A rare real estate find is expected to hit the market in Arlington later this month: a “Missing Middle” home.
A duplex at 2129 N. Troy Street in North Highlands will begin hosting showings on May 30, according to a Redfin posting. The four-bedroom, three-and-a-half bath home comes with 2,470 square feet and a listed price tag of $1,795,000.
That’s more expensive than most dwellings in Arlington, prompting criticism from opponents of the now-stalled Missing Middle zoning policy, but less expensive than most new single-family development.
In 2024, the average price of a new single-family detached home in the county was about $2.4 million, according to a market review by local realtor Eli Tucker. The average resale price was significantly lower, at around $1.3 million.
Overall, Arlington’s average single-family property had an assessed value of $854,900 at the start of this year.
In the most recent county data, the Troy Street project was one of only three properties in Arlington with an active development permit under the Expanded Housing Options.
The “Missing Middle” zoning changes approved in 2023 allowed for by-right construction of smaller multifamily buildings in previously single-family areas. A circuit court judge overturned the change in September following a lawsuit, but later allowed previously approved projects to continue as Arlington County indicated that it planned to appeal.
For the time being, the court ruled that EHO projects, including the one at Troy Street, must post a notice in land records indicating the properties’ precarious legal status.
“To potential purchasers, please be advised that a lawsuit is on appeal to the Court of Appeals of Virginia and then perhaps to the Supreme Court of Virginia that may void your zoning rights to this property and may result in your right to live in this property being eliminated,” the notice reads.
Many would-be EHO developers appear to be either waiting for the appeal to resolve or changing their approach. As of last month, an ARLnow analysis found that at least 16 of the county’s 45 projects with previously approved EHO permits had applied to become single-family development projects instead.
The ongoing lawsuit isn’t the only legal headache for Arlington County related to Missing Middle.
At least two property owners, including the one at the Troy Street property, are currently wrangling with the county over its handling of the recent court decisions.
Advantage Properties, the developer at 2129 N. Troy Street, has filed an appeal with the county’s Board of Zoning Appeals. The company wants the county to assert that it has “vested rights” to develop the EHO project.
Barry Seymour, manager for property owner Gordon Gulfview, told ARLnow that he had invested substantial time and resources into the project before last year’s court ruling. He ultimately hopes to remove the notice in the land records, which he sees as “a cloud on my title.”
“I’ll be okay,” he said. “I will prevail, and you can quote me on that.”
Additionally, the property owner of two sites at 1225 N. Quincy Street and at 5041 and 5043 25th Street S. is appealing the county’s declaration that EHO permits at these properties are void.
Both cases are scheduled to go before the Board of Zoning Appeals today (Thursday), but the Board is expected to defer the second appeal to its October hearing.
