Good buys in Arlington/Alexandria?! (Springfield, Fairfax: townhomes, buying, utilities)

[mryan13]

Originally Posted by Deeman804

If you are price focused then off of Walter reed and army navy drive (west on A-N and South on Walter Reed) has condos/townhouses that are very affordable and sub 400K but usually are tiny. I think that region within Arlington and Alexandria has the best value and still is nice but it's not cheap by far. Also, closely watch out for condo fees, some are decent, some are ridiculous.

Thanks for the responses and suggestions. How are the condos in the Fairlington/Parkfairfax areas? Looks like this is the area Deeman is talking about. Appears to have condos at $300k and under, would this be a good area to build equity within 5-10 years, despite monthly condo fees?

I could stretch the budget higher, but would prefer not to spend that much on a first time purchase.

[Deeman804]

Originally Posted by mryan13

Thanks for the responses and suggestions. How are the condos in the Fairlington/Parkfairfax areas? Looks like this is the area Deeman is talking about. Appears to have condos at $300k and under, would this be a good area to build equity within 5-10 years, despite monthly condo fees?

I could stretch the budget higher, but would prefer not to spend that much on a first time purchase.

I was referring to just north and west of fairlington on condos like The Arlington, Court Bridge, The Carlton, George Mason Village, The Brittany etc.. My opinion on Fairlington and ParkFairfax is that they are very nice older and quite the hidden gem. The added bonus is that you can walk to Shirlington and the BradLee shopping center for the essentials on all price scales. The steadily increase in value, but they are is stable so don't expect to have some drastic appreciation unless there is a major construction project to replace those factories near Nauck (So far they built a new storage place, womp womp). The Major con of those two complexes is that the sub-300 or near 300K ones are 1-br if that is okay with you. 2-3 bedrooms there run near or over 400K usually.

[boyd888]

Originally Posted by mryan13

Appears to have condos at $300k and under, would this be a good area to build equity within 5-10 years, despite monthly condo fees?

The "hidden gem" Park Fairfax has a $450 a month condo fee (lol). Let's say the place is $300K. That's equivalent to a $380K place with no HOA/condo fees (not uncommon for older townhomes in Fairfax). The condo fee may contain some stuff like trash, water, etc so let's call it a $350K equivalent.

Is your budget $350K? No, you said it's $300K. Then why are you looking at places that are essentially $350K? You can't be this naive to think buying a 50 year old condo with a giant condo fee is the road to wealth.

[ACWhite]

Originally Posted by boyd888

The "hidden gem" Park Fairfax has a $450 a month condo fee (lol). Let's say the place is $300K. That's equivalent to a $380K place with no HOA/condo fees (not uncommon for older townhomes in Fairfax). The condo fee may contain some stuff like trash, water, etc so let's call it a $350K equivalent.

Is your budget $350K? No, you said it's $300K. Then why are you looking at places that are essentially $350K? You can't be this naive to think buying a 50 year old condo with a giant condo fee is the road to wealth.

I agree with your main point, that all costs need to be considered, but the condo fees also include some exterior/grounds care. Are there really townhomes with no fees? How do they pay for these expenses that are inevitable? With periodic assessments? If so, then you would have to factor that in. Or do the homeowners have to pay for these? Then these would offset the lack of condo fees. With single family homes, of course, the likely upkeep and upgrade costs would likely be as high or higher than many condo fees.

Back to the OP's q: I have friends in both of these complexes, and they have been there a long time. They are very happy and the communities have lots of nice people in them. It appears to me that the major downside is that the units tend to be very small, with tiny kitchens and little storage space in most units. But not everyone needs tons of space.

[mryan13]

Originally Posted by boyd888

You can't be this naive to think buying a 50 year old condo with a giant condo fee is the road to wealth.

Even older.. 76 year old condo. Most of the Parkfairfax condos were built in 1941. Just today I stopped by an open house today on a 2br 1ba with many updates for $315k. Actually seemed like a really good deal: 3727 Gunston Rd # 3727, Alexandria, VA 22302 | MLS #AX9838342 | Zillow

But yes, you are correct, the $468/mo condo fee is a little steep. Not to mention over $3k yearly in property taxes. But my $300k "budget" was just a baseline, I cant really get myself to stomach spending too much more than that on just a condo. A bias I need to get over from having lived in a MUCH cheaper part of the country..

[kww]

Originally Posted by ACWhite

I agree with your main point, that all costs need to be considered, but the condo fees also include some exterior/grounds care. Are there really townhomes with no fees? How do they pay for these expenses that are inevitable? With periodic assessments? If so, then you would have to factor that in. Or do the homeowners have to pay for these? Then these would offset the lack of condo fees. With single family homes, of course, the likely upkeep and upgrade costs would likely be as high or higher than many condo fees.

Townhomes will almost always have a monthly/quarterly fee, but it will go towards common area upkeep, snow removal, possibly trash. Yard work would fall on the homeowner, where the condo ownership would handle it.

A major portion of a condos fee is for building insurance and upkeep (roof/siding/foundation/windows in some cases/elevators if applicable)

[boyd888]

Originally Posted by mryan13

Actually seemed like a really good deal: 3727 Gunston Rd # 3727, Alexandria, VA 22302 | MLS #AX9838342 | Zillow

Yeah I meant to say many homes of the older SFH communities in Fairfax have civic associations, but no formal HOA. There are plenty of townhomes out there with HOA dues of <$100 a month too.

Here's what I think you should be looking more towards: 6206 Paddington Ln, Centreville, VA 20120 | MLS #492007193 | Zillow

Yeah it's in Centreville, but it's updated, bigger, $60/ month HOA fee. You also save $400 a month. If you work in DC I totally understand wanting to be close. Otherwise, you are giving up a lot to live in the crappiest property Arlington has to offer.

[jeff22152]

Originally Posted by mryan13

Are there anymore places inside the beltway (particularly Arlington/Alexandria) to still get a good buy on a townhouse, or is everything already overpriced? Even neighborhoods like Arlandria and Nauck appear to have $500K+ tiny townhomes.

Where can I find a starter townhouse/rowhome for closer to $300k in a decent area, or somewhere expected to be up-and-coming which still has room to increase in value over the next 5-10 years? Thanks!

You will not find a townhouse inside the beltway at that price point, unless, for exmaple, it requires MAJOR renovations or literally sits right next to a highway or the railroad tracks.

[Middlin]

Originally Posted by boyd888

Yeah I meant to say many homes of the older SFH communities in Fairfax have civic associations, but no formal HOA. There are plenty of townhomes out there with HOA dues of <$100 a month too.

Here's what I think you should be looking more towards: 6206 Paddington Ln, Centreville, VA 20120 | MLS #492007193 | Zillow

Yeah it's in Centreville, but it's updated, bigger, $60/ month HOA fee. You also save $400 a month. If you work in DC I totally understand wanting to be close. Otherwise, you are giving up a lot to live in the crappiest property Arlington has to offer.

I know this area, and a big benefit (if you need to get to Vienna metro) is the commuter lot literally blocks away

[ZeroiaSD]

If you're willing to go to the Mount Vernon or Kingstowne areas, there's some townhouses and condos... well, north of 300k, but not massively so.

As you're definitely getting the impression, 'sub 300k' and these areas don't mix often.