NARRATOR: Support for "If You Lived Here" comes from...

The Yuen Foundation, committed to bridging cultural differences within the greater Washington D.C. community.

JOHN: Hi, I'm John Begeny.

CHRISTINE: I'm Christine Louise.

We're producers at WETA and best friends for 20 years and counting.

JOHN: We love living in the DMV and finding a place to live here can be an adventure.

CHRISTINE: Join us as we tour three homes at three price points.

JOHN: And, try to guess the listing price without going over.

And find out what it would be like...

BOTH: "If You Lived Here" All aboard!

TAMMEY: Welcome to Bowie.

JOHN: Hi Tammey.

CHRISTINE: And what a perfect place to start, at the Welcome Center.

JOHN: I feel very welcome.

TAMMEY: I'm happy to hear that.

And so the commute was great because it's only 20 minutes from D.C. CHRISTINE: The commute was fabulous because we're driving past fields of horses and cows.

I felt right at home.

JOHN: Well, this is not what I expected.

You know, it is like the country and then you hit this.

This is downtown Bowie?

TAMMEY: So we're in Old Bowie right now.

But I want to share with you where it all started.

JOHN: All right.

CHRISTINE: Okay.

It's a train.

JOHN: Well, you even match the train with that shirt of yours.

CHRISTINE: I do match the train.

TAMMEY: It's perfect.

CHRISTINE: So we're at a train station, which I love because I'm a huge train buff.

So obviously it must be a large part of the Bowie history.

TAMMEY: Absolutely.

This is where it all started.

Bowie was a railroad stop, and then it evolved into a community.

After World War II, a developer showed up from New York, Levitt and Sons, and built thousands of affordable houses in the 60s.

And that's what you see here in Old Bowie.

JOHN: This is really halfway kind of in-between Washington and Baltimore.

TAMMEY: 20 minutes to D.C. 30 minutes to Baltimore.

It doesn't get any better than that.

JOHN: Then again, you could go down the road, and you're at a baseball game.

TAMMEY: Absolutely.

JOHN: Bowie Baysox.

TAMMEY: Oh, it's fun.

So what I really like about it is it feels city Southern.

So some of the neighborhoods are walkable.

So you can come out, walk to the metro, walk to dining, walk to the grocery store.

So you feel like you're in D.C. And then you drive down the road, and you see the horses and the cows grazing.

And then folks sitting on the porch waving at you.

So you feel like you're in the country.

JOHN: This feels very country.

TAMMEY: You get a little bit of both, okay?

CHRISTINE: It does.

TAMMEY: You ready?

JOHN: I'm ready.

TAMMEY: Okay let's do it.

JOHN: Well, isn't this nice?

CHRISTINE: Mm-hm.

TAMMEY: Welcome to house number one.

You're in Hidden Pond, and it sits in a cul-de-sac with a water view.

JOHN: And what a view with that beautiful pond and this fountain.

It's like this special little pocket.

CHRISTINE: I know.

Does every home here come with a pond?

TAMMEY: So we're in a gated community Woodmore, and it has various neighborhoods.

So this particular neighborhood is Hidden Pond.

You will find, in all of that yes, there are ponds, so... CHRISTINE: All right, hence the name.

JOHN: Yeah.

TAMMEY: Okay.

So go on in, take a look.

Let me know what you think.

And I'll meet you on the deck.

JOHN: On the deck.

Very good.

CHRISTINE: Okay.

All right.

JOHN: We'll see you in a bit.

TAMMEY: All right.

CHRISTINE: Okay.

JOHN: House number one.

CHRISTINE: All right.

Archways right here as we walk in.

JOHN: There they are.

Boy, that's a statement piece.

CHRISTINE: You know, it's funny because this is a middle unit.

JOHN: It is.

CHRISTINE: But it's so light-filled that you don't feel like it's a middle unit.

JOHN: Agreed.

CHRISTINE: Look at the arches from this side.

The woodwork around them makes them pop even more.

