Relocating to Northern VA and considering Bristow, Haymarket,Gainsville or Woodbridge (Alexandria: apartment, townhomes)

[ezlalo]

Relocating to VA with a family of 3 (2 school age). Will be commuting to DC for work (6:30 a.m. - 3:00 p.m.). We are looking at Bristow (braemar community), Gainsville, Manassas, or Woodbridge. Looking for new homes in the 425-475K range, with solid schools and a reasonable commute to DC. I will be carpooling or using the train. Any suggestions, tips, and related data will be appreciated. Ezlalo

[HEATHER72]

Hi! First off let me describe the typical commute from Gainesville to DC that my hubby takes every day. He leaves the house before 6 each morning to get to work at the FBI in DC proper at 8 am. That's by train (VRE) so he doesn't have to sit behind the wheel of a car for 2 hrs. At least then he can read or whatever.

If that doesn't scare you off, then I think you'll like the area. I suggest Bristow and Gainesville over Manassas and Woodbridge.

If you are looking for a BRAND NEW home from 425 to 475k... that's going to be a highend townhome or maybe a single family home with a tiny yard and no upgrades, keyword maybe.

Braemar is a huge Brookfield Homes Community in Bristow. It's one of those neighborhoods you kind of get lost in. However, I think the brand new homes would be out of your price range.

Then there is Victory Lakes in Bristow by Miller and Smith. Only their townhomes would be in your budget. We were seriously considering one until we realized for about $30K more we could get a house in Morris Farm. Victory Lakes was the first time I had ever seen townhomes. We moved from New Mexico. They just screamed apartment buildings to me. lol

So like I said we wound up in Gainesville in Morris Farm, another community by Brookfield Homes. What makes it different than Braemar? It's a smaller neighborhood, off the main road a bit. But then we have nice trails and meadows. Townhomes here run 450k to 470k, single family homes start at 470k. I think the townhomes in our neighborhood are much more attractive than the townhomes in Victory Lakes. The ones here back to the woods, a lot have slate on the front and the end units have a cute balcony on the front.

Here's their website
http://www.brookfieldwashington.com/welcome/welcome.html (broken link)

[FortMillBound]

Your commute by train will be much better from Manassas city. You won't have to deal with that hideous Bristow/Gainesville gridlock just to get to the station. I have a friend that it takes 30-40 minutes just to drive the 5 miles to the station from Braemar.

I take 5 minutes from my neighborhood, Wellington, in the city of Manassas to the train station in Manassas. Free parking is available. You can take a train as early as 5:10AM and be to DC in 50 minutes. Trains run approximately every 30 minutes til 8:00AM and stop in Alexandria, Crystal City L'Enfant Plaza (DC) and Union Station (DC). See www.vre.org.

Wellington single family homes range from $400K to $550K depending on size/model. Good luck on your move.

[DavidS827]

If you end up leaning towards the south side of Gainesville or Bristow be sure to check the comprehensive plan for whatever development you end up choosing. You don't want to buy a home on a quiet road only to find out that, that road will be widened and extended and end up becoming a major commuter route in 3-5 years. Unfortunately there are a lot of families along Linton Hall and Rollins Ford that are, or will be, in that exact situation.

[ashbrn4]

I would take Woodbridge off of your list. It's not even in the same league as the other three locations. Woodbridge has not and will not see the same type of appreciation in home values as the others and the commute is much worse. Schools are much better in the other three. Just be careful of where in Manassas.