In DC: Media executive John Fahey sold a five-bedroom, six-bath Federal-style rowhouse on 30th Street in Georgetown for $4.9 million. Built in 1900, the renovated house listed for $5.2 million and has six fireplaces. Fahey is president of the National Geographic Society.

Journalist Michael Kinsley and his wife, Patricia Stonesifer, bought a three-bedroom, four-bath condominium in the West End’s Residences at the Ritz-Carlton for $2.9 million. The three-level condo has three terraces and a paneled library. It was on the market for 331 days. Kinsley, a columnist for Time magazine, is founding editor of the online magazine Slate. Stonesifer, former chief executive of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, is chair of the Smithsonian Institution’s board of regents.

Lawyer Jeh Charles Johnson and dentist Susan DiMarco bought a three-bedroom, four-bath Federal-style house on Georgetown’s O Street for $1.9 million. The house was built in 1874 and has a media room. Johnson, a former partner at the Paul Weiss law firm in New York City, is general counsel for the Department of Defense.

University of Maryland education scholar Willis Hawley bought a four-bedroom contemporary house on 30th Street in the Forest Hills neighborhood for $1 million; it listed for $1.3 million. Hawley is a professor of education and public affairs.

In Virginia: Education Secretary Arne Duncan and his wife, Karen, bought a four-bedroom, five-bath Craftsman-style house in Arlington’s Aurora Heights for $1.3 million. The price for the home, built in 2008, was reduced by $250,000. Duncan, former head of Chicago’s public schools, was named Eduction Secretary in January.

Education executive Patrick Bassett and his wife, Barbara, sold a three-bedroom, four-bath Colonial on Quay Street in Alexandria for $1.7 million. The townhouse has views of the Potomac River. Bassett is president of the National Association of Independent Schools, which is based in the District.

Ronald Easley bought a condo in the Waterview Residences, a luxury building in Rosslyn, for $5.7 million. Easley is CEO of System Planning Corporation, an Arlington-based consulting firm that specializes in national security.

In Maryland: Ralph Boccia bought on Stapleford Hall Drive in Potomac for $2 million. Boccia is a Bethesda oncologist.

This article first appeared in the May 2009 issue of The Washingtonian. For more articles from that issue, click here.