JOHN: Well that's because you're from Pennsylvania, and they got keystones at the top.

CHRISTINE: The keystones.

I know.

It's pretty good.

JOHN: It's the Keystone state people.

Into the dining room.

CHRISTINE: Yep.

JOHN: Very nice space.

CHRISTINE: It flows right into the kitchen.

JOHN: You know what I'm seeing?

I'm seeing more than just a kitchen.

I'm seeing a kitchen, a breakfast room, a family room, and then a great outdoor space.

Four rooms all in one, right?

CHRISTINE: Mm-hmm.

It's about the layout.

Because you don't have like defining walls, separating spaces.

It really is about these little features that separate it.

JOHN: And speaking of little features, these skylights above the breakfast area, this little nook, are really special.

CHRISTINE: Okay.

Let's check out the basement.

JOHN: I'd love to.

CHRISTINE: Okay.

JOHN: Yet another multipurpose living space.

And they're currently using this as an office, but it could be anything.

It could be a rumpus room.

CHRISTINE: Rumpus room.

JOHN: A rumpus room.

Why are you laughing?

Look, it's a rumpus room.

Big open area, got the wet bar.

CHRISTINE: The wet bar.

And you actually have a full bath.

JOHN: Yeah.

It's a deluxe rumpus room.

CHRISTINE: Oh, look it, it's a recording studio.

JOHN: What?

Every home should have a recording studio.

That's what I always say.

All right.

We've seen two levels.

Up we go?

CHRISTINE: Let's go.

The next level.

JOHN: Oh, this is nice and open for a landing.

CHRISTINE: It is but you're immediately drawn to the owner's suite.

JOHN: And what an entrance, right?

CHRISTINE: I know.

It feels dramatic.

JOHN: Well, maybe the double doors, the half vault.

CHRISTINE: I love those vaulted ceilings.

JOHN: It just opens things up.

CHRISTINE: But you know what also opens up?

They put in this size of a window, and it really just lets the natural light in.

JOHN: Yeah.

Would you call that a picture window?

CHRISTINE: I don't, I don't... Actually, I don't know.

JOHN: Well, it's pretty as a picture.

CHRISTINE: Okay.

So this would be the ensuite.

JOHN: Updated.

CHRISTINE: Do you see what else is here?

JOHN: Soaking tub.

Nice.

CHRISTINE: Look closer.

JOHN: Oh, it's got jets.

We see all these brand new soaking tubs.

They don't have jets.

That was bedroom number one.

CHRISTINE: Okay.

JOHN: And then down the hall.

CHRISTINE: Here we have, I'm guessing, oh, it's a full bath.

I'm going to give a shout-out to that cherry vanity.

JOHN: Do it, give it a shout out.

Okay.

Bedroom number two, which they're using as a TV room, and it looks really cozy with this window to the courtyard below.

CHRISTINE: You're feeling this room.

JOHN: I dig this room.

I would use it as a TV room too.

Into bedroom number three.

CHRISTINE: This bedroom has a view of the pond.

JOHN: Yep.

CHRISTINE: And do you know what else I think is fun?

JOHN: What?

CHRISTINE: If you're going to have a roofline as a view, I think shaker shingles are the best way to go.

And I dare you to say shaker shingle three times.

JOHN: Shaker shingle, shaker shingle, shaker shingle.

Ha!

Shaker shingle... Hey Tammy, guess what?

I said shaker shingle like 172 times.

TAMMEY: Oh my goodness.

CHRISTINE: I take full responsibility.

I pointed out how much I like the view of the shaker shingles.

TAMMEY: Okay.

I got it now.

So how about those archways?

CHRISTINE: All right.

I like the way they put the framing.

TAMMEY: Fluted molding's lovely.

CHRISTINE: Yes, which made them just say, hey, look at me.

JOHN: That's what they said.

Hey, look at me.

TAMMEY: So that's my favorite.

What's your favorite?

CHRISTINE: To me, you know, because you're always afraid that you're going to lose light when you're not an end unit.

