relocation (Baltimore, Ellicott City, Glen Burnie: for sale, real estate, crime)

[purplemann]

my husband and i may be moving up that way pretty soon...my problem is that people are telling us we should find a place in va to live and make the commute to the airport-where he will be working...
does anyone have any suggestions? we live in memphis, tn; which is ranked 10 in the 50 worst cities to live in-we would like to get away from all the crime and corruption and live somewhere a little quieter

[barante]

Now which airport would that be? If it is Thurgood Marshall Baltimore Washington International Airport -- and this you must repeat 10 times -- living in Virginia makes absolutely no sense. In fact, it's the most harebrained suggestion I have heard all year.
But if it is BWI, then I can heartily recommend Linthicum. It is just five minutes away from the airport by car. Light rail also goes there in equal amount of time.
We have friends in Linthicum and at one time even considered looking there ourselves. On recent visits I have seen some "For Sale" signs. But you have to understand that Linthicum's real estate prices and housing availablity depend less on national economy than on whether the National Security Agency and/or Northrop Grumman are hiring or not.
For several years the Women's Club (I hope I got name right) has sponsored summer concerts near Linthicum's High School. Older people, some families with children. Very orderly.
Yet there are plenty of excellent restaurants nearby, including one that reputedly serves Baltimore's best crabcakes.
What I like about Linthicum is that at least North Linthicum is not on any flight paths. So we can sit on my friends' patio without constant aicraft noise even though we are close to the airport.

[emsgoof]

Yes, need to know which airport to give you a more valid answer.
BWI (I can't bring myself to call it Thurgood Marshall Baltimore Washington International Airport)- Glen Burnie, Linthicum, Odenton are all decent areas (some parts of Glen Burnie are more run down than others, but it's still better than some places in the state)
National Airport (Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport...) - do a search for places that have decent metro access, and just take the metro in to National.
Dulles Airport- Out west on I-66 or Rt. 7 in Northern Virginia will be your best bet.

[purplemann]

it would be bwi...it's the fedex ramp
thanks for your help!

[barante]

Halethorpe in Baltimore County is another possibility. An easy commute of perhaps 15 minutes to BWI. Nice historic houses and prices should not be bad. It's not Linthicum, my No. 1 choice, but you should check it out.
About the Virginia commute. Here is what I wrote on another thread:
I know a guy who teaches at the National War College at Fort McNair, near Alexandria. He has to be out of his home in Ellicott City at 4:30 a.m. in order to be sure he gets to the early classes. Similarly, he has to leave Fort McNair by 2:30 p.m. or the traffic is going to be so horrendous that he might as well have dinner in Virginia and then drive home
You don't want to be part of that mess. Your commute would be nigthmarishly long and expensive without any commesurate savings at the Virginia end.

[bande1102]

I'm in Crofton and used to work in Linthicum (near BWI) and it took me about 20-30 minutes to get to work. My shift was 6-2 or 7-3pm so I was a little earlier, but even so the commute isn't so bad-- very easy to just follow Rt 97 in.

we live in memphis, tn; which is ranked 10 in the 50 worst cities to live in-we would like to get away from all the crime and corruption and live somewhere a little quieter

Crofton is a nice, safe little community--Money magazine just ranked it number 72 out of the top 100 best places Here's the link MONEY Magazine: Best places to live 2007: Crofton, MD snapshot

Good luck.