Gainesville to Ballston: Nicer home worth the commute?

[KM_W&M06]

Originally Posted by stpickrell

+1.

Jobs that pay $100k here might pay $60-$65k there. Plus, if you have a psychotic boss, it's harder to move on there than here.

Yeah, I realize the pay difference outside this region and am actually VERY happy with my employer, I've been at the same company since I got out of college in 2006 and they've rewarded me with raises and bonuses every year (I'm in oil and gas consulting) while also letting me work remotely for weeks at a time when I would travel west where my wife-to-be was in grad school...I could actually care less about actual pay, I just would prefer to live in the country if I could (I can count on one hand the times I've been to a bar in NoVa/DC in the last year...much prefer brewing my own beer and checking out breweries/wineries).

[KM_W&M06]

TH with a decent backyard I think we could see ourselves in...

Springfield I could do but Woodbridge might be a stretch and I don't think slugging is for me...I like being in the driver's seat and only having to depend on myself to get to work (that came off a bit selfish LOL)

[hilsmom]

hmm, well there are also options for setting up more formal ridesharing.

I'm opposite - I HATE driving to work. I would much rather have a public transport option. People thought my commute from reston was nutty, but I didn't mind the 10 minute drive to a park and ride, then 20ish minute bus ride to 10 minute metro ride to 10 minute walk to the office. At least in the time I was on the bus and metro, I could read the newspaper and not be stressed out by traffic.

[stpickrell]

Originally Posted by KM_W&M06

Yeah, I realize the pay difference outside this region and am actually VERY happy with my employer, I've been at the same company since I got out of college in 2006 and they've rewarded me with raises and bonuses every year (I'm in oil and gas consulting) while also letting me work remotely for weeks at a time when I would travel west where my wife-to-be was in grad school...I could actually care less about actual pay, I just would prefer to live in the country if I could (I can count on one hand the times I've been to a bar in NoVa/DC in the last year...much prefer brewing my own beer and checking out breweries/wineries).

You need to make it out to Loudoun County then.

[KM_W&M06]

Thanks to all for your opinions on our situation, definitely put things in perspective

My wife and I realized we don't really need a big SFH now and by buying a decent townhouse in the area we'd actually pay less in mortgage than our current apartment rent with twice the space. Plus, we'd like to travel a bit before having a child and will probably have to get another vehicle in a few years...no sense in struggling to pay for all that stuff on top of a $500K house with more rooms than I'd know what to do with.

[JokerABC]

Originally Posted by The Dissenter

Have you tried looking for a job in those areas? Those homes are cheap for a reason.

I would probably say you need to be looking at the type of profession when you compare to your friends in other areas. For example, a physician in DC will probably only make slightly more than someone in southeastern VA or NC, which is not enough to make up for the ridiculous increase in housing.

[KM_W&M06]

Originally Posted by JokerABC

I would probably say you need to be looking at the type of profession when you compare to your friends in other areas. For example, a physician in DC will probably only make slightly more than someone in southeastern VA or NC, which is not enough to make up for the ridiculous increase in housing.

I definitely hear you, most of our friends are bankers and lawyers (boring jobs to me, no offense)...my wife and I are in biology and geology/energy respectively, we like seeing things besides numbers and words at work, the science nerds that we are, haha. I've had and have the opportunity to travel around the US and overseas for work and have done remote sensing on practically every country so no project ever gets old. At the end of the day I guess I really like my job!

[Middlin]

FWIW, we didn't move out here in 2003 for the shiny new home, we moved because we were broke. We couldn't stay in Fair Lakes and the only thing we could afford in a school district we liked was out here. My husband worked in Manassas so only one of us had a commute. Circumstances changed over the years and in 2009 we were ready to move again. By this time we had really gotten involved in the community, our son was doing extremely well in the schools and was involved in sports, etc and frankly liked that the fact that we could go out to eat on a Friday and not be told it was a 90 minute wait. We enjoy all the things "out west" has to offer and we really are enjoying our new SFH dispite the fact my husband doesn't work in Manassas anymore. I don't think we would have moved out here if circumstances had been different.