And even though this is in the middle... TAMMEY: Mm-hm.

CHRISTINE: You don't feel that at all.

TAMMEY: Still sunny.

CHRISTINE: Exactly, there's enough details and windows that TAMMEY: Absolutely.

CHRISTINE: It keeps it light and bright.

TAMMEY: Yeah.

Just wanted to remind you about the details.

This is a three-bedroom, three full bath, one-half bath, and about 2700 square feet.

This townhome was totally renovated a couple years ago.

It was built in 1998.

So with that said, who's going first?

CHRISTINE: I'll go first.

And I don't know why because I am so unsure about this.

TAMMEY: You're brave.

That's why.

CHRISTINE: I feel empowered now.

TAMMEY: Yes!

CHRISTINE: I don't know if that's going to help, but I feel empowered.

JOHN: I feel that's good.

CHRISTINE: I'm just going to say $450,000.

TAMMEY: Okay.

JOHN: I'll go four... 425.

TAMMEY: Drum roll.

JOHN: Drum roll.

TAMMEY: OMG, exactly 450.

Yeah.

Exactly!

CHRISTINE: It's because you empowered me.

See, it's the empowerment.

Your inspiration.

TAMMEY: I receive that okay.

JOHN: Okay.

Okay.

TAMMEY: Good job.

So it's time to go to house number two, let's do it.

CHRISTINE: I'm following you.

SUSAN: We are at Belair Stable.

This is the home to Triple Crown winners and horses of a lot of fame and claim.

Thoroughbred horse racing in Maryland really got started here in Bowie.

Some people refer to it as the American cradle of thoroughbred horse racing.

Belair Mansion was built in 1745 for Governor Samuel Ogle.

The Ogles will be the ones that'll start to introduce thoroughbred horse racing into the area, but where Bowie gets its claim to fame when it comes to thoroughbred horse racing, is really with the Woodwards.

This stable is going to bring fame to Bowie because of two Triple Crown winners that were trained and raised here on the property.

And that's Gallant Fox in 1930 and Omaha in 1935.

They are the only father/son team that win the Triple Crown.

The area that we know of Bowie today, though, really got its foothold when the Woodwards sell Belair Estate.

And they sell it to Levitt and Sons, and they will develop what we now know of as Bowie.

William Levitt's ultimate goal was to create affordable housing for soldiers returning back from war.

And he will do so by creating sort of these prefabbed houses and the houses go up very, very quickly and the community is supposed to be walkable.

Uh, a community that everybody's interconnected, you can walk to the grocery store, walk to your church, walk to your school.

Unfortunately, he is choosing to provide affordable housing only for white America and not the African American community.

They weren't even allowing African Americans to come in and see the homes, let alone even make an attempt to purchase it.

So you've got protests going on out front of the model homes, with members of various religious organizations and members of the community, as well as people who are going around Levitt, by going, "Okay, I'll buy the home, I'll stay here for a year or more and then I'm going to resell it to anyone who I want to sell it to."

And if it happens to be an African American citizen, so be it.

Bowie, it represents what is happening in the United States as well.

It'll be one of those little bolts in the story that are getting us closer and closer in assisting and being part of the Civil Rights Movement, and specifically with the Fair Housing Act of 1968.

As it went through the '50s and the '60s and '70s, the black population continues to grow.

And this is a predominantly African American county, of medium and upper economic wealth as well.

Bowie is a large community.

Levitt broke it down into these small sections.

So one of the first questions that people will ask you, what section do you live in?

People refer to it as a T-section or the S-section where all the street names begin with an S or a T or an F. And they're very close-knit communities.

They take pride in what section they are actually from.

It's actually very, very cute.

And as you get to work here and you get to know more about the city, it all starts to make sense.

JOHN: And lovely what they did out here.

CHRISTINE: Yeah, the curb appeal is really lovely on this home.

TAMMEY: And there's nothing better than a magnolia tree.

CHRISTINE: Ah.

