A 10-foot-wide Modern Home Was Built In A Washington, Dc Driveway. It's Listed For $580,000. See Inside.
This 10-foot-wide house in Washington, DC, is for sale for $581,903.
Courtesy of Jennifer Young.
- A 10-foot-wide, one-bedroom home was built in Washington, DC, on what used to be a driveway.
- Zoning law changes forced tight measurements for the 0.02-acre property, requiring many iterations.
- The home is listed for $581,903 and is attracting investors who may use it as a rental property.
A developer in Washington, DC, had a small canvas — about the width of a driveway — to build a modern home that's on the market for $581,903.
Now, there's a 10-foot-wide, one-bedroom home on what used to be a driveway.
According to the listing agent, Jennifer Young of Keller Williams Chantilly Ventures, the zoning laws changed shortly after the developer purchased the 0.02-acre property, so they had to scrap the idea of building a home or tighten their floor plan.
"It literally came down to sometimes a centimeter of getting the exact measurements right to both comply with DC zoning and build a really nice home that was functional," Young told Business Insider.
Nady Samnang, the contractor tasked with figuring out how to build a home on a driveway in between two alleys, told the Washington Post that the design went through many forms and took nearly seven months to get approved by the city permit office.
"I wanted to quit so many times," he told the Washington Post.
While the price has fluctuated since being listed for $799,900 in July 2023, according to Zillow, it's garnered interest from many across the country.
"It's one of the most-viewed homes on Zillow that I've ever seen in my career," Young said. "We do have quite a bit of looky-loos, but we have a lot of first-time buyers looking and investors — people that want to Airbnb it or rent it to college kids."
Courtesy of Jennifer Young.
According to Zillow, they purchased the lot for $200,000.
Courtesy of Jennifer Young.
"They changed zoning right after he bought it so they were kind of screwed and they either were going to scrap a deal or try to build a tiny home," Young said.
Courtesy of Jennifer Young.
"All the materials had to be brought in by hand versus pulling a truck up to the site because it is a very condensed area," Young said. "There's a road, but big work trucks can't come through and it's a very tight space to work in."
Courtesy of Jennifer Young.
It even has a fenced patio big enough for an intimate seating area.
Courtesy of Jennifer Young.
Samnang told the Washington Post that the powder room under the stairs was an "extreme challenge" due to DC code requiring toilets and sinks to be at least 15 inches apart. He had to opt for a skinny sink to fit.
Courtesy of Jennifer Young.
No need to haul in a bed upstairs or search for a couch that fits — those items come with the home.
"They just went pretty modern and they chose all the right finishes that are popular now," Young said. "They had to do something that made it as luxury and contemporary and high-end as they could within these restrictions."
Courtesy of Jennifer Young.
It's 45 feet long and 10 feet across at its widest point.
Courtesy of Jennifer Young.
"It's definitely hard to price," Young said. "There's not one single comparable because everything around it is condos — and it's not comparable to condos.
Courtesy of Jennifer Young.
"It's probably the most-viewed DC listing in years right now," Young said.
Courtesy of Jennifer Young.
There are no condo or HOA fees, according to Young, which could be enticing to someone renting it out.
Courtesy of Jennifer Young.
"It's a very popular building," she said. "I think half the people are looky-loos, and half are very interested."
