For the area $518 per square foot could be seen as a high price point, but it depends on what asset type you are using for a comparison, Mates told GlobeSt.com. The property wasn't sold as an apartment building, he noted -- it functioned as the Shalom House at Inn Washington, a five-room extended-stay hotel. Also, comparable buildings that are already renovated have traded for higher, at around $600 per square foot. The property currently has four total levels and five parking spaces and the buyer is planning to redesign the space to accommodate more guests.

The buyer is interested in the value-add play the property offers, Matte said. “This was a weird situation for a Dupont Circle building. It just wasn't being used to its full potential.”

The buyer saw the proximity to the embassies as an opportunity for a unique housing option, he said, and plans to "repurpose the property towards corporate travelers and Airbnb stays.”

WASHINGTON, DC-There are any number of uses that a Dupont Circle building could serve just based on its proximity to all things unique about Washington DC. The buyer of 1902 R St., NW, an erstwhile apartment building that most recently served as an extended stay hotel and local businessperson's residence, plans to convert it into an higher-return bread and breakfast serving business travelers and visitors to the slew of nearby embassies. Airbnb and similar listings will be used to the get the word out. That, at least, is the long-range plan.

First will come a complete gut and renovation of the property and the new owner is currently looking at the permitting issues, according to Jesse Mates, an investment specialist in Marcus & Millichap's Washington, DC office. Mates, Cameron Webb and Stacey Milam represented the seller in the transaction and procured the buyer.

The 5,020-square foot building, whose sale closed last week, traded for $2.6 million, or $518 per square foot.

The seller is a local businessperson who has owned the property since the early 1980s. The buyer is a local private investor with a large presence in the market.

For the area $518 per square foot could be seen as a high price point, but it depends on what asset type you are using for a comparison, Mates told GlobeSt.com. The property wasn't sold as an apartment building, he noted -- it functioned as the Shalom House at Inn Washington, a five-room extended-stay hotel. Also, comparable buildings that are already renovated have traded for higher, at around $600 per square foot. The property currently has four total levels and five parking spaces and the buyer is planning to redesign the space to accommodate more guests.

The buyer is interested in the value-add play the property offers, Matte said. “This was a weird situation for a Dupont Circle building. It just wasn't being used to its full potential.”

The buyer saw the proximity to the embassies as an opportunity for a unique housing option, he said, and plans to "repurpose the property towards corporate travelers and Airbnb stays.”