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In Belair at Bowie, the street name tells you the section: every street in a Levitt section starts with the section’s first letter, so Farris Lane is Foxhill and Kenly Place is Kenilworth. That 1960s planning trick still matters at the closing table, because the best comparable sales for a Belair house are almost always on its own lettered streets.
This guide covers how Belair was built, all fifteen single-family sections and when each went up, how to recognize the Levitt models (including the ones most people have never heard of), and what Belair homes actually sold for in 2026.
How did Belair at Bowie begin?
Levitt and Sons bought the Woodward family’s Belair estate in August 1957 for $1,750,000, about 2,226 acres. The plan called for 4,500 houses; the final count was about 7,500. Levitt opened sales in October 1960 with eight furnished display houses, and the first residents moved in during October 1961.
In 1963 Belair merged into the City of Bowie, which is why the original Levitt sections sit inside city limits today, with Bowie Police, twice weekly city trash pickup and the City’s own water and sewer system that Levitt originally built. The estate’s centerpiece, Belair Mansion, built around 1745 for Provincial Governor Samuel Ogle, still stands at 12207 Tulip Grove Drive as a free City museum, open Saturdays and Sundays, 11 a.m. to 4 p.m.
What are the Belair sections, and when were they built?
| Section | Street letter | Built |
|---|---|---|
| Somerset | S | 1960 to 1964 |
| Buckingham | B | 1960 to 1964 |
| Kenilworth | K | 1960 to 1964 |
| Foxhill | F | 1960 to 1964 |
| Tulip Grove | T | 1960 to 1964 |
| Long Ridge | L | 1964 to 1965 |
| Heather Hills | H | 1965 |
| Meadowbrook, Chapel Forge, Whitehall, Rockledge, Overbrook, Yorktown, Idlewild, Victoria Heights | M, C, W, R, O, Y, I, V | 1964 to 1968 |
| Belair Town I and II (about 300 townhouses) | n/a | 1968 to 1970 |
Two details trip up buyers. First, Heather Hills is the only Belair section south of Route 50, so people often do not realize it is Levitt. Second, the City of Bowie’s own water system lists the single-family sections in its service area, along with nearby Bowie Forest, Derbyshire and Glenridge. Water and sewer bills go to the City, not WSSC Water.
How do I recognize the Levitt models?
The Historic American Buildings Survey records six original models at the 1960 launch, ranging from $14,990 to $27,500 and from 1,400 to 2,508 square feet: the Cape Cod, the Rancher, a three bedroom Colonial, a four bedroom Colonial, the Country Clubber, and the Manor House. Most original lots measured about 8,400 square feet.
The Manor House is the rarity. At 2,508 square feet and $27,500, it opened in February 1961, and Levitt had stopped taking orders for it by the time the first residents moved in that October.
In 1964 Levitt renamed the line, which is why older listings and original sales brochures use different names for the same house:
| 1960 name | Name from 1964 | Recognize it by |
|---|---|---|
| Cape Cod | The Ardsley | Steep roof, upstairs rooms under the eaves |
| Rancher | The Buckingham | One level, long low roofline |
| Rancher with family room (after 1963) | The Devon | One level with a separate family room |
| Colonials (3 and 4 bedroom) | The Cambridge and The Gladstone | Full two stories |
| Country Clubber | The Framingham | The larger original plan |
| n/a | The Kensington | Small one-story model, offered only in 1967 and 1968 |
Sixty years of additions blur the lines, but the roofline and front door placement usually still give the model away. Our Levitt homes guide goes deeper on what to inspect and which updates pay off.
What do Belair homes sell for in 2026?
In Bright MLS data, April to September 2026, subdivisions tagged Belair recorded 158 closed sales at a $500,000 median and a 13 day median on market, faster than the 19 days for all four Bowie ZIP codes combined. Individual sections that agents entered by name:
| Section (MLS name) | Median sale | Sales | Median days on market |
|---|---|---|---|
| Belair (all tagged) | $500,000 | 158 | 13 |
| Somerset | $536,000 | 11 | 31 |
| Whitehall | $520,000 | 12 | 13 |
| Foxhill | $500,000 | 10 | 7 |
| Heather Hills | $490,000 | 5 | 27 |
| Idlewild | $485,000 | 5 | 8 |
Sample sizes are small, so read these as direction, not a price tag. Foxhill’s 7 day median shows how quickly an updated Colonial goes. Somerset’s 31 days with a higher median says the spread between updated and dated houses is wide. Across the whole market the median ran about $264 per square foot, and a 3 bedroom home sold at a $470,000 median while a 4 bedroom sold at $585,000.
What should I check before buying a Belair house?
Most original sections have no mandatory HOA, though civic associations are active. That means no HOA disclosure package, but also no architectural review for your neighbors’ projects. Inside city limits, fences over 4 feet, sheds of 150 square feet or more, and anything else needing a county building permit also need a City of Bowie permit.
On inspection, focus on original cast iron or galvanized plumbing, the electrical panel and any original wiring, moisture at the slab or crawlspace, older windows, and whether past additions were permitted. Every home here predates 1978, so expect the federal lead paint disclosure. Because these sections are on City sewer, a camera scope of the sewer lateral is cheap insurance under mature trees.
City water and sewer rates for fiscal 2026 were $7.11 and $10.20 per thousand gallons. The City property tax rate rises to $0.58 per $100 of assessed value for fiscal 2027, so ask your lender to escrow at the new rate. More detail: our Bowie homeowner guide and Bowie property taxes explained.
What is close to Belair?
Annapolis Road (MD 450) runs through the sections, with Bowie High School at 15200 Annapolis Road and the Free State Shopping Center and Bowie Marketplace nearby. Belair Mansion and the Belair Stable Museum are both run by the City; the stable belonged to the Woodward family’s Belair Stud, whose horses included Triple Crown winners Gallant Fox (1930) and Omaha (1935), plus Nashua in the 1950s. Route 50 sits at the southern edge for the drive to DC or Annapolis. For school assignments, enter the exact address in the PGCPS boundary tool, since boundaries were redrawn and section names do not decide them.
Thinking about buying or selling in Belair?
See current Belair homes and data, compare sections with the Bowie neighborhood quiz, or get a home value estimate for your Levitt house. Call or text Bruno at (240) 418-3809, 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. daily.
Sources: Historic American Buildings Survey, Belair at Bowie, Library of Congress, City of Bowie New Residents, City of Bowie Building Permit FAQ, City of Bowie shed rules, Bright MLS data, April to September 2026.
