On May 11, in the Great Room of the Folger Shakespeare Library, Hugh Kelly will be honored as one of this year’s recipients of the Capitol Hill Community Achievement Award. For over 40 years, this Capitol Hill Realtor, affiliated with Colwell Banker, has been an active supporter of the Hill community and a long-time booster of the neighborhood. The Award, given by the Capitol Hill Community Foundation, acknowledges his many contributions.

Surprisingly, Hugh does not live on Capitol Hill, or even in a house. His dwelling is a houseboat on the southwest waterfront marina. At one time Hugh Kelly felt uncomfortable letting people know he lived on a houseboat. As a realtor, he thought it might be bad for business. In fact, years ago he refused a request from a local TV station to do a feature about his unique life. But these days, with 32 years of real estate sales behind him, Hugh Kelly doesn’t mind if his clients know about his houseboat home.

“I wasn’t expecting such a sense of community on the waterfront,” he said. “It’s similar to living on the Hill, just a little quirkier.” He said feels privileged living on his 52-foot power boat and enjoys the peace and quiet with his two miniature poodles spunky Belle and 17-year-old Winnie. It’s a great escape from the intensity of the real estate business that he has done seven days a week for most of his career. During the winters Hugh said he stays hooked up to the dock, but when the weather gets warmer he often “takes his house out for a spin.”

He’s lived on a boat in southwest DC longer than any single place although since coming to DC in 1962, Hugh said he’s lived in 25 homes on the Hill. “There are a couple I wish I hadn’t sold,” he mused.

He didn’t start his career as a realtor. Hugh came to DC from New York as a young man fresh out of law school. He worked for seven years as a trial attorney with the government, then transferred to a job in the Senate. While working at the Senate, Hugh bought and sold a few houses. “I got my feet wet as a client,” he explained. “I thought, ‘this could be kind of fun.”

Hugh said the years in the business have been fun, although he remembers many sleepless nights in those first years of getting used to a job that depended on commissions versus one with a steady income. “I went from a good job where everyone returned phone calls to one where no one returned my call,” he said. “It was a big adjustment.”

Hugh has been able to continue to enjoy the real estate business he said by incorporating his interest and talents for marketing into his own business. He pioneered the process of photographing and printing flyers of homes for sale. His office is adorned with photos of which he is especially proud. “I really enjoy marketing,” he said. “Incorporating my creative component into my real estate business is what makes it continuously new and interesting to me.” 

 What he especially likes about the business are the people he meets. “Everybody has a story more than in most industries,” he said. He’s seen many changes in the market and the industry over the years and he is very excited about the developments in DC and particularly the Hill.

He said the Hill is a great place in which to invest and live. “The convenience the Hill affords its residents is unheard of in other parts of the city,” he said.

Growing up in North Dakota Hugh said his love of the water started very early in his life. “It’s so parched there my family always used the lake and community swimming holes.”  Living in New York during law school didn’t offer much opportunity to pursue his love of sailing. When he moved to DC, Hugh said a $67 investment changed his life. “When I was attending a cocktail party, I purchased a third of a share of a sailboat sight unseen for a friend,” he explained. “When I took a look at my purchase the next day, all I could see was one foot of a mast sticking up through the ice.” He had to wait until a thaw before he could begin work on the boat.

What spare time Hugh has is often taken up with the upkeep of his boat. He also enjoys reading yachting and real estate books and periodicals, and dinner and theater with friends. For years, he said, the business didn’t allow him to travel. Hugh now has a business partner, which gives him freedom to take days off without leaving clients in the lurch.

Pattie Cinelli writes profiles of unique people living and/or working on Capitol Hill. If you know someone you think would make a good profile please contact her at:  www.pattiecinelli.com.