JOHN: Agree.

CHRISTINE: Those are your favorites.

JOHN: They're one of my favorites.

TAMMEY: So good.

So we're at house number two.

JOHN: Yeah.

TAMMEY: And it's located in the North Ridge Community.

It's close to Bowie State University.

JOHN: Okay.

TAMMEY: Not far from Bowie Town Center.

My absolute favorite feature is in the lower level.

The bar.

CHRISTINE: Oh.

JOHN: We'll keep that in mind.

TAMMEY: I don't want you to get sidetracked, John!

CHRISTINE: That never.

JOHN: That never happens!

TAMMEY: So you ready to go in and take a look?

JOHN: Ready.

TAMMEY: Enjoy.

JOHN: Fantastic.

CHRISTINE: Thank you!

Wow.

JOHN: Big welcoming space.

CHRISTINE: Well, this foyer is like a room in itself.

JOHN: Takes up a big footprint of this house, doesn't it?

CHRISTINE: Yeah, I'm guessing maybe formal living room?

JOHN: Living room.

Sure.

CHRISTINE: What I like are the floor-to-ceiling windows because often we see wider windows, but these are actually tall.

JOHN: Yeah.

CHRISTINE: This chandelier, look at the bling that it adds to this formal dining room.

JOHN: Mm-hm, and formal is the word with these moldings, the chair rail, and the crown... CHRISTINE: Really makes the space just a little more fancy.

JOHN: Just a little.

CHRISTINE: Just a little more.

JOHN: Just a little.

Wow.

This is interesting.

CHRISTINE: Yeah, I mean obviously, the first thing I notice are the cherry cabinets.

JOHN: Yeah.

CHRISTINE: And this island... JOHN: It kind of pops out, doesn't it?

CHRISTINE: It does because it's completely the angle.

JOHN: I actually like the stove in this island because your family is in the family room.

You can sit here and cook and you can face them, you know?

CHRISTINE: But it does make me want to go... JOHN: Shift it here.

I'll help you.

Here.

We'll just, no, it's glued down.

Well, I know this house.

You know, this house is probably built, I'm saying in the '80s.

CHRISTINE: I think it is a great space.

JOHN: And it has a great view of this backyard.

CHRISTINE: Oh, and a deck.

JOHN: And look, they've got a basketball court.

CHRISTINE: Oh, I can see it.

A little one on one... JOHN: A little hoops.

CHRISTINE: Oh, I think so.

Did you ever play basketball?

JOHN: Yeah, no.

CHRISTINE: No, neither did I. JOHN: Looks like... CHRISTINE: Bathroom.

JOHN: Yep.

Washer/dryer.

CHRISTINE: Okay, so shall we go to the basement?

JOHN: Yep.

CHRISTINE: Okay.

JOHN: After you.

CHRISTINE: Thank you.

JOHN: Oh, look at this.

This is the party room.

CHRISTINE: This is, this is the party room.

JOHN: This is like the '80s.

CHRISTINE: Oh wow.

JOHN: There's even a Pac-Man, which is bringing me back.

I have all the feels for this basement right now.

CHRISTINE: This is the place to hang out.

JOHN: Yeah, all the cool kids hang out here.

Oh, ho-ho.

This is rad, dude.

CHRISTINE: You can live your Pac-Man dreams and I'm going to check out the rest of the basement.

JOHN: I need a quarter though or this won't work.

CHRISTINE: Oh, we have a full bath.

JOHN: Mm-hm.

CHRISTINE: It's a nice full bath too.

And a...

I would use this as an office.

Spacious.

Oh, and a workout room.

JOHN: Hey, take a look at this.

Little patio here.

I've never seen anything like this.

CHRISTINE: That's a great way to put in a patio economically.

JOHN: Yeah, there's no foundation, right?

There's no, there's this.

CHRISTINE: Yeah.

Just laid there.

JOHN: Yeah.

So it's plastic and wood.

CHRISTINE: Nice.

