Megan Shapiro

Megan Shapiro and her partner Megan Shapiro Marvelously Marketing to Buyers and Sellers by Jessica White M Lisowski Realty Committed to a higher standard.... 120 4th ST NE RARE, LOCATION, LOCATION, LOCATION Don’t miss this opportunity to own a wonderful single family house on a beautifully landscaped double lot! This home boasts 3 bedrooms with 3 full baths, chef ’s kitchen and a newly built HUGE garage. Central AC, hardwood floors and outdoor kitchen. This home has it all. $989,900 onsored Look for my sp me at the ho ation Tour Home Rennov . 13th. apitol Hill Oct on C 1343 A ST NE ays rice! P n3D old i Asking S ove Ab SOMETIMES BIGGER IS BETTER Don’t sell the furniture yet! This home boasts 3 spacious bedrooms and 2 full baths upstairs, plus a bright lower level in-law suite with 4th bedroom, full bath, separate kitchen and laundry. Central A/C, hardwood floors, chef ’s kitchen, huge yard and 2 car garage. Original woodwork, amazing craftsmanship. Steps to Lincoln park. James T. Lisowski 202-550-7278 Cell 1-866-894-1470 Fax www.lisowskirealty.com 220 7th St SE Washington DC 20003 egan Shapiro is practically a hometown girl. Growing up in Rockville, Md., Shapiro attended Georgetown Visitation Preparatory School before leaving the city to attend college at Tulane in New Orleans where she majored in communications. “I was going to be a journalist,” she said. During her first year at Tulane, she met Seth Shapiro, whom she later married. “We were on the same freshman year dorm hall, but we did not start dating until junior year … and we married three years after graduation,” she explained. Upon graduation in 1993, the pair spent three months driving across country in a “tiny little Toyota Paseo. It had a back seat, but a person could not even fit back there,” she explained. “We lived out of the car and camped. We had to have a place for everything (in the car). My toothbrush was in a little pocket in the back seat.” And so the pair traveled from Tulane to the Badlands in South Carolina, up the northeast, through Ohio, Wisconsin, Seattle, down the Pacific Coastal Highway, San Francisco, Jackson Hole Wyoming, and “all the canyons.” “Early in our trip, we stopped in Atlanta and dumped our stuff so we knew we would be coming back to Atlanta. It was 1993, and the economy was not so great. We knew the Olympics were coming in 1996, so we figured we could get jobs there. My first job was with Turner International, training people on computer systems. I flew to Buenos Aires, Rio, Tokyo, London, Hong Kong, Sydney. … I quit because I did not like all the traveling,” she stated. Instead, Megan and Seth opened a “50s” diner in Atlanta. “It was just a little lunch counter kind of place. We served only breakfast and lunch. And it literally was a 50s diner,” she said. “It was built in the 1950s. It had spinning seats at the lunch counter and black and red tiles on the floor.” After five years and one child, they sold the business and their house to move back to Washington to be closer to both of their families. “It was another transition period, and we like clean breaks. We sold everything and took three months off again, this time in Maine. We were in Maine when September 11 happened, and it was weird because we were going to move to Washington,” Shapiro stated. “We knew we wanted to live in Takoma Park or Capitol Hill, and our realtor found us a perfect house in Takoma Park – and we did not buy it. At that point, we knew we could only live on the Hill,” she said. When their son started prekindergarten, Megan Shapiro decided to take up real estate. “I loved the class. I called my real estate agent, Todd Norris, who found us our house on the Hill, and asked him his advice, and he said to join RE/MAX Allegiance. I ultimately joined Norris’s team, and a new member, George Olson, just joined us,” she said. (She is licensed in DC, Maryland and Virginia.) Her husband, Seth, had been working for Marvelous Market and ultimately managed 10 stores. Then in 2006, the Shapiros took the plunge and opened up their own Marvelous Market right across the street from Eastern Market at the corner of Seventh and C streets SE. “The community support is better 152 ★ HillRag |October 2007 than we ever imagined, and we are so thankful for everyone’s support,” she said. Megan Shapiro’s office is half a block away from Marvelous Market, and their son attends programs at the Capitol Hill Arts Workshop, so coordinating work and family life is made easier. “Capitol Hill is like a little village – it is so great,” said Shapiro. “I love being a realtor because it is an all encompassing career. I have to sell myself, sell houses, market houses, get out there, talk to people. I conduct work from my home, my office, Marvelous Market, Eastern Market – wherever I am. … I have to get out there and talk to people and it is fun and exciting, but I also am comfortable writing contracts and putting together virtual tours and flyers,” she continued. “I am good at assessing peoples’ needs. I am happy to educate first time homebuyers about the entire process, or be more hands off if the customer prefers. Since I am local, I know a lot of people in the area that can offer a lot of resources to my customers, and I am a perfectionist,” she continued. “I think the housing market in the city is a bit more protected than that of the suburbs. While no one is immune to what is going on in the larger market, I do not think housing prices here will crash, I think they will just be flat for a while,” she concluded. With a successful career, a Marvelous Market, and a young son, it seems like Shapiro’s months-long traveling sprees are over, and she is focused instead on helping others put down roots in this or other villages. To reach Megan Shapiro, call 202-548-8721, 202-3294068, or visit www.meganshapiro.sell4.com. Jessica White, also known as “Ms. Mortgage Maven,” is a mortgage consultant with Tenacity Mortgage. Call or e-mail her to discuss your home purchase or refinancing needs. She can be reached at 202-607-4449 or Jessica@msmortgagemaven.com. You can also apply online at www. msmortgagemaven.com. ■ BURGER Realtor Luxury Homes & Condominiums 1312 Independence Avenue SE $1,400,000 SOLD CHUCK “Call. Let’s Talk!” COLDWELL BANKER 605 Pennsylvania Ave., SE Washington, DC 20003 202.258.5316 Cell 202.741.1676 Direct Line cburger@cbmove.com capitalcommunitynews.com ★ 153