Gainesville to Ballston: Nicer home worth the commute? (Burke, Reston: houses, neighborhoods)

[KM_W&M06]

Originally Posted by spleuchan

I really like the Gainesville/Haymarket area. I commute early and leave the house at 5:30 and traffic is bearable (not great) on I-66. I also commute from home 2 days a week. I don't have much experience with commuting in to be at work at 10:00, but do know that when I leave for Dulles airport at 9:00 in the morning, the traffic hasn't yet cleared on I-66. I think you might still be looking at a lot of traffic getting into Ballston at 10:00, but others might have more experience at your time.

We love the areas that we've seen too, just wish the commutes were better!

[ChristineVA]

Have you considered a smaller house in the West Springfield, Burke area? It will give you both a decent commute, good schools, and a nice community.

Believe me when I tell you that the "shine" of a new home will wear off in a year and you will be faced with the seemingly lifelong situation of a long commute. This is definitely NOT something you would want to do with children in your life that are under the age of 16. It will stink. But I think we all get bitten by the "new home/big home" bug and those home models are quite enticing. Don't do it.

But, if you do decide to do it, I will tell you flat out that going to work early (arriving at 6-6:30 AM) is always going to serve you better than arriving at 10AM. This area has a very long rush hour that gets into full swing by 6:30 AM. I know that there's a certain amount of people that CANNOT be morning people but it's really the way to go. And, if you can get home by 3:30, you can generally make every soccer practice, girl scout meeting, school conference that there is. I found the early hours are the way to go when you have two parents working and a few kids.

[KM_W&M06]

Originally Posted by Middlin

A lot people have the same idea.... leave later, but even leaving this area at 9:00 isn't a lot better. One thing to note is there can be an accident (it seems like) every day for two weeks at 66/Bus 234. That stretch of 66 between 29 at Gainesville and 234 can CRAWL. I used to take 29 through the battlefield and jump back on 66 at Centreville, but Lee Highway started to get really bad. I now ususally take Balls Ford and get on 66 in Manassas. Once the fly overs on 29/Gainesville finally get done that will bottleneck 66 even more IMO. If you decide on this area, I would think carefully on neighborhood and how easy other alternatives to that stretch of 66 is to avoid.

Wasn't even thinking about the flyover/potential bottleneck, good point.

[kww]

Originally Posted by KM_W&M06

We've driven by a bunch of houses the last few months in Centreville and saw a few inside with a realtor a couple weeks ago within a day or two of being on the market and they already have 5-10 offers and are sold extremely quickly...it's like you have to decide right then and there if you want to buy the house, no real time to compare what little supply of homes for sale there are.

Just means you and your wife have good taste if there's that much interest

if you've traveled the neighborhoods and decided they could work, then viewing a new home and submitting an offer can happen quickly, if you want it to.

[claremarie]

Originally Posted by KM_W&M06

4) We'd like to have our first child in the next 1-2 years and I would strongly prefer having a house to raise a kid...I don't want to wait until we're 35-40 like some people to have a child (no offense to anyone that does, just my preference)

Completely understand the desire to have a house instead of an apartment when raising kids. But you don't have any kids YET, and babies don't take up much space at the beginning. I would still think about waiting until after you have the baby, and you've settled into your new work lives. A long commute may not be as attractive if it means you miss out on time with your child. Your nice house vs. commute calculation may change once there is a child in the picture.

[KM_W&M06]

Originally Posted by ChristineVA

Have you considered a smaller house in the West Springfield, Burke area? It will give you both a decent commute, good schools, and a nice community.

Believe me when I tell you that the "shine" of a new home will wear off in a year and you will be faced with the seemingly lifelong situation of a long commute. This is definitely NOT something you would want to do with children in your life that are under the age of 16. It will stink. But I think we all get bitten by the "new home/big home" bug and those home models are quite enticing. Don't do it.

But, if you do decide to do it, I will tell you flat out that going to work early (arriving at 6-6:30 AM) is always going to serve you better than arriving at 10AM. This area has a very long rush hour that gets into full swing by 6:30 AM. I know that there's a certain amount of people that CANNOT be morning people but it's really the way to go. And, if you can get home by 3:30, you can generally make every soccer practice, girl scout meeting, school conference that there is. I found the early hours are the way to go when you have two parents working and a few kids.

Yes, we looked at 1 or 2 in Burke a couple months ago, we should probably check again. I agree with the "early work" mentality (I'm a "work first-then play" kind of guy) though no one else in my company is up that early, plus sometimes I have to be around later for calls to Houston...it is very tempting to move out west (Texas or Rockies) as there are many jobs in my field.

[KM_W&M06]

Originally Posted by kww

Just means you and your wife have good taste if there's that much interest

if you've traveled the neighborhoods and decided they could work, then viewing a new home and submitting an offer can happen quickly, if you want it to.

Haha, I think our tastes are TOO good sometimes!

Someone correct me if I'm wrong but would I expect to see more houses come on the market in the coming months since schools will be ending and it will be "easier" for families that want to sell move?

[KM_W&M06]

Originally Posted by claremarie

Completely understand the desire to have a house instead of an apartment when raising kids. But you don't have any kids YET, and babies don't take up much space at the beginning. I would still think about waiting until after you have the baby, and you've settled into your new work lives. A long commute may not be as attractive if it means you miss out on time with your child. Your nice house vs. commute calculation may change once there is a child in the picture.

While I would certainly not like it, I feel I COULD wait a bit longer to get a house IF I had the peace of mind knowing that 30-year rates would stay in the 3.5-4% range AND current home prices would not increase...a crystal ball sure would be nice, wouldn't it?

And while my wife and I don't try to "keep up with the Joneses", we can't help but feel a bit depressed when many of our friends from college that live in southeastern VA or NC have $250K homes that are absolute MANSIONS in the countryside and 15-20 minute commutes...we've just chosen to stick where our jobs are more or less recession-proof.

[Middlin]

If I were in your shoes (which I was) I would buy in Fair Lakes or Centreville. Good commuting options, close to 66, not far from Vienna metro. We actually used to own a TH in FL and wouldn't you know I ended up working in FL, but I don't regret moving out here. A good rule of thumb is plan on being where you buy 7 yrs. In 7 years you then have a child ready for school and if it works to move further out and make those type of tradeoffs you then could buy up if you move out to PW. Trust me when I say you and your wife will go through many changes, most likely job changes, etc between now and when you have a kid.

[KM_W&M06]

Originally Posted by Middlin

If I were in your shoes (which I was) I would buy in Fair Lakes or Centreville. Good commuting options, close to 66, not far from Vienna metro. We actually used to own a TH in FL and wouldn't you know I ended up working in FL, but I don't regret moving out here. A good rule of thumb is plan on being where you buy 7 yrs. In 7 years you then have a child ready for school and if it works to move further out and make those type of tradeoffs you then could buy up if you move out to PW. Trust me when I say you and your wife will go through many changes, most likely job changes, etc between now and when you have a kid.

Thanks for the honest advice, a feel like a little voice inside my head has been saying this all along As nice as it would be to buy and stay in a decent home for 30 years and avoid moving, that is more than likely not going to happen. We both love our home state of Virginia (and tolerate NoVa), and families are all still here but if an opportunity to go south or west arises in the future we would definitely consider. The 7-year plan you mention I think makes a lot of sense, we'll see what the misses says tonight.