A weekly look at the biggest house deals in Washington

Here's the box score for this week's roundup of the ten most expensive home sales:

• DC: 4
• Maryland: 4
• Virginia: 2 

$3,800,000 - 2816 O St., NW
$3,400,000 - 8909 Harvest Square Ct., Potomac
$3,100,000 - 2122 Bancroft Pl., NW
$2,780,000 - 7846 Westmont La., McLean
$2,351,254 - 5316 Oakland Rd., Chevy Chase
$2,000,000 - 3510 Overlook Dr., NW
$1,905,000 - 30 Quincy St., Chevy Chase
$1,900,000 - 2214 Aryness Dr., Vienna
$1,800,000 - 10712 Stanmore Dr., Potomac
$1,800,000 - 5621 MacArthur Blvd., NW

 More fun numbers:

• 6: Number of sales that broke $2 million
• 64: Number of sales that broke $1 million
•141: Number of sales that broke $800,000 

Here are two recent big-dollar, big-name deals. Each week, Open House will highlight one or two luxury-home sales from the magazine—this week, journalists take the spotlight.

Jason DeParle and wife Nancy-Ann bought a newly built six-bedroom, six-bath Colonial in Chevy Chase for its list price of $2.95 million. A reporter for the New York Times, DeParle covers welfare and wrote The American Dream, published in 2004. Nancy-Ann DeParle was director of the federal Health Care Financing Administration from 1997 to 2000. She is now director of Boston Scientific Corporation, which makes medical devices, and an adviser to the financial-services company JP Morgan.

Guy Gugliotta and Carla Ann Robbins sold a six-bedroom, five-bathroom brick Colonial with an in-law suite on Cathedral Avenue in Woodley Park for $1.75 million. The house has a view of the National Cathedral. Gugliotta, a former science writer for The Washington Post, is a freelance writer; Robbins, a former reporter for the Wall Street Journal, is deputy editor for the New York Times.

Every year, the National Association of the Remodeling Industry recognizes outstanding projects with its Contractor of the Year Awards. Rockville-based Danish Builders took home the regional (7 state) "COTY Grand Winner" award in the $500,000 to $1 million category for popping the top off this drab, one-level house in Bethesda and transforming it into a two-story Post-Modern home.  

The original house, built in 1951, was 1,200 square feet—the remodeled house below is 3,072 square feet, with nearly half of the space on the second floor.

What do you think?  Is it worth the $500,000 to $1 million-dollar price tag? 

Every week we are going to post a roundup of our favorite furniture for sale on Craigslist. These pieces will probably move fast so make sure to call or email the owner quickly if you see something you like.  

Here's my pick of the week—a bar-height table from Design Within Reach for only $125. It would look great in a modern loft or be a cool addition to a small kitchen. And because it's easy to move and sturdy enough to go outside, it would also be a good accessory for an outdoor summer party.    

More Cool Stuff:

Antique Mirror for $65
Cherry Corner Hutch for $1,000
Vintage Fireplace Andirons for $30
Entertainment Armoire for $365
Two Black Swivel Bar Stools for $100
Aluminum Coffee Table with Glass Top for $120
Wood Dresser with Mirror for $30
Retro Desk for $200
Three-Piece Bedroom Set for $450

Thanks, Craigslist! 

Here's a guide to open houses for the coming weekend.  We scoured the classifieds for listings that look promising and came up with this mix of prices and styles in the District, Maryland, and Virginia. As always, we haven't visited any of these ourselves, so we're working off the same information you would in the ads. Happy hunting!

In DC:

3 BR Townhouse on Capitol Hill
$669,000
Open House: Sunday 1-3 PM

2 BR Condos in Columbia Heights
3 units are available for $439,000, $469,000. and $479,000
Open House: Sunday 1-4 PM

1 BR Townhouse in Foggy Bottom
$450,000
Open House: Saturday and Sunday 12-4PM

In Maryland:

3 BR Townhouse in Germantown
$340,000
Open House: Sunday 1-4PM 

4 BR Rambler in Bethesda
$769,000
Open House: Sunday 1-3PM

In Virginia:

1 BR condo in Alexandria
$230,000
Open House: Saturday 1-3 PM

2 BR Townhouse in Old Town
$500,000
Open House: Sunday 1-4 PM

 

Here's our weekly rundown of the ten most expensive sales in the region, as reported by American City Business Leads. Although Maryland had six of the ten biggest sales last week, Virginia is the winner this week with seven. 

$4,000,000 - 835 Herbert Springs Road, Alexandria
$3,075,000 - 7815 Crownhurst Court, McLean
$3,050,000 - 921 Towlston Road, McLean
$2,550,000 - 1228 Earnestine St., McLean
$2,052,981 - 43544 Tuckaway Place, Leesburg
$2,000,000 - 12521 Noble Court, Potomac
$1,970,000 - 3633 Albemarle St., NW
$1,940,000 - 2804 P St., NW
$1,850,000 - 438 Utterback Store Road, Great Falls
$1,750,000 - 3806 N. Harrison St., Arlington

More fun numbers:

• 6: Number of sales that broke $2 million
• 48: Number of sales between $1 and $2 million
• 101: Number of sales greater than $800,000

On Friday word got out that real-estate developer Herb Miller had agreed to sell his Georgetown mansion for a record-breaking price—somewhere in the neighborhood of $28 million. Here's the latest news on the sale:

Yesterday's Reliable Source said the buyer was former Riggs Bank head Robert Allbritton. The price? Nathans Restaurant owner Carol Joynt has it going for $25 million on her blog.

We'll keep the updates coming.