Welcome to City-Data.com Forum!
U.S. CitiesCity-Data Forum Index
Go Back   City-Data Forum > U.S. Forums > Virginia > Northern Virginia
 [Register]
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
View detailed profile (Advanced) or search
site with Google Custom Search

Search Forums  (Advanced)
 
Old 05-19-2017, 10:23 PM
 
5 posts, read 6,253 times
Reputation: 15

Advertisements

Hello,

I've read city data many times but this is my first post.

I'm 30 years old and came into the DC area for work with my wife a little under 2 and 1/2 years ago. We had our first child last year and currently live in a 2 bedroom apartment in southern Arlington but are looking to move to a house in the next year. Being a government employee that just reached a GS-12, it seems that there are few possibilities for first-time homeownership closer to DC on government salaries (many of my colleagues and supervisors live in Woodbridge and even Fredericksburg), so we are looking at places like Woodbridge/Dale City, Chantilly/Centreville and also possibly Germantown/Gaithersburg or Bowie though we haven't visited any places in Maryland yet.


Recently my wife and I toured around the Dale City region of Woodbridge to get a feel for it and see if it is a place we could imagine ourselves living with a family (which we plan on adding to by 1 in the next couple of years). We looked in the neighborhoods of two townhomes that were on the market near Potomac Mills, one on Bixby Rd. and one on Anderson St (as of writing they are still listed I believe). We were actually very surprised and impressed by how the houses and area looked (I was expecting the only attraction would be that the houses were very affordable). However, in doing research, it seems like people have mentioned Dale City in the past being a transitional area, where cul-de-sac by cul-de-sac the environment could be very different, with some areas not that great. However, I have noticed that many of these treads are 5 years old or more, and given how things can positiviely change quickly in the DC area housing market, especially due to a quick recovery from the national housing bubble burst, great recession-resistant economy and increasing population (I've read that Trinidad not even ten years ago was quarantined by police, and now it's a hot market for people looking for townhomes in the District). Therefore, I wanted to check in and see what things are like in this area now, especially the spots that we looked at (Bixby and Anderson). Were our impressions accurate, or are there issues with these spots that we didn't pick up on?

Any insight will be greatly appreciated.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message

 
Old 05-20-2017, 05:58 AM
 
12,905 posts, read 15,573,136 times
Reputation: 9392
Hi there!

I first want to say that I live in the Dale City/Woodbridge area and have for over 20 years now. I'm not far from Potomac Mills but probably 5 or so miles from the streets you pointed out.

I go by these areas everyday. They are probably some of the lower priced homes in the area besides the Rt. 1 Marumsco area. These areas tend to have the most transitional population (lots of rentals) as well as are the higher areas with petty crime. The schools that these two neighborhoods feed into are also the most poor performing in the county. You do have a small child who won't need school for at least 4 years, but it goes faster than you think.

Part of the problem with certain areas of Woodbridge (well, actually, it is anywhere) is that the lower income areas (i.e., wherever there is cheap housing in this area) have a tendency to fall victim to the "rooming house" syndrome where you get a lot of people living in one home. These homes in Dale City are OLD and they are cheap and they seem to have a lot of problems with that. The townhome neighborhood off Bixby seems relatively quiet though, I have to say. The one in the Ashdale neighborhood (or the next neighborhood down from there) I would avoid.

I know the prices in those areas are tantalizing but there is a reason for it. I would honestly rent in Woodbridge for a year to get a feel for the area and how you like it.

Additionally, real estate in most of Woodbridge has not skyrocketed as it has in DC, Arlington, Fairfax, etc. Not sure when the "boom" will hit and it may never. It certainly has made a good recovery from the the 2008 bust, but my particular neighborhood still hasn't seen the price highs that were there in 2006, whereas other areas in the DC area have surpassed those prices. And the areas you are speaking of, you won't make a killing there unless they tear it all down and start over.

Not sure what your price range is, but if you want to provide it, the forum could probably point you in a direction that may be a better purchase.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 05-20-2017, 07:49 PM
 
5 posts, read 6,253 times
Reputation: 15
ChristineVA, Thank you very much for your response. Our price range is anywhere from 220-275k for a townhome, maybe up to 300k for a sfh with no additional HOA. If I am able to get a job at the GS-13 level, these numbers could possibly increase 30 to 50k. My wife is just re-entering the workforce, but since our child is only 1, and we might have another soon, we only budget housing around my salary to give us flexibility regarding raising the children.

I am aware that this budget is pretty low, bordering unrealistic, for the region, but I have to think that we are not the only ones in such a situation, as I am sure there are other young, middle income government employees in the region who don't have either additional income or down payment assistance from family trusts or similar sources, though, living and driving around Arlington, it seems like there are many around here that are pretty young moving into 800k+ homes!

We are trying to assess now if there are relatively desirable places within our budget where we can enter the housing market and start building equity, but if the tradeoffs for homeownership are too great (either living in a neighborhood we would rather avoid, or enduring a 2hr commute each way (from places like West Virginia or Fredericksburg), we might just hunker down, maximize our job training in transferrable areas, and find a way out of the region to a place that doesn't seem like you have to sprint as hard as you can just to stay in place.

