Requesting help with moving to the MD or Nova area. (Columbia: apartment, low crime)

[pennylove76]

My husband is interviewing for a job in DC and we are doing research on areas we could live, if he got the job. We are looking @ either MD or NOVA. I know I have heard nightmare/stories about the traffic in NOVA, but then I keep hearing negative things about MD so I am torn.

My question is, If we were to live in NOVA or MD. Could we fnd an area wth a good school district, very low crime, easy access to a train/metro that takes you to DC in 45 minutes or less & houses in the $450-550 range...3 bedrooms, finished basement, 2bathrooms.

Please provide recommendations on what area, if any would have those amenities.

So far I have not really found info on the NOVA area. However, I have heard that the Rockville, MD. or Derwood, MD. is a good area. Any input is appreciated.

P.s. If this helps. We are 31 & 32 & our only child is 1. Right now we live in beautiful Chester County (West Goshen area), PA.

[JaBradshaw]

Originally Posted by pennylove76

My question is, If we were to live in NOVA or MD. Could we fnd an area wth a good school district, very low crime, easy access to a train/metro that takes you to DC in 45 minutes or less & houses in the $450-550 range...3 bedrooms, finished basement, 2bathrooms.

Yes to all. Rockville and Derwood both have very low crime and great schools. Richard Montgomery High School is consistently ranked one of the best in the nation. MCPS is one of the best school systems in the nation. The D.C. Metro Red Line goes straight up to Rockville and is not a bad commute downtown, or NoVA. Depending on where you go in Rockville you can find a good house in your price range, try the 20850 zip code.

[Zippy7fo]

Originally Posted by pennylove76

My husband is interviewing for a job in DC and we are doing research on areas we could live, if he got the job. We are looking @ either MD or NOVA. I know I have heard nightmare/stories about the traffic in NOVA, but then I keep hearing negative things about MD so I am torn.

My question is, If we were to live in NOVA or MD. Could we fnd an area wth a good school district, very low crime, easy access to a train/metro that takes you to DC in 45 minutes or less & houses in the $450-550 range...3 bedrooms, finished basement, 2bathrooms.

Please provide recommendations on what area, if any would have those amenities.

So far I have not really found info on the NOVA area. However, I have heard that the Rockville, MD. or Derwood, MD. is a good area. Any input is appreciated.

P.s. If this helps. We are 31 & 32 & our only child is 1. Right now we live in beautiful Chester County (West Goshen area), PA.

Check Herndon, Fairfax, Loudon, Arlington, Alexandria, or Rockville, Germantown, and if you don't mind the commute, columbia....All great area's all that fall into what your looking for except Columbia...

[notfromDC]

Fairfax county and Montgomery county both have their pluses and minuses.
However, your decision should be based upon where your jobs will be. Traffic is bad everywhere. That's just a fact of life for people living in the DC area. But it's worse depending on where you have to be in relations to where you are coming from. If you are working in DC, then the best bet is to take the metro into work and both Rockville and NOVA offer metro stations training the DC employees to work. But if you are working in one of the counties it's best just to live in that county or as close as possible because driving 13 miles can take as much as an hour at peak times. Some nice, quality neighorhoods in Mont. Co; Rockville, Darnestown, Poolesville, Onley and some parts of Bethesda are still in the 400-500 range. The schools are all highly recommended and these neighborhoods tend to be family and community oriented, pleasant places to live and raise children.
Fairfax county has nice areas however 400-500 seems to only buy townhomes.Oakton,Fairfax, and Reston are what I recommend. I don't know much about the schools but I know teachers are the highest paid in the DC metro area so that must mean something. Both places are close to DC
(10-15 miles) if you want to enjoy a night on the town.

[pennylove76]

Thanks for all of the advice so far. Although, I really should have put $500k as our limit for a house. Alas, I have an additional question. Can someone please give me information about the Germantown, MD area. I see housing prices in Germantown with more upgrades to be more in my price range. However, I am not sure how far it is from a Metro and how long a commute to DC will take.
Also, compared to Rockville, how is the crime and school districts in Germantown.
Thanks.

[Bagira]

Originally Posted by pennylove76

Thanks for all of the advice so far. Although, I really should have put $500k as our limit for a house. Alas, I have an additional question. Can someone please give me information about the Germantown, MD area. I see housing prices in Germantown with more upgrades to be more in my price range. However, I am not sure how far it is from a Metro and how long a commute to DC will take.
Also, compared to Rockville, how is the crime and school districts in Germantown.
Thanks.

LONG LONG LONG to DC its 20 min. w/o traffic from rockville to Germantown. Schools much better in rockville. try 20851 on realtor.com and look for twinbrook forest the best area of the zip almost everything is under 550k and falling! Crime more in germantown ie. cheaper place to live so what does that bring you?

[pennylove76]

Thanks Bagira, I will check out that zipcode right now. I find hat having a zipcode is very helpful. Alo, I'm glad you provided me info on the distance of Germantown to Rockville as that long commute makes a big difference.

[cutgarden]

Something to think about with Germantown: I am given to understand that many undesirables (drug dealers, crimanals) are moving into the area from PG county. This, would not be a good thing for the future.

[claremarie]

I see housing prices in Germantown with more upgrades to be more in my price range. However, I am not sure how far it is from a Metro and how long a commute to DC will take.

Generally, you get what you pay for. If houses in Germantown are cheaper that comparable houses in Rockville, there is a reason for that. In this case, the reason is that Germantown is further from Rockville, DC, and other employment centers; also, there are more relatively low-cost apartment options, which translates into a higher percentage of low-income and immigrant students in the schools, which drags down the test scores.
If you see something that seems too good to be true, it probably is.

[pennylove76]

Thanks again for all the wonderful responses. I think I will have to stay with my original area of Rockville and Derwood as Germantown may be too far. Also, I really want to be in a place that is comparable to what we have here in Goshen Township, PA. Great schools, no to low crime, and easy commuting to major city...We can be in downtown Philly in morning rush hour traffic in an hour or less.