Help! I'm trying to find a decent neighborhood in Maryland!! (Baltimore: sales, renting)

[Sweetnector]

Hello all,
My husband commutes to Rockville,MD everyday from Dover, DE. It is a very long commute and he's getting tired. He was commuting to Washington,DC everyday for 5 years and got transferred this year to Rockville. Anyway, we have been looking for somewhere descent to live, but since we have 16 and 5 yr old daughters, I wanted to be careful about the area we choose. Just to give you some background about us, we are a Black family and my husband makes a descent 6 figure income. We don't mind renting until we get a feel for what we like, but I would like to avoid choosing a high crime area if we can. I would also like my daughters to attend descent schools. My 16 yr old is an AP/honor student and looking at colleges, and I want her education to continue at the highest level possible.

We realize we wont get the same size home we have here in Delaware for the money (we currently live in a home with 5 lrge bdrms, 2.5 bthrm, 2 car garage and full sized finished basement sitting on 1.5 acre of land paying $1650.00 per month) because of the cost of living in Maryland, but we really don't want to live in a cracker jack box either.

My husband also also works in the areas of Gaithersburg, Silver Springs and Germantown. What are these areas like? Which are the high crime areas? Please help us. We are stepping into the unknown and would prefer real life experiences with this as opposed to online statistics. Thanks!!

[AeroGuyDC]

$1650........expect to double that for a comparable house in MontCo.

Regarding schools....someone else will probably need to chime in as I can't speak to area schools with much experience.

Housing-wise....Gaithersburg, Silver Spring, and Germantown are a very mixed bag. Silver Spring, in particular, is especially difficult to "wrap your head around" because SS covers alot of land area outside what most call the "core" of Silver Spring (downtown area). If you get away from the downtown area to the north and east a little, you'll find quite a few nice neighborhoods tucked away with a bit of suburban charm to it. The houses are nice and neighborhoods well established. However, like any other in the DC metro area, you'll need to study up on specific schools and then find a neighborhood that is covered by those schools. Trust me, just because it's Montgomery County doesn't mean that the individual schools are stellar. For a brief period, we considered the Silver Spring area and quickly determined that finding the good school first, and then the house, was the necessary approach. Based on what you mentioned, i'd start in Silver Spring outside of the core downtown area.

Germantown and Gaithersburg have lots of nice neighborhoods as well, but my personal recommendation would be to analyze your tolerance for immigrants, specifically Hispanic immigrants of the legal and illegal type. Because housing prices are 'relatively' cheaper in those areas, there tends to be a draw to that area for that demographic. I personally am not enthused about the prevalence of English As A Second Language being the threshold for which schools must now focus, so I have no desire to live in that area. Others may disagree with me though. Again, research it to death unless you've already determined that this is not an issue for you.

Personally, of those three options, i'd start with Silver Spring north and east of the city.

[EdwardA]

You definitely can afford to live in Mont Co in a nice area but the home will be considerably smaller. You could get more space in PG but then the schools become an issue. Howard Co would be just as pricey as Mont but maybe a tad more space?

I think Mont is your best bet just ratchet down the space expectations.

On a side note I'm surprised your husband hasn't lost his sanity yet with that commute. I was dying commuting from Southern PG to Baltimore for 2.5 years.

[dkf747]

Look in North Potomac.

[ay jayy]

Plenty of good neighborhoods in Rockville, Gaithersburg, North Potomac.

[reiflame]

No where in Montgomery County would be considered dangerous by national standards, but expect some people on this board to tell you what a crime ridden hellhole places like Silver Spring, Gaithersburg and Germantown are. They tend to have larger minority populations and I probably don't need to tell you that some people equate that to crime.

I think ay jayy is right about Gaithersburg, North Potomac and Rockville. Just remember to keep your expectations in check; for the type of property you have now, you'd probably have to budget 2-3x what you're currently paying.

[adelphi_sky]

Originally Posted by reiflame

No where in Montgomery County would be considered dangerous by national standards, but expect some people on this board to tell you what a crime ridden hellhole places like Silver Spring, Gaithersburg and Germantown are. They tend to have larger minority populations and I probably don't need to tell you that some people equate that to crime.

I think ay jayy is right about Gaithersburg, North Potomac and Rockville. Just remember to keep your expectations in check; for the type of property you have now, you'd probably have to budget 2-3x what you're currently paying.

Not just property. Everything here is more expensive than in Delaware including insurance. Take your whole budget for expenses, not including mortgage and increase it by 10-20%.

[reiflame]

Originally Posted by adelphi_sky

Not just property. Everything here is more expensive than in Delaware including insurance. Take your whole budget for expenses, not including mortgage and increase it by 10-20%.

Yeah, and don't forget you'll now have a 6% sales tax.

[JavaChip3]

PG could be doable if your eldest daughter can attend Eleanor Roosevelt High School. And there are a few elementary schools in Bowie (also in PG) that are supposed to be good. Depending on your husband's salary, you might be able to afford private schools with the money you'll save on housing in PG.

Else I would go with Montgomery or Howard counties.

[North Beach Person]

Or Anne Arundel County.