Moving to Richmond Area and Would Like Advice Please (Hopewell: fit in, apartment)

[christinealtova]

Hello,

My name is Christine and I would appreciate any and all opinions, advice and help that you could offer. I would like to give you some of my background and give some details that may help give you some insight into what I am looking for.

I am 34 and married with 2 sons, one is 14 and the other is 2. My husband and I were both born and raised in a small town in eastern Ohio. My husband was Air Force for 9 years. We were stationed in Abilene, TX and Great Falls, MT. Texas was ok, and we adored Montana. Really beautiful up there.

When my husband got out, we moved to Florida because he got a job at Eglin AFB. We were there 2 years and then he got a job at Redstone Arsenal here in Huntsville, AL. I am giving this information because maybe one of you Richmond area residents have lived in these other places and will get a better feel for the areas we have lived.

We have lived here in the Madison, AL area for 8 months, and this summer my husband's job at Redstone Arsenal is being permanently moved to Fort Lee Virginia.

I have dreamed of him getting a good job back home in Ohio because we miss our family, but life hasn't turned out that way. We really loved our time in Montana, although we lived on the base the whole time. Florida was nice, we lived in Crestview which is in the panhandle. He had to drive a bit to get to work, but the houses were cheaper to rent/buy out in the country and it wasn't so touristy.

We absolutely LOVE it here in Alabama, and it reminds us of our hometown. We live in a rural area, but there are subdivisions going up everywhere. Huntsville is a great city with lots of fun shopping and restaurants. If we could stay here, we would.

We are simple and I guess you could say 'country folks'. We like peace and quiet, but we also like having the city nearby when we want to go out and have fun. We don't have any desire to live in the busy city. We also don't want to live in a neighborhood where the lots are crammed together and very small.

Schools are very important. Our 14 year old is a straight A student who is taking advanced classes. He is also on the football and baseball teams. Right now, my son is my priority. I want him in a school that has a good academic record and also has a good athletic program. I don't want him to go somewhere where the 'good old boy' network exists. Meaning, if you aren't from here, you don't play, you don't fit in, etc.

Sorry if I am rambling, I am just trying to be as detailed as possible. We really lucked out when we came here. The school was great and he is thriving. So I just want him to be in a good school.

Please don't anyone take this the wrong way, but we do NOT want to be in a ghetto area or an area where there is a gang problem, poverty problem, illiteracy problem, etc. We have nothing against a school that has mixed races. The school he attends now is a mix of black and white students and there are no issues. This school is outside the city, so it is just a nice country high school.

We are looking to rent the first year, and then buy next summer. We have never lived somewhere long enough to buy a home, so we really want to learn the area first before we buy.

My husband will be working at Fort Lee. I have read A LOT on here and done quite a bit of research.

I have gone through these forums to see how the opinions expressed here match up with our experiences in the other cities we have lived. I can honestly say that when you add everything up, the majority of comments are usually right. So I am fairly confident that the opinions I have read about the Richmond area are pretty accurate.

We really don't want to live in the city of Richmond. We are wanting to know if there are smaller cities/towns on the outskirts of Richmond that you could recommend. This doesn't mean we are adverse to Richmond, it's just as I said earlier, we aren't city people. My husband is willing to drive 40-45 minutes to work. He just wants us to have a nice house and be in a safe area. Our price range for a house is going to be around 220,000-230,000. We can buy an awesome house here for that price. But I know that the cost of living in VA is a lot more than it is here.

We just want what a lot of families want, nice school, a nice house, relative feeling of safety, etc. For us, we also want the quiet living that being in a rural area provides, but we don't want to be too far from all the fun that a city can offer when we want to take advantage of it. Also, please don't think we want to live in a small little town of 100 people and be hermits, because that is not what I mean by country living, LOL.

I realize I rambled a lot, I am just nervous about this move because it appears that we may finally be setting down roots finally after all these years. So this move has me more nervous and anxious than any other move we have made.

We have been told that New Kent, Hopewell and Chester(Chesterfield?) may be good options. Are these nice towns? Do you have any other suggestions?

Thank you to anyone who can give me advice, it is truly appreciated.

Sincerely,

Christine

[onevthoki]

Hi Christine! And an early welcome to the Fort Lee area!! My husband is retired Army and I grew up in nearby Nottoway County. My recently got on with DeCA at Fort Lee and we chose to live in Chester. If you do a search for some of my previous posts, you'll see that I think it is the best of both worlds... close to the amenities in Richmond, close to Fort Lee, but still a little removed from the hustle and bustle, plus you should not have a problem finding a home in the price point you mentioned.

Hope this helps a bit, and if you have any more questions, just let us know. This Richmond forum is a pretty helpful bunch!

[ShannonMilligan]

onevthoki said it best! She seems to know the Fort Lee area very well and I am sure will be a great asset to you!

