DIPLOMATIC NEIGHBORHOODS

By Stephanie Kanowitz

A stretch of Massachusetts Avenue NW between 18th and 35th streets is called Embassy Row because it’s home to almost 50 of Washington’s 180+ embassies. But ambassadors and diplomats live throughout the District, as well as the Maryland and Virginia suburbs.

“There are many factors that each embassy, each ambassador and each staff member takes into account as they look for property,” said Christie-Anne Weiss, senior vice president and global adviser at TTR Sotheby’s International Realty. “It’s individualized by country and the needs of the particular minister or staff member who’s in the market seeking the residence.”

Generally speaking, embassies tend to cluster in certain neighborhoods because of their stature. “There’s always prestige associated with residences that are the most expensive in any given area,” Weiss said. “That always attracts embassies and ambassadors.”

Still, as those neighborhoods fill up, it’s getting harder for countries to find locations that meet their needs, which often include many rooms and large entertaining spaces.

“There’s definitely a shortage for large embassies to buy today,” said Cynthia Howar, an agent with Washington Fine Properties. She said that six years ago, the Embassy of Kuwait spent $18 million on a house in Forest Hills “because it was very large and it suited their needs.” Yet that neighborhood has not been especially popular for ambassadors, she added.

Here’s a look at some of the most sought-after neighborhoods.

Massachusetts Avenue Heights

Where it is: Massachusetts Avenue Heights is bounded to the north by Woodley Road, to the southwest by Massachusetts Avenue, to the east by 34th Street NW, and to the west by Wisconsin Avenue.

The biggest driver of where members of the diplomatic community settle is location. Embassies and ambassadors’ residences are most commonly found on Embassy Row and in the adjacent Massachusetts Heights and Kalorama neighborhoods of DC.

“I think the reason why Mass Avenue Heights and Kalorama have been in such demand for residences is that they’re easy to get to, there’s parking and a lot of the houses there are large,” said Howar, who sold a residence on nearby Woodland Drive to the Kingdom of Morocco for $14 million in 2017.

Comprised largely of the National Cathedral, the neighborhood bumps up to the US Vice President’s residence and is home to the embassies of Cabo Verde, Iraq, Nepal and Norway. The Embassies of Azerbaijan and the Republic of Finland sit just across 34th Street and Massachusetts Avenue, respectively.

Housing prices have increased almost 45% since last year, according to Redfin, with the median listing price at $2.7 million.

The neighborhood appeals to diplomats with young children because within its borders is Beauvoir, the National Cathedral Elementary for kids in pre-K through third grade. Other private-school options include Acton Academy and the St. Albans School, whose alumni include former Vice President Al Gore and astronaut Michael Collins. Three public elementary, two middle and one high school serve the area and all have GreatSchools ratings of 8 out 10.

Nearby is the British International School of Washington, which Howar said is often a draw for diplomats. Its student body represents more than 60 nationalities, and it has a second campus in another sought-after neighborhood: Georgetown.

Although eateries and entertainment are scant here, the shops, restaurants and nightlife of Georgetown are a straight shot south on Wisconsin Avenue NW.

Although not as spectacular as Rome’s Spanish Steps, DC’s version dates to 1911 and was “intended to provide a pedestrian link between S Street and Decatur Place on a route thought too steep for vehicles, according to The Cultural Landscape Foundation.

Also not as awe-inspiring as the original is the Miniature Statue of Liberty on Kalorama Road NW, near Ukraine House and the embassies of Algeria, Benin and Syria.

Kalorama caters to diplomats with children, too. It’s home to the School Without Walls High School, the toprated public high school in DC, according to Niche, and the Oyster-Adams Bilingual School is on the other side of Connecticut Avenue.

Kalorama

Where it is: The upscale neighborhood is bordered by Connecticut Avenue NW on the east, Rock Creek Park on the West, Kalorama Circle to the north and Q Street to the south.

If it’s good enough for the Obamas (they paid $8.1 million for their home) and Ivanka Trump and Jared Kushner (they rented a home worth $5.5 million from a Chilean magnate for $15,000 per month), and Amazon founder Jeff Bezos (he turned the former Textile Museum into a home after paying $23 million for it in 2017), it’s probably good enough for diplomats. In fact, many would agree: About 25 embassies for countries from Afghanistan to Yemen dot the streets there, as does the Alliance Francaise, Consulate of Poland and the Venezuela Naval Attaché.

Restaurants and shops line Connecticut Avenue and Columbia Road, and bustling Dupont Circle is a stone’s throw to the south of the neighborhood while edgy Adams Morgan lies to the north, both offering residents and visitors plenty of options for a good time.

Christie-Anne Weiss Senior vice president and global advisor TTR Sotheby’s International Realty

Named after a classical estate built on one of the city’s highest elevations in 1807, Kalorama – which means “beautiful view” in Greek —has evolved to be home to one of the District’s poshest neighborhoods.

It’s also got quite a few landmarks, making it a great spot for history buffs or Instagrammers. Like the Obamas, Former President Woodrow Wilson bought a house there after he left office. Now called the President Wilson House, it’s open to the public to tour and is designated a National Historic Landmark.

As of Feb. 19, 29 homes were for sale in Kalorama, ranging in price from $300,000 for a 500-square-foot studio to $5.9 million for an 8,500-square foot home, based on Compass listings.

Georgetown

Where it is: By law, it is “bounded on the east by Rock Creek and Potomac Parkway from the Potomac River to the north boundary of Dumbarton Oaks Park, on the north by the north boundary of Dumbarton Oaks Park, Whitehaven Street and Whitehaven Parkway to 35th Street, south along the middle of 35th Street to Reservoir Road, west along the middle of Reservoir Road to Archbold Parkway, on the west by Archbold Parkway from Reservoir Road to the Potomac River, on the south by the Potomac River to the Rock Creek Parkway.”

