Obamas may lease mansion in posh Washington neighborhood
ASSOCIATED PRESS
President Barack Obama and first lady Michelle Obama have reportedly decided to lease this nine-bedroom mansion in one of Washington’s poshest neighborhoods when he leaves office in January. (AP Photo/Andrew Harnik)
ASSOCIATED PRESS
With a sprawling terrace and a castle-like exterior, this Washington D.C., home — a possible future residence for the Obamas — sits on a quarter-acre lot in the wealthy Kalorama neighborhood near Embassy Row. (AP Photo/Andrew Harnik)
WASHINGTON >> Real estate circles buzzed today over reports that President Barack Obama and his wife, Michelle, have decided to lease a nine-bedroom mansion in one of Washington’s poshest neighborhoods when he leaves office in January.
With a sprawling terrace and a castle-like exterior, the home sits on a quarter-acre lot just down the road from the Naval Observatory, the vice president’s official residence, in the wealthy Kalorama neighborhood near Embassy Row. A 2011 remodel brought the total number of bathrooms to eight-and-a-half, along with three fireplaces and an “au pair suite,” spread out over roughly 8,200 square feet, according to real estate data. It features parking for up to 10 cars.
Peg Mancuso, the president of the Greater Capital Area Association of Realtors, called the area “clearly one of the best neighborhoods in the Washington Metropolitan area.” She said if the reports are true, “He couldn’t have picked a better neighborhood for his family.”
“It seemed like the perfect choice,” Manusco said.
The mansion’s owners, President Bill Clinton’s former White House press secretary Joe Lockhart and his wife, live in New York, where he works for the NFL. The White House declined to comment on the possibility of the Obamas renting the property, first reported by Politico.
An individual familiar with the Obamas’ plans said they had started their housing search and were currently looking at rental properties in a number of Washington neighborhoods, including Kalorama. The individual wasn’t authorized to discuss the issue publicly and requested anonymity.
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It was unclear whether the Obamas had settled on the Kalorama property and formally leased it or whether they were still considering other options. Obama’s aides and friends have been reluctant to discuss his plans in light of the intense security preparations the U.S. Secret Service must undertake to ensure the first family can be adequately protected while living in a private home.
Obama has said publicly that he and his family plan to stay in Washington after leaving the White House until their youngest daughter, 14-year-old Sasha Obama, graduates from high school. Sasha’s older sister, Malia Obama, graduates from high school this year and plans to attend Harvard University after taking a year off.
“Transferring someone in the middle of high school — tough,” Obama said earlier this year in Milwaukee.
Built in the 1920s, the mansion last sold in 2013 for about $5.3 million — a drop from the list price of about $6 million, according to real estate records. It was put on the market in 2012 for just under $8 million but later removed.
For years, Obama has complained publicly about the lack of privacy that comes with life in the White House, and has said he’s eagerly awaiting the day he can recapture some of the anonymity and freedom of movement he enjoyed before becoming president. Though his decision to remain temporarily in Washington may delay that, Obama is expected to spend considerable time in the coming years in Chicago, where his family owns a home and where his presidential library will be built, as well as in New York and in Hawaii, where he was born.
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Associated Press writer Josh Lederman contributed to this report.
22 responses to “Obamas may lease mansion in posh Washington neighborhood”
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Have to agree with Obama. That’s a great idea.
Was Obama born in Hawaii?
What – Not going to the old hood in Chicago.
Why would he like to live with his peeps?
If he goes with the Castle, I see a big iron fence going up.
A moat around the castle also?
Just putting this thought out there…besides having a brain full of national secrets that MAY be important to enemies of the state (unlikely though in this era of high tech espionage, unless the president knows about space aliens living among us), why do former presidents and their families require such intense protective measures once the office is left behind?
No, he just believes there are aliens following him. He has already pay his $1 rent.
Which ones?….the ones from outer space or the ones that snuck over the border?
Anyplace but Hawaii please. He has to lease because Michlle is not as smart as crooked Hillary.
Not as smart. Both are whip smart. Michelle, a Princeton undergrad and Harvard Law School alum– where did your sorry pillock self go to school??!?
Exactly. Imbeciles always suggest that the President & Mrs. Obama aren’t well educated or intelligent. It’s pathetic.
Have you two ever heard of affirmative action. Bath house Barry is the poster boy for it.
BlueEyedWhiteDevil – It’s not worth debating racist imbeciles.
Blue eyed – and so he graduated Magna Cum Laude because of AA or voted to be President of the Harvard Law Review by his fellow students because of AA. So, I ask you, obviously the child of two simps, where did you go to school?
He did good as a foreign student.
Who the hell cares!
Will come in handy when Hillary appoints him to the supreme court next year.
Love to see the Obama followers out in force. Anything Obama and these mollusk and slugs come slithering in. Lol.
That’s a nice neighborhood. Right off Dupont Circle. Quite a step up from the apartment he and his mom lived in when he was young.
Wishing them well from the transition of the White House to a private home! They deserve some privacy and peace! Living in the “biggest fish bowl ” after eight years, earn them the tranquility they deserve! Good luck Mr. President, Michelle, Malia and Sasha!
KITV 5pm news said it’s $22,000 per month rent……takes my breath away…….but with 8 bedrooms, maybe there is room for me?