Where to move in NOVA

[ACWhite]

Originally Posted by ilm

I want a short commute and understand that the house/townhouse will be small. Where in North Arlington should I look?

There is a great SFH neighborhood just west of Crystal City - Aurora Hills (Aurora Highlands); a little farther west is Arlington Ridge, with possibly bigger and more expensive houses. Also check out nearby Addison Heights (houses are a little smaller, a little less pricey, more rentals, but closer to metro than parts of Aurora Highlands). You can't get a shorter commute than that, and you are close to everything -- the airport (though the flight patterns are routed so that you barely hear them), DC, Alexandria, several shopping malls (Pentagon City mall (with a Macy's, Nordstrom, etc.), Potomac Yard (with a Best Buy, Target, Staples, etc.)). These neighborhoods are technically in "South Arlington" but 22202 zip is very different from 22204, for example - lots of foreclosures in 22204 right now. As others mentioned, there are school questions to consider vs. North Arlington, but N. Arl. also tends to be a bit more expensive.

For a townhouse option that would be less expensive than the SFH neighborhoods I mentioned above, you might look in or near Fairlington in 22206.

[ilm]

Looking at your suggestions and the school ratings Northern Arlington as well as McLean, Great Falls and Vienna would be great for schools but I will be living out of my car. Thanks for the help and I will keep looking. Please continue to give your suggestions.

[HEATHER72]

Well if you are looking for cheaper housing, you will pay for it with a longer commute. I have a neighbor who works in Crystal City and takes the VRE into work. We live on the Gainesville/Bristow border. Might want to try around that area.

[normie]

Aurora Hills is a very nice neighborhood. You might be able to get a good deal there right now, and in the long run it would be a good investment.

[ACWhite]

Originally Posted by ilm

Looking at your suggestions and the school ratings Northern Arlington as well as McLean, Great Falls and Vienna would be great for schools but I will be living out of my car. Thanks for the help and I will keep looking. Please continue to give your suggestions.

Since there is a metro stop in Crystal City, you would have the option of living fairly far away and taking the metro and doing some work during your commute. If you want to help people give you more useful suggestions, you probably need to give people more info about your price range, and features you are looking for. As you have probably discovered, this is large area and a very expensive place to live, and there are big tradeoffs that have to be made, especially when you have children and need space/good schools/a yard, etc. People can focus their suggestions to suit your tradeoffs a little better with more info.

[pcity]

I'm also a huge fan of Aurora Hills, but I'm not sure about the schools there. I think they're the same ones as the less desirable parts of Arlington. Aurora Hills is a great, safe neighborhood, lots of young professionals and new families, but I rarely see a school-aged kid there and that might be the reason why.