Where to live in Northern Virginia (Arlington, Alexandria: apartment, crime, home)

[hujia76]

I am offered a job in Alexandria, VA. I am thinking of a two bedroom apartment at a $1500. I have a kid who is in second grade right now and hope I can find an apartment at that price range and in a good public school zone. Want to live in Alexandria which close to where I will work (Old town) but don't know if the schools are good ro not. What about Arlington or Fairfax? Any suggestions?

[Jadware]

The schools are great in McLean and Great Falls, though the property values reflect that. Be aware the northern virginia, specifically Fairfax County, has been rated in the top5 for years in terms of best public education in the country. So you might honestly be good anywhere here..

[marie5v]

Schools in Alexandria are not know for being very good. Anyway, I don't think you can find 2 bedrooms for 1500 in Old Town (we had the tiniest two bedroom in the world there and it was 2K). Fairfax schools are (in general) better. You might find something below 2K further down route 1 (south of old town), but there are many low-income areas along that road and some of the schools are not very desirable. However, if you could find an apartment in one of the nicer school districts along route 1 in Alexandria, like Belle View, Bush Hll, Fort Hunt or Waynewood, that could work for you. Some people don't mind if the school is low-income - it doesn't automatically mean it is a bad school - but that's a matter of personal preference. You can find more detailed information about Fairfax schools at FCPS Home Page Redirect Page.

[robbobobbo]

The City of Alexandria schools have great staff, good facilities, and offer a good education. If you look at how the test scores break out, you will see that some groups are doing very well, and others consistently do not. Like it was said here, the fact that a school has many low-income students does not automatically make it a bad school. Parental involvement in Alexandria public schools has been increasing every year, with more and more middle class and upper-middle class parents opting for public over private school.

As for housing, I think it would be difficult to find a 2BR in Old Town for $1500. Maybe you could outside of Old Town but still in Alexandria city.

Outside of the city, in addition to Belle View in Fairfax County the Kingstowne/Manchester Lakes area might be a viable option.

[woodb]

I would def. live in Alexandria if you can afford it but NOT in old town (way too crowded IMO) Off king st in alexandria is a good choice you would still in in the "City" of alexandria NOT fairfax county. I dont recommend any place off rt 1 or rt 1 south in Fairfax county (just MO). You can get a nice 2 bedroom apartment at a few complexes in the city of alex nice ones and your commute would only be 2 miles down king st. Not a bad deal at all.

[CaliTerp07]

I had an apartment in the city of Alexandria for just over $1500. There are a lot of places off King or Seminary towards 395 that are nice. There were plenty of school aged kids running around the complex I was in, so your son would have partners in crime in the afternoons

Alexandria schools get a bad rap because they're right next to FFX. They're still good schools though. If you are the type of parent who is going to be involved in your child's education (helping with homework, doing flash cards in the car, etc) then your kid will do well just about anywhere in NoVA.