Petworth:
Home to DC's Best Porches (and Some of the Best Bargains)

• July 7, 2008
• 8 Comments
• Neighborhoods

by Mark Wellborn

Borders: Kennedy Street, North Capitol Street, Quincy Street, 14th Street
ZIP code(s): 20010, 20011
Pricing data: Petworth real estate (Redfin)
Map: Click here for interactive Google Map

Click photo for full slideshow

Petworth by Roshani Kothari

Ask DC residents about the Petworth neighborhood, and most will mention the porches—The fact that almost every house has one. That they are decorated in a variety of different styles. And that they are used as meeting places on summer nights.

However, like any neighborhood on the rise in a major city, there are issues that get slightly more air time in neighborhood conversation circles than porches. Petworth, which is located in upper Northwest above Columbia Heights and east of Rock Creek Park, has inspired a good deal of debate in recent months as it is an area where issues like neighborhood character, racial make-up and real estate investment potential are all in a state of flux. For neighborhoods that are on the cusp of gentrification, this is usually inevitable.

Demographics

Petworth has historically been an African-American neighborhood, and currently about 15 percent of the population is Hispanic and five percent is white. The people moving to Petworth are not the twenty-somethings looking for good deals on rent that usually migrate to an up-and-coming neighborhood, but rather those looking for a quiet area to raise their kids. “Newcomers tend to be a little bit older than those moving into Columbia Heights,” Prince of Petworth blogger Dan Silverman told UrbanTurf. “There are a lot of new residents in the 28-40 age range who are looking to start families.”

Property Prices

While the average listing price in Petworth for the week ending June 25 was $443,367, the median sales price at the end of May was just $395,000, according to Trulia. Like the Shaw neighborhood, Petworth has a number of residential properties that are ripe with investment potential, but also need renovating and refurbishing. 

If you’re ready to put in some serious work, there is a good property for sale at 4523 Arkansas Street. While it may look like a steal at $299,995, this four-bedroom, two-bath is admittedly “in livable condition, but really needs to be updated,” according to the listing broker’s website. It will require giving up your weekends to work, but this could really turn into a gem down the road. For the full listing, click here.

There is another property at 450 Randolph Street that is our favorite home for sale in the Petworth area. Very close to the Metro, the four-bedroom, two-bath townhouse has been completely renovated but still maintains some of its early 20th century charm. With all new windows and floors, renovated bathrooms and gourmet kitchen, this property is perfect for a young family. The asking price is $499,000. For the full listing, click here.

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Row Houses in Petworth by Wayan Vota

Market Fundamentals

Petworth is primarily a residential neighborhood of row houses, townhouses and single-family homes, although the area’s first big condo project is in the works near the Metro. Even though it was dubbed ‘Notyetworth’ in their recent neighborhoods issue, the City Paper noted that Petworth “offered the best bargains during the real-estate bubble and [is] getting back to bargain-status as we speak.”

Residents agree with that assessment and will tell you that the neighborhood’s real estate heyday was between 2004 and 2006. “The prices really shot up during those years,” Dan Silverman said. “People who bought in 2002 were getting double that in 2005.”

Even as of last year, investments were paying off. Coldwell Banker broker and longtime Petworth resident Eileen Garner noted that the average sale price in 2003 for a single-family home was $239,000 and in 2007 it was $389,000. Garner said that while last year’s prices have come down this year, the number of houses sold is holding up. So far this year, 79 home sales have closed (that does not include condos). 139 houses were sold in 2007.

Silverman also mentioned the property value decline in the latter half of 2007 and first part of 2008, but said that it should not be cause for alarm.

“I think there are some great opportunities now for people that are priced out of Mount Pleasant,” he told UrbanTurf. “I have heard a lot of talk recently about how people who were renting in Mount Pleasant are now moving to and buying in Petworth.”

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Grant Circle by Roshani Kothari

Insider Tips

One of the most anticipated projects in Petworth, a neighborhood currently devoid of grand-scale residential developments, is the 156-unit Park Place condo development that is currently being built above the Petworth Metro station. The project is slated to be completed at some point later this year. Neighborhood watchers point to this project as a sign of the inevitable gentrification moving north from Columbia Heights.

