Where to live in Prince William County that is not ghetto? (Manassas: middle-class, fit in)

[fritzmatrix]

In July I will be moving to a job in the Manassas/Woodbridge area from Cary, North Carolina? (One office is in Manassas, another in Woodbridge)

I am a 30-year old male. I am Hispanic (culturally I am more white than Hispanic).
If you know anything about Cary, NC, it is mostly filled with upper class white folk and middle-class executives. I am looking for the same in Northern Virginia. I have heard good things of Bristow and Gainesville. I heard rumors that traffic won't be too bad as long as I drive the opposite direction from DC.
Money wise? I'll be banking upper $70k. I am not sure whether I would want to move permanently to VA so I'll probably rent for the time being.

So folks, where should I look into moving? You get extra brownies points the more specific you are?
(city, neighborhood, address, apartment complex, etc.)

[airjay75]

What are you looking to spend on housing and what sort of commute are you looking to have? Those are going to be your key limiting factors.

And, just to mentally prepare you, my in laws live in Cary and I visit often. You really are not going to find anything like Cary in this area - it just doesn't exist (or, at least, I have yet to see it if it does). This area is more diverse, both ethnically and socioeconomically, and while, you do have some pre-planned communities here, I have not seen anything quite like what I've seen in Cary.

[NOVA_guy]

Yeah... I was going to say there really isn't anywhere in NoVA that I've seen that is even somewhat similar to Cary...

You may like Nokesville. Good luck.

[gomason]

You will find upper middle class families in literally almost every single neighborhood in NOVA. This is a ginormous economic powerhouse. As airjay said, it's also much more socioeconomically diverse so it's not uncommon to have millionaires living next door to working class people.

Truthfully, I wouldn't call any part of Prince William County ghetto. I have been to many inner city neighborhoods and it is anything but ghetto. As airjay said, this is an extremely diverse area with the majority of the population being an ethnic minority, although there are still more white people than any other group.

Nokesville/Gainesville/Bristow (near Manassas) are the less diverse areas with a lot fewer minorities and working class families. I lived in the Triangle for 11 years and Nokesville/Bristow/Gainesville is probably the closest thing we have although it is still way more diverse. Woodbridge would be more comparable to Durham with a very large population of minorities.

PS you're not doing yourself any favors by asking for areas that "aren't ghetto filled." Comes off to me as a little racially charged.

[Jon_In_NOVA]

Agreed with Mason, the way the OP articulated his/her question screams "ghetto". Also "...money wise - banking" 70K a year won't get you near the upper middle class of PWC without severely cutting quality of life. Even with minimal expense 70K would more than likely get you a townhouse. Best of luck, oh and please choose a zip code outside of 20112.

[e2ksj3]

OP, what exactly is culturally "white"? No offense but you are coming off as kind of racist.

This area is very diverse, wealthy, & there are a lot of middle to upper class areas that inhabited by all racial groups. Don't assume that because an area is nice that only white people live there. With that being said PWC has a lot of areas you would like. In Woodbridge the consensus is anything generally west of Rt. 1 is good although there a lot of new areas east of it that I would move. In western PWC Gainesville, Haymarket, & Bristow are good areas. Manassas/Manassas Park is generally good as well although not as affluent as Gainesville/Haymarket. You may want to check the crime maps to get an idea of the good areas. I live in a place that people considered "sketchy" & I haven't had any issues the four years I've been living here.

[HokieFan]

What's your housing budget? At upper $70k, you're probably not going to be able to afford to live in the upper class neighborhoods.

I live in proximity to the Springwoods at Lake Ridge apartment complex. It appears to be a decent complex in a nice area of Lake Ridge - 22192. From my observations, it is socioeconomically, racially, & culturally diverse so that might not fit your ideal. However, it is in a nice area of Woodbridge, relatively low crime, close to shopping and restaurants, and a convenient commute to Manassas.

The Dominion Lake Ridge apartments might be worth taking a peak at as well.

[Carlingtonian]

Originally Posted by e2ksj3

OP, what exactly is culturally "white"? No offense but you are coming off as kind of racist.

I don't disagree with any of the rest of your post, but I disagree with this part. "Hispanic" is a linguistic heritage, not a race. Thus police reports and demographic surveys usually categorize it separately from black/white/Asian. I have worked with Hispanics who were of paler complexion than mine--and I am one pasty SOB. I'm pretty sure my skin tone is offered in a Benjamin Moore ceiling paint. (And there are of course black people--usually Dominicans--with Spanish names. Like Sammy Sosa. Oh, wait--he's white now.)

All that "Hispanic" literally means is "person whose ancestors are from a Spanish-speaking country"--which of course includes Spain and parts of South America where there are lots of people of European-only extraction.

What the OP is saying is that he culturally doesn't fit in with the low-income Central Americans here. He's being blunt, which is a luxury of the internet. But it doesn't mean he's racist; it just means he prefers to be around people whose economic and educational stratum is close to his own. And that's true for people of all races.

But again, I agree with the rest of what you wrote.

That said, "ghetto" is kind of a loaded word, prone to offending others.

[e2ksj3]

Originally Posted by Carlingtonian

I don't disagree with any of the rest of your post, but I disagree with this part. "Hispanic" is a linguistic heritage, not a race. Thus police reports and demographic surveys usually categorize it separately from black/white/Asian. I have worked with Hispanics who were of paler complexion than mine--and I am one pasty SOB. I'm pretty sure my skin tone is offered in a Benjamin Moore ceiling paint. (And there are of course black people--usually Dominicans--with Spanish names. Like Sammy Sosa. Oh, wait--he's white now.)

All that "Hispanic" literally means is "person whose ancestors are from a Spanish-speaking country"--which of course includes Spain and parts of South America where there are lots of people of European-only extraction.

What the OP is saying is that he culturally doesn't fit in with the low-income Central Americans here. He's being blunt, which is a luxury of the internet. But it doesn't mean he's racist; it just means he prefers to be around people whose economic and educational stratum is close to his own. And that's true for people of all races.

But again, I agree with the rest of what you wrote.

That said, "ghetto" is kind of a loaded word, prone to offending others.

I know there are differences between Hispanic groups but I was trying to understand what's culturally "white". I'm black but grew up in a middle class environment that was mostly white but I wouldn't say I'm culturally more "white". I would say I'm middle class. I guess what I was getting at is that non-white =/= ghetto.

If the OP would have said I prefer being in areas that are more middle class to upper class without the mention of ethnicity or race, I probably wouldn't have thought much of it. I just have this little pet peeve about equating white=upper class. That is definitely not always the case especially in this area.

[Ashley Tauzier]

Gainesville, Bristow, or Haymarket are all very nice places to live. The average income of a person in the area I would say is around $125k. At $70k you probably would be looking at townhouse for rent or purchase, in a nice subdivision with amenities. lf you are looking for something a little more rural then Nokesville, would be a good place to research. Rentals though in that area are far and few between, currently only 2 on the market. I personally live in Gainesville and love it. Your commute time from Western Prince William county to Manassas would be about 15 minutes and then commute to Woodbridge would be about 35-55 minutes. Honestly rental cost in this area are sometimes higher than what you would pay for your mortgage, so it may be advantageous to explore both options. Good luck on your move!