Buying a home in Herndon (Reston, Centreville: real estate, apartments, renters)

[TullyApplebottom]

I was hoping that anyone familiar with subdivisions in Herndon could help provide some information about decent, safe neighborhoods as well as ones from which I should stay far, far away.

We're looking to spend no more than $450K on a single-family home and seem to have narrowed things down to Kingston Chase, Hiddenbrook, Fox Mill, Hunters Creek, Franklin Farm, and Chantilly Highlands.

Are there any downfalls with these areas? Are there any others to consider that I've missed? I've done some google searches for each of these and didn't find anything too bad, but many of the hits were real estate listings.

We're mainly concerned about safety, reasonably low-crime, and decent upkeep. Since it's also difficult to find places without a HOA, I'm mostly concerned that the rules not be totally ridiculous and picky/controlling (such as mandating the exact number of shrubs in your yard and things like that).

Any information out there? Thanks much!

[Dingler]

Stay away from Herndon. It is mostly illegal immigrants! Do a Google search to see what is going on in Herndon.

[mlv311]

We are temporarily renting a single-family home in Hiddenbrook and it is a quiet, family-friendly neighborhood. I feel safe here and have only heard of one break-in. I don't think the HOA is intrusive, but since I'm not an owner, I can't answer your questions with certainty. I know they plan activities throughout the year and there is a community pool and playground, but I imagine most HOAs offer those.

If you have children, you might want to check out the differences in schools among the neighborhoods you have listed: GreatSchools.net
A realtor who has lived in the area for over 20 years had recommended Franklin Farms and Chantilly Highlands to us. We were considering a home in Monterey Estates (nice neighborhood and good schools), but decided against it given the long commute from Herndon to downtown DC. Good luck.

[TullyApplebottom]

Hi, Dingler - We currently rent in Herndon (we're actually about a half-mile or so from the old day labor pick-up site at the 7-11), so I'm quite familiar with the town in general. Just not so much when it comes to specific subdivisions. Thanks for your reply, though! :-)

mlv311 - I appreciate the information and am glad to hear that the areas you listed are some of the ones we've been considering. No kids here, so we're only concerned about the school system as far as resale value goes (though we are planning on staying in the house long-term). From my research, the schools in the areas we're considering are "ok".

I don't know anything about Monterey Estates, will look into that, thank you! My husband works in Reston but I work in Rockville, which is why we are looking to stay in Herndon. I've driven to Chantilly, Ashburn, Leesburg, etc. during rush hour before and immediately ruled those areas out because it would probably add about 45 minutes onto my commute!

Thanks again for your help!

[mlv311]

You are welcome. I was digging through my old emails looking for the neighborhoods we looked at in Oakhill/Herndon to give them to you to check out. Prices range, but you can look into them and see if one fits your needs (some of them you already have in your list): Fox Mill Estates, Borneham Wood, Spring Lake Estates West, Franklin Farm, Chantilly Highlands, Moneys Corner. Good luck.

[TullyApplebottom]

Thanks again! It's very much appreciated.

[ramaprem]

TullyApplebottom,
we are also comsidering a home in Herndon, reston area. my husband will be taking up a jpb in mclean mid june and we would like to be in a good school district with reasonable commute time (20 - 30 mts) to mclean.
Heard that 267 traffic is better then 66 and VA 7. hence choose reston/herndon/chantilly over centerville/oakton/manassa/faifax
Initially we will be looking for
1) apartments in herndon/reston that give 3 mo lease for 1 bdr fully furnished . could u recommend any ?

2) after 3 mo we will look to move into a home. currently we live in richmond and would need that time for me and our 4 yr old daughter to join my husband
So we will be looking for homes near good schools (private and public) I read in greatschools.com and find that fox mill elem is really good . I cannot find enough info in private schools though. Thanks to this thread i got names of soem good communities to looka t

[mlv311]

Short-term leases (less than 6 months) are hard to find. We found ours on Craig's list so I suggest you look there under Northern Virginia.

[TullyApplebottom]

ramaprem,

You are correct in that 267 is much better than 66 and 7 for commuting, though it is a toll road, so take that into consideration. Personally, I would rather pay what I do than travel 66 every morning and evening. I've only driven a few times on Route 7 in the evening rush hour, going west, and it was very backed up.

I can't help with the rental question since, like mlv311 stated, it's difficult to find short-term leases. I would recommend using those free apartment guides (which may even be available online) - I believe they will help narrow down a short-term lease. Then, you can check this website:

Herndon Apartments for Rent with Ratings & Reviews by Herndon Renters at ApartmentRatings.com

which I have found to be a decent source of information. And, as noted above, craigslist is an option.

I don't know much about the schools in the area - haven't needed to find out. When I checked online for general school district info in our house search, I checked the same website you used (greatschools.com).

Sorry I'm not much help, but I could probably tell you more about the area if you mention specific rental complexes you're considering. Good luck!

[mdcrim]

I am partial to Franklin Farms. Although I have never lived there, I have driven through several times and it seems very quiet. Lots of green space and walking paths. It is not your typical "Herndon" as it borders Centreville Road and Fairfax County Parkway-south of what most people consider Herndon proper and several miles from "downtown" Herndon. Hope this helps.