Dupont Circle

I love Dupont Circle! This neighborhood of approximately 14,226 residents is located in northwest section of the city. The average price for homes sold in the neighborhood was $543,724 in 2010 and were 32% owner occupied. Here you will find a mix of detached single family homes, as well as attached row house type of homes as well as apartment buildings, all of which are well maintained and quite attractive. In addtion, you will find many offices as well as hotels in the neighborhood. Dupont Circle is everything city living should be!

Ross Elementary School and Emerson Preparatory School are the two schools found in Dupont Circle. Residents will enjoy not only Dupont Circle itself for green space but also Stead Playground. Dog lovers will enjoy taking their pet to the S Street Dog Park as well. Restaurants of all types are everywhere, offering almost too many choices of food. Shopping is also available here on a grand scale. Numerous bars and other nightlife venues are abundant in the neighborhood. Access to the Dupont Metro Station is just north of the circle for those commuting. In addition there are numerous Metro Bus stops within the neighborhood. Parking is painful and many living here do not have cars.

Overall crime statistics indicate that this is a relatively safe neighborhood, with most crime being property crime. As usual check the most recent crime statistics to make an informed decision as to the crime risks before moving into any neighborhood.

Dupont Circle is an area rich in District history. Full of trees, gardens and urban parks, Dupont Circle boasts everything from embassies to mansions and small apartments. Walking its streets, you will encounter foreign dignitaries, gays and lesbians, young professionals and families. In other words, Dupont Circle is highly diverse. Besides the various residences, Dupont Circle has a wide variety of bars, restaurants and ritzy shops. You might see a gay couple walking their dog in early evening, or people coming in and out of the Iraqi Embassy during business hours. At rush hour, people pour out of their apartments and rush to the local Metro station at the heart of the neighborhood. On their way home, they might pick up a few groceries in the corner market. Saturday will likely see people playing Frisbee in the parks, or playing with pets at the dog run.
Because of the expense of housing, there are relatively few families: apartments are often cramped. If you are lucky enough to have a mansion, be sure that it costs millions of dollars. Chances are that the children go to private school, although the public schools in this neighborhood are better than most in the city. Biggest drawbacks of the area are traffic and the cost of living.

My favorite neighborhood. When I first moved to DC, my best friend and I would wander around, stare at the townhouses, and fantasize about living there. Even now I often wander to the Dupont fountain to people watch. It seems like every single person who lives there is pretty and achingly stylish. Best eye candy in the city.

It's got the best gay bar too. Cobalt is sleek and classy on the first floor, and an enormous dance floor on the second, with smoke machines, neon lights and all. Friday night from 11 to midnight is Free Vodka Hour (I honestly don't know how this isn't hugely popular), and the weekend is Disco Brunch, which, all camp aside, is absolutely amazing.

For those who aren't as interested in being covered in glitter, there are several other bars and restaurants. The Big Hunt is a classic, but my personal favorite is Kramerbooks. Yes, a bookstore is also a restaurant. An *amazing* restaurant. You can die happy after you've had their pecan pie, and they're opened 24/7 on the weekends.

As far as shopping goes, you've got your pick of everything from the Gap to consignment stores. Secondi is a favorite among local vintage hunters.

Dupont is a positively dreamy place to visit. And I imagine it's not so bad living their either. If your wallet is big enough.

There are several types of homes in this area. The first are Queen Anne style row houses that were built at the end of the 19th century. These are clustered together like nervous debutantes along several quiet streets. Don’t let the close quarters and non-existent front lawns fool you: these are very pricy dwellings.
They don’t hold a candle, however, to the lumbering mansions that have housed everyone from presidents to newspaper magnates. These, along with several Embassy buildings, sit on huge lots and stare down at the row houses with a tolerant sort of disapproval that one often feels for the less fortunate.
But wait, what’s this a see? Housing for the rest of us? That’s right. Striver’s Section is a lovely historic district that contains simpler and less expensive row houses, along with a number of high rise apartments and condos. This is also where you find the neighborhood’s small business community and a few restaurants.
The nicest thing about this area is that whether you live in a mansion or an apartment, you can still take advantage of the community’s parks and many of their cultural events. This neighborhood is particularly friendly to homosexual couples and hosts a major event each year to celebrate diverse lifestyles.