Please Sticky: General Pointers If You are Moving To Northern Virginia (Arlington: HOA, low crime)

[Love2LiveNCities]

my neighbors house just sold for 330k. 4 bedroom, 2 bath, 2 and a half acres in Prince William. Prices are good now for a buyer....good luck selling.

[venbanu]

Thanks very much SmerkyGrl for the quick summary of Northern Va. Myself and my family (wife, 3 year old daughter, and a big dog) are planning to move to Northern Fairfax in March 08. We are looking for a 3 bedroom townhouse to rent/buy. Could someone please tell me decent residential neighborhoods (meaning good schools, safe...).etc.? My office will be in Fairfax (~9500, Lee Highway) so I'm looking for not more than a 30 minute commute in peak traffic ...so any desirable neighborhoods within that radius ??? Appreciate the help very much ..Thanks...

[SmerkyGrl]

Originally Posted by venbanu

Thanks very much SmerkyGrl for the quick summary of Northern Va. Myself and my family (wife, 3 year old daughter, and a big dog) are planning to move to Northern Fairfax in March 08. We are looking for a 3 bedroom townhouse to rent/buy. Could someone please tell me decent residential neighborhoods (meaning good schools, safe...).etc.? My office will be in Fairfax (~9500, Lee Highway) so I'm looking for not more than a 30 minute commute in peak traffic ...so any desirable neighborhoods within that radius ??? Appreciate the help very much ..Thanks...

What's your budget?

[venbanu]

Originally Posted by SmerkyGrl

What's your budget?

Thanks for the reply My budget is about 2000 $/month for 3 bedroom 2 bath townhouse rental (with a small fenced yard for the dog).....for buying a similar townhouse not more than 330K.........

[SmerkyGrl]

Originally Posted by venbanu

Thanks for the reply My budget is about 2000 $/month for 3 bedroom 2 bath townhouse rental (with a small fenced yard for the dog).....for buying a similar townhouse not more than 330K.........

Sorry bud, you might be able to find a crappy 2 bedroom townhouse for 330k but your budget is not going to match your desires. Living expenses up here are through the roof. Perhaps consider a condo or renting instead.

[saganista]

Originally Posted by SmerkyGrl

Sorry bud, you might be able to find a crappy 2 bedroom townhouse for 330k but your budget is not going to match your desires. Living expenses up here are through the roof. Perhaps consider a condo or renting instead.

Not as bad as all that. Job is actually in the Fairfax Circle area, closer to Vienna than Fairfax City. There should be options along Blake Lane and off of Lee Highway toward 66 that are not awful and would fall into the price range, particularly on the rental side. Those areas would offer a great commute, and easy access to the Vienna and/or Dunn Loring Metro stations as well. Worth a look. One place to check would be http://www.miltarybyowner.com. Often very useful in this area and you don't have to be military to use it. Put in Ft Myer as the nearest base, then search Fairfax, VA and see what shows up...

[ONLYISLANDLADY]

moving back here from the west coast after several years, no. va has lots to do but we just have to accept the normal 1.5 hr commute on a good day lol. oh and that is one direction. we accept the townhomes and condos because this is not Iowa. we accept diversity but we try and live in areas that are either far away and use public transportation or do the long drive so we can get away from the rough parts. others just live there and get their cars broken into. trust me, do the longer commute. people in the far away burbs do not have a clue what closer in people live with daily unless you can afford a home for $500,000 plus.

[DavidS827]

Originally Posted by venbanu

Thanks for the reply My budget is about 2000 $/month for 3 bedroom 2 bath townhouse rental (with a small fenced yard for the dog).....for buying a similar townhouse not more than 330K.........

I would look in Burke (22015) and Fairfax (22032). You can find a pretty nice townhouse under 330k in those areas.

[gnab gib]

Well, even as someone who's not a fan of this area, I'll grudgingly go along with the original post. EXCEPT for the traffic. It really is terrible most of the time. If it's not as bad as NYC or Philly, that still doesn't mean it's good ... it's just perhaps slightly less horrible.

[mommieto2]

My husband wants to move back to the "DC area"...Before we met he lived in the "Arlington/Alexandria area". Looking online I realize that N. VA is HUGE. There are alot of options but the ones I think may work for us are Vienna, Fairfax [City], Alexandria, and Falls Church. My kids are under 5 yrs, so we need to make sure we move into an area with good schools, good parks/rec., and good public transportation...Forget cost of housing...I know it will be alot compared to where we are now. What are the thoughts those cities mentioned above and the areas around them. We are both in healthcare, so is there an area that has more job options for healthcare (RN, Pharmacy)...