Washington Oaks

Washington Oaks is the Princeton neighborhood that keeps the town's public schools within reach for buyers who might otherwise be priced out. Developed in the 1990s by Calton Homes on 73 acres at the southern edge of Princeton, it is a genuinely mixed community of condominium flats, townhomes, and a smaller number of single-family houses, roughly 300 homes in all, bordering Princeton Battlefield State Park. Because the housing types vary so widely, so do the prices: condo flats have recently closed in the $610,000s to the $680,000s while townhomes have run from the high $700,000s to about $1.15M, with the occasional larger single-family home reaching higher. That two-tier structure, rather than any single average, is what makes Washington Oaks one of the more attainable ways into Princeton Public Schools.

The homes

Washington Oaks holds three distinct formats. The condominium flats are generally two-bedroom homes of roughly 1,296 to 1,827 square feet, the most affordable tier and a common entry point for first-time buyers and downsizers. The townhomes run two to four bedrooms and about 1,532 to 2,402 square feet, in both interior and end-of-row configurations, with end-of-row units and larger floor plans commanding a premium. A smaller number of single-family detached houses sit at the top of the community; one four-bedroom home of about 2,972 square feet closed at $1.65M in 2024. All of it dates to the 1990s, so layouts, closets, and mechanical systems are newer than most of Princeton's older housing stock. Homeowners association dues run roughly $259 to $333 per month depending on the unit type.

The setting

The neighborhood sits on the southern edge of Princeton and borders Princeton Battlefield State Park, giving residents walking trails, open green space, and a direct link to Revolutionary War history that most subdivisions cannot offer. Streets within the community include Neil Ct, Brickhouse Rd, Wilkinson Way, Hutchinson Dr, Benjamin Rush Ln, Rodney Ct, and Fleming Way, and the grounds include tennis courts and playgrounds. The trade-off is distance from the town center: walking to Nassau Street is not realistic, so residents drive for most errands. Route 206 is close for trips north and south, and Princeton Junction is roughly 12 minutes away by car for NJ Transit service toward New York and Trenton.

Schools

Every home in Washington Oaks is served by Johnson Park Elementary School, part of Princeton Public Schools, with students continuing to Princeton Middle School and Princeton High School. Access to this district is the central reason buyers target the neighborhood, and because the condo flats and townhomes sit well below Princeton's detached-home prices, Washington Oaks opens that district to households that could not otherwise buy into it. The full range of Princeton district programs is available to students regardless of which elementary school they attend.

Market position

Rather than a single median, Washington Oaks is best read as two markets under one name. Condominium flats have recently closed in the roughly $610,000 to $683,000 range, putting a Princeton-schools address within reach at a price well under the town-wide detached median. Townhomes have closed from about $766,000 to $1.15M depending on size, position, and updates, and the handful of single-family homes sit higher still. For buyers and sellers alike, pricing here depends on comparing a specific unit to true comparables of the same type, condo to condo and townhome to townhome, rather than to a blended neighborhood average, which is where working with an agent who knows the community pays off.