An area broker (who wanted to remain anonymous) told UrbanTurf that the crucial thing about living in Petworth was being close to the Metro. “You really need to be close the green line,” they said recently. “With gas prices going up like they are, you are not going to want to be driving a lot, especially not to work.” Situated at the neighborhood’s main intersection of Georgia Avenue and New Hampshire Avenue, the Metro stop is also where much of the neighborhood’s commercial activity is centered.

There has also been a good deal of criticism about the lack of food and nightlife options in Petworth. While there are some good restaurants and a few bars (our picks below), those moving in should be aware that the neighborhood does not have the wide selection of Adams Morgan or Dupont Circle.

For some, the issue of crime in Petworth may deserve more than a casual mention toward the end of this article. However, while it still exists, crime in the neighborhood has dropped markedly since the late 1990s.

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A Porch in Petworth by Roshani Kothari

Parking & Transportation

Petworth may have some of the most plentiful street parking in the District. “Parking is not an issue in the neighborhood,” Silverman said.

The Georgia Avenue/Petworth Metro station is on the green and yellow line, and the trip to the Gallery Place/Chinatown stop takes just ten minutes.

Bottom Line

“The thing about Petworth is that you can still get a fairly large renovated house with a large yard in the middle $300’s to middle $400’s and that is tough to find in a lot of other DC neighborhoods,” Eileen Garner said. “So, if you’ve got 350 to spend why not by a house rather than a condo?”

Quick Answers

Noise Level
Very low. In fact, the noise level is so low that many residents have compared it to the suburbs. (Except for the 4th of July, when the neighborhood explodes with amateur fireworks displays.)

Desirable Streets to Live On
Randolph Street, Illinois Avenue and Rock Creek Church Road

Neighborhood Picks

Best Place to Eat If You Are In the Mood for a Pierogi — Domku, 821 Upshur Street NW
Best Enchilada in the City — El Limeno, 201 Upshur Street NW
Best Happy Hour — Looking Glass Lounge, 3634 Georgia Avenue NW
Best Place to Buy A Birthday Cake — Flip It Bakery, 4532 Georgia Avenue NW

Photos & Resources

• Prince of Petworth — Perhaps the most widely read neighborhood blog in DC.
• Petworth News — A good, regularly updated site about events and developments in Petworth.

8 Comments

1. chris said at 8:33 pm on Tuesday July 8, 2008:

   Petworth is in lower northwest, not upper northwest.  In any case I think its a cool neighborhood

1. Lisa said at 8:24 am on Wednesday July 9, 2008:

   Petworth also has bike lanes, soon to be extended north on 5th and 7th streets to Grant and Sherman Circles, respectively.

1. Jack said at 4:35 pm on Wednesday July 9, 2008:

   Chris, if Petworth is in lower northwest, where is U Street, NW???  Upper northwest is correct.

1. henderson said at 3:32 pm on Tuesday July 15, 2008:

   besides looking glass lounge…any other good places for happy hour?  great article!

1. Leslie said at 3:13 pm on Wednesday July 16, 2008:

   I think that Moroni Bros. Pizza and Salvadorian on Georgia Ave requires note.  The last time I was there picking up one of their gourmet pizzas I noticed that they also serve breakfast and there was a punk band setting up to perform.

1. Michelle said at 10:32 am on Wednesday July 23, 2008:

   Sweet Mango Cafe has the best Jamaican Jerk Chicken (if not chicken) in DC. Definitely much better than the new Peri Peri in Chinatown.

1. paulina said at 9:23 am on Friday July 25, 2008:

   im white and in my early twentys. don’t plan on having kids in the next 5 years, just got married and moving into petworth from my previous residence in Columbia heights. so i don’t exactly the stereotype, but i love DC and ill be 2 blocks from the metro. When I moved to Columbia heights 5 years ago, it was a completely different place, and hopefully petworth is the next stop on the road to more prosperous DC!

1. Eileen Flowers said at 7:01 am on Friday May 8, 2009:

   When I brought my home in Petworth in 1985, my son was 7 years old. The out pour of warmth and kindness I experience is wonderful.  Although I appreciate the architectural splendor of the palatial homes of LeDroit, I am glad I settled in Petworth.

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