Diversity In Maryland? (Columbia, Germantown, Gaithersburg: real estate, rentals, crime)

[familymatters]

Hello Board -

We really need your help.

I've been lurking and reading your posts and it's terrific that people are "telling it like it is". Please tell us like it is. I have a family of 4 and we are currently renting a townhome in Largo, MD. This area is starting to go down hill, actually it's been going downhill for a while and we're fed up. We've been wanting to move for over a year now, luckily recently I was offered a full-time position with the company I've been contracting with for over a year! We're very excited to move on with our lives. My wife and I are both professionals who work in downtown DC so commuting is an issue.

Here's the rub. Many of the areas recommend here aren't very diverse. My wife and I want our son and daughter to not feel alienated living in an environment where no one looks like them. So ....can anyone suggest some areas where there's a good mix of race and cultures, but still safe good environments to raise a family?

Any help/suggestions/insight you can lend will be deeply appreciated

Thanks for reading!!

[dorado0359]

I would like to offer you some suggestions. However, I would need a little more specifics, such as:

- Your housing budget
- Are you considering areas South or North of Largo
- School quality
- Any additional specifics regarding community, commuting (public transportation access) etc.

[familymatters]

Thanks for the reply Dorado.

We're actually looking to lease a property while we get our ducks in a row to buy our first home. I guess my post is a little difficult to make heads or tails out of. Here's a list of our priorites in most to least importance:

1. Safe environment, low-crime, neighbors who care about their neighborhood
2. Good schools (both kids in grade school)
3. Commute time (an hour or less south or north -anymore is a little painful)
3. Restaurants and shopping
4. Price *2-2.5k per month is all we can pay while we save for a house purchase

I hope that's enough info, I was looking at Columbia, MD and thought it was an interesting location. We're very new to this so any help would be great.

Thanks again!

[dorado0359]

Originally Posted by familymatters

Thanks for the reply Dorado.

We're actually looking to lease a property while we get our ducks in a row to buy our first home. I guess my post is a little difficult to make heads or tails out of. Here's a list of our priorites in most to least importance:

1. Safe environment, low-crime, neighbors who care about their neighborhood
2. Good schools (both kids in grade school)
3. Commute time (an hour or less south or north -anymore is a little painful)
3. Restaurants and shopping
4. Price *2-2.5k per month is all we can pay while we save for a house purchase

I hope that's enough info, I was looking at Columbia, MD and thought it was an interesting location. We're very new to this so any help would be great.

Thanks again!

Columbia is a good choice, with some excellent schools (depending on which Villiage you live in), plenty of shopping/restaurants and safe. Renting a townhome in your price range should not be much of a problem either. Commuting time into D.C. will probably be at least an hour, plus or minus.


Good Luck

[familymatters]

It seems like if I want to be in a diverse neighborhood in Maryland I need to stay toward Prince Georges County?

I'm a Marylander. I like Maryland. It's what I'm used to. Can I stay in Maryland but upgrade my schools, environment, surroundings and still have some diversity?

I have family in Cumberland, not exactly the most diverse area lol I grew up in Riverdale, MD, infact my parents still live there, but honestly it's deteroiating.

Maybe i need to drop the whole idea of being in a diverse area?

a little help?

[Zippy7fo]

Originally Posted by familymatters

It seems like if I want to be in a diverse neighborhood in Maryland I need to stay toward Prince Georges County?

I'm a Marylander. I like Maryland. It's what I'm used to. Can I stay in Maryland but upgrade my schools, environment, surroundings and still have some diversity?

I have family in Cumberland, not exactly the most diverse area lol I grew up in Riverdale, MD, infact my parents still live there, but honestly it's deteroiating.

Maybe i need to drop the whole idea of being in a diverse area?

a little help?

Blame the Developers/Mayor Williams/Real Estate Agents/Landlords for making PG county go down. They are strategically pushing the poor out and not addressing the issues that made them poor to begin with., all the while getting hire income individuals they can tax to death and brag about surplus budgets.....crafty.


I recommend either Columbia which is the ideal place for diversity, good schools, and safe environment. The whole area has such a great vibe especially when it comes to diversity. I've never had a problem and got along great with many different folks. I also encourage gaithersburg. They have a nice mix of people of various backgrounds with housing prices in the range you talk about....Arlington Va/Fairfax is also a good area if you check into VA....

[maat]

Originally Posted by Zippy7fo

Blame the Developers/Mayor Williams/Real Estate Agents/Landlords for making PG county go down. They are strategically pushing the poor out and not addressing the issues that made them poor to begin with., all the while getting hire income individuals they can tax to death and brag about surplus budgets.....crafty.

So far, it looks like Mayor Fenty is doing what needs to be done. He's completely overhauling the school system. And whenever there's a high profile crime, he is right there on the scene. It's amazing how far that kind of attention will go. Residents who felt excluded start to feel more included and believe somebody is actually serious about changing things. One benefit is they become more open and forthcoming with info that leads to arrests.

I think that people forget that while PGC is predominately black there are still other races in the county. The racial makeup of the county in 2000 was:

62.70% African American
27.04% White
7.12% Hispanic or Latino
3.87% Asian
3.38% Other races
2.61% Two or More of any race
0.35% Native American
0.06% Pacific Islander

Montgomery in 2000:

64.78% White
15.14% African American
0.29% Native American
11.3% Asian
11.52 Hispanic or Latino of any race
0.05% Pacific Islander
5.0% from other races
3.45% from two or more races.

Howard in 2000:

74.33% White
14.42% Black or African American
0.24% Native American
7.68% Asian
0.04% Pacific Islander
1.11% from other races
2.19% from two or more races
3.02% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race

[familymatters]

Originally Posted by Zippy7fo

Blame the Developers/Mayor Williams/Real Estate Agents/Landlords for making PG county go down. They are strategically pushing the poor out and not addressing the issues that made them poor to begin with., all the while getting hire income individuals they can tax to death and brag about surplus budgets.....crafty.


I recommend either Columbia which is the ideal place for diversity, good schools, and safe environment. The whole area has such a great vibe especially when it comes to diversity. I've never had a problem and got along great with many different folks. I also encourage gaithersburg. They have a nice mix of people of various backgrounds with housing prices in the range you talk about....Arlington Va/Fairfax is also a good area if you check into VA....

Gentrification, well isn't that special. I had problem with mayor Williams problem-solving strategies, mainly because he preferred making his problems someone elses rather than actually fixing them. Blah..

Columbia has some nice rental properties. Schools? I'll check out Gaithersburg. I don't know much about that area, I worked in Germantown (first exit off 270) for about a year. I've never lived anywhere, but Maryland so I guess psychologically I haven't fairly considered VA. Fairfax? Hmm.

Thanks for the suggestions Z!

[familymatters]

Matt your absolutely right! Folks tend to overlook PG has some diversity, maybe because you only get a mix of cultures in slim pockets, your Laurel, Bowie, Lanham, Seabrook, Greenbelt..etc.; I'm not totally turned off to Prince Georges, but I'm open to HowCo and Anne Arundle. I can get along with anyone who has respects themselves and others, yet a feeling of community would be nice lol

What do you think of Fort Washington/Accokeek, MD? You can get a pretty nice home in Acco for price of a decent place in say Bowie. I was impressed with some of their rentals w/options.

[maat]

I believe Accokeek is still predominantly black and white, probably about even. Crime is low, median incomes are high (people more likely to care about their neighborhood).

Here's an article about one school in the area:

Deasy honors Forest teacher, visits pupils