[Jenny Saunders]

You should talk to Jackie she is a great realtor and I belive she can help you find a best place for the best price, she really listens.
Give her a call 804 683-5124

[christinealtova]

Thank you all for your responses.

I have been spending a lot of time researching, and I think that the Colonial Heights or Chester areas would be best for us.

One problem is that we do not want to buy right away. We would like to rent for 6 months to a year so we can get a feel for the area. I have searched for rental sites for Chester and Colonial Heights and I am getting worried. It appears that rentals are hard to come by. I know that June and December are usually the big moving months for military, so hopefully more homes become available in the next few months. We do not want to live in a townhouse or an apartment. So can anyone give me some websites that will show rentals in Chester and Colonial Heights?

I know that I can call local realtors and they will usually have rental lists, but I hate to bother a realtor with rental questions when it doesn't really benefit them.

We are willing to buy if we can find something we love right away. But I went to realtor.com and also looked at mls listings, and I am having a very hard time finding newly constructed homes for less than $230,000. It seems that a lot of homes are older.

[ShannonMilligan]

I still would call a Realtor and see what they can pull for you. I don't service that area, but I wouldn't consider it a waste of time. Here is the low down: a good realtor would be happy to help you find a rental b/c when it is time to buy, if they treated you well, wouldn't you then turn to them to help you buy? And, Realtor do make money off of rentals. It's not a lot by any means, but they do collect a small fee for renting the space and this is paid for by the LANDLORD. So...it would be a win-win for you and the Realtor. You get access to a lot of properties and they get a chance to show you how they are an asset to you. (Oh, and they could sent you some listings on new construction if that is what you want...you may find something in your price range depending on the area you are looking.) Let me know if you need any help finding a realtor who services your area. But, I bet Onevthoki could help you.
Good luck!

[CoinkyDink]

Hi Christine,

Since your son is 14 years old and I'm assuming is in 9th grade, obviously, for your situation, a stellar high school is key. I have children, as well, and understand the extreme need for finding the best school that I can afford.

In Chester, VA, there are 3 schools:

Matoaca ~ Um, no.
L.C. Byrd ~ Avoid at all costs
Thomas Dale ~ If you are going to live in the Chester, VA area, you absolutely want to make sure you live in the Dale district, not Byrd district.

If I were you, I would focus in on the Midlothian, VA with particular attention to Cosby High School or Midlothian High School; however, if you prefer to live in Chester, VA, make sure you rent/buy in the Dale district.

Click this VA Department of Education link, look in the right hand column, click 'Advanced Programs' and you will find which schools have the highest enrollment for AP courses, exams and college courses. I noticed that Midlothian and Cosby have the highest numbers (not a surprise), and then Thomas Dale, which surprised me.

VDOE :: Statistics & Reports



Also, here is a School Locator for Chesterfield County Public Schools, so if you find a house you want to rent, punch in the address to find the schools zoned:

Chesterfield County School Zones


Be very careful about buying in this area. The market is quite poor and there are a lot of home owners having a heck of a time selling. Is this the area that you will stay in for 5+ years? Definitely?


Here is a local realtor with rental listings:
Wells Realty (http://www.wellshomesforsale.com/rentals.htm - broken link)



And, another one:
Lease/Rentals - Search Rental Homes, Appartments, Condos and Vacation Homes for Rent in Chester,Richmond,Ft. Lee,Colonial Heights,Prince George,Hopewell,Tri-Cities, VA


Oh, and Zillow:
http://www.zillow.com



Make sure to drive around the area you are planning on living in-- you just might see a few 'rental' signs. Many homeowners, such as myself, would rather be their own property manager instead of paying someone to take care of their property.


Good Luck!

[onevthoki]

Since the previous poster brought up high schools, I want to point out that Chesterfield County does offer the option of attending Specialty Centers, which are outside of your zoned attendance school. Here is the link for the Specialty Centers directly on the CCPS website. Chesterfield Schools (http://chesterfield.k12.va.us/CCPS/schools/schools.htm - broken link)

[ellieb128]

Originally Posted by onevthoki

Since the previous poster brought up high schools, I want to point out that Chesterfield County does offer the option of attending Specialty Centers, which are outside of your zoned attendance school. Here is the link for the Specialty Centers directly on the CCPS website. Chesterfield Schools (http://chesterfield.k12.va.us/CCPS/schools/schools.htm - broken link)

Yes, but you can't use that as a guarantee to be able to opt out of your home school. You have to apply/test in the middle of 8th grade. Many/most are highly competitive with hundreds of kids applying for say 50 spots...They are great opportunities but the good ones are very selective.

[Charlesaf3]

If you like Huntsville, I think you'll like the Richmond area, as long as you live south. It'll be a bit more expensive, but not that much if you pick a huntsville-like location (ie further from the city).

Personally, I think Richmond is about 15 million times better than Huntsville, to be precise, but its all about preferences. Just pick the "right" part of the Richmond area for you, and you'll be fine. Chesterfield might not be it - look south too.