Jimmy Carter House: the Modest $239,000, Georgia House of the 39th President
When exploring America’s most historically significant homes — from the sprawling Jeff Bezos house to grand political estates — the Jimmy Carter house at 209 Woodland Drive is impossible to ignore.
Tucked along a quiet wooded lane in Plains, Georgia, this modest ranch-style home is one of the most meaningful presidential residences in American history. America’s most important homes always reveal the character of those who lived in them. With hand-built furnishings, a self-dug fishing pond, White House magnolia trees, and a woodworking shop built by a former president, this estate is truly unforgettable.
Jimmy Carter House: Property Snapshot
A rare glimpse into the only home a U.S. president ever owned — modest, meaningful, and entirely his own.
| Feature | Details |
|---|---|
| Location | 209 Woodland Drive, Plains, Georgia 31780 |
| Purchase Price | Built at $10 per square foot (1961) |
| Current Estimated Value | ~$239,000 |
| Year Built | 1960–1961 |
| Square Footage | 3,200 sq ft |
| Lot Size | 2.4 acres (12-acre compound) |
| Bedrooms | 4 (original); reconfigured to 2 bedrooms + office |
| Bathrooms | 4 Bathrooms |
| Special Features | Woodworking shop, guest apartment, screened-in porch, fishing pond, tennis court, swimming pool, back patio, memorial garden |
| Architectural Style | Mid-Century Ranch |
| Status | Now part of Jimmy Carter National Historical Park |
Jimmy Carter House Location
Unlike the commanding presence of a Jamie Dimon house or any Wall Street power address, the Jimmy Carter house sits at 209 Woodland Drive, Plains, Georgia — a town of roughly 700 people where farming, church, and school shape daily life. Now part of the Jimmy Carter National Historical Park, the area includes his boyhood farm, Plains High School museum, and the 1976 campaign Train Depot. This address doesn’t scream power. It whispers something far more rare: genuine humility.
My Visit to the Jimmy Carter House
As a Todd Lynch from Urbansfreaks, Driving through the flat Georgia countryside, the peanut fields gave way to quiet streets before Woodland Drive appeared. Plains feels less like a small town and more like a living museum.
The first view of 209 Woodland Drive stopped me completely. Unlike grand presidential libraries or sweeping estates, this home announces itself with no announcement at all — a low-slung red brick and light green timber ranch house behind a security fence, sitting exactly where it has since 1961. That restraint is the genius of Jimmy Carter himself.
Inside Jimmy Carter House: Interior and Other Features
Step inside and discover hand-crafted furnishings, modest mid-century interiors, and deeply personal touches that make Jimmy Carter’s Plains home one of America’s most genuinely moving residential landmarks.
Entrance
Stepping inside, you feel warmth, practicality, and deeply personal taste. Red brick exterior, light green painted timber, and wall-to-wall light blue carpet throughout bedrooms, living room, hallway, and dining room. No grand foyers, no imported marble — entirely unpretentious. A president who carried his own bags onto Air Force One chose to come home to this, and never once considered leaving.
Living Room
Where a Marc Benioff house might showcase curated modern art and designer interiors, the Carter living room carries something far more honest. Mid-century furnishings, a painting gifted by Fidel Castro, and hand-built pieces crafted by Carter himself make this room unlike any in presidential history. A cocktail table repurposed from a livestock trough sits at the center — functional and original. The 1974 screened-in porch blurs the line between indoors and Georgia outdoors.
Dining Area
The dining area sits within the open-plan ground floor, finished in the same warm materials throughout. It hosted family meals and foreign dignitaries with equal ease, lighting shifting naturally between both. Connected directly to the screened-in rear porch, gatherings spilled into Georgia evening air. Every material choice makes guests feel genuinely at home — built for real conversation, not visual display.
Kitchen
The functional heart of the home. Modest mid-century appliances — including an ancient microwave family joked took 12 minutes to pop popcorn — give it real personality. Cabinets and surfaces are practical and well-used. Connected to the dining area and rear porch, what separates it from any ordinary kitchen is authenticity — a home people actually cooked in across six decades.
