help from Ohio to Maryland (Baltimore, Columbia: real estate, rental homes, crime)

[ohiomd]

Hi, My family is planning to move to the maryland area, I'll be commuting to DC to work, we have a 3 year old child. We are wondering about good area to rent an affordable townhouse or a single family house < $2000. We've lived the last two years in Ohio and we would like to have an easy transition into the the maryland area. My husband and I are concerned about safety more than convience. I heard good things about Columbia and Annapolis. I'd apreciate any educating tip. Also, what about commuting? Seems like commuting to DC takes 1 hour from just about anywhere, including locations just outside the beltway.

Thank you in advance,

[Dragondog]

Commuting in the DC area is no picnic- I am from the area (now live in Connecticut)- less $$$ rents and real estate are further out from DC- they extend now as far away as West Virginia and southern PA! And some brave souls actually make that brutal drive, especially when buying a home.

I suggest Frederick to the NW -nice town. Columbia is ok as well- prices for rents wil be lower here- 2K a month may be enough-depending on what type of property you decide on.

Annapolis is very charming- and my favorite place in MD- but because of its appeal- they will put the tarrif on you. The commute on U.S 50 into DC is not a day at the beach either.

Crime outside of the DC itself is about average- the usual car thefts, breakins etc- nothing rampant or extreme- of course the more remote areas will see less. Crime in a large metro area like DC- can be attributed to a transient population, traffic issues, social problems in a diverse area, etc. Some areas will be 'rougher' then others.

[ohiomd]

Thank you a lot for your comment, we appreciate it. We were thinking in using the train or bus to commute to DC, mainly to avoid the stress of driving and because my husband won't have to commute. Any comments on using the train or bus from Northern MD.

Isabel

[Mike from back east]

Originally Posted by ohiomd

Thank you a lot for your comment, we appreciate it. We were thinking of using the train or bus to commute to DC, mainly to avoid the stress of driving and because my husband won't have to commute. Any comments on using the train or bus from Northern MD.Isabel

Isabel: The train is pretty good, some lines even have the RR equivalent to lazy boy chairs, or "quiet" cars (no cell phones, etc).

MARC rail lines get you into the city. The METRO subway gets you around the city. Its a VERY civilized way to get around.

MARC = http://www.mtamaryland.com/index.cfm METRO = http://www.wmata.com/

An hour trip on MARC can get you as far as downtown Baltimore, MD or Brunswick, MD, but the lines go well past these points.

Suggested strategy for locating rental homes is to first locate the office site in DC, see what subway line has the nearest stop. If the worksite is in the suburbs, a MARC line may stop there. Look for where a MARC line meets your subway line. MARC may not share a stop with your subway line, in which case you'll have to take a connecting subway line. A commute made up of one MARC leg and two legs on the subway will take longer.

If the worksite is in east DC, you may want to look for homes on the MARC line from Baltimore (Columbia or Howard County are good bets). If the worksite is in NW DC, you may want to look for homes on the MARC line from Brunswick (Point of Rocks & Brunwick, MD or Lovettsville, VA or even Harpers Ferry, WV are good bets).

There are subway stops in Rockville and Gaithersburg and other locations on the Red line, and these are the most excellent choices for a rental. I would consider it a MAJOR blessing to live close enough to a METRO stop to walk or ride a bicycle. Many areas have cheap bus fare routes that take you the nearest subway stop, and the subway gives transfer slips to allow a cheaper fare on the bus portion of a trip (my wife used this in the VA suburbs).

Once you pick a location, insert the location name into realtor.com or your favorite real estate or rental website to see homes.

There is a wealth of data alread posted in these threads and forums. Use the forum search tool to find info on specific place-names (Bethesda, Rockville, etc) or specific topics (crime, schools, MARC, subway, METRO). It will save you a lot of time and allow you to ask much more focused questions. We are all volunteer posters and we simply burn out if we have to answer the same questions repeatedly, so please do us a courtesy of finding what's already here, then zero in on something and have at it, you will get helped.

Welcome to city-data, good luck with your move and please stay in touch and let us know how you do.

s/Mike
PS: Don't overlook the services of a realtor, they are free and there to help you. I'm not a realtor or in the business in any way.

[ohiomd]

Thanks a lot
I'd definetely stay in touch and search often

Isabel

[nightdevil21]

I recommend Bowie, MD
Nice ... mainly quiet... you can easily find a location off of Rt. 50 which runs right into the HEART of DC... also
Metro Opens Doors
you could take the marc train OR metro from New Carrolton Station...
I would suggest Upper Marlboro if your into a MORE suburb feeling which is south of bowie... but your commute to the station would probably be about the same but on the green line or blue