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Old 07-15-2010, 10:22 AM
 
13 posts, read 22,015 times
Reputation: 10

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My husband has a wonderful civilian opportunity at Ft. Belvoir, but from looking at housing, I am really worried it won't be possible for us housing wise! This would be a permanent career move (not a temp. duty station, etc.) so we would have to be happy there for a long time.

We are used to larger, newer single family homes with a yard. All I see are extremely pricey and smallish townhomes in our price range (approx $350K). I would be willing to rent a year to "try out" a townhome situation, but would like at least the possibility of single family down the road or a larger townhome we could afford to purchase.

I would hate for him to loose a great career opportunity, but we have 2 children (one in elementary and one in jr. high) and all the areas mentioned with "good schools" seem to be the priciest of course and out of our range.

We did like what we saw out west in Manassas/Manassas Park and south in Aquia Harbour~ Stafford but is this even a plausable commute to Fort Belvoir? My husband would be willing to do a somewhat lengthy commute for an area we could be comfortable in and was hoping an early work schedule would help as well (report at 6am or so) in commuting time.

Wondering if there is someplace out there that we could "fit" or should we give up? Anyone commute to Ft. Belvoir from that far away? I noticed there is no easy mass transit between the two areas either (no direct rail/metro lines).

Ironically, he just turned down a job with FEMA in downtown DC because we thought the commute would be too long/costly from the suburbs, but actually a commute downtown looks like it would have been easier for us than to Ft. Belvoir!

Any insight would be greatly appreciated!!! Thanks!!

 
Old 07-15-2010, 11:05 AM
 
105 posts, read 389,566 times
Reputation: 65
Try checking out beacon manor.

FranklyMLS.com Virginia & DC MLS via Keyword Search & Wiki. Homes for Sale

I'll preface the rest by saying I'm pretty biased, I moved here a year ago. As far as costs are concerned though this area is great! I also work out of Ft Belvoir, the commute is great. I normally either take the GW pkwy or Telegraph Rd. You can go on Rt1 but it's a lot nicer and only takes 1-2 more minutes on the GW or Telegraph.

The neighborhood is definitely a little mixed; some places are kept up better than others. However in the time I've been there I've seen 3 places sold with a lot of money going into them before and/or after the sale. It def seems to be turning around.

My neighbor has been living there for awhile and he knows the history. He said it hit rock bottom about 5 years ago but is on the up and up, alot more younger people coming in and putting money back into the places.

Some of the benefits:

No HOA! No HOA fee, no rules but still the neighborhood is nice a quiet.

1 mile to huntington metro
Close to the potomac river/mt vernon trail and all the great rec activities. (less than a mile)
Close to the GW parkway (less than a mile)
Close to old Town.
My place backs to a park and i know of one for sale that does the same.

Let me know if you want more info.
 
Old 07-15-2010, 11:25 AM
 
12,905 posts, read 15,588,234 times
Reputation: 9392
Yes, if you are looking to live in Fairfax County, you are probably not going to get a house in your budget.

Try looking in Lakeridge (part of Woodbridge) in Prince William County. It is a more economically and racially diverse area than Fairfax, but the school curriculum is the same and if you kids are bright and good students, they will be put into good classes with good kids. A commute to Ft. Belvoir from Woodbridge can be tough. A lot of people going the same way with limited access to the base, but plenty of people here do it and it's not "awful." Go anywhere farther south than Woodbridge and you can then add "awful" to your commute.
 
Old 07-15-2010, 11:29 AM
 
13 posts, read 22,015 times
Reputation: 10
Quote:
Originally Posted by pcgeller View Post
Try checking out beacon manor.

FranklyMLS.com Virginia & DC MLS via Keyword Search & Wiki. Homes for Sale

I'll preface the rest by saying I'm pretty biased, I moved here a year ago. As far as costs are concerned though this area is great! I also work out of Ft Belvoir, the commute is great. I normally either take the GW pkwy or Telegraph Rd. You can go on Rt1 but it's a lot nicer and only takes 1-2 more minutes on the GW or Telegraph.

The neighborhood is definitely a little mixed; some places are kept up better than others. However in the time I've been there I've seen 3 places sold with a lot of money going into them before and/or after the sale. It def seems to be turning around.

My neighbor has been living there for awhile and he knows the history. He said it hit rock bottom about 5 years ago but is on the up and up, alot more younger people coming in and putting money back into the places.

Some of the benefits:

No HOA! No HOA fee, no rules but still the neighborhood is nice a quiet.

1 mile to huntington metro
Close to the potomac river/mt vernon trail and all the great rec activities. (less than a mile)
Close to the GW parkway (less than a mile)
Close to old Town.
My place backs to a park and i know of one for sale that does the same.

Let me know if you want more info.
Thank you!! I will definitely look!!
 
