go-go, right, then that middle ground, which is like pop, Top-40.
And then this newer vibe, which is what we have here now, what I absolutely love, is a mix of all of it.
And I hope to get to hear some of this great music we're talking about too, because you've got lots of options here.
JOHN: We're going to come and listen to you spin some time.
HARRISON: I might come out of retirement just for y'all, you never know.
(doorbell).
JOHN: So Harrison, where are we now?
HARRISON: Welcome to 3rd and K Street Northeast.
Can you smell that?
JOHN: Oh, I can smell it, and it smells good!
HARRISON: Well, that right behind you, Indigo, Indian food on the go, a Capitol Hill, H Street, NOMA staple of Indian food.
One of the best spots.
BOTH: Oh my gosh.
JOHN: We'll be hitting that later.
HARRISON: In addition to Indigo right here, a little bit North of us, we've got an awesome dog park.
CHRISTINE: You'd love that for Charlie.
JOHN: Yes, sir.
HARRISON: Absolutely, and there's a place called U-Line Arena.
First place in America where the Beatles played.
Now it's a really cool, dynamic kind of mixed use office space.
And we've come a little bit further East and our second location, closer to the action.
A little bit more density.
JOHN: Totally different.
You have new construction, you have classic homes.
HARRISON: It's a real interesting diversity of both housing type and the type of businesses here too.
Welcome to 301 K Street Northeast.
JOHN: Wow, this yard is beautiful.
HARRISON: Yeah.
JOHN: Is it a whole home?
HARRISON: No, this is actually a condo conversion.
So one single family property converted into two condo units.
CHRISTINE: So is that common in this area?
HARRISON: It actually is just because of the cost of the dirt.
CHRISTINE: And I know there's a lot of development nearby some great things.
HARRISON: Absolutely.
As part of NOMA, we always talk about the cranes in the sky at all times.
Back behind us there, we see some additional development at Union Market, which is a hub for residential, restaurants, retail and Union Station, which were a couple of blocks away from.
(distant train horn) JOHN: You can hear the trains right now.
CHRISTINE: There we go.
JOHN: Cue trains.
HARRISON: Cue trains.
JOHN: That's cool.
CHRISTINE: So I think we should have a little more riding on this place cause I'm feeling pretty confident.
JOHN: Right?
CHRISTINE: Okay.
If I win you buy lunch.
JOHN: Fair.
CHRISTINE: And, um, if I should lose, then I buy.
JOHN: There is loser in this game.
Lunch it is.
HARRISON: All right.
Check it out.
I'll be right here when you come back.
JOHN: Okay.
Well, when you talk about open concept, this is it.
CHRISTINE: From the minute you walk in.
JOHN: Yeah, front to back, it's one open flow.
CHRISTINE: And you know, I love the addition of the bay windows.
JOHN: Yeah.
CHRISTINE: You get the vibe and the energy of K Street.
JOHN: Yes, cuz you see it all happening.
CHRISTINE: Yeah, but what a rarity to have a beautiful little garden you can look at too.
JOHN: The garden is such a plus.
CHRISTINE: It is.
JOHN: And we both love the garden.
CHRISTINE: We do.
And you know, having the kitchen in the middle, this really gives you the flexibility.
You can make that the dining room, you can make this the living space.
JOHN: So why is it that I always seem to be on this side of the counter and you're always on that side of the counter.
CHRISTINE: I don't know, I guess I'm just more comfortable over here.
JOHN: Yeah, being served.
Well, it's great because I can serve you and then you can do the dishes.
CHRISTINE: Oh lovely, well, I would do them cuz you know, I love the undermount sinks.
JOHN: I know you love those.
CHRISTINE: It does make it a little easier.
I also love that there's a dishwasher too.
JOHN: And this is a nice wide open flow space.
CHRISTINE: It is.
It just flows right through... JOHN: Right into the living room.
CHRISTINE: Oh and I love the bay window here too.
