thinking of winchester?? from ky (Shenandoah: middle-class, best neighborhoods, sales)

[jessica1981]

Hi there,
my husband is getting a job in leetown west virgina and we have not heard good thinkgs about wv, and I was wondering if anyone can tell me about winchester va? We are thinking of renting there until we can see how it is. I have a little one who is 14mos so schools are not an issue at this point. I am in the mortgage business and am interested in the economy. Any advice for us would be appreciated!

Thank you for your time,
Jessica

[Sonagi]

I have lived in Winchester for a couple of years. It is a pleasant city with convenient shopping represented by most major restaurant and retail chains. The downtown area is charming with many well-kept older colonial-style buildings and a pedestrian mall. Downtown streets empty after 6 PM as folks head home for dinner. Winchester is very much a family and church-oriented community. People are friendly and unpretentious.

Housing sales have slowed everywhere, including Winchester, but according to a colleague whose husband is a full-time realtor, he is still making a decent living. Unemployment is low in Virginia.

If you decide to rent here, I would recommend you avoid downtown and the older residential neighborhoods near downtown. Winchester has a growing gang and drug distribution crime problem, thanks in part to MS-13 moving into the Shenandoah Valley and competing with another gang already established. A colleague who rents a cute house on North Loudoun St. was awoken at 3 AM by gang members beating a rival with baseball bats in her front yard. During the day, downtown is very safe and quiet, and solid middle-class neighborhoods are fine.

I live in an apartment complex managed by the Aikens Group. The two women working in the rental office, Arlene and Doris, are very kind, helpful, and honest about the properties.

[billybobwv]

You and anyone else who is considering a move to Winchester, VA should check out their local ABC-TV station.

TV3 - Home Winchester - tv3winchester.com

Their newscasts are available online and quite a bit of facts about the area are on that site. Reading some of the other posts from those interested in Winchester, many answers to their questions could have been found on the TV3 site. Example..not too long ago TV3 did a story on the best neighborhoods in Winchester while another story discussed the quality of schools in Winchester/Frederick County compared to nearby Martinsburg,WV a topic that has been brought up quite a bit on here.

Check out the weather girl. Lauryn Rickets, Recently some radio station in Texas (?) voted her as the worst weathercaster in America LOL. Well at least Winchester made news somewhere.

Still none-the-less TV3 Winchester is a good tool to have for those who are thinking about moving to Winchester.

[Rhett_Butler]

Originally Posted by billybobwv

You and anyone else who is considering a move to Winchester, VA should check out their local ABC-TV station.

TV3 - Home Winchester - tv3winchester.com

Their newscasts are available online and quite a bit of facts about the area are on that site. Reading some of the other posts from those interested in Winchester, many answers to their questions could have been found on the TV3 site. Example..not too long ago TV3 did a story on the best neighborhoods in Winchester while another story discussed the quality of schools in Winchester/Frederick County compared to nearby Martinsburg,WV a topic that has been brought up quite a bit on here.

Check out the weather girl. Lauryn Rickets, Recently some radio station in Texas (?) voted her as the worst weathercaster in America LOL. Well at least Winchester made news somewhere.

Still none-the-less TV3 Winchester is a good tool to have for those who are thinking about moving to Winchester.

I don't think the weather girl is THAT bad.... Geez... That's harsh...

[vickilynn]

Originally Posted by VAFury

I don't think the weather girl is THAT bad.... Geez... That's harsh...

She is just LOUD! (Reminds me of when I first moved back to the states and heard Rachel Ray on the Food Network for the first time...whoa!)

[Natalie22601]

Moderator cut: off topic For any one looking to relocate to Winchester or the surrounding area, please Google the area you're thinking of with the word relocation! You'll find a great number of results.