JOHN: Totally tubular dude.

CHRISTINE: I'm digging this whole space.

JOHN: Me too.

CHRISTINE: So let's go here first.

So obviously the owner's suite.

JOHN: Yep, the main bedroom of the house.

CHRISTINE: So nice walk-in closet.

JOHN: Uh-huh and nice tall ceilings.

CHRISTINE: You know, when you step in, you really see the space, how big this bedroom is.

JOHN: And.

CHRISTINE: Ooh.

JOHN: Great size bathroom too.

CHRISTINE: Yeah.

Look at that tub.

You know, Jacuzzi... JOHN: Jets.

CHRISTINE: Mm-hmm.

JOHN: Jets are coming back.

CHRISTINE: Double vanity.

JOHN: Mm-hmm.

CHRISTINE: And shower.

JOHN: All right.

CHRISTINE: Okay.

All right.

So this is bedroom number two.

JOHN: Two.

CHRISTINE: And a third bedroom.

JOHN: It's all good size.

CHRISTINE: Yeah.

Then a full bath.

So that makes... JOHN: Three and a half so far.

CHRISTINE: Yes.

JOHN: That's three and a half.

CHRISTINE: Yes.

JOHN: Okay.

CHRISTINE: Oh wait, that's another bedroom.

JOHN: Okay.

So that's four bedrooms.

CHRISTINE: Four bedrooms.

JOHN: Three and a half bathrooms.

CHRISTINE: Exactly.

JOHN: All right Tammey.

CHRISTINE: Hey Tammey.

TAMMEY: House number two.

JOHN: Number two.

TAMMEY: How'd you like it?

CHRISTINE: I love the fact that it is just a family's entertainment space.

TAMMEY: And then don't forget about the exterior.

It's a fenced backyard.

CHRISTINE: I know.

JOHN: It's so beautiful.

TAMMEY: With a basketball court.

JOHN: Yeah.

TAMMEY: And a deck.

I mean, nobody wants to leave.

Okay, something for everyone.

JOHN: That could be a problem.

CHRISTINE: I think that's what adds to this being such a wonderful family home.

TAMMEY: Yes.

Okay.

So this house has five bedrooms, three full baths, a half bath, almost 4100 square feet, and built in 1993.

JOHN: All right, Tammey.

I am going to make a guess on this house of $675,000.

TAMMEY: Hmm.

CHRISTINE: Ooh.

TAMMEY: Okay.

CHRISTINE: I'm going to come in at $650,000.

TAMMEY: Hmm.

Bomp bomp.

JOHN: Wait, what was that?

That's a double bomp.

TAMMEY: This house listed for 625.

CHRISTINE: Oh.

JOHN: 625.

Well, we win some and we lose some.

CHRISTINE: I know we got a double bomp.

JOHN: Yeah, that's a first.

TAMMEY: Okay, so are we ready for house number three?

JOHN: House number three.

CHRISTINE: I think so.

TAMMEY: Okay.

Let's do it.

JOHN: All right.

Double bomp.

CHRISTINE: Double bomped!

SHEILA: What's special about Bowie is that it has a community.

In this day in time, you still have people that kind of look out for one another.

WOMAN 2: I would describe Bowie as a historic town that has evolved into this beautiful, diverse, cultural place to live.

SHANE'T: I did grow up in Bowie, used to come to the park a lot, go to the library.

Just pretty much there's a lot to do in Bowie.

DANIELLE: It's a lot of trees, a lot of parks that you can visit.

You can go to a Minor League baseball game.

We have the Bowie Baysox.

PAUL: It's, it's very family-friendly.

For the bang for your buck, this is the place to be.

BENJAMIN: It's a nice, like tight-knit community.

You get a lot of this familiar faces showing up to every game.

MEGAN: So we do promotions every day of the week, pretty much.

And then we do fireworks show every Friday and Saturday.

NOAH: Today's Woof Wednesday where a lot of dogs and their owners come out to the park and they're able to enjoy the game with their pets.