That is a great little hidden space.
Really nice open concept.
Great, great remodel.
JOHN: It is.
And then you're like, oh my gosh, look at the staircase!
CHRISTINE: Oh, I do like this.
JOHN: It's kind of grand.
Yeah.
They're cool.
CHRISTINE: I love these steps because the design is to look like when craftsman would originally take a plank and try to smooth it out with a hand planer.
JOHN: I love the texture.
CHRISTINE: So you have, it's a little bit uneven... JOHN: A little rustic.
CHRISTINE: Exactly.
And it works so well in this space because you don't feel like you're heading down to a basement.
JOHN: No and look at the height of the ceilings down here.
They're just as tall as upstairs.
CHRISTINE: These are... JOHN: This is not a basement.
This is a lower level.
And the window is fantastic to let a little natural light in.
CHRISTINE: But it's a huge window.
JOHN: It's huge.
CHRISTINE: So you don't have that basement feel.
Even the closet doors.
JOHN: Yeah.
CHRISTINE: You know, you open it up and it's like whoa.
JOHN: Two big closets.
CHRISTINE: That is so key.
JOHN: So here's the en suite.
CHRISTINE: Oh, it's nice.
JOHN: Nice and big.
CHRISTINE: Nice double vanity.
JOHN: Yes.
CHRISTINE: I love this whole tub, shower setup.
JOHN: And I love these recessed soap holders.
CHRISTINE: I don't have one, I'm always envious because my shower bottles, just sit in the tub and just make a ring.
JOHN: That's sad.
CHRISTINE: I know.
But on the other hand, I could have soap-on-a-rope.
JOHN: Oh, I remember soap on a rope.
Christine Remember that?
JOHN: Yeah.
So how about this huge hallway too?
CHRISTINE: Yeah, again, tall ceiling.
Another nice size bathroom.
JOHN: Oh, I love the marble title on this one.
Christine Yeah.
I do too.
JOHN: Super sharp, marble vanity.
And the second bedroom.
So another big space.
CHRISTINE: It is, you can have a queen, even a king.
JOHN: Another window.
CHRISTINE: Another window.
JOHN: And a door to the outside.
CHRISTINE: Well, Harrison scored again on the second home, I have to say.
JOHN: I got my price and I'm going to win.
I'll see you later.
CHRISTINE: Okay bye.
I've been working up an appetite.
JOHN: That's good because you're buyin'.
JOHN: All right, somebody's feeling like a winner and that's this guy.
HARRISON: John's looking confident.
CHRISTINE: It was the lunch wager that got them going.
HARRISON: Food motivated?
JOHN: Very much so.
Okay.
Great house.
HARRISON: Okay.
JOHN: It's big.
CHRISTINE: It is, and you know, what I loved is the minute you walk through the door, it's that whole open concept.
JOHN: I almost like the lower level, better than the upper level.
So what else should we know about this house?
HARRISON: So the walk score here is actually a 96 and that's because of the density of transportation options.
You got bike lanes, scooter and the H Street street car is just a few blocks down as well.
CHRISTINE: How about the yard?
Is this all part of it?
HARRISON: This is, so, in a two-unit building, the owners get to share a usage of this space.
JOHN: And you have the side yard and you have parking.
Anything else we should know?
Harrison Condo fee, on this one, relative to some of the other ones in the city.
This is a really low condo fee.
It only $264, two-hundred and sixty-four a month.
Okay.
I just want to recap.
JOHN: Okay.
HARRISON: This one, two bedrooms, two baths, just under 1400 square feet, everything new as of 2015.
Higher ceilings, all the big windows on this level and tons of natural light.
So slightly better location in terms of amenities nearby.
CHRISTINE: Okay.
JOHN: Okay, I'm ready to guess.
CHRISTINE: Ok, thank you, thank you.
JOHN: Um, okay.
I'm going to make a guess of $850,000, 8-5-0.
