Affluent African American Family, Considering Rockville Area (Potomac, California: mortgages, homes)

[macroy]

To the OP - 20854 is the zip code you want to look in. You can use homesdatabase.com to start. My only gripe was that neighbors tend to keep to themselves... I never really met them until our for sale sign as up - then everyone stopped by to see how things were going.

Is it diverse? Extremely.

[Mom21]

SRS:

You don't have to apologize for using the word "affluent." As you can see there are a lot of people on this board who are "haters'" so you just need to ignore them. You get a double portion of their "hate" when you are AA.

[Bigbluelandrover]

Luke,
You just have issues period.
My screen name could've been "old raggedy Buick"--which is what I had before I got the truck. I'm THANKFUL for what little I have-as I worked damn hard to get it.

And NO I don't ever use the word 'affluent', but I can care less if others do.

Why did you come in the post if you weren't going t give the poster information. I just don't get why people like you do this.

[Bob The Builder]

Bigblue

Perhaps this jumping in "off topic" is an internet social phenomenon. Perhaps the mention of the word "affluent" made the discussion of affluence and/or the use word part of the topic. This is apparently the case. Moreover the use of the word in the topic line certainly drew my curiosity. I would not have looked into the thread had that word not been used. I would not have commented if a previous poster had not mentioned that he took exception to the word and, like me, left the Bay Area and was later flamed for making his feelings known.

Had the OP said loudly in a public restaurant the she was Affluent, you would seriously not think anything was up?

I was sitting at a Starbucks back in 2002 when two women were going on and on about how much money they made on buying their house. I didn't say a word. But in Cyberspace, the social boundaries are yet to be defined.

The previous post you directed at me allows me to learn and shape my communication. I take from it what I can. Luke, myself and a few other have contributed in their way to say ... wait a minute... that is just not civil to say that. In return, the word hate and racism is thrown around. Perhaps that is not quite right either.

I apologize to all if we all didn't learn a little from this thread. Myself, I found this to be a very enlightening thread. Thank you all for your comments.

[lukeache]

Originally Posted by Bob The Builder

The previous post you directed at me allows me to learn and shape my communication. I take from it what I can. Luke, myself and a few other have contributed in their way to say ... wait a minute... that is just not civil to say that. In return, the word hate and racism is thrown around. Perhaps that is not quite right either.

Inferiority complex is all over this thread. Same thing happened at the Connecticut forum, "African American family moving to Greenwich", we are looking for a rental between 10000-12000 a month LOL. I lived in Greenwich, CT for many years and I tried to explain to these people that Greenwich, CT is a very wealthy community but they frown upon nouveau riche attitudes and mindless materialism, meaning most "old money" folks do not show off or drive expensive cars. They guy accused me of being racist and trying to "prevent" him from moving into Greenwich because he was black. Like I said, people that truly have money do not need to call themselves "affluent" or create a name with the car they drive. Wealth is measured in terms of "net worth" not how much debt you can "afford"

[PropertyMan]

Originally Posted by SRS

My husband and two small children are moving from San Fran to Montgomery Co. due to job relocations. This area seems to be a great place due to the school clusters and overall family-friendliness. I am looking for info regarding the diversity, particularly for well-off African Americans. Is this an area where you can find a nice church, get your hair done, have a diverse neighborhood, etc or do you take advantage of the good schools and have a social life outside of Rockville.

Also, if anyone can recommend excellent preschools - I would GREATLY appreciate - Pls let me know!

No need for questions/comments about African Americans seeking African Americans - I'm not looking to debate - just want to get a sense of the area - thanks in advance!

I grew up in Rockville. The county has, arguably, the best public school system in the country. It is diverse. Traffic is a nightmare.

I am, however, duty-bound to recommend that you consider the richest predominantly African-American county in the country--Prince George's. You will definitely want to put your kids in private school. Nevertheless, you will get way more for your money. Whether you want large acreage, waterfront, or gated country-club-living, there are upscale communities that rival anything else for under $5 million, but at half the price.

[Bob The Builder]

Luke

Perhaps insecurity and not inferiority.

There was also a woman who said her husband got transfered to NY and she wanted to move to an upscale neighborhood in CT from the Midwest that wanted a house in the 1.5M range. Some people took offense to that too. No racial issue involved there.

Being of color myself, I understand the need to disclose my "racial difference" in searching for a home. I have been called many names in my day (and even by non whites) and I don't need to live in a community that has a serious problem with my ethnicity (unless I want to have serious fun mocking them).

I hope all people want a day when this race stuff is no longer an issue. Until then, I would prefer not to play my race card and would encourage my children to do the same.

BTW, I don't begrudge BigBlueLandrover his username. As he said, he worked hard for it.

[truthhurts]

Originally Posted by Bob The Builder

Luke

Perhaps insecurity and not inferiority.

There was also a woman who said her husband got transfered to NY and she wanted to move to an upscale neighborhood in CT from the Midwest that wanted a house in the 1.5M range. Some people took offense to that too. No racial issue involved there.

Being of color myself, I understand the need to disclose my "racial difference" in searching for a home. I have been called many names in my day (and even by non whites) and I don't need to live in a community that has a serious problem with my ethnicity (unless I want to have serious fun mocking them).

I hope all people want a day when this race stuff is no longer an issue. Until then, I would prefer not to play my race card and would encourage my children to do the same.

BTW, I don't begrudge BigBlueLandrover his username. As he said, he worked hard for it.