KATHY: When the teams first got here, we started an organization, a booster club.

I think that one of the major accomplishments of the booster club was housing for the players.

PHIL: Minor league baseball players, on average, in the Double-A level, they don't make a whole lot of money.

So we have families from around the community that take these players in and really accept them as one of their own for the time that they're with us.

I've seen players that have gone on from being a 21, 22, 23-year-old, Double-A player to somebody that's getting married, having kids.

And those host families are invited to the weddings, so there really is that unique rapport.

KATHY: I think, I... super fan is probably overreaching, but I do enjoy watching these boys, and they're boys to me, come here and improve and progress in their careers.

It's just an all-around good family experience, I think.

TAMMEY: Welcome to house number three.

JOHN: Tammey, are you sure this is the aspirational house?

CHRISTINE: It feels a little small.

JOHN: Yeah.

TAMMEY: I hear a tone of sarcasm here.

JOHN: Maybe just a tint.

TAMMEY: So this is in a community that's not quote a 'planned community'.

So there are individual lots.

It's in Woodmore Estate and it's on Woodmore Road.

JOHN: So we're not far from the first house that we saw today.

TAMMEY: A mile away.

This house is 15,000 square feet.

CHRISTINE: The small town that I grew up in, half the population could live in this house.

JOHN: That's a big house, Tammey.

TAMMEY: Oh, it's big.

So don't get lost.

Let's go.

Let's go.

CHRISTINE: Okay.

JOHN: Okay.

Talk about a grand entrance.

CHRISTINE: All right.

15,000 square feet... How are we going to tackle this?

JOHN: Well, why don't we divide and conquer?

How about that?

CHRISTINE: All right that sounds like a good plan.

I'm going to go this way.

JOHN: I'll go this way.

CHRISTINE: And why don't we meet somewhere in the middle?

JOHN: Sounds like a plan.

CHRISTINE: Okay.

Okay, I found the formal living room.

JOHN: No, I don't think you found the living room.

CHRISTINE: Maybe you're right.

There's a chandelier in here.

JOHN: I think that's the dining room.

CHRISTINE: Okay.

I'll give you that one.

I think this is the dining room.

JOHN: Yep.

This is definitely the formal living room and hey, I found the solarium.

CHRISTINE: Oh, oh, I want to see what that looks like.

JOHN: Yeah, you've got to see this.

CHRISTINE: Where you, where are you at?

JOHN: Take a look.

CHRISTINE: Oh, now this is a grand space.

JOHN: Wall of windows.

And look another porch outside.

Open-air.

Love that room.

CHRISTINE: Yeah.

Okay.

So here... JOHN: Looks like the great room... CHRISTINE: And what a great room.

It's a two-story great room.

JOHN: Yeah.

With a lot of great features.

Can we say great again?

CHRISTINE: Okay.

I was going right towards the wood-burning fireplace.

JOHN: Yep, and nice woodwork with all these spindles.

Don't you think?

CHRISTINE: I think so.

JOHN: Yeah.

CHRISTINE: All right.

But where do we go from here?

JOHN: It's a challenge.

How about to the left?

CHRISTINE: I'm just going to follow you.

JOHN: Let's just do it.

Holy schmoly, we found the kitchen.

CHRISTINE: Well, a house this size needs a kitchen just... JOHN: Oh, you know what I'm seeing?

I'm seeing a butler's pantry off the formal dining room.

CHRISTINE: Yes, now that makes sense.

JOHN: Connected to the kitchen.

CHRISTINE: I was right from the start.

It is a formal dining room.

JOHN: You were eventually right.

CHRISTINE: Yeah, but this is another dining room space.

JOHN: It's probably for a very big table.

And then you have another dining space over there, which would be like a formal breakfast room... CHRISTINE: It's a beautiful space.

I would have breakfast, lunch, and dinner out there.

JOHN: That is definitely an option in this place.

I mean, I think there's so many options.

You could entertain like 50 people.

CHRISTINE: You could and.

