Where in NoVa would you point two empty nesters who like urban/walkable/quaint (Arlington: fit in, homes)

[normie]

To be honest, I don't think Reston would work for this particular couple's needs. Commuting to the Navy Yard would be god awful. Metro is coming, but it's going to be awhile yet. There are buses, but not frequent buses. 95 and the beltway are a fairly long drive away from Reston, which means driving to Baltimore would be more time consuming than from other Nova locales. Also, their budget seems too low for the Town Center area, which would be the part of Reston that's urban-ish.

[Tiger Beer]

Originally Posted by brooklynborndad

6. There were a few places on the edge of Old Town, Merrifield (not really walkable urban just yet, but stuff now UC will soon make it so)

I'll have to remember this one. I like anything and everything associated with Falls Church, and Merrifield is right next to it, still with that high Asian presense - who I think are amazing with the entrepreneural spirit - that seems to lack among groups, in my opinion, or at least not to such a high level.

Anyways, I'm viewing the thread as an outside observer

In the from afar research I've done so far, I keep ruling out everything beyond the Beltway. Whenever I really view them, they keep missing on something.

As a person strongly interested in what the OP seems to prefer. Falls Church keeps coming back as the one interesting acceptable place, that I think I would quite like. It certainly isn't urban, yet seems to have enough acceptable characteristics that make it stand out more than anywhere else. I do like the concept of NOVA - high diverse areas, great schools, educated populace, lack of serious crime concerns, swing state for voting - your vote makes a difference, NOVA is next to DC which is desireable, a region defining itself now, etc. So, I can understand the OP being interested in staying in NOVA, even if the attributes he is seeking in NOVA seems it might be better met in DC itself, etc.

Nontheless, Falls Church keeps standing out for me, as a person searching something similar in the region.

For myself, I also keep thinking of South Arlington as a possibility. I like what I've read about it anyways.

Also, the OP and Annandale. Might be your own area might be interesting, or more interesting in the future - without knowing it myself though. I lived in South Korea for 7 years of my life. Koreans have an amazing knack for making things very interesting in their communities. The strict zoning laws of the U.S. might prevent that though. However, RestonRunner did make a comment about his multicultural dating life where a Korean brought him to some hole-in-wall amazing Korean place in the middle of NOVA. Made me think that with that strong Korean entrepreneural spirit, it might make its way into and abundantly so, into these generally sterile zoned restricted corporate lack of mom-and-pop shop areas into something that has some real interesting ethnic places bucking that general trend. Just a general thought anyways. Seoul has some incredibly amazing small businesses that absolutely flourish throughout Seoul. I would love to see even a tiny sliver of what Seoul offers its residents available in America.

[slim04]

The problem with this hypo is that anyplace with easy access to the metro in a not crime ridden area is going to strongly appeal to young professionals who will easily snap up any luxury 1BR (let alone 2BR) condo for $300K. That's a very affordable price point for many professional or young couples.

Honestly, I can't see a 2BR in Clarendon, Old Town, Courthouse, Ballston, or places like Columbia Heights, Capitol Hill, Adams Morgan, Downtown Bethesda, Tenley, Chevy Chase, or Silver Spring go for less than $350,000. It would have to be pretty beat up, tiny, or something very unappealing in some way. Anything decent gets snapped up quick if it's within a few blocks of a metro.

[bmwguydc]

Originally Posted by slim04

The problem with this hypo is that anyplace with easy access to the metro in a not crime ridden area is going to strongly appeal to young professionals who will easily snap up any luxury 1BR (let alone 2BR) condo for $300K. That's a very affordable price point for many professional or young couples.

Very true. A friend of mine who had held off on selling her old condo in Upper NW when she bought/renovated a house nearby, was able to sell it by word of mouth for just under $400k (1BR with a small alcove den), merely by mentioning it to a neighbor who told someone she knew, who had a friend looking for anything in the same building. They got a great deal, since she deducted the brokerage commission from what would have been the asking price, and she was able to sell it very quickly.

Even bumping the price parameter to $325k is not going to do much for an elevator building in NoVa. For a garden style building, or a piggy-back townhouse type of arrangement, it's a possibility, but not directly on a Metro stop in a highly desired part of town. At that price range, it's a tough call, since outside of the Rotonda in Tysons, where you may find something for under $350k, the only other places I can think of are the Skyline buildings, where you should find a 2BR in the mid-high $200s, and a 3BR around $300k or so.

