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Hi! I've lived in Annandale off Braddock Road since 1996. I really like it. It's a very convenient neighborhood and affordable (well, as this area goes) and. The only crime I've noted since I moved in was one neighbor's car windows got smashed in right after 9-11 (he was a Lebanese Christian, it turns out) and one car that was stolen elsewhere was wrecked by the thieves. There are some parts of Annandale that have older, lower-income apartments that have a large Central American population, and the 7-11 at Heritage & LRT where the day laborers congregate, which I know is a problem for some folks. But the SFH neighborhoods, from what I've seen, are stable and friendly and not snobby. It's easy to get on the highway and into town or over to Tysons or down to Old Town, so especially if one of you has a job that takes them in multiple directions on the Va. side of the river, it's a good place to be. Bonus points if you like Korean food.
Annandale is a close-in suburb in Fairfax County that's very well-situated to get to DC, Arlington or Tysons by car or, depending on where you live, by bus. Most of the homes were built in the 1950s-1970s, with some infill construction more recently. The retail areas are kind of ugly and not particularly well-planned, but there usually aren't a lot of long-term vacancies, either. For the most part, it's very safe and you can meet all your basic needs there.
Locally, Annandale has the reputation of being heavily Asian (specifically, Korean). This is because many Koreans moved to Annandale beginning in the late 1970s and established businesses there. Today, many of Annandale's retail businesses are Korean-owned and operated, but many of the Koreans who lived in Annandale in the 1970s and 1980s have since moved further out to Chantilly, Centreville and parts of Loudoun County. Demographically, it's very much a melting pot today, with many Asian, white and Hispanic residents. Annandale does have some AA residents as well, although the AA population tends to be larger further east along Route 236 in the Lincolnia/Landmark area, which is considered Alexandria.
People will also often make a distinction between "outside-the-Beltway" Annandale and "inside-the-Beltway" Annandale, since the former consists primarily of very pleasant SFH-neighborhoods and the latter includes some aging garden apartment complexes that have more lower and moderate-income residents (along with stable SFH and townhouse neighborhoods). So, for example, heading west on Braddock, the neighborhoods in the Annandale zip code (22003) are assigned to, in order, Weyanoke, Columbia, Annandale Terrace, Braddock and Wakefield Forest ES. In general, you should expect homes in the Columbia and Wakefield Forest ES districts to be more expensive than similar homes in the Weyanoke, Annandale Terrace or Braddock ES districts, since the lower-income apartment complexes are concentrated in the latter areas and these three schools have higher concentrations of students for whom English is not their first language. The area zoned for Wakefield Forest ES will be the most expensive of all, since this area now feeds entirely to Woodson HS, which traditionally has been one of the top-ranked high schools in the county.
People will also often make a distinction between "outside-the-Beltway" Annandale and "inside-the-Beltway" Annandale, since the former consists primarily of very pleasant SFH-neighborhoods and the latter includes some aging garden apartment complexes that have more lower and moderate-income residents (along with stable SFH and townhouse neighborhoods.
What you say is true, but I would suggest that the differences go beyond the issue of the aging garden apt complexes and their inhabitants.
Outside the beltway annandale is almost entirely SFHs - inside also has THs (as you note) and a couple of older hi rise buildings (which are more expensive than the garden apt complexes). AFAICT the outside the beltway and inside the beltway SFHs draw somewhat different markets. Inside the beltway is heavily commercial (office buildings, all the korean stuff, and quite a good bit of non Korean retail), while outside has only very limited retail. Inside has a fair amount of bus service - not only the 29k local on LRT and the express buses to the Pentagon, but the 401/402, 16, and 3A buses. Outside has only the 29K and the 29X/E express. Inside is generally noiser and busier (though it DOES have some bucolic pockets) while outside feels more like 'typical' low density fairfax suburbia.
Inside has greater walkable proximity to shopping, but outside has far superior access to the excellent Cross County Trail for recreational walking, jogging, bike riding. It also has the only bike lanes in the area (on Wakefield Chapel)
What you say is true, but I would suggest that the differences go beyond the issue of the aging garden apt complexes and their inhabitants.
Outside the beltway annandale is almost entirely SFHs - inside also has THs (as you note) and a couple of older hi rise buildings (which are more expensive than the garden apt complexes). AFAICT the outside the beltway and inside the beltway SFHs draw somewhat different markets. Inside the beltway is heavily commercial (office buildings, all the korean stuff, and quite a good bit of non Korean retail), while outside has only very limited retail. Inside has a fair amount of bus service - not only the 29k local on LRT and the express buses to the Pentagon, but the 401/402, 16, and 3A buses. Outside has only the 29K and the 29X/E express. Inside is generally noiser and busier (though it DOES have some bucolic pockets) while outside feels more like 'typical' low density fairfax suburbia.
Inside has greater walkable proximity to shopping, but outside has far superior access to the excellent Cross County Trail for recreational walking, jogging, bike riding. It also has the only bike lanes in the area (on Wakefield Chapel)
Sounds right to me. Some of the SFH residential neighborhoods in Annandale inside-the-Beltway are similar to areas outside-the-Beltway (for example, the inside-the-Beltway Sleepy Hollow Woods neighborhood is similar to the outside-the-Beltway Camelot neighborhood; some of the areas north of Braddock inside-the-Beltway just past TJHSST are as "bucolic" as parts of Fairfax outside-the-Beltway, etc.) but the high-density stuff in Annandale is largely along 236 inside-the-Beltway.
