Walkable neighborhoods? (Arlington, Fairfax, Cleveland: how much, townhouse, school district)

[hechoenchina]

Originally Posted by MrWaylandSmither

Kingstowne is the 22315 zip code. Take the beltway around the Van Dorn St. exit. Head south on Van Dorn for about 2mi. until you get to Kingstowne Blvd, turn right. That will put you right through the middle of the shopping center area, the surrounding neighborhoods are considered "Kingstowne". Be careful of listings, however, since the 22315 zip code is not exclusive to Kingstowne and a lot of less-than-honest sellers will put "Kingstowne area" or something of that nature when the homes are not in Kingstowne proper. Access to gyms, pools, etc. is restricted to residents, so it does make a difference.

Is it Arlington? Definitely not (but nothing is, hence the reason Arlington costs a God awful furtune).

If you're looking for an "in town/main street" feel, Vienna is probably a good choice but it is very expensive to be within walking distance of 123. I can't imagine it being any cheaper than Arlington. You might get more yard/house for the buck, but keeping it under 7-figures would be tough. The cheapest 4+ bedroom I found doing a quick search is $650k...and that was the only one under $1M.

Falls Church is another option. There are some sections of it that are very small town walkable and somewhat affordable.

Another option is old-town Alexandria, but again, you're looking at very Arlington-like prices. We've had much the same struggle over the last year...finding something Arlington like that we could afford. Right now we've widdled it down to:

Kingstowne - Could probably afford a 2bdrm or a fixer-upper
Near Kingstowne - (Runnymeade, Van Dorn Village)...no access to amenities, but somewhat walkable, close to the metro, and cheaper
Burke/West Springfield - Considerably less "walkable", but family friendly with a bearable commute and nice ammenities (parks and pools)
Ashburn/Broadlands - Long commute, but a gorgeous neighborhood that is very walkable, packed with ammenities, and tons of kids/families

You probably already know this from living in Arlington, but I will disagree with a previous poster and say the 7-Corners area is not somewhere I would feel safe walking or raising a family.

Sleepy Hollow, Buffalo Ridge, and Lake Barcroft are all fine and sooo easy to get to DC. It stacks up against North Arlington for safety, and is much, much nicer than South Arlington. If you dislike the "classic" vinyl siding cookie cutter this is a good area for you. Good public and top notch private schools nearby. The Congressional School, The Phillips Program, Jefferson, etc...something for everyone.

Here is a SFR in Fairfax County for 250,000. http://www.realtor.com/realestateand...044_1108082040.

[irvine]

A tiny bungalow in the notoriously expensive 22207 zip just sold for around 500,000. Finding inexpensive homes in Arlington takes some work but it is not impossible.

Also, consider Reston. Very suburban, but it was a 60s-era planned "new town" (that is still growing) so there are plenty of walking trails that connect the various developments, parks, schools, and shopping centers.

[bmwguydc]

Vienna is not that expensive for a smaller ranch house, since there are options in the $400-$500k range.

One note about Kingstowne: It's zoned for Hayfield schools, which don't have the best reputation in that part of the county.

[claremarie]

Sleepy Hollow and Lake Barcroft are both classic suburban neighborhoods built during the 1950s and 1960s, but you can't walk anywhere. They are also both hemmed in by 7 Corners, and the public schools there are not the best.
The OP's challenge is that they are seeking what lots of other homebuyers are seeking, at a price point below what many of those other buyers are willing to pay. That means that some compromises will have to be made -- either with the test scores at the public school, or the size/condition of the home, or the commute. There ARE some inexpensive homes in the Arlington areas they love, but there is always a reason for that affordability. Many of those homes need more than $100K in repairs or upgrades to make them livable. Or perhaps they are on very busy streets with virtually no private yard for the kids.
There is no secret enclave of below- $500K single-family homes in "walkable" neighborhoods with great schools and within an easy commute of DC.

