Shari Walker (LICENSED IN DC, MD, & VA)

Effective April 22nd, 2010, all renovations performed by contractors on homes or buildings built before 1978 must be performed under the new guidelines set forth by the EPA. These guidelines include requiring the firm and the renovator to be certified in lead-safe work practices by the EPA under the Lead-Based Paint Renovation, Repair, and Painting Program. This program applies to residential houses, apartments, and child-occupied facilities such as schools and day care centers built before 1978.

All contractors are required to distribute a lead pamphlet before starting any renovation work. In general, any activity which disturbs paint in an area greater than 6 square feet indoors or 20 square feet on the exterior of a building is subject to this program, including remodeling, repairs/maintenance, electrical work, plumbing, painting, carpentry, and window replacement. Exceptions to this are housing built after 1978, housing for the elderly or disabled, studio apartments/dormitories, or housing declared lead-free by a certified inspector.

As part of this program, contractors must test for lead-based paint using an EPA acceptable test kit, post informational signs noting the extent of the renovations, contain work areas to prevent the spread of lead paint dust and debris, prohibit certain work practices such as open-flame burning and the use of power tools without HEPA exhaust control, and perform a thorough clean up followed by a verification procedure to minimize lead paint exposure.

How will this potentially affect you? When you hire a contractor to perform a renovation on your home, they will be required to test for lead based paint if it was built before 1978. If lead paint is discovered, you could be required to disclose this fact to any potential buyers when you go to sell (depending on which state you live in - in DC and Maryland, you WOULD be required to disclose this fact).

MAY 2009 SALES

Here are some stats for Georgetown. You will notice that we currently have more active listings than any other broker. Also, that in the past 6 months, we and Washington Fine Properties have each been on the Buyer's side of 16 of the settled sales.

Active Listings - Fee Simple and Condo/Coop: Total 137

LNG - 33

WFP - 25 ( 6 are in one project, so adding all 6 makes the total 30)

CBRB - 20 (10 are in one project, so adding all 10 makes the total 29)

TTRS - 18

Past 6 months Fee Simple Sold (Settled) in Georgetown:

Selling Broker Listing Broker

LNG 16 12

WFP 16 26

CBRB 6 8

TTRS 7 4

Going under contract in Georgetown since June:

Jun 9

Jul 16

Aug 10

Sep 9

Oct 8

Nov (to date) 4

In all of DC, coming under Contract:

Fee Simple 08 Fee Simple 07 Condo/Coop 08 Condo/Coop 07

Nov 5-12 60 66 40 60

Nov 13-19 69 68 56 73

Glover Park's cool quotient just rose exponentially. It is fast becoming home to many young professionals - many of whom are "DINK"s (double-income-no-kids) - who want some good places to blow off steam and a wide variety of good food to choose from when they go out.

Recently, we saw the opening of a new bar called Breadsoda. It is located near the Vespa shop across from the CVS on Wisconsin. It is a great neighborhood bar with an uber modern decor that caters to just about anything you might want. They have a full bar with friendly staff who take and fill orders quickly. They have an extensive beer menu, and rotate them regularly so patrons don't get bored. Don't be surprised if they ask you if there is a beverage you like that they don't have... so they can make sure to accomodate you next time you're in. They have a wonderful menu of great sandwiches, several of which are even appealing to us vegetarians (how progressive!), good desserts, and special pickles. They always have good music and plenty of seating. You can sit at one of the tables or stools inside, or at one of the covered tables on the little patio outside if you are a smoker or just want some fresh air. Lastly, one of their best features is that if you get bored with drinking, eating, or talking with friends, there are also several pool tables and a great shuffleboard table to keep you entertained. Great atmosphere, good music, great food, libations... what more could GP's yuppie crowd ask for?

http://breadsoda.com/

If you have walked by the old Apollo market at 2444 Wisconsin, you will notice that it will now be a new restaurant called Surfside, which will be opening in the next few weeks. Said to be a laid-back seafood grill brought to you by the peeps responsible for the irresistable sandwich shop, Jetties, in Foxhall. They also got one of our few liquor licenses that came up for grabs, so they will be serving frozen margaritas and beer on their rooftop deck.

Sadly, sometimes change can be painful. One of my favorites, The Grog and Tankard, will be closing soon and is rumored to be replaced with an upscale tavern aimed at the young and swanky called Gin & Tonic. Downside: no more great live music from our local seedy dive bar (I say that fondly).

Another of my favorite restaurants, Busara, which serves amazing Siamese/Thai cuisine in an oddly 80's- themed dining room with reggae music frequently playing in the background, will also be closing. This place had the best garden seating. When the weather was nice, there was no better place to have a great meal than Busara's zen patio. It will allegedly be replaced with a restaurant brought to you by the people responsible for the palate-extravaganza that is Mendocino. So, this brings fine dining in Glover Park to a whole new level, which I am looking forward to.

Last, but not least, we are apparently also getting a Z-Burger at 2414 Wisconsin Avenue, as well as a new deli opening at the My Bakery and Cafe location at 2233 Wisconsin Avenue. The deli will be opened by the guys that brought you Bourbon, another of our wonderful local watering holes and happy hour destinations.

Also, if any of you have checked out the new Shanghai Tea House beside Heritage, let me know what you thought. I haven't had a chance to go in there yet, but I have heard good things...