Thinking of moving to Camp Springs MD help

[MadMat]

Originally Posted by SmoothGuy

I actually lived in Metroplace at Towne Center from 2011-2012, it was the first place that I lived when I came to the DMV from North Carolina.

There are some Pros to living there, but there are also many cons.

Pros: nice large apartments at great prices, probably the best apts (as far as space and layout) for the price that I have lived in since coming here. The community is quiet for the most part. Walking distance to the metro. Option of free parking or pay monthly for parking garage (tow companies are VERY strict there so ensure that your permit is visibly shown and that your tags are NOT expired, I remembered getting towed twice and one of my guests being towed).

CONS: no amenities. The closest grocery store is the Giant on Branch Ave in the Marlow Heights Shopping Center and it is always crowded and does not have good selection of products (compared to other grocery stores that I've been to). Not many decent fast-casual restaurants nearby at all (the closest Chipotle is in Clinton, which is always crowded).
When I lived there the children/teens in the neighborhood were running rampant. They would knock on my door and run, hang out in the fitness center during late hours, and the worst was an incident where I saw two teens on the top of the parking garage dropping bricks on this guy's car as he entered the parking garage for no reason!

Before I moved out management was very adamant about making a lot of changes, so hopefully it has gotten better since then. But the amenities issue still has not changed which is one of the main reasons why I moved away.

Good post.

The cons won't get fixed anytime soon. I actually shop in VA for food (large walmart in VA). The food shops in clinton and suitland are clean and well stocked though and I often shop at either for various items.

When people come in from out of town, normally I'm in VA, national harbor (although hate paying for parking... silly) or jump on the metro to take them into DC for the restaurant food.

Amazing what you said about towing. I've ever seen a tow truck company in our building, but that does not mean they are not around. I love our permanent parking passes so I don't have to worry about towing.

[MadMat]

Originally Posted by gummywork_89

Hi everyone,

We settled on Carlyle Mill in Alexandria, VA but will be keeping an eye out to buy a home in the next 12 months in PG county. We got a good deal on a place next to Eisenhower Metro that we could not pass up.

Rent prices are not a shocker to us, we are from Southern California only been in PA for a year for a Visiting Assistant Professor Job. Glad to get out of the sticks and back into the city!

I loved the Camp Springs apartments and PGC in general it reminds me of where I grew up as a child. I grew up in a very low income area and nothing scares me LOL, the thing is I enjoy living around normal hard working people who are not fake, I know Alexandria is the opposite of what I'm comfortable with, but the deal we got was amazing for a year... I'm a true believer if you mind your business and don't start problems no one is going to mess with you. Thank you all for your help!

You will have better gun laws in VA.

You think the camp springs apartments are low-income? LOL... for over 15 years I've made well over 100k a year (but I'm not the flashy type, so you would not know). I've not seen what would qualify as low-income people in the building. Or maybe we have a different definition of low-income and middle class.

You have a mix of people in tribeca, I'd say middle class but definitely not predominantly welfare types. I won't say they are not here. Of course there are subsidized living quarters all over the DC metro region. I'm sure you will find that in the building you are moving into.

Don't get me wrong, I'm not upset or bent out of shape about what you typed. I get perplexed when I read comments like that about this area. Looking at a map, I'd guess that, but living here is a different experience.

And don't get comfortable in VA. I've had friends learn the hard way that it is not some crime free Mecca.

[EdwardA]

Originally Posted by MadMat

You will have better gun laws in VA.

You think the camp springs apartments are low-income? LOL... for over 15 years I've made well over 100k a year (but I'm not the flashy type, so you would not know). I've not seen what would qualify as low-income people in the building. Or maybe we have a different definition of low-income and middle class.

You have a mix of people in tribeca, I'd say middle class but definitely not predominantly welfare types. I won't say they are not here. Of course there are subsidized living quarters all over the DC metro region. I'm sure you will find that in the building you are moving into.

Don't get me wrong, I'm not upset or bent out of shape about what you typed. I get perplexed when I read comments like that about this area. Looking at a map, I'd guess that, but living here is a different experience.

And don't get comfortable in VA. I've had friends learn the hard way that it is not some crime free Mecca.

