Apollo 9 astronaut's Bay Area home hits the market for the first time in 25 years

SONOMS, Calif. - A Bay Area home owned by an Apollo 9 astronaut and his wife, a former Capitol Hill legislative director, is on the market for the first time in 25 years. It’s being sold at an asking price of $2.5 million.

The nearly 3,100-acre Sonoma property is located at 760 5th Street East, not far from the historic Sonoma Plaza.

The backstory:

The house was last purchased in May 2000 for $680,000 by NASA astronaut Russell (Rusty) Schweickart and his wife Nancy Ramsey, who served as a legislative director for Massachusetts Sen. John Kerry.

Light-filled home 

Their three-bedroom, three-bathroom home is described as having abundant natural light with elegant, high ceilings and an open and comfortable feel.

"The dramatic entry with a soaring ceiling and split staircase draws your eyes upward," the listing states, adding, "The floor plan flows effortlessly, offering a formal dining room and spacious kitchen with breakfast area."

The many windows invite sunlight to pour into the home.

The property also boasts a manicured and private backyard and garden. 

‘Fickle’ market

The house went on the market on July 1.

Listing agent Kathleen Leonard with Compass Real Estate said that the property has received interest but has not been sold yet. "The real estate market has been quite fickle recently," Leonard said, adding, "Homes on the market are taking longer to sell."

SEE ALSO: This East Bay 'residential oasis' has home prices in the $200,000s

She said figures showed that properties in the $2 to $3 million price range were seeing a three-and-a-half to four-month absorption rate. "The absorption rate is the amount of time it will take to sell all the available homes if no new properties come on the market," Leonard explained.

The realtor also projected that the region was approaching a buyer’s market.

"We are seeing offers and sold prices below asking," she said, adding, "Compass economists are predicting a 41% increase in the number of listings coming on the market in September, nationwide. It’s to be seen how long those homes will take to sell and at what price."

Dig deeper:

Schweickart is now 89 years old. 

He joined NASA in 1963. Back then, he was one of 14 astronauts in the five-year-old space agency.

"He served as lunar module pilot for Apollo 9, March 3-13, 1969, logging 241 hours in space. This was the third manned flight of the Apollo series and the first manned flight of the lunar module," according to NASA.

Schweickart also served as a backup commander for the first Skylab mission. Skylab was the country's first space station and the first crewed research laboratory in space.

The astronaut's work on the Skylab mission earned him NASA’s Exceptional Service Medal in 1973.

Among his other work, Schweickart co-founded the Mill Valley-based non-profit B612 Foundation, which the organization said seeks to "develop tools and technologies to understand, map, and navigate our solar system and protect our planet from asteroid impacts."

His wife is also a part of the B612 Foundation donor support team. Ramsey's other work includes being an author, entrepreneur, and futurist. Before joining Sen. Kerry's staff, she led a Washington, D.C.-based consulting firm specializing in arms control, international affairs, and national security, according to her profile on the foundation's website.

What's next:

After the sale of their home, the couple plans to remain in the Bay Area, their realtor said.