Charles Wagner-designed mid-century modern in Moyaone Reserve.

Demand for Mid-Century Modern Homes Strong

UrbanTurf writes about the continuing demand for mid-century modern homes in the Washington area despite Mad Men being off the air for the past five years.
“Mad Men concluded its television run in 2015 and it seemed like people’s infatuation with mid-century modern design went with it,” writes Nena Perry-Brown. “However, interest in the DC area’s mid-century housing market remains high.”
Read the full article here and explore some of the mid-century modern neighborhoods in the Washington, D.C. area.

Just Listed: Goodman in Hammond Wood – $499,750

Rare opportunity to purchase an expanded Charles Goodman-designed mid-century modern in Hammond Wood on deep .28 acre lot. I just listed this 3 bed/1.5 bath Goodman with 2030 total square feet on two levels. The house is set off street and has a nice flat front yard/patio area. This home is being sold as-is and needs renovation. Here is the MLS listing. Contact Michael for more images and details.
The 1951 Charles Goodman-designed mid-century modern is conveniently located in Hammond Wood, a National Register of Historic Places-Designated neighborhood of 58 homes nestled in a tract of heavily wooded, rolling land.
Owners of property listed in the Montgomery County Master Plan for Historic Preservation are eligible to receive a credit for documented expenses for exterior maintenance, restoration or preservation work. The tax credit is applied towards County real property taxes.
The National Register in its designation said, “Hammond Wood conveys the best of Goodman’s architectural legacy, showcasing his insistence on experimentation, adaptation of European and American modern ideas, and close collaboration with builders. The neighborhood reflects Goodman’s contribution to Contemporary architecture through his ever-evolving floor plans; the use of new and used materials in combination; an abundance of technical innovations; an exuberance in the employment of the window wall; and a spare, yet elegant structural expressionism.”
Featured in the May 1952 issue of Progressive Architecture, Hammond Wood is located just north of Kensington and just over a mile from the Wheaton Metro (Red Line). A Ride On bus stop is just Read More >

Washingtonian Magazine Top Agent Recognition

I am honored to be recognized once again as a Washingtonian Magazine Top Agent. Thank you to all of my clients, family and friends who have supported Modern Capital for the past 14 years. Please reach out if you are thinking of buying or selling a mid-century modern home. Happy to meet and discuss today’s modern real estate market.

Furnishing a Mid-Century Modern Home: Inspiration & Sourcing

A guest post on sourcing mid-century modern furniture from our partner, ATTIC.
Nothing completes a beautiful mid-century home like furniture and decor drawn from the same aesthetic. The simple, sleek lines of MCM furniture pair up perfectly with the modern, open and airy feel that make mid-century homes the gems that they are. The following post provides some inspiration, whether you’re just starting or continuing to furnish your home. We’ll focus on two spaces: dining rooms and living rooms.

We’re also going to introduce you to ATTIC, a one-of-kind resource that will help you find the best mid-century furniture from stores of the DC and Baltimore regions. After all, who wants to buy a “forever” piece of furniture without ever seeing or touching it? ATTIC makes that process so much easier. ATTIC is now available in cities throughout the country, but is owned and operated by a small team based right here in Washington, D.C. Its mission is simple — to make it easier for consumers to shop from small, local businesses.

Dinner is Served, In Style
Whether it’s with family or friends, the importance of meal time transcends culture. As such, dining rooms and breakfast nooks are often visual focal points in modern homes. And with pieces like those pictured here, it’s no wonder why. Rectangular, round, “boat-shaped”…small, grand, or expandable…mid-century dining tables come in a vast array of options. Likewise, some of the most famous furniture designs in history are those for mid-century dining chairs.

Rosewood Dining Table
Modern Mobler

Walnut Dining Set
Peg Leg Vintage

Teak Read More >

Inside Look: Our Goodman Renovation in Hammond Wood

Here the latest on our renovation with architect Michael Cook of a two-level Charles Goodman-designed mid-century modern in Hammond Wood. When we purchased the house, it was a 3 bed/2 bath with 2 bedrooms and 1 bath on the top level and one bedroom and one bath on the bottom level. While we are keeping the original footprint intact, we have reworked the interior. The key change is opening up the small downstairs den and creating two above-grade bedrooms (instead of the one small dark room).
Here is the downstairs before. It was very closed off.

And now amid construction:

Here is the framing for the two new downstairs bedrooms:

To create the two-above grade bedrooms, we excavated the earth around the house and created a retaining wall with concrete patio. A wood-slat design mirrors the horizontal wood siding above.

Back inside, Michael’s design also opens up the originally closed-off kitchen. New kitchen will feature Poggenpohl cabinets.
Before. The kitchen hidden in the back left.

Kitchen in progress. The new space will feature a L-shaped counter with room for stools that extends into the open living/dining space.

Poggenpohl cabinets in from Germany and ready to be installed.
We have done all new double-pane windows, electrical, plumbing and lighting. Both bathrooms will be renovated as well.

Please contact me if interested in learning more about this project.

Modern Snapshot: Fall in Charles Goodman’s Hammond Wood

A shot from a few days ago in Hammond Wood in Silver Spring.

Carderock Springs is Now Historic

Carderock Springs, the mid-century modern community in Bethesda built in the 1960s by pioneering developer Edmund Bennett and designed by Arthur Keyes, Francis Donald Lethbridge and David Condon, was named to the National Register of Historic Places in December after a four-year effort by residents and county officials. Charles Goodman’s Rock Creek Woods, Hammond Wood and five homes on Takoma Avenue are other the MCM communities in Montgomery County on the National Register. Read more about Carderock’s designation here.

Carderock’s Bid for the National Register of Historic Places

The Gazette takes a look at Carderock Spring’s effort launched fours years ago to be placed on the National Register of Historic places. “In the 1960s, Bethesda’s Carderock Springs neighborhood was lauded with national attention in the architecture world because of its contemporary design and incorporation of homes into the natural landscape,” Bradford Pearson writes. “It is now in the final stages of completing the approval process for being named to the National Parks Services’ Register of Historic Places.” The community was built by developer Edmund Bennett and the architectural team of Keyes, Lethbridge & Condon, AIA.
Pearson notes that “if approved, the neighborhood would join other county neighborhoods, including the Garrett Park and Kensington historic districts, on the historic register.” Correct, but he fails to mention the three other modern Montgomery County communities already on the register: Charles Goodman’s Rock Creek Woods, Hammond Wood and his five Takoma Avenue homes in Takoma Park.

Hammond Wood Kensington MD