Edwards Sells Georgetown Home for $5.2M

WASHINGTON -- Former Sen. John Edwards, who on Thursday announced he was running a second time for president, has sold his Georgetown house for $5.2 million.

Edwards, the Democrats' vice presidential nominee in 2004, purchased the P Street property for $3.8 million in 2002 and extensively renovated it. After his two younger children finished the 2004-05 school year, the Edwards family returned to North Carolina, where Edwards built a new home on a 100-acre estate in Chapel Hill.

The Washington house had been on the market for since spring 2005. As of last week, the advertised price for the six-bedroom property was $5.6 million.

"It was hard to find the right buyer," said W. Ted Gossett, the Edwards' real estate agent who confirmed the sale. He said the deal closed on Tuesday.

The Federal-style home, located two blocks from Georgetown University, was built in 1830. The four-story, yellow house previously was owned by Washington hostess Polly Wisner Fritchey, the widow of former CIA deputy director Frank Wisner and columnist Clayton Fritchey.

Edwards on Thursday officially began his second campaign for president. After speaking in Hurricane Katrina-ravaged New Orleans, he began a six-state tour with stops in Iowa, New Hampshire, Nevada, South Carolina _ all early voting states _ and his home state of North Carolina.