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On the market: A three-bedroom rowhouse in Society Hill for $895,000

Built in 1809, it has historic accents such as pine floors with inlaid design and crown moldings.

The owners, who plan to stay in Society Hill, relish close relationships with neighbors — ”shoveling snow, looking out for packages.”
The owners, who plan to stay in Society Hill, relish close relationships with neighbors — ”shoveling snow, looking out for packages.”Read morePowelton Digital Media Group

“It was the block that sold us at first,” says Dubravka Ritter.

With kids looming, she and her husband, Moritz, were looking for something larger than their Society Hill high-rise condo but wanted to stay in the neighborhood.

The brick Federal-style rowhouse was a good fit, with three bedrooms, a den, 2½ baths and — most of all — a community feel that let them slip from anonymity to socializing and back with little effort.

“It’s such a low-density block, with a courtyard on one side and five houses on the other and plenty of open space,” she says.

The couple are from Europe: Dubravka, a researcher for the Federal Reserve Bank, is from Bosnia and Moritz, an economics professor, from Germany. And to her, the area has an almost European feel.

They relish close relationships with neighbors — ”shoveling snow, looking out for packages” — and look forward to frequently entertaining overseas visitors in a post-COVID time.

Three Bears Park “is our back yard, the crown jewel of the neighborhood,” she says.

But now, with two school-age children, they are looking for something larger in Queen Village.

Their current house gets more sunlight than most rowhouses and has great outdoor space and a full basement.

Built in 1809, it has historic accents such as pine floors with inlaid design and crown moldings and marble steps leading into the vestibule.

The first floor has a powder room and an open living/dining room that accommodates seating for up to eight people.

The kitchen has large, south-facing windows, a gas range, stainless steel appliances, granite countertops, and ample storage. The bricked yard has storage receptacles tucked out of sight.

The second floor has high ceilings and an open den, a large bedroom currently used as a home office, and an updated full bath with two closets.

The top floor has a main bedroom with historic, wide-plank wood floors, another bedroom, and a full bath.

The basement has ample shelf space, 1,000-bottle-plus wine cellar, enclosed mechanicals and laundry room, and a bonus room currently used for storage but convertible to a home office.

The house is in the McCall School catchment area.

“Our kids say they will love this house more than any other house,” Dubravka says.

The house is listed by Pamela Rosser-Thistle of BHHS Fox & Roach at the Harper, Rittenhouse Square for $895,000.