The Old Georgetown Act of 1950 designated the federal Old Georgetown historic district ‘s borders and established a requirement for the Commission of Fine Arts to review all proposed projects. Indeed, much of the neighborhood has the feel of stepping back in time, with cobblestone roads and the Old Stone House, which dates to 1765 and is one of the oldest houses in the District.

Juxtapose that image with the sharp-edged House of Sweden, one of 10 embassies in Georgetown. Flanking the Potomac and inaugurated in 2006, the five-story modern structure will, as of this year, house the chancery, a cultural center, the ambassador’s official residence and the ambassador’s private residence. It also houses the Embassy of Iceland.

“This was not really a developed land; there was nothing here, so we managed to purchase this land here and we managed to get all the permits to build this brandnew building,” said Lars-Erik Tindre, head of department for public diplomacy, press, information and culture at the Embassy of Sweden. “We wanted to create a landmark location for a diplomatic presence of Sweden in Washington and create a place which we could call House of Sweden.”

Until the mid-1980s the chancery was in the Watergate complex and then on M Street NW until 2006. The country has owned since 1947 a Spanish villa on Nebraska Avenue NW that served as the ambassador’s residence, but now is preparing to sell it, Tindre said.

“Diplomacy is happening at a faster pace, and we are changing our premises in line with what we need to do, what we want to do, what we want to achieve, what persons we want to attract to the building here, and so now we are moving away from the ambassador’s residence on Nebraska and now everything is collocated here,” he said.

Georgetown is a melting pot of cultures, with restaurants featuring international cuisine and shops of global popularity. It’s also a mecca for fitness fans who can run, bike or walk Rock Creek Trail and the C&O Canal Towpath. Stand-up paddle boarding, kayaks and canoes are available to rent at the river’s edge. For an extra challenge, there are always the Exorcist Stairs, a set of narrow, steep steps featured in the 1973 horror film “The Exorcist.”

Home to Georgetown University, it’s also attractive to studious types. Families seek is out because of the many private schools there, including the Georgetown Visitation Preparatory School for girls, Georgetown Day School and the Field School. Public schools here also rate highly: Haye-Addison Elementary ranks as the 10th best elementary school and Hardy Middle is No. 6, both according to US News & World Report. Georgetown does not currently have a public high school, however.

The neighborhood tends to be popular among single diplomatic staff members because of its vibrant nightlife and shopping areas, particularly along M Street and Wisconsin Avenue. It’s also close to the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts for cultural date nights, and across the river from Arlington, whose Rosslyn, Clarendon and Ballston neighborhoods are full of young residents and trendy spots.

Housing prices in Georgetown are high. Compass lists 44 homes for sale as of Feb. 19, two of which are listed for $12 million. In January 2022, the median listing price was $1.8 million, up 12% year-over-year.

Suburban Sweet Spots

Although the District is most countries’ and their representatives’ top choice because of ease of access to Congress, other embassies, office spaces and public transportation, some set up shop in suburban settings in Virginia and Maryland.

For example, the Oman and Qatar cultural attaché offices are in Vienna, Va., near major thoroughfares such as Chain Bridge Road and Leesburg Pike, with easy connections to I-495 and I-66 to reach DC.

The Saudi Arabian Cultural Mission to the United States is a little farther south in Fairfax, Va. Fairfax County has some of the top-rated public schools in the country and is the second most racially diverse county in the state. It also boasts 420 public parks and 325 miles of trails for nature lovers, and Tysons Corner Center and Tysons Galleria—massive shopping malls with stores offering discount goods to luxury items.

Just over the DC-Maryland border is Bethesda. Like Vienna and Fairfax, the location offers quick access to downtown DC. Rochambeau French International School is situated here with more than 80 nationalities represented. Because it is part of the Agency for French Education Overseas, students can easily transfer to almost 500 schools worldwide should their parents be reassigned.

Similarly, the German International School is in nearby Potomac, Md. Graduates receive a high school diploma from the state and also the German International Abitur, the highest diploma awarded to secondary school students in Germany.

One overlooked area, Howar said, is McLean, Va. “Several very affluent countries have bought properties on the river in McLean and then McLean proper, even out to the 22012 ZIP code, which is further out, has a lot of embassy rentals,” she said. “I think the problem with the embassies that have had residences in far-out Bethesda and Potomac [is] that when they entertain, many people don’t want to drive that far out. I think being centrally located in D.C. has really been the preference for a long time.”

Designated Digs

The National Capital Planning Commission (NCPC) works with countries interested in locating in the International Chancery Center (ICC) at Connecticut Avenue and Van Ness Street NW, or the Foreign Missions Center (FMC), which covers part of the former Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Bethesda.

In 1968, the International Center Act established a 47acre enclave in the Van Ness neighborhood as the ICC for foreign missions to lease land from the US government. The ICC “became a purpose-built community designed to balance the federal government’s need to accommodate foreign mission facilities while addressing the concerns of citizens about the location and operation of foreign missions in Washington,” said NCPC’s 2016 Comprehensive Plan for the National Capital. According to the State Department, ICC is home to 16 foreign embassies. The first was Israel and the most recent was Morocco, NCPC public affairs specialist Stephen Staudigl told us by email.

“Now that the International Chancery Center is full, countries looking for new sites can locate in the Foreign Missions Center,” Staudigl said. “No decisions have been made regarding what happens when all its sites are utilized. However, countries are always free to acquire a site outside an enclave.”

FMC has 32 acres that could accommodate 11 to 15 foreign missions with up to 2,000 employees in about 1 million square feet of development. NCPC has so far reviewed and approved only the Libyan Embassy there. 