Chesapeake or NN... (Virginia Beach, Norfolk, Newport News: oceanfront, apartment complex, lease)

[jhhc99]

What are some pros and cons about each area?

[artistatheart]

I don't know enough about Chesapeake to tell you any pros or cons, except that it's close to Virginia Beach, so, if you like the beach, that's a definite plus.

The cons of living in Newport News, I find, depend largely on where you live. The southeast section is every bit as bad as everyone says it is, but, if you live anywhere north of 17 (aka J. Clyde Morris Blvd. and Avenue of the Arts) you'll never be touched by that. The school system has a bad reputation, but, again, if you choose where you live wisely, your schools will be just fine.

The pros are that the houses are reasonably priced and you're close to a lot of shopping and entertainment possibilities. The people are friendly, and, I find, you're centrally located enough to have a lot of things to do within a reasonable radius (Busch Gardens, Water Country, Colonial Williamsburg, Jamestown, Yorktown, Virginia Living Museum, The Noland Trail, The Virginia Zoo, Norfolk Botanical Gardens, Virginia Beach, The VB Aquarium, the Portsmouth Children's Museum, etc.). We like it here, but I've heard Chesapeake is nice, too.

Nice to have too many good possibilities, isn't it?

[jhhc99]

According to the military BAH we actually are given more $ because cost of living in Newport News is more expensive than the surrounding cities. So that would be a pro moving to NN = more $. I wish we had time to come up and visit because I dont like the thought of renting for a few years in an area we end up not liking. Even if worse came to worse my husband hates moving so its not like we could move to a different area just because we didnt like it lol. We've heard Chesapeake is nice but there is congestion most days but the schools are good. We also love the beach so living closer to it is a pro. How far is NN from the beach? How far is Chesapeake from grocery shopping/retail shopping etc? Where we live now is a nice and safe area of Northeast FL BUT we are 1/2 hour from decent shopping and dining which annoys us.

[artistatheart]

Like I said, I don't really know anything about Chesapeake, so I'm not going to be any help there at all. Newport News is about 45 minutes from the VB oceanfront when there's no traffic. Usually, we leave for the beach in the morning from NN, and we don't hit much tunnel traffic at all. On the way back, it's hit or miss. Personally, I don't mind the tunnels so much if I don't have a set time I have to be somewhere (ie. I would never want to commute daily through the tunnel, and I don't like to have appointments on the other side of the tunnel because of the possibility of being late. I don't much mind the occasional traffic jam, though, when I'm just going to the beach or to the zoo, and it really doesn't matter what time I get there).

We used to live in a mountain town in CA, and it would take us 45 minutes to get anywhere, so we consider NN a nice change of pace. We lived in Yorktown and considered it a little far away from everything for our tastes, but there is an apartment complex there (Clairmont Apts.) that was safe and allowed us to rent month to month. It wasn't cheap, but it allowed us to get a feel for the area before buying. We lived there 5 months. Personally, I would be very uncomfortable settling in before I'd had a good chance to look around, so I feel for your predicament.

[jhhc99]

I wasn't exactly directing those specific questions at you because I did read that you don't know anything about Chesapeake.

[jhhc99]

Northern NN sounds like a nice area from what you have told me. Just need info from others about Chesapeake.

[citydweller]

I have never lived in either city but worked in the Greenbrier section of Chesapeake for a few years. I found the area to be mostly middle class folks. And Chesapeake is all suburbia so don't expect much in the way of urban living. Chesapeake boomed in the 80s so most stores and homes are relatively new. I would expect crime to be low there as well. I've heard schools agree good in Chesapeake as well. Good luck!

[stva]

Where will you or your spouse be working? Live on the same side of the tunnel that you work.

If you can choose, I'd say choose Chesapeake. They both have good and bad areas but I'd say that Chesapeake is safer overall. Same with the schools. They both have plenty of shopping options.

You would also be closer to the Outer Banks.

[jhhc99]

Thanks for the info on Chesapeake. My husband just brought up living in Hampton on Langley AFB. Any info or views about that area? Ugh, the more i think about it i hate how we dont have the chance to visit before we move.. We just are moving and hopefully sign a lease a fews days after moving up there! Crazy right? Hmm... The only cons about langley AFB housing someone has mentioned was possible "black mold" from previous hurricanes that hit the Hampton Roads area but I think the housing was just built or rebuilt in 2009. Im not sure if thats before of after this storm they were talking about. It doesn't really matter how far we live from the shipyards because we already live at least a half hr from the base down here in FL in a safe area.. Safety is our number 1 priority. Then number 2 would be closeness to shopping, restaruants and a hospital.

[marnay]

Where is your husband going to stationed? That would play a huge part in what side of the water you want to be on. I live in Chesapeake and really like it. Great schools for my kids, plenty of grocery stores, a mall, all the big box stores, movies, restaurants, and pretty central to most things on the South Side.

The Peninsula I am not that familiar with. York County seems nice, but most the parts of NN I have been too have not been great.