[SIZE=3]Hey Bob, I think you touched on a much bigger issue than race. This has to do with class. People of average means tend to hold those who are economically successful in contempt, whether they are white, black, blue or green. [/SIZE]

[SIZE=3]However, I can understand why some of the black americans are upset with people questioning the word affluent as they see it as some sort of "personal" attack on their success. However, while I understand I do not necessarily agree, but i take offense to the attack on the "affluent" as I’ve discussed with you before. "Affluent" is a very subjective word and I find there's a big difference in my opinion between someone saying they're affluent and someone yelling out they're wealthy. [/SIZE]

[SIZE=3]When someone says i would like to live in an "affluent" neighborhood i immediately think, "oh this person must be upper middle class and is looking for a predominately upper middle class area." [/SIZE]

[SIZE=3]I think people like Luke are the one's that tend not to like "uppity" people and consider someone asking a basic question offensive or challenging to their self-worth. While I do not agree with this i can also understand his position. [/SIZE]

[SIZE=3]In the end it is a simple question that could have been answered in 5 different towns or less. You want "affluence" in Metro DC. These are the areas you'll find it;[/SIZE]

[SIZE=3]McLean, Va[/SIZE]
[SIZE=3]Great Falls, VA[/SIZE]
[SIZE=3]Potomac, MD[/SIZE]
[SIZE=3]Bethesda, MD[/SIZE]
[SIZE=3]Woodmore, MD[/SIZE]
[SIZE=3]Clifton, VA[/SIZE]
[SIZE=3]Potomac, MD[/SIZE]
[SIZE=3]Upper Marlboro, MD (Crain Highway area)[/SIZE]
[SIZE=3]Burke, VA[/SIZE]
[SIZE=3]Olney, MD[/SIZE]
[SIZE=3]Darnestown, MD[/SIZE]
[SIZE=3]Fort Washington, MD[/SIZE]
[SIZE=3]Chevy Chase, MD[/SIZE]
[SIZE=3]Upper Northwest DC[/SIZE]
[SIZE=3]Georgetown, DC[/SIZE]
[SIZE=3]Tinley Town, DC[/SIZE]

[SIZE=3]Now while all of these areas are "affluent" it can be debatable to which extent, because some of the areas are flat out "wealthy" and by wealth i mean the zip codes house a few billionaires. [/SIZE]

[SIZE=3]Luke, may very well have a point if Oprah Winfrey or Bob Johnson came on this board and posted something like "I'm Bob Johnson and I’m looking for an "area where billionaires live" you might have reason to get angry, but getting made at some person that has worked their butts off to acquire an upper middle class lifestyle is silly. [/SIZE]

[SIZE=3]Bob, we have debated on the range of "affluent" to me my definition is this[/SIZE]
[SIZE=3][/SIZE]
[SIZE=3]Middle Class 50-135k[/SIZE]
[SIZE=3]Bottom of Upper 150-249k[/SIZE]
[SIZE=3]Middle of Upper 250-400k[/SIZE]
[SIZE=3]Upper Upper of Middle class 401k-2 million[/SIZE]
[SIZE=3]Rich -- 2 - 8 million [/SIZE]
[SIZE=3]Wealthy 10+ million a year in income[/SIZE]

[SIZE=3]Depending on which range you fall in you can choose an area based on this criteria.......McLean's affluent area's are in the 250-400k range[/SIZE]
[SIZE=3]Great Falls are in the 401k-2million range[/SIZE]
[SIZE=3]Potomac are in the 150-2million range[/SIZE]
[SIZE=3]Woodmore is in the 150-250k range[/SIZE]
[SIZE=3]etc......[/SIZE]
[SIZE=3]In terms of black residents they all vary some have only 1-3% while others have 5-10% and particularly in PG county they're usually the highest at 60-80%.........but like any savvy upper middle class person with children they're probably looking at the whole picture and trying to get it all in one place...so that will probably exclude most areas in PG if they are not interested in paying for private school etc....They get the total package in Bethesda, Chevy Chase and Potomac in terms of overall amounts of diversity, good education, and affluence. While in VA affluent areas they'll get the same education, but a lot less diversity.[/SIZE]

[lukeache]

This thread is just ignorant. As far as the assumption that I do not like "uppity" people! Didn't I say that I lived in Greenwich, CT? I have absolutely no problem with people that are wealthy but I have never in my life heard any true wealthy person refer to themselves as "affluent", not even some of the wealthiest families in Greenwich, as well as the fact that most wealthy people do not drive expensive cars or spend lavishly, basically people that are truly wealthy have absolutely nothing to prove to anybody.

I work in the financial sector and based on my experience, most people that drive expensive cars and spend lavishly are NOT wealthy. People like this OP are people that are deep in debt, they often have a negative net worth and no investments. Because I have dealt with many wealthy clients, they mostly drive average cars, own their homes free and clear (wealthy people do not have mortgages) and have large amounts of money invested in mutual funds, bonds and hedge funds (those that have a higher net worth).

The reason why I question this thread is because I have dealt with too many ignorant people that consider themselves wealthy but in fact have nothing of wealth. Like I explained, wealth is measured in terms of net worth, if you earn 200 K and spend 250K, you are not rich, you have a negative net worth.

Wealthy people often drive average cars, have a lot of money in investments and do not spend money on cars (financially, purchasing a new car is one of the worst investments because of quick depreciation). Conclusion: Wealthy people own their homes free and clear and have a positive net worth and much of their wealth allocated to investments. I majored in Economics and believe me, I know what I am talking about

[Bigbluelandrover]

BTW, I don't begrudge BigBlueLandrover his username. As he said, he worked hard for it.

SHE,SHE,SHE----I am ALL WOMAN. Please stop calling me HIM!.. Thankyou.