HARRISON: You feel good about that?
JOHN: I feel great about that, I feel good about myself, Harrison.
I'm confident.
HARRISON: As you should.
CHRISTINE: It's a great location.
Love the unit, but I think you are a little high.
JOHN: Okay, friend.
CHRISTINE: Alright.
I am going to say, you said 850... JOHN: 850, sticking with it.
Final answer.
CHRISTINE: You know, I am going to go $810,000.
JOHN: Hmmm.
Okay.
HARRISON: The actual listing price of 301 K Street, Northeast, Unit Number One is $775,000.
BOTH: Oh.
CHRISTINE: We both went over.
HARRISON: What you got to remember here?
We're still looking at condos instead of single family.
So I think your, your math would have been right on point if we were at single family, but this is, as crazy as it sounds, 775 is a more accessible entry point to get this much space in the neighborhood.
JOHN: And then coming up next, we're going to swing for the... HARRISON: Fence.
The next one is the absolute dream house, top of the market, and I can't wait to check it out.
CHRISTINE: Well, let's go grab lunch... JOHN: Come on, I'm buying.
Let's go.
HARRISON: Let's do it.
JOHN: I got to say, we're loving H Street.
I really want to learn more about the history of the area.
So what do you say we talk to someone who lives and works here.
ADAM: You are at Maketto, 1351 H Street Northeast.
This is our communal marketplace, we've been here since 2015.
Do a little bit of everything.
We have a Cambodian and Taiwanese kitchen concept.
We also do our own baked goods, coffee and retail as well.
It started as a bunch of different local entrepreneurs coming together to just make this really cool communal marketplace theme that was kind of an homage to the H Street of old.
In the 1960s, before the Martin Luther King riots kind of tore this place down, it was a destination spot for a lot of people in this community, especially black people to come and do all their shopping.
It's kind of like a one-stop shop, kind of a market area with a lot of business going on.
And that kind of stopped for, I think like maybe a 30, 40-year period where this was kind of, not so much of a destination spot.
It was kind of a place that was glanced over and the landscape of DC for a very long time.
I love H Street, it's just a sprawling energy and you can meet every kind of person.
You know, you can meet people like me who are locals who have always just loved this area and then have found their home here.
You can find people who just moved here and you know, are working on Capitol Hill and doing all these interesting things that the city has to offer.
I met my wife here.
I've met a million friends here.
And I came in this building as a server and I ended up being a general manager just because I loved it and just wanted to see it thrive, and that's a result of H Street and the feeling that I feel when I get up and come here every day.
(doorbell).
HARRISON: All right.
All right.
Welcome to the dream house.
House number three.
JOHN: We have arrived.
CHRISTINE: Wow.
HARRISON: We're here.
Welcome to 651 Maryland Avenue Northeast.
JOHN: Well, tell us everything.
HARRISON: We are in the far kind of Southern edge of the H Street corridor on Maryland Avenue Northeast.
It's a really distinctive address.
If you look around, we see a different kind of housing stock over here.
A lot of these large Victorian row homes and a really cool church around the corner that's been converted to condos as well.
JOHN: We saw that.
CHRISTINE: Wow, we did.
HARRISON: So, what's special about this as compared to where we've been for the previous two locations, is this is a little bit more residential.
So the walk score is a little bit lower at 92, but we're only a few blocks away.
CHRISTINE: I've wanted to see one of these row houses forever.
HARRISON: The dream house is best explained from within.
So, let's check it out.
JOHN: After you.
CHRISTINE: Well, thank you.
JOHN: Look at this facade.
CHRISTINE: Look at the cute little guy lookin'.
JOHN: Ah, it comes with pets.
JOHN: Hello, dreamhouse.
CHRISTINE: Okay.
I think dream house was, uh, pretty close.
HARRISON: Didn't exaggerate.
JOHN: When we said aspirational, we didn't say like, why don't you just knock our socks off, but you did.