JOHN: Easily.

CHRISTINE: You know what?

There's two dishwashers.

JOHN: There's two dishwashers.

I see two ovens and you need two of everything onto... CHRISTINE: We go this way?

JOHN: This is like the endless wonders of this home.

CHRISTINE: I know!

Now I'm guessing closet.

JOHN: Wow, no, it's a whole other wing.

CHRISTINE: It's not a closet.

JOHN: This is like Las Vegas.

CHRISTINE: Yeah, it does have that feel.

So we have a huge bathroom there and a room that's probably, I don't know 400 square feet.

JOHN: Yeah.

So could this be the main bedroom in the house?

CHRISTINE: I have no idea.

JOHN: Big homes sometimes have multiple main bedrooms right?

In the house, so this could be one of many.

Well, funny meeting you here.

CHRISTINE: What a coincidence!

JOHN: Well, floor two.

How should we do it?

Divide and conquer?

CHRISTINE: Exactly.

JOHN: I'll head this way.

CHRISTINE: I'll go that way.

JOHN: All right.

CHRISTINE: Sounds like a plan.

All right.

So, John, I've got the laundry room.

JOHN: Well, I've got a bedroom and it has tons of windows because it's a corner.

CHRISTINE: Oh nice.

JOHN: And I've got a full bath, but the real star of this room is all the windows.

CHRISTINE: And oh, I've got another bedroom and a full bath.

JOHN: Well I am seeing a bedroom.

Exactly the same footprint as the bedroom I just was in.

Corner of the house, lots of windows, full bath.

CHRISTINE: Well, I think I have just found the owner's suite and I think it's half the wing of the house.

(whistling).

JOHN: Quite a room.

CHRISTINE: Huge seating area, gas fireplace, walk-in closet.

JOHN: That's almost like another room.

CHRISTINE: I think it is.

That leads right into this, dare I say again, spacious... JOHN: Rather spacious bathroom.

CHRISTINE: Oh this is what you've been looking for.

A steam shower.

JOHN: Yeah, that definitely is a steam shower, all nice and sealed off.

CHRISTINE: So let's see, I'm going to check out this door.

Oh!

JOHN: What?

CHRISTINE: Check this out.

I'll let you open it.

JOHN: That's no porch.

It's a porch with a capital P. CHRISTINE: You like your sleeping porches, but this is, JOHN: This would be like this upper solarium.

CHRISTINE: I have no idea.

You have this beautiful space, but it's right off of a bedroom.

JOHN: Yeah.

CHRISTINE: So if you were going to have people using it, you'd be coming through a bedroom.

JOHN: Well, what would you use this for?

CHRISTINE: Well, I mean, I could see doing yoga.

JOHN: It kind of has a zen vibe, you know, with all this nature outside and the ceiling, so meditation room maybe.

CHRISTINE: Yeah.

Let's just love it for what it is.

JOHN: We're going to love this for what it is.

That's it.

CHRISTINE: All right.

So let us head down to the lower level.

JOHN: Lower level.

CHRISTINE: And once again, it does not disappoint in space.

Just like the rest of the home.

JOHN: Another family room here.

CHRISTINE: Mm-hm, with a gas-burning fireplace.

JOHN: Yep.

We've got, oh, looks like this could be a movie room maybe.

CHRISTINE: Oh, that would be fun.

JOHN: And, we have one bedroom here.

Closet.

CHRISTINE: Okay.

JOHN: No bath, but there is a bath right here with a jacuzzi tub.

CHRISTINE: Nice.

Since you did the legwork on that side... JOHN: Yep.

CHRISTINE: I will do the legwork on this side.

JOHN: I will meet you back here.

CHRISTINE: All right.

So I'm going to start.

So, John, we have what I would probably use as a den or an office.

Uh, ooh, another utility room with a washer/dryer hookup, and... oh, a full bath.

Nice.

And another bedroom with a great view of the outside.

JOHN: Well, belly up to the bar.