Neither is on a Metro line, though Rotonda will be close when the Silver Line is completed, but they're not in quaint, walkable areas -- though they are elevator buildings. Rotonda's fees are probably significant, too, since it's a gated complex with full amenities.

[NOVAmtneer82]

Originally Posted by Caladium

Even though Occoquan's going in the wrong direction from Baltimore, it might work, since it's not that far and it's along 95 (which makes getting to Baltimore a little more direct, even if it is far). The older section along the river is more of a village than an urban area, but I can see brooklyndad enjoying life there.

Winchester and Reston, OTOH, are miles and miles away from any area the OP might be interested in and thus are completely off topic for this thread. We get it, RR thinks Reston=bad and Winchester=good, but does every thread have to be derailed to say so?

I'm annoyed that I'll also have to off topic for a second, but I can't allow an erroneous comment to slip by: "people who think Reston, decidedly a low-density sprawling suburb, is urban/walkable/quaint when it's clearly not by traditional definitions." Since walkscore.com bothered to rate Reston's walkability (and, in fact, gave it the high score of 75/100 or "Very Walkable") it obviously does fit the definition of walkable. If you want to disagree with the ratings, that's an issue for another thread. We've had several threads on this issue, how about discussing it there?

OK, now that I've set things straight, let's get back on topic. The OP needs to commute to the Navy Yard in DC. He also likes going to Baltimore. He wants an urban area. He specificall requested a metro station or a FREQUENT bus line to DC. He likes walkable neighborhoods. Let's stick to discussing areas that might actually interest the OP, not Winchester and Reston.

I completely agree. I'm not sure why Winchester and Reston keep being brought up in nearly every single thread. The OP's specifics did not even come close to matching the characteristics of those two places but yet they are once again brought to the forefront of conversation.

I don't think the 300K budget will work that well for a 2 bedroom unit but perhaps a 1 bedroom plus a den? I could suggest trying some of the new condos in the Columbia Pike corridor of South Arlington. A streetcar line is planned that will go from Baileys Crossroads in Fairfax through South Arlington to the Pentagon City metro. In addition there has been a decent amount of new construction in the area around the Arlington Cinema and Drafthouse. That area is VERY well served by both Metrobus and ART.

[Middlin]

I believe Fairlington would be your best bet

[brooklynborndad]

wrt Reston

A little playing around on Redfin indicates some possibilities close to the price point in RTC, I think. No metro now, but couple could maybe wait till silver line is finished. Again, ease of access to BALTIMORE is not crucial. Maybe I should not have mentioned Baltimore? Folks here are getting stuck on that.


Skyline - yeah more affordable, and LRT coming at some point. But hardly charming whether in the quaint sense or the modern urban sense.

Columbia Pike - I see that as interesting, but not many suitable units on the market

Fairlington - possibly best bet in NoVa with these parameters.

[CaliTerp07]

Just a guess, but I think when the metro is finished to Reston you'll see price points jump up significantly. Anything that is $300k now will probably be out of that budget if it's walkable to the metro.

[brooklynborndad]

tiger beer - wrt Annandale

yeah, if you get tired of chain stores (and we do) the korean businesses around here aint chain stores (mostly). But an entrepreneurial place selling stuff we arent interested in (christian book stores, stores selling elaborate bath thingies that seem to be of interest to koreans, etc) dont really do much for us. That leaves the restaurants, which are interesting, but really we don't eat Korean THAT much.

And the physical layout of the area, leaves MUCH to be desired. Its certainly not a bustling walking area, and given its layout I can't see it becoming one anytime soon. Also, no prospect of rail anytime soon either. Maybe after beltway is done we will see a really major improvement in bus service, but I doubt that, more likely marginal improvements.

Hypothetical couple might stay in Annandale awhile, but its not really an answer to the question. Sorry.

[NCN]

Culpeper, and I would buy one of the older homes downtown. My daughter puts on her running shoes when it is time to pay bills and runs from location to location. She decided to do this one day when the choice for her time was to sit down and pay the bills and mail them or go running. She did both.