Affordable Areas To Buy Homes? (Reston, Manassas: condos, how much, townhouses)

[ZER0]

Edit...

Forget this post. Was looking for affordable DC housing. Quickly realized DC/NOVA isn't for working people. It's for the super rich.

The commute is killing me but I guess I'll just live with it.

[skeddy]

Originally Posted by ZER0

New to the region and working for the fed. Trying to find an affordable area to buy a home seems damn near impossible. The housing market is absurd around DC. Been looking at Reston, Herndon, and Sterling because they don't seem to have bad prices. Anyone have any opinions on these areas? Any suggestions for any other areas to look. (preferably not straight up ghetto and not far from the metro). Basically looking at single family homes, 2-3 bedrooms, no more than 350-400K, pref new construction.

That doesn't exist.

[skeddy]

Originally Posted by ZER0

New to the region and working for the fed. Trying to find an affordable area to buy a home seems damn near impossible. The housing market is absurd around DC. Been looking at Reston, Herndon, and Sterling because they don't seem to have bad prices. Anyone have any opinions on these areas? Any suggestions for any other areas to look. (preferably not straight up ghetto and not far from the metro). Basically looking at single family homes, 2-3 bedrooms, no more than 350-400K, pref new construction.

you may find something 40 minutes from Metro.

[ZER0]

Originally Posted by skeddy

That doesn't exist.

I can see that. I seriously hate this area. I don't understand how a region caters entirely to the super rich...but whatever.

[Ffxdata]

There are a few two bedroom 1 bath single family homes in Fairfax City along Roberts Rd. They are being redeveloped mostly so you’d likely need a cash offer but they go for under $400k.

[brooklynborndad]

Originally Posted by ZER0

I can see that. I seriously hate this area. I don't understand how a region caters entirely to the super rich...but whatever.

The DC metro area has a population over 6 million and growing. There are more people who want to live in SFHs within an hour commute of the main employment centers (downtown DC, Tysons, etc) than can fit on the acreage, so they bid the prices up. The percent who can afford a SFH is far more than the one percent, but I don't know your definition of superrich. It aint cheap.

Some people find affordability by moving to PG County. I am not sure your definition of "ghetto" but people who don't want to live in a majority AA area do pay a premium.

Also many people learn to love living in TH or apt/condo, but since you apparently live in a small town, you may not find that appealing. Its the only way though to squeeze more people on to finite land (the continued limits on such developments due to zoning, etc make them more expensive and thus a less appealing alternative, than they might be)

[paytonc]

There are plenty of new construction townhouses under $350K in Prince George's, Charles, Anne Arundel, and Howard counties in Maryland, and in Manassas in Virginia. Are there trendier parts of town? Sure. But below-average things in metro DC (schools, parks, jobs) are still likely above average for the rest of the country, or for rural Virginia.

If you want Metro access, well, it's called mass transit because it moves masses of people, so you'll have to learn to share your space with other people--and you can certainly find near-Metro condos at that price.

This region has some of the lowest income inequality of any major metro, substantially lower than the country as a whole:
https://www.epi.org/publication/inco...us/#epi-toc-20
We're #436 on that chart, tied with Modesto and Yuma.

[finalmove]

Originally Posted by Ffxdata

There are a few two bedroom 1 bath single family homes in Fairfax City along Roberts Rd. They are being redeveloped mostly so you’d likely need a cash offer but they go for under $400k.

Those are smaller than Pimmit Hills! But that's another market.

[finalmove]

Originally Posted by ZER0

I can see that. I seriously hate this area. I don't understand how a region caters entirely to the super rich...but whatever.

Caters to the "super rich"? Seems like you've got the "chicken or the egg" conundrum backwards.

We have all found a way to make it in the NOVA meatgrinder, and reap the rewards. But it's not for the weak.
Moving 25-miles outside town works for many, but the home appreciation won't be there.

In any case, good luck!

[NOVAmtneer82]

The DC region does not cater to the 'super rich' it just happens to have a very large number of households who earn well over $100k a year in income along with many different employment centers scattered throughout the area. Add in the high demand (which still exceeds the supply- despite all of the construction) for places within a decent commute to work and you naturally have high housing costs. The area continues to grow by 50-75k or more people a year so clearly plenty can still afford it- it comes down how much your personal preferences align with your budget. You want new construction in built-up areas such as Reston, Herndon and Sterling which are now devoid of large tracts of open space and are in close proximity to some of the largest employment centers in the region. It isn't going to happen without a large budget.