You've done a good job today touring this house.

CHRISTINE: You know what?

I could use a little refreshment after this tour.

JOHN: What can I get you?

CHRISTINE: Well, how about a lemonade?

JOHN: I know you're a hard drinker, a lemonade.

CHRISTINE: Hey Tammey.

TAMMEY: Hello.

You're back.

CHRISTINE: I know.

And I'm so glad you're sitting cause we need this.

JOHN: Thank goodness.

CHRISTINE: That is one big house.

TAMMEY: Who got lost?

CHRISTINE: I think he tried to lose me in that house, but no luck.

I'm still here.

TAMMEY: Like your favorite features?

CHRISTINE: My favorite was what we called the formal breakfast room.

JOHN: I did.

TAMMEY: The morning room as we call it.

CHRISTINE: Oh, the morning room.

See, we learned something.

TAMMEY: Yes.

CHRISTINE: It was so pretty.

TAMMEY: It's lovely.

JOHN: A great space.

TAMMEY: Open, and you can see all the trees and it's just lovely.

JOHN: The solarium.

I think it was my favorite room.

CHRISTINE: That's your favorite too?

JOHN: With the porch off the back, yeah.

CHRISTINE: That really is... TAMMEY: Veranda!

CHRISTINE: Yes John!

I apologize.

JOHN: I thought it was a porch and I was, gravely mistaken.

TAMMEY: Excuse him!

Okay!

JOHN: I'm sorry.

I apologize.

CHRISTINE: I knew it was a veranda.

TAMMEY: So I want to give you some detail.

There are seven bedrooms, seven full baths, and a half.

JOHN: Yeah.

TAMMEY: 15,000 square feet.

And the house was built in 2007.

CHRISTINE: Okay.

JOHN: Hmm.

CHRISTINE: I'm gonna go first.

JOHN: Okay.

CHRISTINE: All right.

I'm like I said, I'm just throwing a number out there and I'm just going to say $1.8 million.

TAMMEY: Okay.

JOHN: I'm going to go lower.

And I'm doing a bigger margin because I want to win.

CHRISTINE: Oh!

TAMMEY: You have strategy now!

CHRISTINE: Now I'm just throwing numbers out there and you really have a strategy.

JOHN: No, no.

But I will go for $1.5 million.

TAMMEY: This is amazing!

Okay!

That is the price.

JOHN: Yeah!

CHRISTINE: Wow.

TAMMEY: 1.5 million.

This is amazing.

CHRISTINE: Okay!

JOHN: Now this house was so hard.

Well, and I got to say all three homes you've shown us today, really speak to what an incredible value Bowie is.

TAMMEY: Absolutely.

JOHN: A really, you can get a lot of home here and really beautiful neighborhoods.

I'm a Bowie fan.

What can I say?

TAMMEY: Well, you had a full day.

So why don't we go get a bite?

CHRISTINE: Sounds good.

JOHN: Sounds great.

TAMMEY: My absolute favorite restaurant is Jerry's Seafood.

JOHN: Jerry's?

I've never been.

TAMMEY: Okay, you said you like seafood!

JOHN: I love seafood.

FRED: If you live here in Bowie proper, as they say, you have to know about the Baysox.

If not, you just, your head must be in the sand.

TIFFANY: So if you lived in Bowie, you would know that Bowie State University is the first African American university in the whole HBCU community.

SHANE'T: If you lived in Bowie, you would, first of all, know that it's 'Boo-ie', not 'Bow-ie'.

JAKE: Yeah.

If you lived here, you get a mixture of some old, some history, and then you got the new up and comers.

So you got Prince George's Stadium, you got Belair Mansion, you got all types of things to see around in Bowie.

It's a great place to come out.

Yeah, and I love it.

NARRATOR: To find out more about living in the Washington Metro area, visit weta.org/ifyoulivedhere.

Support for, "If You Lived Here" comes from: The Yuen Foundation, committed to bridging cultural differences within the greater Washington D.C. Community.