Has anybody heard of similar situated families and where they might be moving to in the DC area (VA or MD)?
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 05-20-2017, 08:28 PM
 
Location: Reston, VA
2,090 posts, read 4,225,483 times
Reputation: 1330
I would suggest that you keep renting while saving as much money as you can for as big a down payment as possible. Your price point is just too low and has you suggest "bordering unrealistic, for the region". There are a couple of townhouses in your price range in Reston, but I would not recommend them for some of the same reasons that Christine mentions.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 05-20-2017, 09:25 PM
 
5 posts, read 6,253 times
Reputation: 15
Thanks for your reply Jfrom Reston. It kind of shows the paradoxes of this housing market, and gives me more reason to think that we are best off just using the DC area to make ourselves most marketable career-wise, and then getting out of here. The concept of ".. renting while saving as much money as you can for as big a down payment as possible..." sometimes seems like a Catch-22 here even though it makes complete sense. We want to own rather than rent in order to save by building equity, yet in order to own in a good overall area we need save while we keep renting, yet the rent here is often so high that it inhibits saving. Also, building as big of a down payment as possible seems to have minimal effect on making a house more affordable unless the 20% threshold is reached and mortgage insurance is waived (although we haven't talked to a broker yet, so there may be possibilities of waiving it with lesser amounts that I don't know about.

Take for example a 325k townhome in Burke that is currently listed. If we pay the 3.5% FHA minimum the downpayment would be 11k and monthly payments would be $2091. If we save hard living a fairly austere life and are able to save 50k to put down in 3 years time (around 15%, so still with PMI), the monthly payment would be lowered $200 a month, not all that major of a difference that seems worth designating a significant portion of your income to sit in a savings account rather than some other appreciative asset, all the while wrapping up a considerable amount of savings into the home and having to build other investments from scratch after purchase (thus being house-poor after that hard work). I'd rather pay a more comfortable down payment to get started, then designate portions of future savings to be additional payments to the principle, and then either refinance, or remove PMI in a faster period, all while we have something that could be potentially appreciating.

Again, I am not saying that you are wrong, you are very right in an ideal setting, it's just a helpful realization that really the market isn't penetrable for people in our situation. I always laugh when I hear that it's government employees that drive housing prices up in the DC area, when one would have to be a GS-14 or 15 at least to be able to afford a house that is relatively close by in a desirable area with a stable market. I figure it's the people who make money off of the government (tech and defense contractors, lobbyists and lawyers) rather than the government workers themselves that are driving things so high.

Thanks again.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 05-20-2017, 09:45 PM
 
9,863 posts, read 13,995,325 times
Reputation: 21673
Quote:
Originally Posted by perseus1986 View Post
I figure it's the people who make money off of the government (tech and defense contractors, lobbyists and lawyers) rather than the government workers themselves that are driving things so high.
Absolutely.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 05-21-2017, 05:27 AM
 
12,905 posts, read 15,573,136 times
Reputation: 9392
Yes, we civil servants have quite the reputation, don't we?

persues..I think part of the issue here is that *most* people in this area are double income earners, so having your wife out of the job market (or not considering her income which is smart) is certainly putting you at a short-term disadvantage. Also, the child(ren) with potential daycare expenses is not going to help you.

Some of the young people you see getting into the market are probably more comfortable with a higher debt ratio than you are so they get in at higher levels than you want. It's always been an issue with me personally and, to be honest, I made a pretty big mistake early on being risk adverse. Which is how I ended up in my current home in Woodbridge rather than the one I should have bought 20 years ago in Springfield!! Not sure where you are in that thinking.

As I always seem to be doing lately, I have to ask: have you looked in the Montclair neighborhood? It has a Dumfries address but, in my mind, it's really located in Woodbridge because one of it's entrances is in Woodbridge. It is a very nice planned community overall, has a very reasonable HOA fee for all of its amenities, is in a very good school district, and has a very good community feel. Bus service comes right into the neighborhood to go to the Pentagon and maybe State Department (not sure on that anymore). Lots of stay at home parents and kids walking to school/playing outside and no bad areas within the community.

Here's one that is listed for $275,000 but there are some lower that that if you do a search. http://www.realtor.com/realestateand...1-37796#photo4

This is going to be a MUCH better area than the previous areas you listed in every way except that it's a bit further south.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 05-21-2017, 05:51 AM
 
110 posts, read 121,321 times
Reputation: 130
Not sure if the Haymarket/Gainesville area would work for you but there are several options under $275k. Mainly condos but the area is very clean and has really good schools.

Small but an actual townhouse
https://www.zillow.com/homedetails/1...12497601_zpid/

Stacked condo/townhouse. Thus one is pending but this neighborhood is in your price range and very convenient to 66.
https://www.zillow.com/homedetails/6...99291779_zpid/

This one has higher condo fees but is much cheaper
https://www.zillow.com/homedetails/6...95068741_zpid/
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.

Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.


Reply
Please update this thread with any new information or opinions. This open thread is still read by thousands of people, so we encourage all additional points of view.

Quick Reply
Message:


Settings
X
Data:
Loading data...
Based on 2000-2020 data
Loading data...

123
Hide US histogram


Over $104,000 in prizes was already given out to active posters on our forum and additional giveaways are planned!

Go Back   City-Data Forum > U.S. Forums > Virginia > Northern Virginia
Similar Threads

All times are GMT -6.

© 2005-2024, Advameg, Inc. · Please obey Forum Rules · Terms of Use and Privacy Policy · Bug Bounty

City-Data.com - Contact Us - Archive 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37 - Top