I don't think he was referring to the area as low income. He's saying that his background growing up in a very low income area doesn't scare him off from areas easily.

[gummywork_89]

Hi MadMat,
I didn’t mean to say the apartments in Camp Springs are low income. They are definitely very expensive and nice. Like I said, I really liked the apartments. The issue that I had was shopping. I did not want to drive 5+ miles to buy everyday basics. Now that I’m more familiar with the area I see that District Heights has a lot of stores so it would not have been too bad. I really hope that some small shop opens up walking distance to the Camp Springs apartments. I mean Tribeca has retail space available as well as Carmel. Like you said these are not low income apartments and obviously the residents here have disposable income.
What I meant when I said I’m more comfortable with living in low income areas, I should have said average areas. I’m not sure how to word it. I grew up in City Heights San Diego, City Heights is predominantly a community of immigrants. When I graduated college my partner and moved to the La Jolla San Diego area. I hated living in La Jolla. La Jolla is the most affluent area of San Diego. It felt extremely fake to me, neighbors were not friendly at all. I couldn’t wait for our lease to be up to move back to City Heights.
Like I said, when we buy a house I’m going to look into MD such as Waldorf, Bowie and even the areas surrounding Camp Springs such as District Heights and Suitland due to their proximity to DC. The apartment we rented in Alexandria is nice, however, to me the surrounding area to too sterile for me. But having stores walking distance played a big factor in choice. If you have any recommendations of where to look at houses let me know. Once I’m working I’m sure our income will be 200k plus. Even though we can most likely buy in Alexandria or Arlington I’d prefer to have an affordable home that we can pay off in 5 years or so. I don’t want to be paying a mortgage for 30 years which would be the case in Alexandria or Arlington. Thanks again!

[MadMat]

Originally Posted by gummywork_89

Hi MadMat,
I didn’t mean to say the apartments in Camp Springs are low income. They are definitely very expensive and nice. Like I said, I really liked the apartments. The issue that I had was shopping. I did not want to drive 5+ miles to buy everyday basics. Now that I’m more familiar with the area I see that District Heights has a lot of stores so it would not have been too bad. I really hope that some small shop opens up walking distance to the Camp Springs apartments. I mean Tribeca has retail space available as well as Carmel. Like you said these are not low income apartments and obviously the residents here have disposable income.
What I meant when I said I’m more comfortable with living in low income areas, I should have said average areas. I’m not sure how to word it. I grew up in City Heights San Diego, City Heights is predominantly a community of immigrants. When I graduated college my partner and moved to the La Jolla San Diego area. I hated living in La Jolla. La Jolla is the most affluent area of San Diego. It felt extremely fake to me, neighbors were not friendly at all. I couldn’t wait for our lease to be up to move back to City Heights.
Like I said, when we buy a house I’m going to look into MD such as Waldorf, Bowie and even the areas surrounding Camp Springs such as District Heights and Suitland due to their proximity to DC. The apartment we rented in Alexandria is nice, however, to me the surrounding area to too sterile for me. But having stores walking distance played a big factor in choice. If you have any recommendations of where to look at houses let me know. Once I’m working I’m sure our income will be 200k plus. Even though we can most likely buy in Alexandria or Arlington I’d prefer to have an affordable home that we can pay off in 5 years or so. I don’t want to be paying a mortgage for 30 years which would be the case in Alexandria or Arlington. Thanks again!

I apologize, I did not understand you correctly. One of the other forum members corrected me as well.

I hear you... I normally stock up on what I need and don't drive that much. I have a huge frig here so... lol

It is smart to get something to pay off... that is what I'm doing. Will have this paid off in a couple of years... Exact same condo in VA was more than double what I paid. And the condo fees in VA were at least $200 more per month...

I know, mine might not go up in price as fast, but right now I'm putting the money I'm saving into my retirement (maxing out my 401K and saving additional money in ETF/mutual funds/CDs).... it is a wonderful thing. I'm thinking once paid off, I'll stay in it and then rent it out if I ever leave. It will always be by the metro so someone will want to rent it. My break even is 8 years (from renting)... and I'll be living here for that long at least. Everything else is "profit".

Financially this has been one of the best decisions I've made... love it here.