HARRISON: This is a restoration on the outside, original 1900 was the structure, and this was all redone in 2019.
So no one's ever lived here before.
This is brand, brand new.
JOHN: When I walked in, I was like, what's that smell?
Oh, it's money.
HARRISON: And luxury is in details, right, so in here, some of the details to note, a lot of the stone accents, the size of the windows, right?
The finishes, the fixtures, the appliances lights, the sound system, the energy efficient... JOHN: I'm seeing everything.
My eyes are darting.
Like, I want to touch that fireplace.
I see those speakers.
HARRISON: So, I think it's time for you to check it out, do your calculations, figure out the pricing strategy for you.
JOHN: It's already started.
CHRISTINE: Those are turning.
HARRISON: And then when you're done, I want you to meet me back here, before we finish up.
CHRISTINE: So I knew you've been eyeing this kitchen up since we walked in.
JOHN: Wait, I can't... CHRISTINE: But wait, I just need to prepare you.
JOHN: I can't even... CHRISTINE: All the bells and whistles you love in the kitchen are in this kitchen.
JOHN: Okay.
CHRISTINE: It's okay.
Come on in.
Baby steps.
Take a look.
JOHN: Oh, my gosh.
Okay, no, this is fantastic.
CHRISTINE: Catch your breath.
JOHN: I'll just catch my breath?
CHRISTINE: Catch your breath.
JOHN: It's like, everything good all in one place.
You have a Sub-Zero wine fridge, holy moly.
A Wolf microwave.
A Viking dishwasher.
A Wolf stove, and a Liebherr fridge.
CHRISTINE: Yeah, you know, one thing I can say... JOHN: Ok, I'm done.
CHRISTINE: I will never get this excited over a kitchen.
JOHN: I'm dropping the mic here because I'm done.
This is a great kitchen.
CHRISTINE: But you know what I might add though?
JOHN: What's that?
CHRISTINE: Just a little like stainless steel counter, just for a little extra counter space, I think would really look cute.
JOHN: Yes, nice little addition to this space.
CHRISTINE: See, I can add things to a kitchen.
JOHN: Yes.
CHRISTINE: I'm sure that's the pantry.
JOHN: Pantries.
CHRISTINE: So Harrison, how many more levels do we have?
HARRISON: Two floors up and a special surprise up top.
CHRISTINE: Ew, more steps.
JOHN: And off we go.
CHRISTINE: I know you love stairs.
Okay.
Second floor.
JOHN: Yep.
CHRISTINE: All right.
So... JOHN: Looks like... CHRISTINE: A bedroom.
JOHN: A very nice, very sunny bedroom.
CHRISTINE: Yep, lots of natural light.
JOHN: Two big windows.
CHRISTINE: Okay, a nice full bath.
JOHN: Wow, this is a very nice, big hallway bath.
And that tub, that deep, deep tub is a wow.
And these mirrors, I think they'd got Alexa enabled in them.
CHRISTINE: And how about those double vanities?
JOHN: Oh, don't do that.
Okay, we're climbing lots of stairs.
I don't need any other, uh, heart problems here.
CHRISTINE: I'm so sorry.
JOHN: So, this must be the owner's suite.
CHRISTINE: Or maybe it's just an en suite.
JOHN: That's a big bedroom with that beautiful window.
CHRISTINE: That let's in a lot of natural light.
JOHN: And it has... CHRISTINE: Another full bathroom.
Double vanities.
JOHN: That deep-deep tub.
CHRISTINE: The shampoo caddy.
You know, I love that.
JOHN: You love that.
Floor number three.
CHRISTINE: You know I've got to look everywhere?
JOHN: Washer-dryer.
CHRISTINE: Okay.
Nice to see.
I just did that to give you an extra beat to rest down there.
JOHN: Next floor.
Well, I think we found the actual owner's suite.
CHRISTINE: I think we did.
Look at this soaking tub.
JOHN: It's huge.
