Where to live in No VA?? good school, green hills, new home! (Lynchburg: crime, neighborhoods)

[movinandchangin]

So......I am leaving the SF Bay Area for my first non-California relocation! Definitely a little nervous!!
We are relocating to beautiful Northern Virginia and I am confused!
I have read websites, school reviews, crime posts and my head is swimming with too much data!!!

I know that 'locals' are where the good info comes from (I can give you the low down on the Bay Area!!), and since I don't yet know any Virginia locals, I would most appreciate your knowledgeable advice about where I should start looking.

I have a grade school aged child and my foremost concern is him. I would love for his school to be somewhat small, safe, and filled with kids from the surrounding area, so he can make local friends easily. His school here is public, has great academics and low kid to teacher ratio and fun afterschool programs, but it was hard to find and took some effort to find a place to live in the district and required pre-registration 9 months in advance! Any advice on what to expect when trying to get him in to a school in VA would be super.

My husband will be working in Sterling area and would prefer a reverse commute (don't we all!). I would love to be in an area with families, but not a brand new housing development. I prefer older homes and love a yard where you are not on top of the people next door.
However I am open to anyplace with green and trees, good neighbors and a community to be part of. Yeah, I know...too good to be true???? I hope not.

Thanks for any guidance or leads!!!

[LynchburgLover]

You might want to post this in the Northern Virginia specific thread to get better info about schools. Mine went to private schools so I can't give you any advice there. I'd say Vienna/Oakton/Reston fit the trees, community, reverse commute, etc., but a lot of it depends on your housing budget. Although in DC, I'm not sure a reverse commute really exists. The traffic is everywhere.

You may want to give a clue about your political leanings. It is Washington, after all. If you're a very progressive Democrat, you might not be happy in the heart of Republican country.

Good luck.

[normie]

Originally Posted by movinandchangin

So......I am leaving the SF Bay Area for my first non-California relocation! Definitely a little nervous!!
We are relocating to beautiful Northern Virginia and I am confused!
I have read websites, school reviews, crime posts and my head is swimming with too much data!!!

I know that 'locals' are where the good info comes from (I can give you the low down on the Bay Area!!), and since I don't yet know any Virginia locals, I would most appreciate your knowledgeable advice about where I should start looking.

I have a grade school aged child and my foremost concern is him. I would love for his school to be somewhat small, safe, and filled with kids from the surrounding area, so he can make local friends easily. His school here is public, has great academics and low kid to teacher ratio and fun afterschool programs, but it was hard to find and took some effort to find a place to live in the district and required pre-registration 9 months in advance! Any advice on what to expect when trying to get him in to a school in VA would be super.

My husband will be working in Sterling area and would prefer a reverse commute (don't we all!). I would love to be in an area with families, but not a brand new housing development. I prefer older homes and love a yard where you are not on top of the people next door.
However I am open to anyplace with green and trees, good neighbors and a community to be part of. Yeah, I know...too good to be true???? I hope not.

Thanks for any guidance or leads!!!

Here are some photos of the areas right next to Sterling. Traffic is bad, so I recommend one of these towns to make your commute as short as possible.

Lowes Island (part of Cascades, which is the northern section of Sterling)
Reston-South Lakes
Reston-Town Center and Lake Anne
Herndon
Brambleton (a part of Ashburn)
Vienna
Sterling Park

I personally like Lowes Island. You'll definitely find green and trees, good neighbors and a community to be part of there. However, it's only about 20 years old (in the oldest areas, some sections were built in the last decade). If you want a place that's a little bit older, and slightly more urban, Reston is my second favorite. "Old" is a relative term. Nova has mostly new communities. These particular communities range from built in the 1960's to built in the last decade.

The best thing to do is check out the northern virginia forum. It's very active and has all sorts of information and photos.

BTW we moved here from California (Redondo Beach/Santa Barbara) and so have about half the mmebers of our forum. You'll find plenty of Californians in Nova these days.

[movinandchangin]

Originally Posted by LynchburgLover

You might want to post this in the Northern Virginia specific thread to get better info about schools. Mine went to private schools so I can't give you any advice there. I'd say Vienna/Oakton/Reston fit the trees, community, reverse commute, etc., but a lot of it depends on your housing budget. Although in DC, I'm not sure a reverse commute really exists. The traffic is everywhere.

You may want to give a clue about your political leanings. It is Washington, after all. If you're a very progressive Democrat, you might not be happy in the heart of Republican country.

Good luck.

Thanks for the good info. Sad to hear that traffic will be the same as here. Always wish for less traffic!

