Texas to N. VA area! Help me please! (Arlington, Alexandria: apartments, rental)

[mahjon25]

Ok....so the hubbie got a new job at the Pentagon and we are heading out your way from Texas (dallas area).

However....I am so lost at were to live! I have looked and looked, but I have decided I need help from those of you that live in the area.

So...we are looking for city/town with an easy commute to the Pentagon for our family of 5. Meaning good schools pretty easy access to shopping, grocery, etc.

I was looking at Leesburg...but please tell me if I am wrong...is probley WAY to far from the pentagon...right?

I also saw Burke and Dumfries seemed to have nice places to live w/ the kind of school I am looking for.

I just flat out need some advice....please.
Our price range is 1600-1700 and I am not picky about what type of home.

[NOVAmtneer82]

Ehh 1600-1700 per month is usually the going rate for a lot of 2 bedroom apartments in the DC area, especially inside the Beltway. Many newer apartment developments close to the Pentagon in Arlington and Alexandria charge that much for 1 bedroom units.

A friend of mine and his fiance just bought a place in Burke last year (not sure what rental prices are) but it is a nice suburban area. Public schools in DC area counties are known for being excellent with the exception being DC Public Schools and Prince Georges County in Maryland. Although I'm sure there are still some decent schools in those counties.

A commute from Leesburg to the Pentagon would be ungodly during peak commute times, I can't imagine it can be done in under 90 minutes, probably even longer. Dumfries would be a better option in terms of price because Prince William County home prices are cheaper than those in closer-in Fairfax County. The commute if solo will still be really bad on 95 and 395 but if your husband can get a few carpool buddies he can take the HOV lanes straight to the Pentagon parking lot.

There is a well established "slug" system set up in commuter lots along the I-95 corridor where people hold up signs with a destination and if its close to yours you can pick them up and use the carpool lanes. It seems random but it is fairly common because it keeps you out of the gridlocked I-95 regular lanes. I imagine there would be quite a few heading to the Pentagon from that area.

Hope this helps.

[nwlv]

West Springfield (22152), Burke

Leesburg? No way!

[ReadytoRetire]

Originally Posted by mahjon25

Ok....so the hubbie got a new job at the Pentagon and we are heading out your way from Texas (dallas area).

However....I am so lost at were to live! I have looked and looked, but I have decided I need help from those of you that live in the area.

So...we are looking for city/town with an easy commute to the Pentagon for our family of 5. Meaning good schools pretty easy access to shopping, grocery, etc.

I was looking at Leesburg...but please tell me if I am wrong...is probley WAY to far from the pentagon...right?

I also saw Burke and Dumfries seemed to have nice places to live w/ the kind of school I am looking for.

I just flat out need some advice....please.
Our price range is 1600-1700 and I am not picky about what type of home.

Dumfries has some really bad areas and not a real fun commute..Burke is a nicer area but a solo commute not great from there either..
Check it the Springfield area..

[Newk]

i grew up in 22152 and I highly recommend the area. Very family oriented, and lots of military families, but to get into a SFH, you might have to bump up what you are going to pay. Like 2200-2500$. If you live in 22152 near Rolling Valley Elementary and Springfield Golf and Country Club its really nice.

[knopfler]

You could live in Manassas and take the Metro Direct bus directly from Manassas to the Pentagon. OmniRide Manassas AM Schedule That would make life pretty easy for him. For schools, go for either the Battlefield or Stonewall HS districts, but if Stonewall stay away from Westgate and Sinclair ES.

You could also do the same by living in Lake Ridge and taking that bus directly to the Pentagon: http://www.prtctransit.org/commuter-bus/schedules/lakeridge-pentagon-am.php. Schools should be good there as long as it's in the Woodbridge HS pyramid. Other pyramids, check the boards here beforehand as it's hit or miss.

The single best advice I can give you and your husband is to remove all hopes and expectations of driving single passenger auto to the Pentagon. You can carpool, you can vanpool, you can take VRE, you can take Omniride, you can slug, you can even buy a hybrid - but if you try to drive in single passenger auto you will lose your mind. This is true in Leesburg, Manassas, Dumfries, Springfield, Burke, and everywhere else you'll be looking.

Welcome to Northern Virginia!

[ChristineVA]

Originally Posted by knopfler

The single best advice I can give you and your husband is to remove all hopes and expectations of driving single passenger auto to the Pentagon. You can carpool, you can vanpool, you can take VRE, you can take Omniride, you can slug, you can even buy a hybrid - but if you try to drive in single passenger auto you will lose your mind. This is true in Leesburg, Manassas, Dumfries, Springfield, Burke, and everywhere else you'll be looking.

Welcome to Northern Virginia!

I will say, from my own experience, that the one exception to this is if you work very early hours. Many of the military/defense contractors do for some reason. Much, much earlier acceptable start times than other industries.

I work 6:00 a.m. to 2:30 or sometimes 6:30 - 3:00 and, believe me, I am NOT alone in my office. I am a single rider and, at those times, the commute is really quite managable (coming from Woodbridge). I know people who work my same hours coming in from Springfield and it's truly a piece of cake at that time.

After those times, I agree that single riding is truly living in hell.

[mahjon25]

Thanks so much for all the input! I am on the hunt.....and looking into the mass transit available for sure.

With the VRE or the bus system what is the time line like? Like how long of a ride is it? Do buses have priority...why do they move fast than a car? Are they in an HOV? Just curious?

[ChristineVA]

Originally Posted by mahjon25

Thanks so much for all the input! I am on the hunt.....and looking into the mass transit available for sure.

With the VRE or the bus system what is the time line like? Like how long of a ride is it? Do buses have priority...why do they move fast than a car? Are they in an HOV? Just curious?

My coworker takes the VRE in from Manassas. It takes him close to an hour and a half. He gets on in Manassas and rides to Union Station. From there he has to transfer to the Metro subway system to catch his ride all the way in.

The times from Woodbridge to DC on the VRE average about 45 minutes up to Crystal City. From there you can get off and walk over to the Metro to catch that to the Pentagon. That part would probably add, at least, another 15-20 minutes to the ride.

The bus, carpool, or slugging are the ways that are going to get you DIRECTLY into the Pentagon (or taking the Metro from Springfield which is about a 30 minute Metro ride once you hop on the train).

The buses, carpools, and slugging (informal carpools), all get to use the HOV lanes. These lanes have only a small amount of traffic in them from say 6:30 - 9:00 a.m. You can, for the most part, do the speed limit in the HOV lanes while the "regular" traffic lanes at those times are crawling.