Finding the right apartment, condo, or house is difficult enough. But what if you’ve found the perfect place—and on the other side of the fence (or wall), you have less-than-perfect neighbors?

Launched last summer, RottenNeighbor.com helps house-hunters check out the neighbors before moving so much as a sofa.  Start by entering your Zip code or street address to get a map of your neighborhood. Little red houses pop up on the map where someone’s logged a complaint with the site; green houses appear where neighbors have posted nice things. Empathize with someone’s rotten neighbor? You can rate their post with one to five stars. Click on the “Interesting Neighbors” tab to read the stories drawing the most comments.

Among the moans and groans from our area this week were neighbors who let trash fall off their balcony in Alexandria. In Kensington, a poster complained about dogs that bark 24 hours a day. One resident near McPherson Square in DC complained about a neighbor who blares country music and dresses like a cowboy—even though he’s from Connecticut.

On the other hand, one Alexandria resident said he lives among neighbors who are friendly and look out for each other. Another  in Chevy Chase called his block “quite simply, the best.”

The Box Score

Maryland: 5
DC: 3
Virginia: 2

$7,500,000—3017 O Street, NW, Georgetown
$5,000,000—15008 Good Meadow Court, North Potomac
$2,350,000—1205 Raymond Avenue, McLean
$2,287,009—12526 Sycamore View Drive, Potomac
$2,200,000—3908 Rosemary Street, Chevy Chase
$2,001,224—43588 Edison Club Court, Ashburn
$1,925,000—102 East Melrose Street, Chevy Chase
$1,900,000—4331 Hawthorne Street, NW, Wesley Heights
$1,863,000—2936 Albemarle Street, NW, Forest Hills
$1,699,000—5110 Saratoga Avenue, Bethesda

This new coffee-table book showcases dozens of beautiful homes designed by area architects. It’s full of striking photographs of homes in and around Washington—you can peek inside a contemporary Eastern Market rowhouse by David Jameson, a thoughtful Cleveland Park addition by Charles Moore, and a new limestone farmhouse overlooking the Potomac River by David Neumann.  The 40 architects in the book run the gamut from classicists to modernists, and the designs range from contemporary condos to historical restorations to  stunning new homes.

Click here to order a copy.

What does $24 million buy? Top Home Sales takes a look back at the year’s biggest house deals, including the record-breaking sale between Herb Miller and Robert Albritton in Georgetown. Check out pictures of the 16 big-dollar deals—from such big names as former Senator Bill Frist, White House counsel Fred Fielding, Redskins tight end Chris Cooley, and “Plamegate” stars Joseph and Valerie Plame Wilson—here.

Also online: Best and Worst Buildings, an interview with Ben Forgey, Washington’s top architecture critic. Forgey picks the areas masterpieces—and pans its design disasters.

Where: Glen Echo Heights, Bethesda
Listing price: $6,750,000
Time on the market: one month
Bedrooms: four
Bathrooms: eight

Built in 2006, this Bethesda contemporary was designed by local award-winning architect Robert Gurney and has panoramic views of the Potomac River. The terrazzo floors on the first floor have radiant heat, and the kitchen has custom white oak cabinets, floor-to-ceiling windows, and granite countertops. The living room features an entertainment center with a hidden flat-screen television as well as a granite gas fireplace. Amenities in the master bedroom include a two-sided gas fireplace and a shower with nine showerheads. Other highlights include an elevator, a rooftop deck with an outdoor fireplace, a game room, fitness area, and heated outdoor lap pool.

More pictures below.

The Box Score
Virginia: 5
Maryland: 3
DC: 2

$2,413,887—601 Barecroft Place, Alexandria
$2,000,000—6205 Kennedy Drive, Chevy Chase
$1,835,000—2923 Northampton Street, NW, Chevy Chase
$1,675,000—509 Cameron Street, Alexandria
$1,528,375—3255 Orchard Glen Court, Herndon
$1,500,000—9201 Stapleford Hall Place, Potomac
$1,475,000—2525 P Street, NW, Georgetown
$1,420,000—8816 Gallant Green Drive, McLean
$1,199,000—6120 Temple Street, Bethesda
$1,198,500—703 South Lee Street, Alexandria

During the Washington Antiques Show this weekend, you can browse furniture, vintage jewelry, ceramics, silver, garden accents, and more from 45 dealers. The show’s theme this year is “Inspirations from the Garden.” Dealers—from Washington, Pennsylvania, Vermont, New York, Portugal, and more—will showcase garden motifs such as flowers, birds, vines, and topiary.  There are also lectures, appraisals, and a new collectors’ evening with a talk by James Archer Abbott, former curator of the Woodrow Wilson House in Northwest DC.

Washington Antiques Show, Omni Shoreham, 2500 Calvert Street, NW; January 11 to 13, Friday and Saturday 11 to 8, Sunday 11 to 4; $15, $25 for three days.