[movinandchangin]

Originally Posted by normie

Here are some photos of the areas right next to Sterling. Traffic is bad, so I recommend one of these towns to make your commute as short as possible.

Lowes Island (part of Cascades, which is the northern section of Sterling)
Reston-South Lakes
Reston-Town Center and Lake Anne
Herndon
Brambleton (a part of Ashburn)
Vienna
Sterling Park

I personally like Lowes Island. You'll definitely find green and trees, good neighbors and a community to be part of there. However, it's only about 20 years old (in the oldest areas, some sections were built in the last decade). If you want a place that's a little bit older, and slightly more urban, Reston is my second favorite. "Old" is a relative term. Nova has mostly new communities. These particular communities range from built in the 1960's to built in the last decade.

The best thing to do is check out the northern virginia forum. It's very active and has all sorts of information and photos.

BTW we moved here from California (Redondo Beach/Santa Barbara) and so have about half the mmebers of our forum. You'll find plenty of Californians in Nova these days.

Awesome list - thank you for your time. I will peruse the NoVA forum for more details. We plan on flying in for a scouting trip so I can get a feel for the area. Sounds like we are going to be in a similar locale as here with regards to traffic and suburbs. Thank you again~

[Tom Lennox 70]

IF you are from California, especially from the San Francisco Bay Area, adjusting to Northern Virginia will be quite easy with little culture shock. Just keep in mind that's not the "real Virginia". Go south or west out of NOVA and its a whole different experience.....in my opinion a more pleasant one.

[normie]

Originally Posted by movinandchangin

Awesome list - thank you for your time. I will peruse the NoVA forum for more details. We plan on flying in for a scouting trip so I can get a feel for the area. Sounds like we are going to be in a similar locale as here with regards to traffic and suburbs. Thank you again~

It's somewhat the same, but just so you know not everyone from SF likes it here. For one thing, we don't have the "California vibe." Nova is not glamorous, nor is it a tourist destination. While we have a lot of things to do here we don't have quite as much of a variety as you'll find in SF (although if you like touristy things, you can find plenty of those sorts of things in DC). Nova does not have the foodie culture of SF. Also, our population is extremely diverse... in all ways. SF has a diversity of races, but a predominance of one political pov (liberal) and a predominance of one cultural pov (being politically correct). Some people from SF experience a little culture shock when they move here and experience the diversity here.

[tgbwc]

Originally Posted by movinandchangin

I have a grade school aged child and my foremost concern is him. I would love for his school to be somewhat small, safe, and filled with kids from the surrounding area, so he can make local friends easily. His school here is public, has great academics and low kid to teacher ratio and fun afterschool programs, but it was hard to find and took some effort to find a place to live in the district and required pre-registration 9 months in advance! Any advice on what to expect when trying to get him in to a school in VA would be super.

You had to pre-register 9 months in advance for a public school? You won't have to do anything like that here. If he is going to his local public school there will be no amount of "trying to get him in". The school may or may not be small, but it will be safe and filled with kids from the neighborhood.

[movinandchangin]

Originally Posted by Tom Lennox 70

IF you are from California, especially from the San Francisco Bay Area, adjusting to Northern Virginia will be quite easy with little culture shock. Just keep in mind that's not the "real Virginia". Go south or west out of NOVA and its a whole different experience.....in my opinion a more pleasant one.

Thanks Tom. I haved lived in the Bay Area all of my life and only in the City for a few years, in my twenties! As an adult I have always chosen the hills and small towns surrounding the Bay and then commuted to work in Oakland or SF. The SF lifestyle is not my reality, just my occasional evening out or trip to the museum.

Do you think that there is anywhere south or west of Sterling that might be commutable to Sterling but be a sweet place to raise our son? Honestly, safety, nice schools and good people are what are important for me. Thank you~

[movinandchangin]

Originally Posted by tgbwc

You had to pre-register 9 months in advance for a public school? You won't have to do anything like that here. If he is going to his local public school there will be no amount of "trying to get him in". The school may or may not be small, but it will be safe and filled with kids from the neighborhood.

Super. We are scheduled to leave here after this school year, but have no idea where we are going to live yet, only that it be within commute distance to Sterling. I have been so concerned about not being able to get my son into school next fall somewhere near wherever we decide to live. Here in Oakland, the local school can be great, in a nice area, but be full by the preceeding January and the next school within 5 miles is really bad and not a place to send your child. I
If I don't have to contend with that element then I am relieved.
Any towns surrounding Sterling that you reccomend? My husband is used to a commute, so he can do it in Virginia too..........Thank you!