After nearly five years of ownership, Chris Hughes has decided to part ways with his stately Romanesque Revival residence in the prestigious Kalorama enclave of Washington, D.C. The Facebook cofounder has put an $8.8 million price tag on the historic digs, with Marin Hagen and Sylvia Bergstrom of Coldwell Banker Realty sharing the listing.
Hughes and his husband, political activist Sean Eldridge, purchased the property in spring 2021 for around $7.8 million. Built in the early 1900s for the president of Lincoln National Bank, the brick-and-mortar structure offers six bedrooms, half a dozen full bathrooms, and two powder rooms in roughly 8,800 square feet boasting rustic hardwood floors, 11-foot ceilings, detailed crown molding, restored pocket doors, an elevator, and a central staircase topped by a skylight.
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1823 Phelps Place Chris Hughes House DC
An entry vestibule introduces the main level of the four-story home, with a foyer donning the original paneling flowing to formal living and dining rooms. A fireside family room with built-in shelving connects to a kitchen with top-tier Bosch, Viking, and Sub-Zero appliances, while a light-filled breakfast room has French doors spilling out to a fountain-clad pergola with an alfresco dining area and a grilling station.
An upstairs primary suite comes with a fireplace, a beverage center-equipped dressing room, and a marble bath featuring dual vanities and a freestanding soaking tub. A couple more en suite bedrooms can also be found on this floor, with the topmost level holding two more bedrooms and the lower level decked out with a media room, a gym, a wine cellar, an in-law suite with its own entrance, and access to a two-car garage.
1823 Phelps Place Chris Hughes House DC
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A Harvard graduate, Hughes is best known for playing a pivotal role in Facebook’s early development alongside Mark Zuckerberg, serving as a spokesperson and later as the head of product management. After leaving Facebook in 2007, he oversaw digital strategy for Barack Obama’s 2008 presidential campaign and went on to acquire a majority stake in The New Republic magazine, serving as publisher, executive chairman, and editor-in chief until its sale in 2016. More recently, he penned the book “Marketcrafters: The 100-Year Struggle to Shape the American Economy.”
Hughes and Eldridge previously restored the historic Whippoorwill Farm in Garrison, N.Y., before selling the 80-acre county estate in 2025 for $9.5 million. They have also bought and sold luxury properties in Manhattan.
Click here for more photos of the Kalorama residence.
Chris Hughes House DC
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