Moving to Alexandria, need help with picking the right neighborhood (Arlington: lease, condos)

[brooklynborndad]

I find the use of "quadrants" to refer to the parts of Old Town somewhat confusing, as most residents of the City are not even aware of those names, and of course all of Old Town is in the SE part of the City of Alexandria (and some of those places have had other names over the years - EG Parker Gray rather than NW quadrant)

Of course I also dislike the usage of "Alexandria" for areas outside the City, but fighting that seems to be hopeless battle.

[MagnumForce44]

Originally Posted by Jeanie Beanie

Check out the high rise apartments just south of 495 near route 1. Your wife's driving commute to National Harbor just across the Woodrow Wilson Bridge will be enviable to most everyone who lives around here. Some apartments are walkable to the Huntington metro station, I understand, and I've been told some have shuttles.

You are really close to Old Town, but it is not the same as living in Old Town. It is up to you to balance cost and convenience.

I DID want to let you know about a "best kept secret" spot in a strip mall across from the Huntington Metro "Kiss & Ride" lot on Kings Highway (Route 241). There is a family-run take-out eatery called "Balkan Grill" that has fabulous food. Love their Balkan Hamburgers and their home-baked breads plus they have a yogurt based drink that's tangy and good and refreshing for a summer day (I forget the name of it). Next to the Balkan Grill is a small store called "Euro Foods International". Very cool! I'm not Eastern European, but it's fun to get international stuff to eat sometimes. Love it!

This area is truly international. It is pretty rush-rush, and many people burn out but it sure is interesting. Good luck finding your apartment.

Thanks a lot for info, appreciate it.

When you say Balkan hamburgers do you talk about something that looks like American hamburger just with a small Balkan twist or it is something we call cevapi, like small sausages made of ground beef and served with onions inside something like bun bit it actually looks more like pita bread? I am curious lol

[MagnumForce44]

Also, thanks everyone for your help, you are very kind. If that's what's waiting for us in Alexandria, can't wait to move there.

So far , Kingsley apartments could work for us. I have sent them an email inquiring about different floor plans and availability but since Thursday evening no one has contacted me as of yet, which is not a good sign. However I will call them today or first thing tomorrow morning to try to get answers on jy questions over a phone.

We did fine many nice apartments further away (Alexandria West?) however I feel that extra cost would be worth it to live in Old Town area because that's probably the best way to get to know city, culture and people. After 1 year, we can move somewhere else around Alexandria or maybe buy condo or townhouse.

Someone did mention high rise apartments south of 495? I think I was looking at two of those, one was Riverside and name of other one I can't recall right now. I didn't mind Riverside but I wasn't convinced in its location because at oeast based on the map, it seems unlikely to walk over to Old Town, and we would probably need to use a car every time. I might check them one more time, just to be sure.

[ersatz]

Originally Posted by MagnumForce44

Thanks for your response.

Since I moved here few year back, I enjoy everything average American born and raised in the US does so I really don't feel like I need to be around people/culture from my country. Only things that I sometimes need are decent European market and Greek restaurant lol

It seems that you have enough information for housing choices. You asked about European markets. There are multiple International markets in the Alexandria area that carry European foods and market brands. There are also specialty markets for specific European products. Poster Jeanie Beanie mentioned the Balkan Grill and Eurofoods International in Huntington. Balkan Grill is ok, but many people prefer https://locu.com/places/cosmopolitan...alexandria-us/ just south of the City of Alexandria on Richmond Highway. Their cooking is not fancy, but the food is very good and portions are generous. Yes they have cevapi.

https://www.russiangourmet.com/ on Slater Lane in Alexandria specializes in Russian and Central European products. Be careful to check expiration dates on any foods you buy, as I have found they sometimes stock expired products.

I like German food and https://www.germangourmet.com/ on Columbia Pike in Falls Church carries a large number of German, Austrian and Scandinavian products.

You asked about Greek food. There's https://tavernacretekou.com/ in Old Town Alexandria, https://www.souvlakibar.com/, Vaso's Kitchen, and Olympians Family Restaurant | Great Food & Service | Alexandria, VA in Kingstowne just south of Old Town Alexandria. The Mediterranean Market on Pickett St and Aphrodite Greek Imports in Falls Church sell Greek food products. If you expand your search to nearby Washington DC you will find many more.

Northern Virginia has almost as many ethnic food choices as NYC.

Enjoy.

[MagnumForce44]

Thanks so much, I am already interested in the Trout Salad Cosmopolitan is serving

I have an update when it comes to Kingsley apartments. They unfortunately don't have available any apartment from Apartments.com we were interested in. Only thing we can get is 640 sq ft studio for 2070 a month or 811 sq ft 1 bedroom for 2030 a month. Parking is 90 dollars per car. Studio has a view of courtyard which wife prefers but in my mind there is no way I would take that over 811 sq ft 1 bedroom that is on third floor and has street view. Even if it's noisier it's still on third floor and it is much larger apartment with actual bedroom lol

I will take until tomorrow morning to make a decision. It's little bit disappointing that for over 2100 for one bedroom (with parking), we still won't have pool. Good thing is they have washer and dryer in unit which I appreciate. It the meantime time if anyone knows about similar apartments that do have a nice pool for not more than 2100 per 1 bedroom, let me know.