Old 07-15-2010, 11:32 AM
 
13 posts, read 22,015 times
Reputation: 10
Quote:
Originally Posted by ChristineVA View Post
Yes, if you are looking to live in Fairfax County, you are probably not going to get a house in your budget.

Try looking in Lakeridge (part of Woodbridge) in Prince William County. It is a more economically and racially diverse area than Fairfax, but the school curriculum is the same and if you kids are bright and good students, they will be put into good classes with good kids. A commute to Ft. Belvoir from Woodbridge can be tough. A lot of people going the same way with limited access to the base, but plenty of people here do it and it's not "awful." Go anywhere farther south than Woodbridge and you can then add "awful" to your commute.
Thanks! I forgot to ask about Woodbridge~ I haven't seen anyone mention that area on the other Ft. Belvior posts. I will check out the Lakeridge area.

I think if we take the leap, we would rent for a year first to get our bearings and take all the areas in
 
Old 07-15-2010, 11:43 AM
 
Location: Northern Virginia
4,489 posts, read 10,911,166 times
Reputation: 3698
22151 has quite a few SFH's and TH's for sale under $350k. N. Springfield is filled with families, or at least that's what I've observed in the past 6 months living here. The commute to Belvoir would be under 30 minutes (Backlick to 7900 to Hayfield to Telegraph).

The school pyramid isn't the most coveted in FFX, but I've done student teaching hours at the middle school (Poe) and it's a wonderful school. The Elementary school has a strong community involvement. I can't speak to the high school (Annandale), but maybe someone else can.
 
Old 07-15-2010, 11:44 AM
 
12,905 posts, read 15,588,234 times
Reputation: 9392
Quote:
Originally Posted by back2cos View Post
Thanks! I forgot to ask about Woodbridge~ I haven't seen anyone mention that area on the other Ft. Belvior posts. I will check out the Lakeridge area.

I think if we take the leap, we would rent for a year first to get our bearings and take all the areas in
Woodbridge doesn't get a lot of love around here. I live in Woodbridge. I would prefer to live in Fairfax County for many reasons, and I can afford to do that now (I just am too lazy to move); however, I would not snub my nose at Woodbridge to the point that I gave up a good career opportunity. It's fine. The schools are fine. No, it is not as lily white as Fairfax, no we don't have any Great American Restaurants here, nor do we have a Trader Joe's, or the Galleria. I have to drive a bit to get my MaxMara pants. But I like my neighborhood, I don't mind shopping around the area on weekends, and I'm overall pretty happy here.

So look in Lakeridge or Montclair areas. You might be surprised. I live in a house that is 2500 square feet (not including the basement) and I have a 1/2 acre lot. If I could sell my home, it goes for about $350,000 right now at best.

I would probably stay out of Manassas if commuting to Ft. Belvoir. You have to deal with a cross-county commute and then you join the masses to get into Ft. Belvoir.
 
Old 07-15-2010, 12:14 PM
 
66 posts, read 180,029 times
Reputation: 31
I think it's funny that anyone would call Fairfax County lily white! Fairfax County is approximately 70% white while Woodbridge is approximately 56% white. That said, we agonized over this decision ourselves. I would definitely consider Woodbridge. We live in West Springfield because of my husband's commute, but I know MANY people who commute from Woodbridge to Ft. Belvoir. You'll definitely get more bang for your buck real estate wise and there are good schools to be found if you do some research. My friend in Lake Ridge calls me all the time to torture me with how inexpensive the homes on her street have become. FWIW, I think the shopping near Woodbridge is better-everything is located in one small area versus being all spread out like here. Good luck with your search!
 
Old 07-15-2010, 12:24 PM
 
12,905 posts, read 15,588,234 times
Reputation: 9392
Quote:
Originally Posted by Hazel B. View Post
I think it's funny that anyone would call Fairfax County lily white! Fairfax County is approximately 70% white while Woodbridge is approximately 56% white. That said, we agonized over this decision ourselves. I would definitely consider Woodbridge. We live in West Springfield because of my husband's commute, but I know MANY people who commute from Woodbridge to Ft. Belvoir. You'll definitely get more bang for your buck real estate wise and there are good schools to be found if you do some research. My friend in Lake Ridge calls me all the time to torture me with how inexpensive the homes on her street have become. FWIW, I think the shopping near Woodbridge is better-everything is located in one small area versus being all spread out like here. Good luck with your search!
Relatively speaking, how about that?
 
Old 07-15-2010, 12:36 PM
 
Location: Censorshipville...
4,386 posts, read 8,068,443 times
Reputation: 4948
Also check out Belmont Bay. It's actually easier to get to I95 from Belmont than Lake Ridge, though the homes are more expensive. I remember spending 20-30 minutes just on Old Bridge Road before even getting on the I95 on some morning commutes!
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