Welcome to City-Data.com Forum!
U.S. CitiesCity-Data Forum Index
Go Back   City-Data Forum > U.S. Forums > Maryland > Washington, DC suburbs in Maryland
 [Register]
Washington, DC suburbs in Maryland Calvert County, Charles County, Montgomery County, and Prince George's County
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
View detailed profile (Advanced) or search
site with Google Custom Search

Search Forums  (Advanced)
Reply Start New Thread
 
Old 08-10-2010, 12:28 PM
 
Location: york, PA
28 posts, read 38,872 times
Reputation: 12

Advertisements

My husband, 2 year old daughter and I have to move to Baltimore/DC area in the next year or two. We live in PA. Everyone we know loves to tell us how its such a horrible thing. Its so expensive, its full of crime.... I can go on and on. Its starting to make me panic and upset about moving! Can anyone please give me some good news and uplifting advice/news on why we are making the right choice? We are moving for his job.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message

 
Old 08-10-2010, 12:54 PM
 
512 posts, read 1,632,082 times
Reputation: 222
Well most people that choose to relocate don't necessarily choose to live in crime infested environment.

With that said, Where are you coming from in Pa (Small town, Mid-size City) This area has a lot to choose from. There is however no denying that this is an expensive area. It's a good area to cultivate a career and advance and it has many wonderful school systems around. Just like any place it's what you make of it. If you come here with a negative attitude then you will probably never like this area. If you give it a chance you might like it.

Some people deal with the area because of job availability, some love the hustle and bussle of the area. Others have gotten what they need from the area and are ready to move on. So tell us a little more indepth of your needs and which areas your looking at.

Quote:
Originally Posted by Dewingedfairy View Post
My husband, 2 year old daughter and I have to move to Baltimore/DC area in the next year or two. We live in PA. Everyone we know loves to tell us how its such a horrible thing. Its so expensive, its full of crime.... I can go on and on. Its starting to make me panic and upset about moving! Can anyone please give me some good news and uplifting advice/news on why we are making the right choice? We are moving for his job.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 08-10-2010, 01:05 PM
 
Location: york, PA
28 posts, read 38,872 times
Reputation: 12
My husband is an Amtrak engineer working out of DC. I am graduating in three months with my RN degree. I have been excited about the idea of a move, until I get so many nay-sayers who basically balk that we are making this sort of move. We live in York PA, which is a mid sized city. Good deal of crime, but outskirts are nice. I grew up in very small towns in PA with closed minds (antigay, that sort of thing). My husband and I are open minded and love visiting cities and traveling. We have a variety of friends. However I don't want my daughter in a busy area. I want her to be able to go outside and play without fear of being kidnapped. (which I am a parent so I think I will always have that fear).
The reason we havent moved yet is because I complete my degree soon and we have been waiting for that.

Our criteria:

housing approximetly 325k
Nice quiet neighborhood with GOOD SCHOOLS (The thought of my little Chloe going to a scarey schools scares the crap out of me).
We don't mind living in a townhome, we'd like to have a garage.
My husband has to be able to get to Union Station in under 45 minutes (he takes call).

Those are the basics of our desires. I fear the expensiveness of the areas down there. I heard electric is so expensive down there! Here in PA it is mediocred to live--- my combined bills including mortgage is under 2000 a month. We estimate after I start working as an RN our combined income will be around 120k. He is a new engineer so he isn't making top pay yet.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 08-10-2010, 02:22 PM
 
332 posts, read 1,276,833 times
Reputation: 108
You will be fine. I have moved around a lot and I was more concerned with moving to Maryland than any other state because of the stories / crime etc. I was not worried about the expenses because we have lived in more expensive areas.

Don't worry move to the burbs and you will be okay. Look at it as an adventure, I always believe that I can live pretty much any place that is reasonably safe for two years. Once your daughter starts kindergarten, it might be much harder to pick up a move.

You should be able to find something in Howard or Anne Arundel County for under 325. Definitely a townhouse, you might be able to find a single family.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 08-10-2010, 04:55 PM
 
202 posts, read 346,200 times
Reputation: 186
Quote:
Originally Posted by jayman1981 View Post
Well most people that choose to relocate don't necessarily choose to live in crime infested environment.
My 700k house is less than a mile from where the lady was killed by the DC sniper in leisure world shopping center. Two years ago car was stolen out of my driveway too by a 14 year old. I did not intend to move to a crime infested area either and one would figure an "average" neighborhood such as mine I would not need to worry about these things, but here I am.