Master Bedroom
The master bedroom features the same light blue carpet throughout. Its centerpiece is a hand-crafted four-poster bed built by Carter himself using woodworking skills developed after leaving the presidency. Natural textiles and soft lighting create a restful atmosphere. Rosalynn’s dressing room was carved from an original bedroom during renovations — comfort, craft, and a complete absence of pretension define the space.
Bathroom
Four bathrooms, practical and well-maintained, reflect the ranch-style aesthetic throughout. Warm, simple finishes favour honest materials over decoration. Over decades they’ve hosted family, dignitaries, and sitting presidents alike. President Biden and Dr. Jill Biden visited in 2021, stepping through the same modest front door as every other guest — a detail that quietly says everything about how Carter viewed his home.
Home Office
The original garage was converted into a personal office after Carter returned from the White House in 1981. Shelves hold books, meaningful objects, and mementos of a life in public service. This space housed post-presidential correspondence, writing, and planning for The Carter Center’s humanitarian work — a room where retirement looked, by any measure, more productive than most people’s careers.
Property History
Built in 1960–61 at just $10 per square foot, this is the only house the Carter Houes ever owned. A porch and garage were added in 1974; post-presidency, Carter converted the garage into a woodworking shop and guest apartment. During remodeling, the couple knocked down a wall themselves. They later donated the deed to the National Park Service. Jimmy Carter passed away December 29, 2024. He and Rosalynn are buried across Woodland Drive, beside the pond he dug by hand.
How Much Is the Jimmy Carter House Worth?
Carter built the home at $10 per square foot in 1961 — approximately $109 per square foot in today’s money. The current estimated value sits at roughly $239,000, a figure that made headlines for being less than the cost of the Secret Service vehicles once parked outside.Yet no dollar figure captures its true worth. Its value lies in being the only home a U.S. president ever built and lived in for over six decades, and in its future as a National Park Service museum.
Frequently Asked Questions About the Jimmy Carter House
Curious about visiting, history, or what makes this home so remarkable? Here are the most common questions people ask about the Jimmy Carter house in Plains, Georgia.
Is the Jimmy Carter house open to the public?
Not yet. The gravesite and memorial garden opened in July 2025. Full interior museum tours are planned for the future.
Where is the Jimmy Carter house?
209 Woodland Drive, Plains, Georgia 31780, within the Jimmy Carter National Historical Park.
What does the Jimmy Carter house look like inside?
Wall-to-wall light blue carpet, hand-built furniture, mid-century appliances, a livestock-trough cocktail table, and a painting by Fidel Castro.
What is the Jimmy Carter house worth today?
Approximately $239,000 — famously less than the Secret Service vehicles that once guarded it.
Who built the Jimmy Carter house?
Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter built it in 1960 and 1961, and continued renovating it personally throughout their lives.
What is the Jimmy Carter house architectural style?
Mid-century ranch — low-slung, red brick and light green timber, practical and unpretentious.
Where does Jimmy Carter rest today?
He and Rosalynn are buried in the memorial garden across Woodland Drive, beside the pond Carter dug by hand.
What is The Compound?
The 12 acres of wooded grounds surrounding the home, with gardens, a fishing pond, tennis court, and walking paths.
Where Does Jimmy Live?
Jimmy Carter passed away on December 29, 2024, at the age of 100. He and Rosalynn now rest together in a memorial garden directly across Woodland Drive from their beloved home — beside the pond he dug by hand. The house they built in 1961 for $10 per square foot stands preserved forever, deeded to the National Park Service.
Final Thought
The Jimmy Carter house is one of the most extraordinary properties I have ever explored — not for its grandeur, but for the complete absence of it. The hand-built furniture, the self-dug fishing pond, the woodworking shop of a former president, and the magnolia grown from a White House cutting create something genuinely unlike anything else in America.
Every choice reflects a man who chose simplicity, craftsmanship, and deep connection to home. At Urbansfreek.com, we help homeowners capture that exact feeling every day. If you read it here, don’t stop — there are many more House Tours to explore.