CHRISTINE: It's huge.
JOHN: This is the house of big tubs.
CHRISTINE: It is, but, oh my gosh, can you imagine taking long baths in this?
JOHN: That's a nice Kohler.
How about the rainfall shower head right here?
CHRISTINE: Oh my gosh, I don't think I've seen a shower head like that.
JOHN: That's the real McCoy, beautiful bath.
CHRISTINE: Boy, you know, checklist, checklist, checklist.
JOHN: Check, check, we'll give that five checks and then.
Awe, it's such a shame they have such small closets.
CHRISTINE: Such a small closet space.
Yeah, I think this is bigger that my bedroom.
JOHN: This is bigger than my condo.
CHRISTINE: I think you could say it's ample space.
JOHN: Ample storage and ample light once again, with these beautiful windows and the owner's suite.
CHRISTINE: Well, you know, I'd normally call dibs on this room, but I'm going to call it dibs on the whole floor.
JOHN: Oh, I can't fault you for that.
CHRISTINE: Okay.
I think this is the surprise Harrison was telling us to watch out for.
JOHN: Ok, so this is one staircase I don't mind climbing.
CHRISTINE: And he said, keep climbing.
So let's keep going.
This was easier to open than I thought.
JOHN: Wow, very nice.
Wow, look at this.
CHRISTINE: This was so worth it that trip up the steps.
JOHN: Look at this view!
CHRISTINE: This is what it's all about.
JOHN: Beautiful.
I mean, we've explored all down there in H Street Corridor.
CHRISTINE: We have.
We have.
JOHN: And can you imagine being up here on the 4th of July?
CHRISTINE: Well, I can imagine being up here every day, watching the sunset.
JOHN: You can even see like the tip of the Washington Monument over there.
CHRISTINE: The Capitol.
JOHN: Library of Congress.
Yeah.
Very nice CHRISTINE: It's such a great spot.
Harrison did not disappoint when he said to keep going up.
What a great place to just relax.
And you know, relax, you can have dinner up here.
You can make it.
Look at that outdoor grill.
JOHN: And you have a sink, that's deluxe, and speakers.
CHRISTINE: It just gets better and better.
JOHN: And you know what, the breeze is for free.
CHRISTINE: It feels great too.
JOHN: Yeah.
CHRISTINE: So we've seen the whole house now.
Do you have a listing price in mind?
JOHN: I do have one in mind.
You know, I think I'm ready to make my guess.
CHRISTINE: Ok, so am I, so let's make our way all the way back down and talk to Harrison.
JOHN: Okay.
CHRISTINE: Okay, well Harrison, we've had three flights of stairs to think about our listing price.
JOHN: Yes.
CHRISTINE: But first, that last flight, well worth the trip up the steps.
HARRISON: Well, you're welcome for getting all your steps in for the day.
Dream house with the stairway to heaven.
CHRISTINE: Yep, so I think we are so ready to play the game.
HARRISON: Okay, well wait, before you give me your numbers, I actually have one more special surprise and one could even say, it's a whole 'nother level of surprise.
Come and take a look.
CHRISTINE: Okay.
I'll allow you to go first.
I don't think this is the pantry.
JOHN: If there weren't enough levels in the house for you.
CHRISTINE: I think I'm going to have to rethink my price points.
JOHN: Oh, this is a whole other house.
CHRISTINE: It is.
JOHN: What?
And it goes all the way back.
HARRISON: All right, so we've now reached the fourth level of this home.
And in DC, this is actually called an accessory dwelling unit or legal rental apartment.
JOHN: And so what makes an legal rental?
HARRISON: Two doors front and back.
Ceiling height separately, metered utilities as well.
But what's cool about this and what separates it from other rental apartments in the city is the developers were really thoughtful and kept the same level of finish down here and just on the rest of the home.
So the same custom cabinetry, built-in high-end fridge, Wolf, Viking, countertops, backsplash, light, even the sound system.