Sounds right to me. Some of the SFH residential neighborhoods in Annandale inside-the-Beltway are similar to areas outside-the-Beltway (for example, the inside-the-Beltway Sleepy Hollow Woods neighborhood is similar to the outside-the-Beltway Camelot neighborhood; some of the areas north of Braddock inside-the-Beltway just past TJHSST are as "bucolic" as parts of Fairfax outside-the-Beltway, etc.) but the high-density stuff in Annandale is largely along 236 inside-the-Beltway.
yeah, I would say that the area along Braddock (and the area close to Rte50) is somewhat intermediate in feel between "high density" rte 236, and low density outer Annandale. Of course the other side of Braddock is North Sprinfield which technically isn't Annandale, I guess, and the lower density in that area affects the feel of Braddock Road too. And Backlick carries a bit of the "inner Annandale" feel down to Braddock and beyond. The sections along Braddock farther from Backlick are quieter.
I currently live in Annandale inside the beltway, almost 4 years now, in a SFH neighborhood off of Braddock. I wonder if the house you were looking at is the one I am thinking of that had an open house yesterday. Feel free to DM me to see if its what I'm thinking of...
Overall, I think Annandale is a great value in terms of having a reasonable commute to a number of places like Tysons, Arlington, Alexandria, Falls Church, etc. You never know when or where your next job will lead you. The area itself is fine, I have not experienced any crime in my time here. The shopping, particularly along 236 looks a bit run down but the SFH neighborhoods themselves are very nice, quiet and peaceful. There are a lot of hidden gems back in the neighborhoods.
Overall, I think Annandale is a great value in terms of having a reasonable commute to a number of places like Tysons, Arlington, Alexandria, Falls Church, etc. You never know when or where your next job will lead you. The area itself is fine, I have not experienced any crime in my time here. The shopping, particularly along 236 looks a bit run down but the SFH neighborhoods themselves are very nice, quiet and peaceful. There are a lot of hidden gems back in the neighborhoods.
ITA with this (as with points raised by previous posters). We have a great neighborhood with a civic association, block parties, Halloween parades, egg hunts, etc. I have never experienced "standoff-ish" behavior from neighbors in my over-a-decade here. I have not experienced any crime and have been out and about early in the morning as well as after dark. My kids attend Canterbury Woods ES and have taken part in sports with Braddock Road Youth Club as well as Annandale-North Springfield Little League. There are community pools in the area as well for summer activities. I have a great commute (20 minutes to Arlington) which, for me, was the primary factor (beyond budget) for locating here.
My wife and I bought a home here in Annandale not far from Columbia pike and Braddock in 2009. We chose to live here for proximity to work and bang for the buck. We were bargain hunters and I feel it turned out to be a great choice. I would agree with what most every one has said here on this blog. Here are a few of my observations as a recent resident.
The Commute -Annandale is central to most Northern Virginia work locations. Its an easier commute to surrounding areas because there are more alternative routes. There are great many under utilized short cuts . You can always take a few back roads to 7 and drive into Tysons corner if the Freeway is jammed. The same thing is true about going to Alexandria. Its a good compromise if you work in Tysons or Dulls and your spouse works in DC. The proximity to Downtown DC is great. You can take the 395 directly downtown but a lot of the time it is faster take Columbia pike or Route 50. During non rush hour this means getting to the Pentagon area in about ten minutes. Downtown DC can be reached in as little as twenty minutes during non rush hour. In the reverse direction I've gotten to my door in Annandale from 17th and Constitution in as little as fifteen minutes. Again non rush hour but still very good. Public Transportation is a fairly good option from some parts of Annandale to Downtown DC. The Sixteen Bus will take you down Columbia pike to the Pentagon and from their the Metro into DC is easy. The commute to Dullas corridor area businesses during normal hours will take about an hour.
There are some great stores restaurants and recreation areas off of Braddock near Little River Turn Pike and Backlick Shopping center as well. Places that we have come to value since moving here include the restaurants in that area like the Foxfire grill, Five Guys, IndiAroma, Flipping Pizza and a Frozen Yogert place Starbucks and a lot of other really great places! Home Depot is right there, if you just bought a house in the area you will learn to appreciate how close it is.
We found that there were some great things that we never considered. Including some great local parks like the Mason district park. Out side of soccer and baseball fields, there are open spaces and a special dog park. There are trails and tennis courts. You will find a small outdoor amphitheater tucked back in the woods of this park, it features great live music (free) weekly in the summer.
Gripes include the fact that the infrastructure in some areas needs improvement. We need more side walks curb and gutters and we need more walkable areas. It improves the property value and keeps streets safe for pedestrians. I would like to see more public cross walks and more public transportation options and infrastructure. It would be great if central Annandale could shape up a bit as well. Less strip mall and more focus walk-ability and community.
(That being said, I've grown to like the Asian flavor. There is probably some of the greatest Korean food out side of Korea right here. Anthony Bordain has even featured it on his show. I think Annandale needs to embrace and celebrate this niche. It differentiates us from every other and Northern Virginia Suburb. Yea, we can walk to civil war era sites but we can also stroll over to some place and have an exotic dish barbequed at our table over an open flame. ) Annandale is not a bad option.
We are looking to purchase a TH in Annandale right off Rt 236 near Old Columbia Pike. The area looks very promising for commuting in any direction.
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