Updated Arlington Cape Cod

While many Washington-area residents think of Clarendon as the Arlington neighborhood where young professionals live in condos and enjoy plenty of local nightlife and restaurants, this part of Northern Virginia is also full of charming single-family homes that appeal to young families.

Lyon Park, located six blocks from the Clarendon Metro and numerous shops, restaurants and clubs, offers a central location for families to gather while the children enjoy the playground equipment. Each Halloween, residents gather at the park for a neighborhood Halloween parade. A community center at the park is used frequently for community meetings and private gatherings.

Across the street from Lyon Park, on a prime corner lot at 3003 Fourth St. N, an expanded Cape Cod-style home is on the market for $875,000. Built in 1922, this home has been updated with a new kitchen, a new roof, a new water heater and a new electrical panel.

The pale yellow siding of this home is complemented by dark green shutters and a flagstone front walk. Mature trees surround the property, which has been beautifully landscaped on all sides. In the back of the house is a fully fenced, landscaped backyard with a storage shed. A private drive next to the house adds space for off-street parking.

The front door opens into a living room with hardwood flooring and a gas fireplace with an adjacent built-in bookcase. The living room has a double window facing the front yard.

Nearby is a formal dining room with a brushed-nickel chandelier and a window framing a view of the backyard. The dining room has been painted bright red to add a splash of color to the main level.

Just beyond the living room and dining room are two first-floor bedrooms. One bedroom faces the front yard and includes a closet. The second bedroom faces the backyard and has two closets. These two bedrooms are linked by a connecting full bath with a pedestal sink, a tile floor and a combination tub and shower.

Every room on the main and upper levels has its original solid-wood paneled door with the original glass doorknobs.

The updated kitchen, renovated recently with granite counters and stainless steel appliances, has gas cooking. The kitchen includes a distinctive pressed-tin backsplash in a nod to the 1920s, a window over the sink and ceramic tile flooring.

The cabinets have been designed to maximize every inch of space, with narrow cabinets for baking sheets, a special cabinet for wine storage, a pantry and triangular corner cabinets. The wood cabinets have beadboard on the bottom doors and plain fronts on the top.

Both the kitchen and the living room have entrances to the sunroom, a former porch with a beadboard ceiling that has been enclosed.

The sunroom has a picture window facing Lyon Park that nearly fills one wall, plus a window facing the front yard and a sliding glass door that opens onto the wood deck. The sunroom can be used as a family room, a home office, a casual dining area or a playroom. The deck includes a gate with a few steps to the backyard.

Hardwood stairs lead to the upper level, which has hardwood flooring throughout. At the top of the stairs is a charming landing with a dormer window, under-eaves storage and a second window. This space easily could be used as a reading or computer nook.

The master bedroom features a sloping ceiling with three skylights, a wall of mirrored closets and undereaves storage. At one end of the bedroom is a nook with two windows overlooking the backyard, perfect for a cozy sitting area.