Obamas Probably Staying in DC ‘a Couple of Years’ After Presidency Ends

The president reveals his future living plans.

ByABC News
March 3, 2016, 3:29 PM
President Barack Obama has lunch with ACA letter writers at Engine Company No 3 in Milwaukee, March 3, 2016. Joining the president are Brent Brown, Karen George,  Karen and Sharon Szyszko and Susan Campbell.
President Barack Obama has lunch with ACA letter writers at Engine Company No 3 in Milwaukee, March 3, 2016. Joining the president are Brent Brown, Karen George, Karen and Sharon Szyszko and Susan Campbell.
Carolyn Kaster/AP Photo

— -- President Obama says he is likely to remain in the nation's capital “a couple of years” after his presidency ends.

The president was making small talk over lunch with a group of letter writers (Americans who have mailed letters to the White House and were chosen by the president's aides) in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, when one asked if his home was Hawaii.

The president answered that he considered Hawaii “home” but acknowledged that he spent 30 years in Chicago, stressing that is where he met Michelle and his daughters were born.

Asked if he would go back to Chicago after he leaves the White House, Obama answered, "We haven't figured that out yet. We're gonna have to stay a couple of years in DC, probably, so that Sasha can graduate. Cause transferring somebody in the middle of high school -- tough."

Obama's comments represent the first clear indication that he and his family will maintain a presence in Washington after they move out of the White House next January.

Sasha Obama will be a sophomore in high school when the next president takes over. If the Obamas stay in Washington until she graduates, that would keep them in the nation’s capital until at least May 2019 – assuming she doesn’t skip or repeat a grade.