Oak Park, IL to Vienna, VA (Reston, Centreville: real estate, for sale, income)

[LiquidQ]

So, final decision isn't in yet, but we might be moving to NoVA in the next few months. I just found out my husband's new job will be in vienna. We don't know anything about the area, or the DC area. So far I've looked at Herndon and Restond areas online. Does anyone know about those areas for families, what the commute would be like, etc? Any areas/cities/neighborhoods to look into or avoid?

we would love to live in an area with young families (we're mid 30s with two 5-year-old boys) and would like to have something to do close by (libraries, restaurants, theaters, parks, etc). we're looking to spend up to $500,000 on sfh.

Any advice is much appreciated!

[novanative75]

I personally grew up in Vienna and it is a great town. It offers the closeness to the city but with the feel of a great small town. The schools are excellent, I would personally recommend Wolftrap Elementary, Thoreau Middle and Madison High School but you can not go wrong with any of them. There are wonderful churches, an excellent youth sports leagues, tons of swim and tennis clubs, more and more restaurants, and you are so close to Tysons Corner, the best shopping around. You will find that Vienna is all about families, I would move back there in a heartbeat.
Commute to where? Vienna is a nice middle ground, probably 20-30 minutes into DC, without traffic and the same to Dulles Airport and its surrounding areas.
Now, the housing market sucks so it, now, is the time to buy. Vienna is expensive but I bet you could get something nice for around $500,000 since housing is so cheap now. Normally I would say no, that you would not be able to get a sfh for that but now is different. Check Realtor.com and see what is there, let me know what you find and I will tell you about any areas you are looking at. It would be cheaper to move further out towards Dulles Airport but I would avoid Reston and Herndon because of the schools. Although there are some nice areas there, you will find a lot of low income housing and a real mix of ethnicities, lots of non-English speaking. Now, there is a nice area called Oak Hill which is like in between Oakton and Herndon but be forewarned, they are changing the schools for that area, so I would avoid it because chances are that the kids there are going to be shipped off to lesser performing schools to increase the enrollment, it is going to be a chaotic mess for sure!

The commute to Vienna from Reston/Herndon/Chantilly/Centreville in the morning would all probably be the same, 30-45 mins.
I would stay with Vienna, Oakton, Fairfax, Chantilly, Centreville. Let me know if you have questions!

[LiquidQ]

novanative75: I didn't originally look in vienna because I was told that it was completely out of our price range - but I will take a peek now and see what's avail. And thanks for the tips about reston and Herndon... man I hate moving! too much to consider on such a short notice.

[novanative75]

Originally Posted by LiquidQ

novanative75: I didn't originally look in vienna because I was told that it was completely out of our price range - but I will take a peek now and see what's avail. And thanks for the tips about reston and Herndon... man I hate moving! too much to consider on such a short notice.

There might be a lot that is out of your price range but look. When I get time tomorrow, I will look at Realtor.com and see if I see anything that might be good. I know that is not the most up to date place to look at real estate but it will give me an idea of what it up for sale and is in your price range.

[knopfler]

Originally Posted by LiquidQ

So, final decision isn't in yet, but we might be moving to NoVA in the next few months. I just found out my husband's new job will be in vienna. We don't know anything about the area, or the DC area. So far I've looked at Herndon and Restond areas online. Does anyone know about those areas for families, what the commute would be like, etc? Any areas/cities/neighborhoods to look into or avoid?

we would love to live in an area with young families (we're mid 30s with two 5-year-old boys) and would like to have something to do close by (libraries, restaurants, theaters, parks, etc). we're looking to spend up to $500,000 on sfh.

Any advice is much appreciated!

You can find a SFH house in Vienna for under 500k, but it will need updating or will be small. Herndon and Reston are both very covenient to Vienna, in terms of commuting. Fairfax would be a good bet too. Herndon and Fairfax should be fairly easy to find a SFH for under 500k, Reston a little less so but still very doable.

Make sure to ask your Realtor all kinds of questions about the commuting convenient of various properties - you didn't ask, but commuting here is a bear. You can find beautiful - even new - properties that fit your description in places like Centreville, Broadlands and Gainesville - but you're trading off 2 hours a day extra in roundtrip commuting.

Welcome to Northern Virginia!

[Fairfax Mom]

The only thing bad about Vienna is that its main road through town is always jammed with so many cars you cant even move - and this is any time of day and any day of the week. I could not stand to live like that.

[novanative75]

Originally Posted by Fairfax Mom

The only thing bad about Vienna is that its main road through town is always jammed with so many cars you cant even move - and this is any time of day and any day of the week. I could not stand to live like that.

There are some great backroads that parallel the main road. When I lived there, I rarely was on 123.

[saganista]

Originally Posted by novanative75

There are some great backroads that parallel the main road. When I lived there, I rarely was on 123.

Exactly. If at all possible, one would certainly want to stay off of 123-N towards Tysons in the morning rush, and 123-S away from Tysons in the evening rush. Saturday mid-day's can be crowded in downtown Vienna as well with everybody off to shop, but for most of the rest of the week, 123 in either direction is fine, and there are indeed side and back roads that can take you around the worst of any bottlenecks with relative ease.

In the current market, there will indeed be a good number of Vienna SFH properties available for under $500K. One thing to note in searching through them is whether the street address includes a quadrant reference (NE, NW, SE, SW). If it doesn't, the house is very likely to have a Vienna mailing address, but not be inside the Town limits. That would save paying the Town taxes, but it would also raise a question about the school pyramid. Best to double-check on that if schools are an issue...

[Maria-Isabel]

I live in Vienna (next block is Oakton) and I love it. Great place for raising a family and wonderful schools. Many times I take 123 in the morning and while the traffic is heavy it is fluid. Reston and Herndon are not far from Vienna and you can always take the backroads to reach Vienna (Sunset, Hunter Mill, Vale Road). Yes, welcome to Vienna. I am sure you will love it.

[scimitar12]

Originally Posted by LiquidQ

So, final decision isn't in yet, but we might be moving to NoVA in the next few months. I just found out my husband's new job will be in vienna. We don't know anything about the area, or the DC area. So far I've looked at Herndon and Restond areas online. Does anyone know about those areas for families, what the commute would be like, etc? Any areas/cities/neighborhoods to look into or avoid?

we would love to live in an area with young families (we're mid 30s with two 5-year-old boys) and would like to have something to do close by (libraries, restaurants, theaters, parks, etc). we're looking to spend up to $500,000 on sfh.

Any advice is much appreciated!

I think it depends on what your expectations are for a house. My wife and I are looking in the Sterling and Herndon areas but only becasue we just can't afford what we want in a house in Reston and Vienna.

For 500K you might be able to get something in Vienna and Reston; however, more than likekly these homes will be smaller homes without some of the "basics" you may be used to like an attached two car garage. Also, most of the homes will be need quite a bit of fixing up or updating. Even though prices in the D.C. area have fallen a lot in the last two years they are still out of whack compared to the rest of the country.