JOHN: And the fireplace.
HARRISON: The stone.
JOHN: The stone.
HARRISON: And fire.
CHRISTINE: It's like a miniature version of this house.
HARRISON: Know you're all about the self-tours, so go ahead and check out the rest of the unit.
JOHN: Alright.
CHRISTINE: We do need to finish the rest of the tour because we missed a whole level.
JOHN: There are more details to tally here.
CHRISTINE: And that will impact their listing guess.
Okay.
So, oh, a nice home office, den.
JOHN: Play-room, meditation room.
CHRISTINE: What do you need a meditation room for?
JOHN: Cuz you stress me out, Christine Louise.
(laughs).
CHRISTINE: See, this is perfect, the bathroom would be right next to your meditation room, so when you're stressed you can just take a relaxing bath.
JOHN: You know, this may be my favorite bathroom in the house with that giant window next to that giant tub.
Really nice.
CHRISTINE: Yeah.
And then we've got the bedroom.
JOHN: The bedroom!
CHRISTIN: So a nice size.
You can fit an easy king, queen, couple dressers and still have, and it still feels spacious.
JOHN: It is spacious.
CHRISTINE: Yeah.
Harrison, you... JOHN: Why did you do that Harrison?
CHRISTINE: Just when I thought I had a solid listing price, this whole level just took it to another level.
JOHN: Thanks a lot, Harrison.
Thanks for nothing.
HARRISON: You're welcome.
I like to keep the dream house full of surprises.
Let's recap what we've seen thus far.
Five bedrooms, four and a half baths, distinctive street, Maryland Avenue, over 3,000 square feet.
Full rental apartment, roof deck.
JOHN: Yeah, beautiful roof deck.
HARRISON: Onto the game.
CHRISTINE: Okay.
JOHN: Yes.
CHRISTINE: We're ready.
JOHN: Harrison, I think this home is worth... $2.3 million.
HARRISON: Okay.
CHRISTINE: Okay.
Well I'm just gonna put you out of your misery because I'm going to be correct.
Okay.
I'm going to go with $2.1 million.
HARRISON: Okay.
Final answers?
Feel good about those?
BOTH: Final answers.
JOHN: Locking in.
HARRISON: The listing price of 651 Maryland Avenue Northeast is... 2.495 million.
JOHN: Yay!
CHRISTINE: Ok, all right, all right.
You... JOHN: Thank you.
CHRISTINE: You took H Street, okay.
JOHN: Hey, listen, if it makes you feel any better, you can use my meditation room to chill out.
HARRISON: Well, I can think of no better way to end today on H Street than going to Milk and Honey, my favorite restaurant.
You want to check it out?
CHRISTINE: Let's go.
Does he have to come?
JOHN: Oh, come on.
HARRISON: I mean, you're buying though right?
CHRISTINE: Oh, you guys.
JOHN: Loser buys.
After you.
CHRISTINE: Thank you.
JOHN: After you sir.
HARRISON: If you lived here, you'd realize that the H Street Corridor is one of the few places in the city where you can enjoy a beverage at a higher elevation.
ADAM: If you lived here, you'd know about the competing Tony's, uh, breakfast spots on the corner of 14th and H Street.
I am more of a fan of the orange-awning Tony's.
MAN: Hey, how ya doin'.
CHRISTINE: Hi.
Good.
Order for John and Christine.
MAN: Yeah, sausage, tomato, fennel.
JOHN: That would be me.
MAN: And summer berry cobbler.
CHRISTINE: Thank you.
JOHN: Thank you so much.
MAN: Take care now.
BOTH: Oh, this looks good.
CHRISTINE: I'm going to start eating it.
JOHN: Let's walk and eat.
CHRISTINE: Mmm, this is good.
JOHN: Looks good.
NARRATOR: To find out more about living in the Washington Metro area, visit weta.org/ifyoulivedhere.
(ribbit)
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