Also I have one question about transportation. If we would to pick apartment closer to Woodrow Wilson bridge, is there a way to use bicycle or electric scooter and still cross over to Maryland? Her job would be just around 3 miles from that area so she is interested in using more of a "green" transportation, at least when weather is good.

[MagnumForce44]

Lol, me again, I promise I will let you continue with your lives soon enough

Question about car tax as property which is something I never heard before. As I understand I can get 38% off up to 20k car value if I am using it to go to work etc. But for anything above 20k, it's around 4 dollars in tax per 100 dollars of car value?

Does that apply to leased vehicle? And do you guys stick to used (or new)sub 20k vehicles when buying?

[Jeanie Beanie]

Originally Posted by MagnumForce44

Thanks a lot for info, appreciate it.

When you say Balkan hamburgers do you talk about something that looks like American hamburger just with a small Balkan twist or it is something we call cevapi, like small sausages made of ground beef and served with onions inside something like bun bit it actually looks more like pita bread? I am curious lol

The balkan hamburger might be cevapi. It's like a hand-formed lump of hamburger with chopped onion cooked into it inside a roll - definitely not an american hamburger roll - it could be like pita bread but thicker. The seasonings are excellent and I love the cooked onions.

I was not aware of Cosmopolitan Grill on Richmond Highway. I often go hiking in Huntley Meadows and that place is just next to Home Depot, so I know exactly where it is, so thanks for the tip. Like I said - this area is VERY international.

Oh, and I often see people hike/bike over the Woodrow Wilson Bridge in their own passageway, but I'm not sure where the trail starts. I understand there is a hiking/biking trail to Old Town Alexandria starting from behind the Hampton Inn at Rt. #1 (Richmond Hwy) and Huntington Avenue. The trail over the W.W. bridge might start from there, too.

Let us know where you end up. Too bad about the lack of a pool, but it is sure nice to have a personal washer/dryer in the apartment for sure!

I don't know how outdoorsy you are, but I mentioned that I like to hike in Huntley Meadows, and so I also must recommend going to Dyke Marsh for a walk along the river. (If your wife is working in National Harbor you could wave to her (just kidding, it's about a mile across.) The area is so urban, but yet there are parks and trails and eagles and beavers and lots of green trees and fields. You can bicycle to George Washington's home in Mount Vernon via the bike trail along the George Washington Parkway that hugs the river, too.

Good luck with the move.

[Sasha2014]

I live in Kingstowne(alexandria) zip code 22315,22310 are the two codes. Its fairfax county and national harbor takes less then 10 mins as right across the bridge is the Harbor. I go to Branch ave which is Clinton MD from across bridge and takes me less then twenty minutes. Kingstowne is the only part of Alexandria I love. Been living here since 2013 when I moved from Maryland.

[pcity]

Originally Posted by MagnumForce44

Also I have one question about transportation. If we would to pick apartment closer to Woodrow Wilson bridge, is there a way to use bicycle or electric scooter and still cross over to Maryland?

Yes, there is a bike trail across the Wilson Bridge to National Harbor. I don't think it allows motorized vehicles though.

Originally Posted by MagnumForce44

Question about car tax as property which is something I never heard before. As I understand I can get 38% off up to 20k car value if I am using it to go to work etc. But for anything above 20k, it's around 4 dollars in tax per 100 dollars of car value?

I'm not sure where the numbers you mentioned are from. Alexandria, this year, has a $5.33 per $100 value tax with 55.5% discount on cars worth less than 20k and 45.5% discount on the first 20k of value for cars worth more than 20k.

https://www.alexandriava.gov/CarTax

Does that apply to leased vehicle? And do you guys stick to used (or new)sub 20k vehicles when buying?

Yes, leased vehicles are taxed as well. No, most people do not stick to lower-cost vehicles. Remember that values drop quickly on new cars so a 25k car can be down under 20k within a couple years.

[brooklynborndad]

Originally Posted by MagnumForce44

Also I have one question about transportation. If we would to pick apartment closer to Woodrow Wilson bridge, is there a way to use bicycle or electric scooter and still cross over to Maryland? Her job would be just around 3 miles from that area so she is interested in using more of a "green" transportation, at least when weather is good.

1. yes, you can bike across the Wilson Bridge on the side trail (watch for the pavement joints though!)

2. The local bans on ebikes on certain trails around here are seldom if ever enforced.

3. If by escooters you mean the dockless ones, I don't think there are any on the Prince Georges side, so I would not count on that as a means to get to work. If you own your own escooter that could work.

4. The only easy places to bike to from the bridge on the Md side are National Harbor and the MGM casino/hotel. After that you are in a maze of high speed roads, no bike lanes or trails, and I am not even sure there are sidewalks everywhere - I would suggest bike commuting further into Md only for an experienced confident bike commuter. But yeah, riding into National Harbor from Alexandria is a breeze (again, if you are suitably wary of the pavement joints on the bridge!)