Help: Moving from TN for job in Fairfax (Arlington, Reston: apartment, rental)

[sumeho]

Much help needed-- first time visiting Fairfax. I have a job offer in Fairfax, VA-- off of Arlington Blvd. I'm currently spoiled in Nashville being within 5 miles to downtown, work, shops, and several historic districts. My husband, two dogs, and I will definitely need to rent when we first arrive- prefer a townhouse, duplex, or house rental (need some sort of yard, can be tiny). I would like to live close to a downtown area-- primary concern to be close to restaurants and things to do. I'm beginning to get a feel for cost of living, and the max we could spend per month is likely ~$1600, would prefer less though.

I would much appreciate any advice for neighborhoods to look at, any cute downtown areas, historic or urban, especially walkable or bike-able. We are both athletes so close to parks or trails is a plus.

Thanks so much!!
Susan

[Badger21]

For townhomes I'd look in the Chantilly area especially with your budget and commute, you should be able to find most of what you're looking for. The outer DC suburbs don't really have walkable communities, save for maybe pockets of Reston and Arlington.

[KingstowneVA]

With work off of Arlington Blvd. in Fairfax you may want to check out Kingstowne (22315 is the zip code).

[g3org3]

You might want to look at Leesburg, though the commute wouldn't be great. $1600/mo. isn't going to get you much closer in, especially in cute, walkable, historic, downtown areas. Fairfax itself has a bit of a downtown, but your budget is in the apartment range.