I moved to Montgomery county from a small town outside Pittsburgh 17 years ago. If i did not get married to someone who lived local I would have been out of there a lot sooner.

Here is an interesting fact. When I was looking to purchase my 1st home back in 1998 I found multiple starter homes in downtown Bethesda ranging between $225K and $245K. You cannot find any of these homes anymore for less than $500k now.

I hope your husband is making well over $100k because if not it wont be worth it.

Further, what are you going to do when both of you are at work? Be prepared to spend a good bit of money in daycare.

I'll tell you straight up, if your not a doctor, an attorney, independently wealthy or have a trust fund the DC area is not worth it anymore. Back in the 90s it was great place to come because housing was affordable...it just isn't that way anymore. The DC area has become so expensive in the past 10 years I do not see any benefit of moving there unless you are making very good money. Just my two cents.

Last edited by oldway; 08-10-2010 at 05:08 PM..
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 08-10-2010, 05:09 PM
 
202 posts, read 346,200 times
Reputation: 186
Quote:
Originally Posted by SmokeyLisa View Post
You should be able to find something in Howard or Anne Arundel County for under 325. Definitely a townhouse, you might be able to find a single family.
Yep that is convienant to Union Station.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 08-10-2010, 05:10 PM
 
Location: york, PA
28 posts, read 38,872 times
Reputation: 12
Wow. First off, I defintely cannot afford a 700k House. We aren't looking directly in DC. We want closer to a 325k house, maybe a townhome. Can anyone give me some uplifting news about moving to the area?
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 08-10-2010, 05:19 PM
 
202 posts, read 346,200 times
Reputation: 186
Quote:
Originally Posted by Dewingedfairy View Post
Wow. First off, I defintely cannot afford a 700k House. We aren't looking directly in DC. We want closer to a 325k house, maybe a townhome. Can anyone give me some uplifting news about moving to the area?
I am not in DC! I am in a MD suburb! go to homes.com and enter in your price range for towns such as Silver Spring, Rockville, Gaithersburg, Germantown and see what you can "get" for your money....

The problem is that if your husband has to be at union station in 45 minutes and its not the middle of the night you will have to live close in, which is expensive as all get out for a relatively "safe" neighborhood.

Do yourself a HUGE favor if you decide to make this move and rent first. Learn the area!!! I am just being honest from own experience from living in the area.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 08-10-2010, 05:27 PM
 
Location: york, PA
28 posts, read 38,872 times
Reputation: 12
Well luckily he doesn't work a 9-5 shift. He's usually the opposite of traffic.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 08-11-2010, 12:31 AM
 
332 posts, read 1,276,833 times
Reputation: 108
Quote:
Originally Posted by oldway View Post
Yep that is convienant to Union Station.
She asked for price, safety and being able to get to Union Station within 45 minutes. Are you saying that you can not get from Anne Arundel or Howard County via the Marc or driving to the metro within 45 minutes. It will be hard and she will need to live close to the station but it is possible and Union Station is the destination so no commute after Union Station. Granted all 45 minutes will be needed.

She also asked for good news and gave you a budget and you have said that it is impossible.

Would it be better or more convenient to live right in DC or Montgomery County, yes but it will be very hard on $325k. I agree with you that renting first is a good option.

Try Odenton. Also, townhomes are much more common in Maryland than any place that I have seen. They are really upscale townhomes as well.

Good Luck.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.

Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.


Reply
Please update this thread with any new information or opinions. This open thread is still read by thousands of people, so we encourage all additional points of view.

Quick Reply
Message:


Settings
X
Data:
Loading data...
Based on 2000-2020 data
Loading data...

123
Hide US histogram


Over $104,000 in prizes was already given out to active posters on our forum and additional giveaways are planned!

Go Back   City-Data Forum > U.S. Forums > Maryland > Washington, DC suburbs in Maryland
Similar Threads

All times are GMT -6.

© 2005-2024, Advameg, Inc. · Please obey Forum Rules · Terms of Use and Privacy Policy · Bug Bounty

City-Data.com - Contact Us - Archive 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37 - Top