[irvine]

It's not mentioned much on this forum, but check out Pimmit Hills. It had a mediocre reputation for some time (but that may have changed), but it still is a pocket of affordability in a close-in neighborhood. It's a neighborhood of very modest early 1950s era cape cod style homes in the Falls Church part of Fairfax County next to Tysons Corner. But it is part of the McLean area of Fairfax County and a member of the McLean Citizens Association. The high school would either be McLean or Marshall, both good schools.

It's walkable within the neighborhood, but don't expect to walk to Tysons Corner, and I would not recommend crossing Rt 7 on foot.

[hechoenchina]

A friend of mine lives near Rt. 7, and his www.walkscore is 74. Most of Arlington can't beat that. There is a very nice community pool along Sleepy Hollow. Many walk to the Falls Church Metro, catch the bus on Rt. 7, and walk to Shoppers Food Warehouse to shop. From Buffalo Ridge, it may be quicker to walk to shopping. My old TH in West Springfield gets a 22. A friend's place in Vienna gets a 45. My condo gets a 69, and I get by fine without a car. The listing above for 250,000 gets a walkscore of 65---so it is very convenient, to say the least.

If the OP had given his/her price range; the relevance of this would be more clear.

[claremarie]

There ARE lots of folks who walk around Seven Corners. Most appear to be recent immigrants, and they dash across Route 7 and Route 50 into traffic. Sometimes they are killed.
I've driven through the Buffalo Ridge taking a short-cut from the Sleepy Hollow pool back to McLean. It's a lovely little enclave that is just a few blocks from the madhouse at 7 Corners. I cannot imagine walking to the Metro from that neighborhood -- it's at least two miles away, and on the other side of 7 Corners.
It's a nice-enough spot, if you can deal with 7 Corners on a daily basis, and if you don't mind the relatively low-ranked schools. But walkable it isn't.

[leighland]

Originally Posted by hechoenchina

A friend of mine lives near Rt. 7, and his www.walkscore is 72. Most of Arlington can't beat that. .

Walkscore is not reliable. There is a thread on it in the General Forums that discusses its problems. For Instance, My walkscore is 64 and says there are 2 Supermarkets nearby. However, one is a gas station, the other is a foreign 7-11 wannabe that has dirty products/nasty looking premade sandwiches in it. Obviously, they are not supermarkets. The other thing walkscore does not mention is accessibility. We don't have sidewalks in parts of the neighborhood thus I would have to walk in the road on Lee Hwy-not safe and not mentioned in walkscore.

[irvine]

Originally Posted by hechoenchina

A friend of mine lives near Rt. 7, and his www.walkscore is 74. Most of Arlington can't beat that. There is a very nice community pool along Sleepy Hollow. Many walk to the Falls Church Metro, catch the bus on Rt. 7, and walk to Shoppers Food Warehouse to shop. From Buffalo Ridge, it may be quicker to walk to shopping. My old TH in West Springfield gets a 22. A friend's place in Vienna gets a 45. My condo gets a 69, and I get by fine without a car.

Walkscore's usefulness is limited at best. It only takes into consideration schools and shops within what they define as "walking distance." Most streets in Arlington are pedestrian friendly with sidewalks and crosswalks. Even the busy state or US roads like Lee Hwy (rt 29) or Glebe Rd are pedestrian friendly as well. Walkscore does not account for parks, playgrounds or bike trails either. I'd say that the vast majority of homes in Arlington are within walking distance of parks, playgrounds, and schools. While some homes are further away from commercial establishments, the walk is usually less than a mile on pedestrian-friendly streets or trails. And for a 3 mile stretch of the Orange line most single family homes are within a 5-10 minute walk of most amenities.

[hechoenchina]

Walkscore rates on 13 different factors including parks and libraries. It's a good guage, and does have it's flaws. This also focusses on walking to get things done. Not just taking a walk, which is what most walkers in Fairfax County are doing. If you are going to walk in the DC area, you will be crossing some busy streets. Unfortunately there are virtually no pedestrian overpasses.

Here is a photo of the sidewalks in my neighborhood. They are nicer than yours. My taxes are 605 per year.
http://i655.photobucket.com/albums/u..._rampartsw.jpg